'Meet My Main Character' Blog Tour - THE LADY OF BELLEFONTAINE

Thank you very much Diane M Denton for tagging me and suggesting I take part in this fun blog tour. I have just signed a publishing contract with Áccent Press for my contemporary romantic suspense THE LADY OF BELLEFONTAINE so this is the novel I will be talking about today.

1. What is the name of your character? Is she a fictional person?

My heroin is called Amy Carter and she is totally fictional.

2. Where is the story set?

THE LADY OF BELLEFONTAINE is set in a hill top village in the beautiful Lubéron region of Provence, in the South of France. This part of France is absolutely breathtaking, with golden stone farmhouses - 'bastides'- villages and little towns surrounded by orchards, vineyards and forests. And of course, lovely old fountains, which were the inspiration for the story.

3. What should we know about your heroine?

After being made redundant from the UK bank where she used to work as a translator, Amy decides to follow her dream and start a new life. She buys a very old 'bastide' called Bellefontaine she plans to turn into a guesthouse.

4. What is the main conflict?

After a series of unsettling and downright scary incidents, Amy realises that her arrival at Bellefontaine isn't welcome by everybody in the village. 

The romantic conflict of the novel is her stormy relationship with Fabien Coste, the aristocratic owner of nearby luxury hotel Manoir Coste. Despite finding an ancient love spell that binds the ladies of Bellefontaine to the ducs de Coste, Amy has no intention of falling in love with Fabien...But how long will she resist his dark, enigmatic charm?

5. What is the personal goal of the character?

Although she knows nothing of the hospitality industry, Amy is determined to set up and run a successful guest house. She is a fast learner and a hard worker, and isn't easily discouraged even if Fabien mocks her naive and at times 'hippyish' ideas. This is her big chance, her dream come true. When she discovers that Bellefontaine has a sinister past and that it was for centuries linked to the bloodthirsty cult of a local Gallic goddess, she doesn't run away but resolves to find out more and unmask those who put her life in danger.

6. Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?

The working title is THE LADY OF BELLEFONTAINE. I can only at this very early stage post the provisional blurb for the novel. Here is it below.

'The spell flows with the spring, binding hearts together until death tears them apart.' This is what a Latin inscription says on an ancient stone Amy Carter finds in the overgrown garden of the farmhouse she just moved into. If Amy has big plans for Bellefontaine and her new life in Provence, none of them involves falling in love - least of all with Fabien Coste, the handsome but arrogant owner of nearby Manoir Coste, the ancestral family chateau he turned into a luxury hotel.

Yet local legends talk about past romantic entanglements between the ladies of Bellefontaine and the ducs de Coste, and despite herself Amy soon finds herself falling in love with Fabien. As springtime turns Bellefontaine into the paradise she always dreamt of, Amy discovers that her home is at the centre of a mystery involving the evil cult of an ancient Gallic goddess, and that it isn't only her heart which is in terrible danger, but her life too. Can she trust Fabien to help solve Bellefontaine's dark mystery? Is he genuinely attracted to her or does he have his own motives for wanting to keep her close? And will the love spell between them turn out to be a deadly curse?

 7. When can we expect the book to be published?

I only just signed the contract with Áccent Press, so I cannot at this stage say when the book will be published.

Thank you again Diane for tagging me. I hope you found the interview interesting and would love to read comments and answer questions!

Diane Denton can be found at http://bardessdmdenton.wordpress.com/2014/04/09/it-happened-quite-by-chance/