Her return has been long awaited and her book much anticipated. Yes, I’m referring to the super-talented, New York Times bestselling author Laura Kinsale. And she’s giving us Lessons in French. Parlez-vous français, anyone?

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Question
Laura, tell us about Lessons In French.

Answer
Do you love those stories where the shy, plain girl gets the hot dashing guy in the end?  Lady Callie ought to be quite a catch–she’s the wealthy daughter of an earl–but she’s been left standing at the altar by three different men.  She’s washed her hands of gentlemen, and her greatest desire is to win the silver cup at the agricultural fair with her prize bull, Hubert.

That’s until Trev d’Augustin waltzes back into her quiet life.  The son of French émigrés, he was run out of town by Callie’s father years ago for stealing a bit more than a kiss from her.  Callie and Trev share quite a past, in fact, full of secret adventures and harebrained antics that no one else knows about, not even Trev’s very shrewd mother.  On his return, Callie is drawn willy-nilly into scandal and deception–the sort of deception that involves trying to hide a huge bull under the bedsheets.  She goes from having no suitors to having more than she wanted.  And in the midst of these escapades, she finds herself falling in love again with the worst possible man for her.

Question
If you could compare Lessons In French to your other books, how would you say it’s different?

Answer
I’ve always had touches of humor in my books, but I’m better known for writing dark, intense book.  I wanted to write an entire book in a light vein.  Readers can expect that this book will be just as emotionally wrenching as any I’ve written–but in a jollier sort of way!

I think this is the perfect time to publish a feel-good story.  All I want for readers with Lessons in French is to sit back, read it and smile.

Question
After your time off from publication how is the entrance back in?

Answer
I’m been enjoying re-connecting with my readers.  I’ve often chatted with readers on the internet, so the social sites like Twitter are familiar ground to me.  Also, I’ve opened a completely re-designed website www.laurakinsale.com where readers can talk about my books and ask me questions.

Question
Which do you think is more important in romance writing, voice or story?

Answer
For me as a reader, both of them are important.  If it was just a plot, then a synopsis would suffice.  But even the most evocative writing doesn’t go anywhere without a good story.  I find that the two things, the words and the story, build and play off of one another.

Question
Who is your favourite author?

Answer
I have a number of favorites, so many that I have a special page www.laurakinsale.com/love on my website to list them.

Question
Are you a plotter or a pantser?

Answer
Definitely a pantser.

Question
Your covers from Sourcebooks are stunning. Did you have any say so in them?

Answer
I asked Sourcebooks to create elegant and colorful covers.  I think they came up with some of the prettiest colors I’ve seen.

Question
What is next for you, and when will readers expect to see it out on book shelves?

Answer
I’m working on several different ideas, but I don’t want to jinx anything by describing them too soon!

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Lessons In French
Author: Laura Kinsale
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Pub. Date: January 26, 2010
ISBN-13: 978-1402237010
480 pages

Laura Kinsale’s unique and powerfully written love stories transcend the romance genre. In this, her first new book in five years, she delivers a poignant, funny, sexy, Regency romance sure to delight her many fans and attract a whole new readership.

Trevelyan and Callie are childhood sweethearts with a taste for adventure, until the fateful day her father discovers them embracing in the carriage house and, in a furious frenzy, drives Trevelyan away in disgrace. Nine long, lonely years later, Trevelyan returns. Callie discovers that he can still make her blood race and fill her life with excitement, but he can’t give her the one thing she wants more than anything—himself.

For Trevelyan, Callie is a spark of light in a world of darkness and deceit. Before he can bear to say his last goodbyes, he’s determined to sweep her into one last, fateful adventure, just for the two of them.

About the Author

Laura Kinsale, a former geologist, is the New York Times bestselling author of Flowers from the Storm, The Prince of Midnight, and Seize the Fire. She and her husband divide their time between Santa Fe and Dallas. For more information, please visit www.laurakinsale.com

I want to thank Laura so much for taking the time to talk with us today and Sourcebooks for generously offering 8 copies of Lessons in French today. Details to enter to win are here. Winners will be posted January 31, 2010.