As an author, I don’t have favorites among my own books. Each was written for a reason, and each is special to me in its own unique way. I will confess, however, to having some favorite characters from my books.
One of my favorite couples is Cleo and Sherwood from Fit To Be Tied (2009). I adore feisty Cleo, and I love “watching” her try to turn a British nobleman (recovering from wounds suffered in WWI) into a cowboy. The whole story had a fun dynamic that just wouldn’t leave me.
In 2009, I got the idea for a new series that would bring more Brits to the American West, this time in the late 1800s. I wrote a proposal in early 2010 and called the series The British Are Coming. My publisher at the time scheduled for the three novels to be published in 2013 and 2014, after I finished the books already contracted.
But before I began serious work on the first novel in the series, the publisher decided that they would prefer for me to write some contemporary stories instead. Those turned out to be four novels and a novella set in Kings Meadow, Idaho.
Thus, The British Are Coming returned to my idea folder on my computer.
In 2016, another publisher contracted the series and asked me to add a novella to the front end. After some thought about who these new characters would be, I began to write the novella. But before I was more than 10% finished, the publisher defaulted.
The series returned once again to my idea folder.
Fast forward to 2021 when I made the decision to concentrate on writing indie books. My first question was, what will I write? I had more than a few options, but when I looked at The British Are Coming again, I knew I wanted to tell these stories at last. It was time.
And so, coming in May 2023, here is the first story in The British Are Coming series, To Enchant a Lady’s Heart.
Here’s the back cover copy:
He has nothing to offer. She has everything to lose.
Despite the dishonorable circumstances of his own birth, Adam Faulkner has never begrudged his half-brother Sebastian’s legitimate position as the Viscount Willowthorpe. Having a title and everything that goes with it never mattered to Adam—until “everything” became the hand of Miss Eliza Southwick. Adam knows, as the stable manager at Hooke Manor, he shouldn’t hope to wed a well-born miss. After all, enchanting such a lady’s heart would take a true gentleman…something he is not.
Eliza Southwick loves horses more than society and doesn’t care a whit about status or titles. But her father has set his sights on the Viscount Willowthorpe for his future son-in-law and has brought his daughter to Hooke Manor in hopes of arranging a marriage contract. When a spark first kindled during a chance meeting between Eliza and Adam grows stronger, she doesn’t dare tell her father how she feels. He will disown her entirely if she fails to do his will, and the cost of following her heart has never seemed higher.
“Robin Lee Hatcher opens her new series, The British Are Coming, with a delightful novella that’s sure to capture readers’ hearts. The characters are unique, and the plot is engaging from start to finish. This promises to be a fun series with a clash of cultures as the British characters travel to the Western United States. Readers who are looking for well written historical romance will enjoy this novella and the novels to follow.”
– Carrie Turansky, award-winning author of No Journey Too Far and The Legacy of Longdale Manor
And here’s a little about the series:
The British Are Coming series begins with a novella set in Victorian England where readers meet Adam Faulkner, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Hooke, and the gentlewoman he loves. It continues with stand-alone novels set in America in the mid-1890s featuring Sebastian Whitcombe, heir to the Earl of Hooke; his younger sister, Lady Amanda Whitcombe; and his tradesman friend, Roger Bernhardt. They have come to the American West—Sebastian for a last adventure before taking himself a wife, Amanda to experience some of the thrills she witnessed as a child in London at Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show, and Roger to paint the beauty of Yellowstone before taking over the family business in London. Adventure and romance abound!
It has been a long and winding road for these stories, and I can hardly wait for the release of the first book so I can share it with all of you.
~robin
Robin Lee Hatcher
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Good for you! I’m so glad you finally have a chance to develop this charming idea. Sounds wonderful!
Thanks, Angie. It’s exciting to finally get to write them. I’ve always loved the idea, and the characters are firmly in my mind. Oh, and I’ve always had the titles and so I’ve got the covers designed too.
The British Are Coming sounds very interesting.
Thanks, Betty. Hope you’ll get a chance to enjoy them.
I’m so glad you’re finally going to have the chance to fulfill your vision for this series, Robin! I love the series premise. 🙂
Thanks, Becky. I loved writing the novella and the first novel is coming along.
I’m so excited for this series, Robin. It sounds fabulous. And your first cover is absolutely lovely! I look forward to reading it. 🙂 It might have been a long and winding road, but God knew when the timing would be right for these stories, and it seems that time has come.
I agree, Karen. God seemed to have these four stories waiting for me right when I would need them.