To Dodge A Duke




Eleanor Ashford assumes he holds the title of baronet, he does not correct her error. Instead, he plays on her misconception and arranges a house party where he can make her fall for him and not his title.

Miss Ashford desires a marriage of convenience to an earl or higher. Not to some low-life baronet with an estate in the far reaches of England. She has no time for love, even if the green-eyed baronet with a charming smile tries to convince her otherwise.

Miss Ashford has a choice to make. To wed a duke or the baronet setting her heart aflame. Her choice might not be as simple as she believes.


Logan smirked and stood to tower over her. “I think you welcomed my advances very much. I would prove it if you ask.”

Eleanor glared at him and took a step back. “That is unnecessary. I already know I did not appreciate the first example.” Besides, even if she had enjoyed it, it would be inadvisable for her to allow another kiss to transpire. His smirk remained glued to his handsome face, and she said, “Oh, stop it. You think much too highly of yourself.”

He chuckled in response and took a step closer. Eleanor, naturally, took another step back until he reached out and pulled her to him in a rough embrace. Incensed, Eleanor asked, “Who do you think you are? There is never an acceptable time for you to behave so impudently toward me!”

His arm imprisoned her as he smiled down on her. “Isn’t there? Would it have been preferable to fall into the ravine?”

She swung her head around to find they stood mere steps from the rushing waters. She gulped and turned to face him. Obviously, it was best to stay away from the ravine, but she would not concede his point.
“Yes. It would have been much more desirable.”



He turned to a large, ornate grandfather clock and settled in to wait.

Sounds great, right? Except I’m writing in the early 19th century, and the term grandfather clock had not been coined yet. 

He turned to a large, ornate longcase clock and settled in to wait.

There. That’s better. Now, I won’t trip up a reader who knows the term grandfather clock came about in 1876. 

The thing is, I never realized so many anachronisms existed until my fantastic editor, Eilidh MacKenzie, pointed them out to me. After that, I started looking up massive amounts of words. Things that seem so natural to us will stick out in a historical novel. I mean, it would sound crazy if a car came driving down the lane in 1820 or if the heroine called her mom. On any device. 

But those aren’t the only words which trip me up sometimes. I am an American, and sometimes, I use Americanisms. Shocking, right?

I am so grateful to one kind reader who pointed out the English do not use the term gotten. As in, what has gotten into me? So now, I have to remember to use time-appropriate and region-appropriate words. After all, a person from New York is not going to walk around saying y’all unless she is from the American South. Naturally, America and Great Britain would have similar differences.


What is my point in this post? Well, words are complicated, and I have a lot to learn.


Naomi Boom is an author who never expected to love writing. Her inspiration struck when she searched for the perfect historical romance novel to read. Nothing sounded appealing, so she decided to write her own. That one novel has morphed into a series, and hopefully many, many more.

She resides in her home state of South Dakota with her husband and toddler. Her dream is to someday find an acreage where she can raise chickens, and continue her writing.

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