I'm thrilled to welcome the lovely Susanne Matthews to the blog today. She's here to show off her newest book, THE CAPTAIN'S PROMISE. Isn't this a fantastic cover??
BLURB:
Etienne Blouin left Danielle de Cherbourg in tears,
promising to return; he didn’t. Ten years later, Etienne learns she’s been
widowed and left almost penniless. Now a wealthy ship’s captain, he offers to
help her, but the only reply he gets is from her aunt telling him to leave
Danielle alone. Convinced she’s in trouble, he determines to rescue her whether
she likes it or not, even if it means losing her love.
Danielle is shocked to learn that her companion is going to
the colonies, while she is to marry a cruel and powerful man as repayment of
her husband’s gambling debts.
Despondent, she sees no way out of the horrendous situation. When her
carriage is waylaid and she’s kidnapped, she fears the worse.
Etienne has enemies
who don’t want La Belle Rose to make port. Can he outfox them to save his ship
and the woman he loves?
EXCERPT:
Cherbourg, August 1, 1664
Danielle
glanced around the area to make sure those working in the pasture were far
enough away not to overhear their conversation. Ashamed of herself for putting
her own needs above those of her best friend, she tried to pull a resisting
Marie away from the pond. How could she have been so thoughtless? Papa had
insisted Marie not use her gift of second sight to see into the future, and yet
Danielle had begged her to do just that. Rumors of renewed interest in
punishing witchery were rife. Superstitious people, especially those who were
hungry and frightened, goaded by priests who liked to blame everything on sin,
could turn quickly on friend and foe alike. A plague had struck Europe again killing
thousands in Amsterdam, the spring had been a cold, wet one, and the crops were
not doing as well as they should. Someone had to take the blame for these
“unnatural” occurrences.
Asking
Marie to scry, especially out here in the meadow where anyone could see them,
was both foolish and dangerous. Like every powerful man in France, Papa had
enemies who’d like nothing better than to bring disaster down on him. Wouldn’t
it enhance a man’s position if he were to accuse the ward of the Count de
Cherbourg of witchcraft? Why stop there? Why not accuse the whole family? At
the very least, they might be excommunicated for giving aid and comfort to the
devil’s minion. She shook her head. When would she learn to think before she
acted?
Tears
flowed down Marie’s pale cheeks as she continued to stare into the still waters
of the pond, drawn by the images only she could see. Danielle pulled harder on
the girl’s arm, finally dislodging her and pulling her upright. Marie backed
away from the water, but her gaze was ensnared by the vision still holding her.
Danielle shook Marie and took her into her arms.
“Enough!
Look away, dearest. Please look away. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you
to do this. I never expected you’d have such a distressing vision. I’m anxious
to see Etienne. I only wanted to know what his surprise would be. I’m hoping
he’ll ask for my hand in marriage. You’ve seen the way some of those lecherous
old men look at me. If I were affianced, it would stop.” She shook her head,
the long, red tresses shining in the sunlight. “This has to be a false vision—a
punishment for my willfulness.”
Marie
pushed away from her, annoyance and frustration evident in the set of her thin,
trembling shoulders. She glared at Danielle and raised her hand to swipe
angrily at her tears. She shook her head, and Danielle could sense the sorrow
there. What on earth did she see to upset her so much? She shivered.
“I’ve
told you before, Elle. The visions never lie, but they don’t always answer the
questions I’ve asked. Sometimes, they’re cryptic, only providing glimpses of
what’s to come. At other times, they’re far clearer than I’d like them to be.
They aren’t mine to command. Normally, they show me a few weeks or days, but
this time they’ve shown me years, years of sorrow and pain.”
Strangled
sobs punctuated her words, driving guilt and fear deep into Danielle’s heart.
She stared at her companion as an eerie frisson coursed through her body. As
young girls, Danielle, Marie, and their playmates had often looked into the
mirror or into the fire to see what would happen in the future, a harmless
parlor game played by girls across France. Danielle had never seen anything
during their foolishness, but when Marie claimed she’d seen her father, the
count’s captain of the guard, fall from his horse, the game had ended. The fact
Marie’s father had died only a few weeks later from a fall, similar to the one
she’d described, had led to months of speculation about the child. The rumors
had ended when Papa had made her his ward, offering her the protection of
Cherbourg, and adopting her into the family. Not all the relatives had been
pleased with that decision.
“Don’t
look at me like that.” Danielle turned away from her to avoid the pity she read
clearly in Marie’s chocolate brown eyes, eyes which seemed far older than their
fourteen years. No matter what Marie had seen, the daughter of a count wasn’t
to be pitied. Her life was one of ease and privilege—even Marie had to work for
her keep, although her duties as Danielle’s companion, were light.
Marie
reached out to her and took her hands. “The spirits showed me many things in
the still waters today, including the answer to your question.” She hung her
head.
Terror
gripped Danielle. Her breathing quickened, her heart pounded, and her palms grew
wet. Sweat trickled down her back, making her linen chemise stick to her. She
didn’t want to know what Marie had seen, but her insatiable curiosity forced
her to look at her friend and ask.
“What
did you see?”
“I’m
so sorry, Elle. I saw you broken-hearted, crying in the arms of a soldier.
Alas, while you’ll be a bride, Etienne won’t be your groom.”
Danielle
covered her ears, refusing to believe the words wounding her, crushing her
girlish dreams. “No! I won’t listen to any more of this. It’s not true—it can’t
be true. Etienne loves me. I know he does.” Tears brimmed her eyes. “You’re
wrong. This terrible vision is God’s judgment on us for defying the Church and
Papa.”
She
swallowed the panic and bitterness in her throat. There was no way she’d ever
marry anyone but Etienne.
Marie
hung her head. “Ah, Elle, how I wish it were as simple as that. This gift is a
curse. As I get older, I see more and more things that cause me pain and grief.
I’m sorry.”
“It’s
not your fault.” Guilt forced Danielle to put her arm around her friend,
despite her anxiety. “Come. Let’s go back to the house and see what cook has
prepared for tonight’s feast.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Susanne Matthews was born and raised in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. She’s always been an
avid reader of all types of books, but always with a penchant for happily ever
after romances. In her imagination, she travelled to foreign lands, past and
present, and soared into the future. Today, gets to spend her time writing, so
she can share her adventures with her readers. She loves the ins and outs of
romance, and the complex journey it takes to get from the first word to the
last period of a novel. As she writes, her characters take on a life of their
own, and she shares their fears and agonies on the road to self-discovery and
love.
