Shereen Vedam

Guest blog and excerpt by Shereen Vedam

A Beastly Scandal is my first full-length published novel. In this story the heroine vows to the hero to tell the truth and nothing but truth but ends up failing miserably with that promise. Made me think of that TV series, Pretty Little Liars and so I wanted to ask, Have you ever told a lie?

When I was younger, I told lots of them. Once I grew older, I learned it’s better to tell the truth. I suspect my one lie that broke me of that bad habit of fibbing was one that actually turned out to have a happily ever after ending. Perhaps because by then I was determined to tell the truth and the only way to do so, was to make that last lie, true.

I was a new adult back then, on my own (had moved to a new big city) and had a boss who scared me witless. Anyway, I finally gathered up my courage to tell her that I was quitting. Unfortunately, the stress of it all made my face swell up. Not a pretty sight.

She said I should stay in the back of the veterinary clinic because I was frightening the customers. I was glad of the reprieve. After hemming and hawing about this decision for months, I had given my two weeks notice (yay!) and I could taste my freedom.

Later that day, she asked me why I was leaving. I drew a blank and blurted out that I was moving to another city.” (Lie #1)

She said, “Why?”

The trouble with lies is that they can quickly build out of proportion. I said, “Um…I’m enrolled in the University there.”(Lie #2)

“What are you taking?” she asked.

I said the first thing that came to mind, “Creative Writing.” (Lie #3)

Years ago, just to learn how to use a word processor, I had started writing a story, and not given it too much thought after. In the two weeks that followed, just in case she tried to track me down, every weekend I went over to that other city to look for a place to live. I even enrolled in the university there – would you believe, since it was already September, the only course I could get into was Creative Writing?

I never guessed at the time, as I struggled through my first dreaded poetry class (who knew you could write a verse without rhyming?) that writing down some of the crazy stories in my head would turn out to be so much fun!

It’s years later now, and I have a BA in Writing hanging on my bedroom wall to remind me that sometime, even when I’m being utterly foolish, life somehow manages to get me to exactly where I want to go.

My first published fantasy short story (Dragon Dreams, in an anthology called Cat Tales, was partially based on my experience in the job). In A Beastly Scandal, though done for all the right reasons, my heroine gets caught in her own very big lie. Have you ever found yourself telling a whopper and become totally caught up in it?

“It is our Christian duty to visit relatives during the festive season,” Mrs. Jones said. “And I was sure Terrance would have no objection to me visiting his country home, even if I am no longer welcome to live in his London townhouse.”

Rufus kept mum about that well-deserved accusation. After his father’s murder, he had needed to do a thorough search of his townhouse from top to bottom, and he could not do so with his aunt poking her nose into every room he ransacked for clues. The fact that they did not get along had merely given him the perfect excuse to offer her alternate accommodations.

“And it was you, Phillip,” she continued, “who reminded me that Constance might need my company during this first winter without my brother. Though I will not tolerate talk of ghosts while I am in residence.”

“Well said, aunt,” Lord Terrance said, and then looked startled that they were in agreement. “On that note, I, too, extend my invitation to Lady Belle to stay at Clearview Manor, if you agree there will be no more talk of spirits or mysterious happenings with my family.”

Everyone’s attention swung to Belle, and she turned to Lady Terrance. After all, her hostess had invited her to help with a haunting, not to pay a social call.

Giving a melodramatic sigh, her ladyship said, “Very well.”

Belle hesitated longer, and Lord Terrance’s challenging gaze relentlessly held hers captive. She disliked lying. If she gave him her word, she would keep it. But if she disagreed, Lord Terrance would show her the door.

She replayed his exact words, and that cheered her. He had said “no more talk” of otherworldly topics. Not that she must stop working to rid his house of its troubled spirit. Belle was more than happy to complete her task with no one else the wiser. In fact, it might work out better that way.

She nodded. “Agreed.”

A Beastly Scandal
Fairytale-inspired Regency romances

Book 1 of 4
Shereen Vedam
Genre: Regency Romance
Publisher: ImaJinn Books

Book Description:

A BELLE OF THE BALL…

Lady Annabelle Marchant was a belle of the ball in London until she used her psychical senses to save a man’s life. She failed miserably, leaving him dead and her disgraced. All she wants now is a chance to comfort his widow by cleansing the woman’s home of her husband’s restless spirit. But the widow’s son, the beastly Lord of the Manor, accuses her of coming to the wilds of Cheshire to snag him as a husband. Thoroughly disgusted, she is bent on proving him wrong.

…BECOMES PERSONA NON-GRATA…

Lord Rufus Marlesbury, the Earl of Terrance, is suspected of murdering his father. He has come home to clear his name by finding the real killer before the new year or the king has promised that Rufus will be called in front of the House of Lords to answer for the crime. He does not have time to waste fending off a marriage-minded miss who has inveigled an invitation to his home by playing on his grief-stricken mother’s worst fears.

…WHEN A MURDERER IS ON THE RAMPAGE

With an unruly manor ghost terrorizing the occupants and corpses piling up in the village, Belle must find a way to see the man beneath the beast and Rufus must learn to believe in the love of a woman who has no reason to trust him. Only by working together can they stop a vengeful ghost before it torments the guests or before the killer strikes again.

Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/TzFVC4czHOw

About the Author:

Introduced to fantasy at a young age, Shereen's reality is merely a starting point to other realms.

Her world is populated with little people with agendas, elements that talk and spells that rarely work as designed. Her heartwarming historical tales have a healthy dollop of mystery mingled with heart-melting romance, all stirred with a pinch of magic. In her brand new fairytale-inspired Regency romance series, she brings you four beloved fairytales, with a new twist.

Website: www.shereenvedam.com

Blog: http://shereentwo.livejournal.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShereenVedam

Faceboo: https://www.facebook.com/ShereenVedam

Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3415603.Shereen_Vedam



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