CHARACTER INTERVIEW - SAMANTHA TONGE (DOUBTING ABBEY)

The author interviews her hero, Lord Edward, halfway through the story of Doubting Abbey…

‘Hello Lord Edward. Very nice to meet you!’ Yum! I blush.

‘Good morning – and thank you for this opportunity, to talk about beloved Applebridge Hall.’ Edward runs a hand through his honey curls. ‘Promotion isn’t something that comes naturally to me - but needs must. Please, do start your interview.’

The author visits Lyme Park in Cheshire – all in the name of research about brooding heroes and aristocratic estates, of course! 

If I can concentrate with this hunk in front of me, yes… ‘So, your cousin Abbey lives here at Applebridge, now - temporarily. Is she, um, exactly what you expected?

‘Yes, of course, I mean…’ He won’t meet my eye, clearly guilty at having to pretend they were best mates when they’d only met each other once,  growing up. ‘I do know her very well… We are a terribly close family. And apart from the occasional unexpected outburst she is everything a strong Croxley woman should be –although granted, her behaviour is less… restrained than I, um, remember.’

I nod. Blimey. He did it. Upstanding Lord Edward managed a fib. Although little did he know that the ‘Abbey’ staying with him now was actually a pizza waitress – Gemma - in disguise. In fact talking of her…

‘And what about the girl with the red hair and high shoes that you met in the gardens, the other night?’ Oh yes, flighty Gemma bumped into him, when she was out of her Abbey disguise.

‘You know about that?’ For a second the serious fog around him lifts and light dances in his eyes. Edward chuckles. ‘Gemma is… is a beam of honesty, directness and… f…fun.’

I lean forward. ‘You seem to have trouble saying that f word.’

His brow goes back to its default setting: a frown. ‘I do. What with the last few years filled with worry about not letting our ancestors down… Applebridge Hall is seeped in history… Father and I don’t want to be the Croxleys who see the place go to rack and ruin. Fun doesn’t picture much in the daily routine, I’m afraid.’

His shoulders sag and I just want to put my arms around him and… *sigh*. ‘But it wouldn’t be your fault – many estates struggle nowadays,’ I say softly.

No trace of light in his eyes now, Edward sits up taller. ‘It’s my responsibility to protect the Croxley home and its history – and I’ll do everything in my power to achieve that.’ He shook himself. ‘There’s no point complaining. One must strive to be a glass half-full sort of person. I have to believe that, with Abbey’s help, Applebridge Hall will win reality show Million Dollar Mansion and thus secure its financial future.’

I nod, a lump in my throat at the stoic determination in his tone. ‘Well, I um, won’t keep you any longer. Thank you for your time.’ I smile.

Lord Edward leans forward and shakes my hand. ‘Many thanks, Samantha.’

Heart racing, I manage to remain composed until he leaves the room. Wow! His touch sent a bolt of electricity right through my fingers. Despite his uptight nature and conservative clothes, Edward, baby, is one hot guy…!

Sadly, Lord Edward did NOT re-enact the infamous 'Darcy emerges from a swim in the lake in a wet, clingy shirt' scene when Samantha met with him.

Book Blurb 

Swapping downstairs for upstairs… How hard can it be!?

Look up the phrase ordinary girl and you’ll see a picture of me, Gemma Goodwin – I only look half-decent after applying the entire contents of my make-up bag, and my dating track-record includes a man who treated me to dinner…at a kebab shop. No joke!

The only extraordinary thing about me is that I look EXACTLY like my BFF, Abbey Croxley. Oh, and that for reasons I can’t explain, I’ve agreed to swap identities and pretend be her to star in the TV show about her aristocratic family’s country estate, Million Dollar Mansion.

So now it’s not just my tan I’m faking – it’s Kate Middleton style demure hemlines and lady-like manners too. And amongst the hundreds of fusty etiquette rules I’m trying to cram into my head, there are two I really must remember; 1) No-one can ever find out that I’m just Gemma, who’d be more at home in the servants quarters. And 2) There can be absolutely no flirting with Abbey’s dishy but buttoned-up cousin, Lord Edward.

Aaargh, this is going to be harder than I thought…

Author Bio

Samantha lives in north-west England with her lovely family and two cats who think they are dogs. Along with writing, her days are spent swimming, willing cakes to rise and avoiding housework. A love of fiction developed as a child, when she was known for reading Enid Blyton books in the bath. A desire to write bubbled away in the background whilst she pursued other careers, including a fun stint working at the EuroDisney theme park. Formally trained as a linguist, Samantha now likes nothing more than holing herself up in the spare room, in front of the keyboard. Writing romantic comedy novels and short stories is her passion.

Samantha has sold over 80 short stories to women's magazines.

Her debut romantic comedy novel, "Doubting Abbey" is out now, from digital-first imprint CarinaUK, (Harlequin).

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