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 Sara,
can you give prospective readers a brief précis of The Rose and
The Shield?
Sure, Bronwyn. The Rose and the Shield tells the story
of Lady Rose of Somerford Manor, and Gunnar Olafson, a mercenary
employed by Lord Radulf (Rose’s overlord) to spy upon her. Of
course, Rose doesn’t know this. She thinks Gunnar is at
Somerford to help protect her and her people against the
mysterious attacks that have been taking place. As soon as
Gunnar and Rose meet they feel an incredible attraction to one
another. Rose fights it, because she has been brought up not to
trust men and she certainly doesn’t trust Gunnar or this
feeling she has for him. Gunnar is also thrown into a difficult
position. Does he continue to spy upon her, or does he trust her
(as his heart tells him to do) and give her his allegiance? His
choice is made more difficult because Radulf has promised to
give him Somerford Manor, if he proves Lady Rose is a spy. So
there is a battle going on inside the two main characters, as
well as the battle with the evil forces lurking beyond the manor
gates.
I loved your Viking warrior Gunnar, but I won’t pre-empt
my question by listing his many fine qualities. What, in your
eyes, makes him a fabulous hero?
His muscles? Just joking. No, I think it is the fact that he
is heroic in his actions. Once he promises to be Rose’s man,
he means it. Once he sees that Rose is innocent and needs his
help, he sets out to help her. He is honourable and brave and
kind. But he also has his flaws, so he’s human. A think heroes
need to have flaws, so that they can overcome their weaknesses
and be even more heroic.
I have always thought it must be a difficult task to
create a heroine befitting the Medieval era - a woman strong
enough to appeal to the modern reader yet not out of her time.
In Lady Rose you have succeeded admirably. How do you go about
creating your Medieval characters? Are there traps a beginner
writer should beware?
I do like to make a Medieval heroine as believable as
possible. Women in those days may well have been strong and
brave, but they were also oppressed and very much in the power
of their menfolk. I try to show their lives as they must have
been, yes, but I have to take into account the fact that we are
modern readers, and we are looking for a heroine who will appeal
to us. Let’s be frank, I don’t know if a meek and put-upon
lady of the manor would sell many books! I noticed, though, I
had quite a few reviews in the US criticising Lady Rose as being
far too vulnerable to ever hold Somerford Manor-I thought I had
written her as a gentle, kind-hearted but basically very strong
woman. It just shows you can’t please everyone. I think that
is probably my tip to beginner writers-Don’t try to please
everyone. Write characters who appeal to you, and make them as
real to the setting as you can without them losing that modern
appeal.
The Somerset setting is unique and intriguing. Tell us a
little about how you came to choose the meres and the merefolk
and how that worked in with the plot?
I’ve always loved stories of Avalon and Glastonbury and
King Arthur. I knew that that part of Somerset was a huge marsh
long ago, and that Glastonbury Tor was in fact an island. When I
read up about it, I discovered the marshes extended much further
than I had realised. I probably would have set the story around
Glastonbury rather than Burrow Mump, but then I discovered
another Avon author was writing a take on King Arthur, so I
moved my location, slightly. I found a picture of Burrow Mump on
the internet and printed it out and taped it above my computer,
and it helped me to feel I was actually there, in the Mere.
Radulf and Lily from your previous Avon release, The
Lily and The Sword, feature in the story while remaining
off-page. Was it tempting to give them an appearance?
Yes, I would have liked to write another instalment to their
story, but I had to content myself with continuing their lives
off-page, as you say. In my next book, Once He Loves,
Lily and Radulf appear again, and in fact they have a lot more
to do with that story than this one.
Are there more books set in this time period featuring
these characters? Ivo’s story mayhaps?
Yes, Ivo’s story will be told in Once He Loves. He
travels to York, with Radulf, when there is trouble brewing on
Lily’s northern lands. There he meets Briar, the daughter of
the traitor Richard Kenton, from The Lily and the Sword.
Briar has set out to seduce Radulf, whom she blames for the
death of her father, and she mistakenly believes Ivo is Radulf.
After that, things get complicated.
What else have you been working on, aside from the
medievals? Have you other stories, perhaps in other historical
periods, to tell?
I have written a Scottish book for my fourth book with Avon,
set in the 18th century. That doesn’t mean I’ve stopped
writing Medievals; I just felt like a change. The book I am
writing now (the fifth) is another Medieval in the same series.
I have also written a Regency romance called The Decadent
Countess under the name Deborah Miles for Harlequin Mills
& Boon, which will be out in the UK in March, and a couple
of months later in Australia. I’d like to write other things,
different things, but I don’t have the time any more. Avon
keep me very busy!
Where can readers contact you?
Most of my readers contact me through my website
, which I try to update every few months, and I do a big update
every six months, when a new book is due out. I’ll probably be
doing an update in the near future, to coincide with Once He
Loves being released in April, and I’ll also be sending
out an email newsletter. If anyone wants to join up, there’s a
spot to go to on the website. I also run a monthly contest, with
books and coverflats as prizes. The prize for my January contest
is a hardback copy of The Decadent Countess. I get quite
a lot of emails from people who have read and enjoyed my books,
and I always reply to them as quickly as I can.
 The Rose and The Shield
was released in Australia in October 2002, and is still available from
romance specialist bookstores such as Rendezvous (Australia) or
Barbara’s Books (New Zealand.)
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