Meet Derick Aveline, hero of SWEET DECEPTION

Lord Derick Aveline has to finish one last mission before leaving his days of espionage behind—but his hunt for a traitor leads him to his childhood friend, Emma Wallingford. When deception, however sweet, is the name of the game, no one can be trusted. And every love—and every life—is at risk. (Second in the Veiled Seduction Series)

Thank you for being here with me to celebrate the release of my second novel, SWEET DECEPTION, which is available wherever books are sold today!

Those of you who have read my debut, SWEET ENEMY, already know a little about our latest hero, Derick Aveline…or do you?

You see, Derick is a wholly different person in his own story than he was in Geoffrey and Liliana’s.  As an agent of the War Department, Derick acted precisely as he needed to in order to complete his mission in SWEET ENEMY. But the Derick you’ll come to know (and hopefully love) in SWEET DECEPTION was an enigma even to me, a character I knew and didn’t know…just as he knew and didn’t know himself. You see, he became a spy at 18, and as he says to our heroine at one point:
          
       “I’ve been pretending to be someone else my entire adult life, Emma,” he murmured, swallowing against the sudden scratching in his throat. “I couldn’t tell you who I truly am anymore.”

The Inspiration:

I envisioned Derick as sort of a Regency-era James Bond, yet one who was through with the “Bond Girls”, as it were. Think Bond, but when he’s done…finished with the life he’s led and longing for something simple and real… Oh, and toss in some pretty dark secrets that he is certain make him unloveable.

NAME: Frederick (Derick) Charles Aveline, Viscount Scarsdale (31)

THE OUTER PERSON:

Derick as I envisioned him as writing (although without the spiky hair...oh, and in a cravat!)

Derick is uncommonly tall, lean and sinewy rather than bulky.  He’s called “dashing”, has a quick flashing smile that he tosses around liberally.  His hair is dark as night, with glittering green eyes with a slant that almost reminds one of a gypsy.  He’s always impeccably dressed.  He hides speculation beneath an easy smile.  His voice is a rich baritone.

THE INNER PERSON:

Lord Frederick (Derick) Charles Aveline, Viscount Scarsdale, is an imposter.  Not by choice, mind you, but by blood.  Even his very English name mocks him, because Derick knows what few others do:  that his French mother brought her lover to England with her and cuckolded his aristocratic “father”, bearing him a full French-blooded heir.  Now that his service to the Crown (as a double agent for the British against the French) is almost complete, Derick has decided that he belongs in neither country.  He cannot go to France, for obvious reasons, yet he can no longer live a lie, pretending to be a British aristocrat while knowing full well not a drop of British blood courses through him.  He was still reeling from learning his entire life had been a lie when he was recruited as a spy at the age of 18 and he’s been playing different roles for so long now, he has no idea who he really is. He knows one thing, though—he can’t find himself while pretending to be the aristocrat that he is not. 

In between finishing his investigations of suspected traitors, he’s spent the last months securing all of his “father’s” estates, making certain they will continue to run efficiently for the sake of the tenants and servants who depend upon them before he puts England behind him forever.  But he has one last estate to deal with:  the far flung Derbyshire manor to which his mother had been banished when Derick’s “father” discovered her deceit.  He hasn’t been there since he was a young man, not even after his mother’s suspicious death—not that he could have come to her funeral, as he was stuck overseas at the time.  And he wouldn’t be going back now if it didn’t figure in his last job for the Crown—to uncover once and for all the identity of a traitor who was suspected of having operated out of upper Derbyshire.  Though it chafes more and more with each passing day, Derek slips on his façade of spoiled aristocrat one last time.

Of course, he’s going to come up against a heroine who is completely different than him, but who just may hold the key to helping him re-discover himself…

Come back tomorrow to meet Miss Emma Wallingford!

Leave a comment for your chance to win a copy of my debut, SWEET ENEMY (or, if you've already read it, I will substitute with another historical romance...many to choose from!). You MUST leave your e-mail in the comments section to be eligible… Here's a question:

Were you a Bond fan? What appealled or didn't appeal to you about him?

Heather Snow is a historical romance author with a degree in Chemistry who discovered she much preferred creating chemistry on the page, rather than in the lab.  She lives in the Midwest with her husband, two rambunctious boys and one very put upon cat.  Find out more or connect with Heather at:

www.HeatherSnowBooks.com

Facebook www.facebook.com/AuthorHeatherSnow

Twitter www.twitter.com/HeatherSnowRW

SWEET DECEPTION Available NOW:

Rainy Day Books (my local indie)
Amazon (Kindle Edition)
Amazon (Mass Market Paperback)
Barnes and Noble
The Book Depository (free shipping worldwide)

Books-A-Million
IndieBound
I-books
Walmart