Michelle Styles: Introducing Myself

I am very happy to accept Lee's invitation to contribute to this blog. Unlike some of the others, I do maintian my own blog but welcome the chance to write on different subjects and perhaps meet a few more readers this way. The tote bag certainly looks like a very interesting place to be and Lee seems to have some wonderful ideas for the future.

For those of you who don't know me, I am Michelle Styles and I write for Harlequin Mills and Boon Historicals.

My first book, The Gladiator's Honour was published in the UK in May 2006, and in the US last September. It was the first time HM&B had published books set in this time period. Thus far, the reader response has been very positive.

My next book, A Noble Captive, has just been published in the UK in hardback and will be published in the UK in paperback in January 07. For those of you who aren't familiar with the UK system, the hardback books are mainly sold to UK libraries as they find the books are taken out so often... I have not been given the North American release date yet but understand it will be in the second half of 2007. Like The Gladiator's Honor, it is set in the First Century BC. It involves a captured Roman soldier being sheltered by a pagan priestess. I adore the cover.

I am running a contest until 15 November where the prize is a signed hardback copy of A Noble Captive. The details are on my blog.

Although there has been some discussion in recent weeks in the blogosphere about the demise of the historical, I am here to tell you that it is alive and well at Harlequin Historical. HH has been branching out into new time periods such as Rome, discovering new authors as well as keeping its commitment to its core readership by publishing Westerns and Regencies. The Historical editorial team is really committed to fulfilling the HH promise of rich, vivid, passionate romance in a historically accurate setting. From what I know, 2007 looks to be a stunning year for any fan of the series. For up to date info on the line, the HH authors maintain a blog.

Again, let me say how delighted I am to be here and contributing to Tote Bags 'n' blogs, and how much I am looking forward to the whole experience.