Blog Tour: A DUCHESS WITH A SECRET

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Alix Nichols will be awarding a digital box set of her bestselling series The Darcy Brothers to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

For sixteen years, they’ve hated each other…
and craved each other.

Widowed and betrayed, Eva Castellane will do anything to protect her daughter’s inheritance.
Standing in her way?
Alex Castellane—her late husband’s steely, magnetic half brother.
The man poised to take it all.
Her worst enemy.
Her forbidden temptation.

Stuck together in the family castle, their legal fight spirals into war…
until a common threat forces a reluctant alliance.
Desire blurs the lines.
Chemistry sizzles.
Rules get broken.

But as the verdict nears, one slip could unravel Eva’s explosive secret…

A Duchess with a Secret stands alone within the Montevor Royals Saga. It is a spicy contemporary enemies-to-lovers romance with forced proximity, family secrets, and a hard-won HEA.

Read an Excerpt

Alex

The air outside the basement at Mount Evor Secret Service feels colder than it did inside. It isn’t exactly chilly; just crisp enough to bite, which I welcome wholeheartedly. It clears my head.

“I’m going to walk to the hotel,” Eva says. “I need air.”

“I was about to say the same.”

She shoots me a look. “Please don’t. I don’t want to start thinking we have things in common.”

“What about the duchy?” I taunt.

“Of all the things we don’t have in common,” she quips, “the duchy is the one we don’t have in common the most.”

I smile despite myself. The pretty shell has some humor.

“May I walk beside you?” I ask.

“If you must,” she says after a beat. “But don’t think I’m warming to you.”

“Understood.”

We fall into step, heading toward the hotel located in the city’s historic center. She keeps her arms folded tight across her chest like a shield.

“I want you to know I will fight you with everything I’ve got. Dirty. No-holds-barred,” she warns. “My lawyer, Pauline, is very good at her job.”

I glance over. “So, this is your idea of small talk?”

“If you’d prefer silence…”

“No, this is delightful.”

We keep walking. Pombrio glows in the late-September dusk. The limestone facades catch the last golden rays and appear to be lit from within. Lined with old trees starting to turn, cobbled streets stretch ahead, winding gently. Cafés hum with end-of-day energy, clinking glasses, and low laughter. A faint whiff of woodsmoke rides the breeze.

I’d enjoy this stroll more if Eva weren’t so close. Her presence is magnetic and annoying in equal measures. Her perfume doesn’t help. It has none of the sugary sweetness most ladies favor. Instead, it’s seductive in a sharp, provocative way that’s so much her.

Interview:

Tell us about your book? How did it get started?

My latest release is A Duchess with a Secret, the ninth book in the Montevor Royals series. It’s an enemies-to-lovers story about Eva, a widowed mother and dowager duchess, and Alex, her late husband’s half-brother. When a surprise inheritance throws them together at the ancestral castle, old grudges, new conflict and repressed attraction collide.

The idea started when I wanted to write about two slightly older characters who already have complicated lives and emotional baggage. I loved the thought of forcing them into close proximity at this grand, ancient castle and watching their relationship slowly shift from hostility to mutual respect and then love. The inheritance twist and the dark family secrets gave me plenty of conflict to play with, and I had a lot of fun exploring how two very different people learn to trust each other.

How do you create your characters?

I usually start with a core conflict or emotional wound and then build the character around it. For Eva, I knew she was a protective mother who had spent years putting everyone else first, so I gave her a quiet strength and a deep desire to finally choose for herself. For Alex, I wanted a logical, aloof man who hides his vulnerability behind a gruff exterior.

Once I have their emotional core, I add layers and the things that make them clash (or complement) each other. Sometimes they “talk” to me as I write, and I’m always surprised by the little details that emerge during the process.

What inspires and what got you started in writing?

I’ve always loved romance — the emotional journey, the banter, and the satisfying happy ending. Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer were huge early influences (I’m still obsessed with Pride and Prejudice, by the way), and I think that love of clever dialogue and character-driven stories has stayed with me.

I started writing because I wanted to create the kind of books I love to read. My first series, Bistro La Bohème, came from my affection for Paris and the idea of a quirky group of friends finding love. Once I discovered how much I enjoyed building worlds and characters, I never looked back.

Where do you write? Is there something you need in order to write (music, drinks?)

I do most of my writing in cafés. Living in France makes this easy. I love the atmosphere of a typical French bistro, with its small tables, wicker chairs, and the gentle hum of conversation around me. The background energy helps me focus without feeling isolated.

I usually have a coffee (or two) beside me, and I find that the comforting smell of espresso and croissants puts me in the right mood. I don’t usually need music — the natural sounds of the café are enough — but I do like having my notebook nearby for random ideas that pop up.

How do you get your ideas for writing?

Ideas come from all sorts of places. Sometimes it’s a “what if” question that pops into my head, other times it’s a real place I’ve visited or a historical detail that sparks my imagination. For the Montevor Royals series, my trips to the Alps and visits to real castles gave me the visual foundation for Mount Evor and Fort Vauclairt.

I also love blending tropes in new ways. For example, I’d take the enemies-to-lovers dynamic and add layers like found family, inheritance drama, and forced proximity. Once I have the core idea, I let the characters and the setting do a lot of the work. I’m a plotter and I outline every novel I write, but the characters often surprise me with where the story wants to go.

About the Author:

Alix Nichols is a caffeine addict, a longtime fan of Mr. Darcy. She pens sexy romantic comedies and romantasy. Her books have been described as “pure pleasure” (Kirkus Reviews) that “keep fans of romance hanging off the edge of their seat” (Romantic Times).

At the age of six, she released her first book. It featured highly creative spelling on a dozen pages stitched together and bound in velvet paper.

Decades later, she lives in France and still writes. Her spelling has improved (somewhat), she has become a Kindle Scout winner, Chanticleer First Place winner, USA Today bestseller, Book Riot’s Top 100 Must-Read International Romance author, and Amazon All-Star for being one of the 100 most-read authors in Kindle Unlimited.

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