Lucy Ashford - The Major and the Pickpocket

Praise for

Lucy Ashford

writing as Elizabeth Redfern:

THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES

‘Unputdownable…[a] remarkable debut…a glittering

tale of London in 1795, full of science, intrigue, war,

revolution, and obsessive passion.’

— Guardian

‘An engrossing read and a rich,

pungent evocation of the period.’

— The Observer

‘…brilliantly handled to keep the reader guessing

right to the end.’

— Charles Palliser

‘Striking and original…a star is born.’— Literary Review

‘Quite wonderful…It is Redfern’s ability to

bring each scene, each character alive

that makes this such toothsome reading.’

— USA TODAY

AURIEL RISING

‘Intelligent.’— The New York Times

‘Richly atmospheric…Redfern’s strength

is in recreating a morally corrupt world…’

— Publishers Weekly

‘You do have qualities in which I am interested,’ Marcus said.

‘There is a man in London on whom I wish, very badly, to be revenged. He has several weaknesses, and I intend to attack accordingly. Firstly he is a gambler, who cannot resist a challenge when the stakes are high. And secondly he has a marked liking for pretty women who are skilled at card play.’

‘So I’m ruled out for certain, surely, if you are looking for someone pretty? Since you make it quite clear that I am nothing of the kind!’

She saw a half-smile flicker across his strong mouth—a dangerous, all-male smile. ‘Those weren’t my precise words, minx,’ he said softly. ‘I think, in fact, that you could be very, very pretty.’

Tassie felt the colour rising in her cheeks. ‘You jest with me.’

‘I assure you, this is not jest.’ No, indeed. His voice, his expression told her he was in deadly earnest. ‘To put it briefly, Tassie, you and I could help each other out quite considerably.’

Lucy Ashford,an English Studies lecturer, has always loved literature and history, and from childhood one of her favourite occupations has been to immerse herself in historical romances. She studied English with history at Nottingham University, and the Regency is her favourite period.

Lucy has written several historical novels, but this is her first for Mills & Boon. She lives with her husband in an old stone cottage in the Peak District, near to beautiful Chatsworth House and Haddon Hall, all of which give her a taste of the magic of life in a bygone age. Her garden enjoys spectacular views over the Derbyshire hills, where she loves to roam and let her imagination go to work on her latest story.

This is Lucy Ashford’s debut novel for Mills & Boon® Historical Romance.

I’ve always adored historical romances. I grew up daydreaming about King Arthur’s knights, Rosemary Sutcliff’s Roman heroes, the Scarlet Pimpernel and, of course, Georgette Heyer’s Regency rakes.

So you can imagine that, although I’d had some success writing historical thrillers, I was really longing to create a romance set in a bygone age. And who else to approach but Mills & Boon?

After a lot of fun dreaming up my plot and characters, and with a great deal of help from skilled and sympathetic editors, I finally became a Mills & Boon author with THE MAJOR AND THE PICKPOCKET. The story is set in 1780, at a time when gambling fever was really starting to take the nation in its grip. Great lords and ladies would lose and win mighty fortunes in all-night sittings. My feisty heroine, Tassie, is as skilled as any of them at tricking her way out of trouble at the turn of a card—that is, until the wounded war hero Major Marcus Forrester calls her bluff!

So here it is—my first Mills & Boon® Historical Romance. I do hope you enjoy the story of how the Major and the mischievous pickpocket Tassie discover true love together.

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Cover Page

Praise Praise for Lucy Ashford writing as Elizabeth Redfern: THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES ‘Unputdownable…[a] remarkable debut…a glittering tale of London in 1795, full of science, intrigue, war, revolution, and obsessive passion.’ — Guardian ‘An engrossing read and a rich, pungent evocation of the period.’ — The Observer ‘…brilliantly handled to keep the reader guessing right to the end.’ — Charles Palliser ‘Striking and original…a star is born.’— Literary Review ‘Quite wonderful…It is Redfern’s ability to bring each scene, each character alive that makes this such toothsome reading.’ — USA TODAY AURIEL RISING ‘Intelligent.’— The New York Times ‘Richly atmospheric…Redfern’s strength is in recreating a morally corrupt world…’ — Publishers Weekly

Excerpt ‘You do have qualities in which I am interested,’ Marcus said. ‘There is a man in London on whom I wish, very badly, to be revenged. He has several weaknesses, and I intend to attack accordingly. Firstly he is a gambler, who cannot resist a challenge when the stakes are high. And secondly he has a marked liking for pretty women who are skilled at card play.’ ‘So I’m ruled out for certain, surely, if you are looking for someone pretty? Since you make it quite clear that I am nothing of the kind!’ She saw a half-smile flicker across his strong mouth—a dangerous, all-male smile. ‘Those weren’t my precise words, minx,’ he said softly. ‘I think, in fact, that you could be very, very pretty.’ Tassie felt the colour rising in her cheeks. ‘You jest with me.’ ‘I assure you, this is not jest.’ No, indeed. His voice, his expression told her he was in deadly earnest. ‘To put it briefly, Tassie, you and I could help each other out quite considerably.’

Author The Author Lucy Ashford, an English Studies lecturer, has always loved literature and history, and from childhood one of her favourite occupations has been to immerse herself in historical romances. She studied English with history at Nottingham University, and the Regency is her favourite period. Lucy has written several historical novels, but this is her first for Mills & Boon. She lives with her husband in an old stone cottage in the Peak District, near to beautiful Chatsworth House and Haddon Hall, all of which give her a taste of the magic of life in a bygone age. Her garden enjoys spectacular views over the Derbyshire hills, where she loves to roam and let her imagination go to work on her latest story. This is Lucy Ashford’s debut novel for Mills & Boon® Historical Romance.

Author Note AUTHOR NOTE I’ve always adored historical romances. I grew up daydreaming about King Arthur’s knights, Rosemary Sutcliff’s Roman heroes, the Scarlet Pimpernel and, of course, Georgette Heyer’s Regency rakes. So you can imagine that, although I’d had some success writing historical thrillers, I was really longing to create a romance set in a bygone age. And who else to approach but Mills & Boon? After a lot of fun dreaming up my plot and characters, and with a great deal of help from skilled and sympathetic editors, I finally became a Mills & Boon author with THE MAJOR AND THE PICKPOCKET. The story is set in 1780, at a time when gambling fever was really starting to take the nation in its grip. Great lords and ladies would lose and win mighty fortunes in all-night sittings. My feisty heroine, Tassie, is as skilled as any of them at tricking her way out of trouble at the turn of a card—that is, until the wounded war hero Major Marcus Forrester calls her bluff! So here it is—my first Mills & Boon® Historical Romance. I do hope you enjoy the story of how the Major and the mischievous pickpocket Tassie discover true love together.