Author of the Month

VIRGINIA HENLEY

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A Note from the Author

Dear Readers:

I am a late-bloomer and didn't start writing until I was forty. I was first published in 1982 by Avon and after a couple of books acquired an agent who sold me to Dell, where I have been writing lusty, bawdy, historical romances ever since.

I create heroes who are larger than life. He is usually dark, dominant, and dangerous. Then I create a heroine who is a match for him, or MORE than a match!

My books have won a dozen awards from Romantic Times, Affaire de Coeur, Bookrak Catalogue and Waldenbooks. They are translated into fourteen languages including Russian and Chinese, and I am now published in hardcover. I am very proud of the fact that everything I have ever written is still in print and available wherever books are sold.

I was born in Bolton, Lancashire, England and emigrated to Canada after the war. I married a Canadian, Arthur Henley, and we celebrated our forty-second wedding anniversary last July. When I married Art, we were the same age; now of course I am much younger!

We have two handsome sons, Sean and Adam, and think the sun shines out of their bums!  My husband and sons are my biggest fans and they are convinced that everything I know about sex, I learned from them. Each of them has a fabulous sense of humor, which they need when fielding questions about my lusty books. When Art was asked on a TV show if we practiced all my sex scenes, he replied, "Yes, that's why I'm so short—it's from banging my head on the headboard!"

My younger son Adam and his glorious red-haired wife Leslie have given me my only granddaughter, Tara Jasmine, and a baby grandson, Ryan James. My elder son Sean gave me my first grandson, Daryl Jason, eleven years ago. Daryl and I are on the same wavelength and go together like a comfy pair of old slippers. I tell him he is my mother, reincarnated, and he finds nothing strange in my eccentric ideas!

My husband and I discovered Florida about ten years ago when we were living in Toronto and I had pneumonia. We flew to the warmest place in America we could find, fell in love with it and bought a house here. Until recently we have been what is known as "six-and-sixers," which means we spent six months up north and six months down south. I finally have my U.S. green card (which is pink, by the way), and this summer we sold our Canadian house and are now in Florida full-time. We live on the Gulf of Mexico with a pool and a boat and all the sunshine we can stand. Every day I can look up from my desk and see dolphins, pelicans, egrets, or flocks of green parakeets. It is the closest to Paradise I'll ever be!

A YEAR AND A DAY, set in Scotland, was a roaring success. It made all the bestseller lists, was in the top fifty of USA Today for three weeks and reached #21 on the extended New York Times List. I have to thank the readers and the booksellers for making it happen.


A Woman of Passion A WOMAN OF PASSION

July 1999
Delacorte Hardcover


My next hardcover is an Elizabethan about Bess Hardwick called A WOMAN OF PASSION. Bess had four husbands. When she was a child, her family was evicted from their farmhouse. Every time she achieved something, Fate swept it away from her. Eventually she became the richest woman in England, after Queen Elizabeth I. I fell in love with this strong, vibrant woman and hope you will enjoy A WOMAN OF PASSION.


E X C E R P T :

Using a back door that led from the kitchens, Bess stepped into the warm summer sunshine and quickly walked down Bedford Street to the Strand. If the stretch of land along the river had been paved with gold, it wouldn't have seemed more fantastic to her for there stood one huge mansion after another, all no doubt crammed with riches, treasures, and servants. At first Bess thought of them as the many mansions of heaven, which Jesus had referred to, according to the scriptures. Nay, more like paradise, she decided. Her footsteps slowed as she strolled past Durham House and York House. Just imagining the vast rooms behind the tall windows, whose walls held priceless paintings, set her blood singing. Someday, Bess vowed, I will have my own town house in London. What about Hardwick? a tiny voice whispered. Bess tossed her red curls, dislodging the embroidered cap perched precariously on her head. "Hardwick shall be my country home," she answered loftily, ignoring the liveried servants who sent her admiring glances.

Ambitious men got whatever they wanted, so why shouldn't a woman be ambitious? She was only going to live once, so why not make it count? Bess was determined to be a great success and get her fair share of this world's riches. She swore it, vowed it, pledged it like an oath. Bess envisioned her future with clarity. She knew exactly what she wanted and knew there would be a price to pay. But that was only right, a mere bagatelle. She would pay the price gladly, even with abandon. She would walk through fire or barter her soul to have it all!

Copyright © 1999  Virginia Henley


At the present time I am writing a medieval which is set in the period of history that takes place after my book THE DRAGON AND THE JEWEL about Princess Eleanor and Simon de Montfort. It tells the story of how Prince Edward Plantagenet wins back the kingdom from Simon de Montfort.

My life's great passion is history. I set my books in all different time periods and the only rule I set for myself is to be true to the period I choose (e.g. Charles II is bawdy, while medievals are darker, richer, and the villains are not just wicked, they are evil!) I hope my stories make you laugh, cry, and fall in love.

I love to hear from my readers!

Best always,
Virginia Henley
July 1999



 E-mail: VIRHENLEY@aol.com

 Mail: c/o Dell Publishing, 1540 Broadway, New York, NY  10036

 Web site:  http://www.oocities.org/Athens/Atlantis/3504








Publishing History

A WOMAN OF PASSION — July 1999, Hardcover - Delacorte

A YEAR AND A DAY — March 1998, Hardcover - Delacorte

A YEAR AND A DAY — November 1998, Paperback - Dell

DREAM LOVER — February 1997, Hardcover - Delacorte

DREAM LOVER — August 1997, Paperback - Dell

ENSLAVED — January 1996, Dell Books

A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE (Anthology) — December 1996, Dell Books

A GIFT OF JOY (Anthology) — November 1995, Zebra Books

DESIRED — February 1995, Dell Books

SEDUCED — February 1994, Dell Books

ENTICED — August 1994, Dell Books

TEMPTED — February 1993, Dell Books

THE DRAGON AND THE JEWEL — December 1991, Dell Books

THE PIRATE AND THE PAGAN — December 1990, Dell Books

THE FALCON AND THE FLOWER — September 1989, Dell Books

THE HAWK AND THE DOVE — September 1988, Dell Books

THE RAVEN AND THE ROSE — July 1987, Dell Books

WILD HEARTS — February 1985, Avon Books

BOLD CONQUEST — October 1983, Avon Books





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