Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Guest Post & Giveaway: Honour by A.F. Henley

~ Please help me welcome AF Henley to Pants Off for the very first time. Be sure to say hello, and enter the giveaway.~

Right now, somewhere out there in this world, probably even right here in the province of Ontario, is a man that would fall down dead if he heard I just wrote a historical novel. I'll skip the boring parts of names and titles and we'll just call him Mr. G, my grade ten history teacher. Grade ten, I can say with equal parts relief and joy, was the very last year I was forced to learn a date, a fact, or a concept with relation to history. At the time, a student had to take history from grade four forward. After grade ten, you could opt out. (And I did. To roaring fanfare, both mine and teacher alike. There's a strong possibility that I may have burned my notes as well. At a party ... thrown to do just that. I'm not going to confirm or deny. I'm just saying ... there's a chance.)

The problem was that I despised history with every bored bone of my body. I had no interest in what they did then. I wanted to know what we were going to do now! I never bought into the concept of needing to know the how to prevent the reoccurrence. Today was brilliance and yesterday was tarnish; move on or move out. Welcome to the nineties, boys. Hang on, it's gonna be a blast ... (And whoops. I might have just aged myself there. Ah, well.)

Something changed though. I started reading fiction. Suddenly history didn't seem so boring. It was actually kinda cool when one began to think about. Imagine, really, living in a home without a heating system; or a society where the monarchy sought control over not only what you did but what you wore, who you spoke to and how you addressed them when you did. Oh, the fun the right kind of character could have with that – the drama that could, for that matter probably did, ensue.

So no, Mr. G, pick yourself up off the ground. I haven't decided to become a historical guru or anything although, I guess, if I'm being honest, I could admit to a fair bit of researching. And enjoying what I found there.

(I mean, seriously ... swords. Hot. And have you seen the clothes? I could pull of a pink velvet cape, I know I could.)


Check it out:

Honour
M/M Historical Romance
45,500 words


Recently docked after a voyage abroad, Emmett wants only to find a warm bed and good food, for himself and the cabin boy he's taken into his care. Those plans are impeded, however, by an altercation in the streets—with a man he realizes too late is England's heir to the throne, Prince Andrewe. 

 When the encounter unexpectedly leads to a position in the royal household attending the prince, Emmett is not certain what to think. On one hand, it's a reliable income and ensures the safety of his charge. On the other, it's neither the life Emmett knows, nor an environment that he's comfortable in. Left to learn his lessons the hard way, Emmett spends his days contending with a spoiled, infuriating prince who leaves him in a constant tangle of emotions. 

 Then he begins to hear whispers of treason and must make a choice: defend Prince Andrewe, or betray him.


Available at: 
Less Than 3 Press



Giveaway
Also, if I've managed to amuse you enough to keep you interested, and you've made it this far with me, I'd like to offer my appreciation in the form of an opportunity to win a copy of Honour, in the ebook format of your choice. Anyone who leaves a comment is eligible, assuming they are of legal age and able to legally accept the work. Winner will be selected via a random number generator and will close on Wednesday, March 13th.

Cheers. :D

AF Henley


37 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for hosting the blog and the giveaway. It's an honour and a pleasure to be on your site. <3

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  2. Loved the blurb, please count me in. Thanks!

    gisu29(at)gmail(dot)com

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  3. Glad I'm not the only one who felt that way about 'formally' learning history! XD Enjoying these very much, Free! <3

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    1. Thanks vin! And oh God, history. *cringes* :D

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  4. I disliked history, too. Hopping from one war to another, a bunch of old white men. Even when I studied so called "world history" it was all about U.S. imperialism. BO-ring! No pink velvet was ever mentioned. Thanks for a fun post, and great giveaway.

    Urb
    brendurbanist at gmail dot com

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    1. Well here's hoping you get your fair share of pink velvet in the novel then! Thank you so much for commenting! <3

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  5. Thanks for hosting, Darien! Love your blog title.

    Henley, I loved history classes starting in middle school because I started reading historical fiction while taking courses - they actually made us do that. I'm glad you found that interest eventually and wrote this novel! I already have it waiting for me to start reading... after I force myself to do a bit of work... *grins* Looking forward to it!

