​Since childhood, my personal version of heaven has resembled Mr. Scrooge’s time-traveling adventures, only with a much more enjoyable spin: being able to visit any time period anywhere, to fully understand what life was like then.
 
Rome in its heyday? I could be there. Charlemagne’s ascension to emperor? Yup. Witnessing the signing of the Declaration of Independence? Sign me up!
 
Of course, I’d be invisible, a mere witness, not an active participant (I wouldn’t want to potentially mess anything up!) – which means I’d like to avoid the more horrific points in human history.
 
Still, imagining what people, places, and events were truly like in times past thrills me just as much today as it did when I was younger. It’s one of the reasons writing time-travel romance seemed like a natural fit.
 
I spent hours brainstorming what A Matter of Time’s Eliza James might have experienced once in Regency England. I danced over some of the less savory realities she’d likely encounter (time-of-the-month issues, anyone?) in favor of imagining the furniture, the horses, the open country, the lavish foods … and of course, the handsome, cravat-bedecked gentlemen.
 
For Eliza, Jane Austen’s time is her ultimate dream-come-true. Until it isn’t. Because, of course, reality never can quite live up to fantasy, right? And accepting that is one of the ways we grow and mature. No matter what time we live in.
 
So, tell me, if you could travel to any period in history, where would you go? Why? What do you think your first reactions would be?
 
I, for one, would want to take a bag like Hermione’s bag from Harry Potter, with its Undetectable Extension Charm, so that I could have all the storage without all the bulk. Because I’d want Advil, and Bandaids, and pads, maybe my Kindle . . . Though I suppose if I had all those things, it’d rather defeat the purpose.
 
I might as well stay right here, in twenty-first century Virginia, curled up in my chair with a good book in hand. Which isn’t such a bad idea, actually, because books allow me to experience my own imaged heaven, right here on earth, every single day. 

​A Matter of Time:
 
Love comes when least expected. 

Nobody would blame widowed doctoral student Eliza James for giving up on Happily Ever After; at twenty-nine, she’s suffered more loss than most people do in a lifetime. But Eliza’s convinced her own hero is still out there, waiting for her, just like in the beloved romance novels she devours. Every girl deserves a Darcy, right? 

Only Eliza doesn’t dream of a modern-day affair: she wants the whole Regency experience. When a magical manuscript thrusts her back two hundred years into the arms and life of one Deveric Mattersley, Duke of Claremont, however, Eliza soon realizes some fantasies aren’t all they’re cracked up to be, especially when her duke proves himself less than a Prince Charming. 

Deveric Mattersley has no interest in women, much less marriage. Determined to atone for his sins after convincing himself he's at fault for the death of his first wife, he decrees himself content to focus on running his family’s estates, and on raising his son–until the mysterious Mrs. James appears. Who is she? What does she want? And why does she make Dev’s blood run hot in a way no woman ever has? 

Can a man with a past and a woman from the future forge a love for all time? 

Biography:
 
A lover of romance novels since the age of ten (shh, don't tell mom!), Margaret Locke declared as a teen that she'd write romances when she grew up. Once an adult, however, she figured she ought to be doing grown-up things (such as earning that master's degree in medieval history), not penning steamy love stories. Yeah, whatever. Turning forty cured her of that silly notion. Margaret is now happily ensconced back in the clutches of her first love, this time as an author as well as a reader. Margaret lives in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley in Virginia with her fantastic husband, two fabulous kids, and two fat cats. You can usually find her in front of some sort of screen (electronic or window); she's come to terms with the fact that she's not an outdoors person. Margaret loves to interact with fellow readers and authors! You may find her here:
 
Website/Blog: http://margaretlocke.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/AuthorMargaretLocke
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/Margaret_Locke
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Margaret_Locke
Amazon Author Page: http://bit.ly/MLAmz
Email: AuthorMargaretLocke@gmail.com
Buy Link:  http://bit.ly/AMatterOfTime

Magical romantic comedy A Man of Character now available! http://bit.ly/AManOfCharacter