On Monday, April 1st a new historical romance by Ashley Christman, writing as Charlotte Davila, will be released by Entranced Publishing. The Lady and the Highwayman promises intrigue, scandal, hot romance and seductive scoundrels, but today, Ashley’s going to talk about her leading lady Elizabeth, and what it meant to be a woman in that era.

A Lady of the Times by Charlotte Davila

Elizabeth Bennett from The Lady and the Highwayman is a juxtaposition of her time. On the one hand, she values her education and prefers to marry for love. On the other hand, she understands that a good marriage based on money and titles is the only way to guarantee her future, and that looks are very important in obtaining a favorable marriage.

During Georgian England, opportunities were limited for women and this was especially true for the aristocratic classes. Women coming from trades families or lower-class backgrounds often learned skills valuable to earning a living such as sewing, maid-work, cooking, etc. Women in the aristocracy were taught skills like embroidery, etiquette, and the fine art of snaring a husband. If an aristocratic woman failed to find a marriage, laws at the time prevented them from inheriting estates if there was a living male heir. In Elizabeth’s case that’s her brother.

Without a husband, a woman like the Lady Elizabeth would be at the mercy of her male relatives and their spouses.

Marrying for love is a relatively new notion in society. In the aristocratic circles, love was nearly never apart of the marriage contract. Daughters were married off for titles, sons for dowries, position, etc. If the young couple was lucky, the at least somewhat liked each other, but this wasn’t a prerequisite. Most couples lived in separate bedrooms only coming together to produce heirs. Once that task was done, they went back to living largely separate lives.

For Elizabeth Bennett, even though the notion is practical and everyone in her social circle is doing this, the idea is abhorrent. She lucks out when the man of her dreams, childhood friend and Duke’s son, Will Hartley proposes.

But what good would an engagement be without a little scandal to shake it up?

Lady Elizabeth Bennington has the perfect life: she’s the daughter of an earl and betrothed to her childhood friend, William Hartley, the second son of a duke. But, when her sister’s indiscretion leads to an unplanned pregnancy, and the subsequent disgrace of Elizabeth’s entire family, her idyllic life is thrown into disarray.

First, her fiance is prohibited from marrying her. Then she receives word that William has been killed by thieves. To top it all off, she gets abducted by a highwayman. Can Elizabeth find love again, and with the most unlikely of people?

About the Author:

As a child, Ashley M. Christman spent many hours in imaginary worlds, exploring the depths of mythology and immersing herself in a breadth of classics. After spending so much time reading, she decided to try her hand at writing.

An avid fan of film noir, she combines fantasy, noir style heroes and heroines, and the paranormal in a modern day setting in a way that hopefully would make even Bogie proud.

When not writing, she can be found in the wilds of Minnesota enjoying great cuisine, avoiding the gym, and being walked by the dog with her partner, Tom.

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