The Singing Bird Pistols

Readers familiar with my short story, “Lord Lovedon’s Duel,” (recently reissued in the Royal Bridesmaids anthology and one of the two stories in the Royally Ever After duet) will remember the Singing Bird Pistols. In case anybody was wondering, yes, they’re real.

Some years ago, reader Ammie sent me a link she believed a Nerdy History Girl like me would enjoy. I was wowed, and the pistols became part of the inspiration for the novella.

This link will take you to the video I watched over and over: The Only Known Pair of Matching Singing Bird Pistols – Attributed to Frères Rochat | Christie's.

I and others did wonder how the pistols had survived, let alone survived in pristine condition. Apparently, they weren’t pristine. This video, which another reader, Kafryn W Lieder, was so good as to send me, tells the impressive story of their restoration.

Since not everybody’s screen of choice works quite the same, and some people who receive the blog via email see only a square, rectangle, or blank where the video ought to be, below are the respective links to the videos with their YouTube titles.

The Only Known Pair of Matching Singing Bird Pistols – Attributed to Frères Rochat | Christie's
Parmigiani Fleurier - Restoration "The Pistol and its Songbird"

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine card, “Yours For Ever,” by Esther Howland (Worcester, Massachusetts, ca. 1860-1880). Courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts.

Valentine’s Day greeting cards did exist before Esther Howland came into the picture, and it was an important holiday in England in the time of my stories. In fact, according to this article, an English Valentine Ms. Howland received was the impetus for what soon became a highly successful business. I love women’s success stories, and I especially like Esther’s because it seems she was actually a good boss. I also like her because she came from Worcester, Massachusetts, my hometown.

You can find out a great deal more about Esther Howland here at Wikipedia.

Happy Valentine’s Day. I hope it brings you something beautiful. Chocolate isn’t so bad, either.

Note: If you click on the link in the picture caption, you can enlarge the card and see all the glorious details.

Love,

Loretta

Royal Bridesmaids has been reissued

When Prince William and Kate Middleton got hitched a few years ago, Avon Books invited three historical romance authors—Stephanie Laurens, Gaelen Foley, and me—to contribute to some royal wedding-related anthologies. The first of these was, fittingly, Royal Weddings, which included “The Jilting of Lord Northwick,” my first effort, in many years, to write a short story. I set the story on the day before Queen Victoria’s marriage to Prince Albert. That tale must have worked out all right because I was invited to join the same stellar author lineup for Royal Bridesmaids.

Avon has recently reissued this anthology with a lovely new cover. If you missed it the first time around, you might want to check it out. Then you might want to take a look at some of my forthcoming blog posts dealing with the historical background.