Edwardian circus.
Aristocratic private investigators spying on their own.
A brother and sister using acrobatic feats to get into–and out of–impossible situations for their investigations.

Welcome to the world of the Imposters! Here, nothing is quite what it seems, but the bonds of blood and friendship run deep, faith lights the path forward, and the quest for Truth underscores everything they do.

I have been so excited for this series and absolutely LOVE how it’s going so far! The funny thing is that even before I started writing book 1 (as in, MONTHS before), I had to turn in a very thorough document for the cover design team. I had to come up with a title, describe the characters, tell them about the plot and write summaries of it, pinpoint all the setting details, figure out what she’d be wearing on the cover…and I had no clue. As in NO CLUE. This was due while I was still working on Yesterday’s Tides, and you can well imagine me looking at the due date with wide eyes and a bit of panic as I realized, “I know none of this!!” LOL.

But I took a day and sorted it all out. I plotted and planned and researched and fell more deeply in love with the concept. I chose a beautiful, rugged setting in Northumberland. I learned all I could about the Edwardian circuses that had informed so much of my characters’ childhoods and, ultimately, their lives. I researched espionage and the spy mania that had seized England pre-1910 thanks to novels (!!!!) by a fellow named William Le Queux. I explored the world of haute couture in 1909. And I turned in that document with a big grin on my face.

Cue the months of waiting. I wrote the book. I loved the book. I loved especially that Lady Marigold, my heroine, chose fashion as her mask for her work. She wears the most ostentatious gowns and hats any time she goes out in public, so that people notice the clothes instead of her face…and then the clothes can appear somewhere else on a friend, and it provides an alibi for her while she’s about her clandestine work. Because if Lady M’s hat was in Hyde Park on that afternoon, then surely she was too, right?

In truth, Lady Marigold Fairfax and her brother, Yates, an earl now, are in dire straits. If they don’t earn a living, they’ll lose everything and be unable to support the retired performers who they love like family and who have made their home now at Fairfax Tower.

When the email arrived in my inbox with the cover for A Beautiful Disguise, I had one of those jaw-drop moments that I always hope for. Gorgeous background of a Northumberland manor house–check. Beautiful dress in vibrant colors–check. Enormous hat–check. I absolutely LOVE that we can’t see Marigold’s face here, because that is such a key part of the story–she always hides her face in public under her hats. The only addition that I asked for was peacock feathers on her hat (which had ostrich feathers already). Both kinds of feathers are featured in the book, so I hoped they’d agree…and they did! Which made it PERFECT!!!

So…are you ready for your first glimpse? Here it is! A Beautiful Disguise!

I am 100% in love with this cover, from the lighting to the background to the colors to those requested feathers. It’s definitely one of those that I keep pulling up to stare at whenever I need a bit of inspiration to finish my work on the story (which I’m revising right now). I can never really rank my favorites of my book covers (so many gorgeous ones), but this is right up there, not only because of its beauty, but because of how perfectly it captures the story. Yay!

What do you think? I’d love to hear your opinions! Post your comments below!