    Also, thought I've never seen what you look like, for some reason I'm thinking of a more reddish than pink velvet for you XD Or maybe blue. Though I'm sure you could rock the pink.

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    1. Oh man, Pickle. You actually had me questioning which velvet cape would look best. XD

      Thank you so much! I can't wait to hear what you think of it! <3

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    2. It's just... Your personality doesn't scream "pink" to me, ya know? I'm leaning toward deep blue or forest green now. What's your favorite color, anyway?

      Ok, I seriously need to get back to work so I actually CAN start reading. I've been working on promoting your book and Grace's and doing all kinds of other random stuff besides the work I need to do (missed my window to go to the gym but will have to later aaaahhhh and other people who might read this have no idea what I'm talking about but that's ok YAY HONOUR!)

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    3. Does black count as a colour? It's almost the only colour that I wear. Le Sigh that I didn't get a chance to partake in the emo-culture at least clothing-wise, although I did spend my fair share of time in the punk one. Yes, yes, I know. Who know that sweet, sensitive me with my love for suits and white gold was once safety pins, ripped jeans and splash-tees? Thanks for everything, Pickle! Really appreciate it. :D

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    4. Scientifically? Not exactly. For our purposes? Yes. I like wearing black, not in an emo way, it just looks goood! And hehe. Punk can be fun.

      And now that I've started reading Honour (about 1/4 in and adoring it!) I see why you specified pink *giggles at Andrewe's entrance). I had to pass out even though I wanted to keep reading, was soooo tired. Will read more tonight.

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  6. I think when it's all dates and it's hard to picture & understand the life & people at that time, then most history becomes rather boring to me. I think TV, films and books have made me more interested in certain places and time periods. Thanks for the contest!

    strive4bst(At) yahoo(Dot) com

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    1. I so agree with you! And you're very welcome, thank you for the comment! :D

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  7. Thank you again for another opportunity to win your book. I am enjoying reading all the different blogs.

    Karl
    slats5663(at)shaw(dot)ca

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  8. The blurb sounds great!
    Count me in please.

    Kassandra
    sionedkla@gmail.com

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  9. Another giveaway! So many chances of winning this ;D

    jean_b@ofir.dk

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    1. Here's hoping that you do! Thank you so much for commenting :D

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  10. So many chances of winning! Yay! Thank you!

    schan26.wisc@gmail.com

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  11. This is really interesting to me, as a Brit. Please add me to the draw too, Darien.

    corieltauviqueen(at)yahoo.co.uk

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    1. I'd love to hear what you think about the setting and the characters if/when, Sue. :D

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  12. hmm i've been seeing you pop up maderr's and o'shea's site, need to play catch up on this giveaway :3

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    1. I was so going to leave a smarmy reply about popping up ... good sense prevailed. XD

      Best of luck with it! Thank you so much for the comment! :D

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  13. Great blurb...Adding this one to my wish list. Count me in please.
    Yvette
    yratpatrol@aol.com

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  14. Wow, I like historical romances, and this one souns interesting... garlo4z(at)hotmail(dot)com

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    1. Thanks, Loren! As a fan of the genre, I'd love to hear what you think if/when you get the opportunity. <3

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  15. Well, history was also never my forte in the school, but I love costume drama and good historical fiction. I think it's because at school we concentrated on learning about big turning points in the history (battles, king coronations, epidemics, inventions), but not how average people used to live.

    0401romance[at]gmail[dot]com

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    1. I can understand that comment to it's fullest capacity. Cinema and theatre definitely help. Teachers ... take note. XD

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  16. As much as I love reading... just about anything, I struggled with history quite a bit too. They just make it so... uninteresting. Dry, dull facts, none of the adventure and romance and life that really happened.

    ashley.vanburen[at]gmail[dot]com

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    1. I have to agree with you. It's not hard to find the romance if one goes looking for it. It's a shame more of it isn't introduced. Thanks for the comments :)

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  17. Congratulations, Karl, and thank you all so very much for playing along. Special thanks to Darien for hosting. :D

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Go ahead and talk to me!