The Last Rake In London
Nicola Cornick

orginally featured June 2008

1-Can you tell us briefly about your novel The Last Rake In London?

Harlequin Mills & Boon asked me to write a book set in 1908 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of their founding and I was very excited to be a part of the centenary celebrations! The book is dedicated to my grandmother who was born in 1908 and almost made it to her 100th birthday this year, which was an amazing achievement. She was a very special person, a true Edwardian lady, and this is a very special book for me.

The Last Rake in London is set in the glittering and hedonistic world of Edwardian high society. It moves between the gambling clubs of London and an opulent country house estate. Edwardian society was at its height at this time, the rich lived very conspicuously, and the impression is of a sunlit world of fabulous wealth. Beneath the surface it was very different with poverty and inequality, and a taste of this also comes through in the book. It was a fascinating era to write about.

2-What challenges does your heroine Sally face in this novel?

The most important thing to Sally is to take care of her family. Following the death of her father she has worked so hard for her security and to look after her younger sisters, and when Jack Kestrel comes along he puts at risk everything she has striven for and everything she holds dear. Sally is a very strong woman – she has had to be in order to hold her family together - and she knows Jack is dangerous and a threat. She is determined that he isn’t going to be allowed to take away her livelihood. But at the same time she is instantly attracted to him so she faces a huge conflict.

3-How do your heroine and hero meet?

Sally and Jack meet at an exhibition of miniatures at the Wallace Collection in London. It’s a glittering social occasion and Sally is there with an old friend but Jack has gone there especially to hunt her down.

4-Tell the readers about Jack Kestrel and what you like about him the most?

One reader described Jack as a very sexy bad boy, and who am I to disagree? Jack is the ultimate Edwardian rake – he is the last of the line of the Dukes of Kestrel, and is descended from the Regency rakes and scoundrels I wrote about in my Bluestocking Brides series. Jack is also a self-made man and when he wants something he doesn’t let anything stand in his way. What do I like about him the most? The fact that he is a true rake, absolutely ruthless in seducing Sally, but that he’s going to meet his match in her whether he realises it or not.

5-What is your favorite scene in the novel?

I love the scene where Jack is gambling in Sally’s casino and he’s about to break the bank and ruin her, and when Sally rushes in to try and stop him he offers her a wager…

6-What do you have coming out next and are you able to tell us about it?

My next book is out in July 2008, which makes this an even more exciting time for me! It’s a dark and sensual Regency historical called Unmasked and it’s set in Yorkshire and features the exploits of a band of highwaywomen who take from the rich to give to the poor. Here’s the back cover copy:

“Can innocent young widow Mari Osborne really be a murderess and the notorious leader of the Glory Girls highwaywomen?

Wickedly handsome Nick Falconer would stake his life on it! He’s been sent from London to the tranquil English village of Peacock Oak to solve the murder of his cousin Rashleigh and unmask this female Robin Hood. But Nick never expected that Mari would be so intoxicatingly beautiful. Determined to have her – body, soul and secrets – at any cost, Nick sets out to seduce her with a passion that inflames them both.

Mari holds much deeper, darker truths than Nick could ever imagine. Despite her fierce resistance, she can’t stop her body from yearning for his touch. Can she hide her sinister past from him much longer? Or will trusting the one man she so desperately wants lead her straight to the hangman’s noose?”