A ROYAL CHRISTMAS WEDDING - Rachel Hauck - One Free Book

Welcome back, Rachel. You have a lot of books out now. What is your favorite setting to use in your books?

Of course I love to write books set in the south since I live in Florida, but I really loved the Royal romance book setting of Brighton Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Hessenberg. Maybe because I made them up! Ha!

I’ve loved all your books, and the royal romance books are my favorites. What do you look for when you’re shopping for a book to buy for yourself?

Premise and opening line are key for me. If the opening line doesn’t catch me, or the premise, I won’t keep reading. I look for well written, well told stories. While I write romance, I do love fiction with a literary, even epic, feel like The Girl On The Train, Nightingale, Me Before You, A Hundred Summers.

Give us a little tour of the setting for this book.
A Royal Christmas Wedding was set in fictional Brighton Kingdom which I placed in the North Sea between England and Germany. It’s an old country with a rich history so I tried to create an ancient as well as modern feel. Lots of traditions. While it’s an island, it’s also mountainous, with high rocky cliffs leading down to the sea. It’s quite beautiful.

I love the stories of the royal series, but the setting is wonderful, too. What other books do you have coming out soon?

The Wedding Shop, part of The Wedding Collection, released in August. I’m working on a book for next summer! Stay tuned!

I’ve loved The Wedding Collection, too, especially The Wedding Chapel. Please give us a glimpse inside your home.

Ah, I love my house. A gift from the Lord. It’s an older brick home that’s been remolded on the inside. The best part is the office. A two story turret built off the garage by the previous owners who also happen to be friends. We’re blessed.

Is this novel part of a series or a stand-alone book?

A Royal Christmas Wedding is the fourth in the Royal Wedding Series.

Tell us about the story.

Royal Wedding fans will remember Avery, Susanna’s sister, from Once Upon A Prince. She was a senior in high school when Susanna married King Nathaniel of Brighton Kingdom. She was lively and spunky, and just so happened to fall for one of Nathaniel’s cousins, Prince Colin.

Colin walked into the story as a hero, befriending Avery, and almost falling for her right away.

I knew their story had to be told.

The book opens five years later and well, things haven’t turned out quite the way either of them planned.

Will there be another royal wedding in the Truitt family? Stay tuned!

Please give us the first page of the book.

Ah, this is tricky but fun. I open with a prologue!

Brighton Kingdom 1834

Prologue

The night was moonless, the color of black ink, with not one star twinkling from the heavens. The air, cold and brisk, swirled with snow.

The ancients called such darkness the Boot of God. But for Prince Michael, the glow of gaslights lined along the palace grounds and the love beaming in his heart showed him the way.

Lady Charlene offered a challenge. And he aimed to take it.

Running along the perimeter, past the reach of the gaslights, Michael aimed for Pembroke Chapel and its notorious bell tower. “Mick, ole chap, what’s lit your fire?” The voice of his mate Paulson slipped over his shoulder. “The music, the food, pints of bitters, and all the pretty ladies are back in the ballroom, the latter just waiting for a dance with us.”


“Don’t slow me, Pauls. I’m going to ring the chapel bell.”

Michael worked the heavy iron latch of the tower’s door until it sprang open.

“What? You jest. And what unsuspecting damsel will be the object of your unwanted affection?” Paulson’s steps neared, his breathing heavy, his lantern giving some light.

“If I tell you, what will be the mystery?” Michael started up the slick stone steps of Pembroke Chapel bell tower in the dark, feeling his way and balancing with his hand on the rickety wood railing.

Tonight he wanted nothing more than to ring the chapel bell at midnight—according to the Harvest Celebration tradition—declaring his love for Lady Charlene and intention to marry her on Christmas Day.

One hundred and eighty-two narrow steps and he’d arrive at the top of the tower.

Paulson’s voice echoed from below. “If you ring that bell, everyone will want to know who is your intended. You won’t escape, ole man. What of your father? He’ll have a word or two to say.”

“He’ll discover the truth on Christmas morn. Like everyone else. Who am I to break with a good Brighton tradition by revealing the woman of my affection?”

At the top, Michael butted against a door, forcing the rusty hinges to give way until he stood under the four-hundred-year-old bell.

Paulson arrived a moment later, the lantern swinging from his hand, the golden light reflecting in his wide smile. “There’s your bell. What seems to be the delay, my good man?” He motioned to the bell cord. “Or did you knock some sense into yourself banging against the door?”

“The cord . . .” Michael yanked on the twisted hemp rope attached to a hook in the tower stone. “It won’t budge. It’s frozen.”

“Thank the heavens, you’re saved.”

“I don’t want to be saved.” Michael, determined, rubbed his hands together, gripped the rope, and leaned, pulling his muscles taut under his winter coat.

Since my book hasn’t arrived, I am eager to find out what comes next. How can readers find you on the Internet?

Go to www.rachelhauck.com and from there, connect with me on social media.

Thank you, Rachel, for allowing me to feature another royal wedding series book on my blog. I love them and I know my readers do, too.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog. 

A Royal Christmas Wedding - Christianbook.com
A Royal Christmas Wedding (Royal Wedding Series) Amazon paperback
A Royal Christmas Wedding (Royal Wedding Series) - Kindle
A Royal Christmas Wedding - Audio

Comment conversation starter questions: Have you read any of Rachel's Royal Wedding series? If so, which is your favorite?

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