BOOK CLUB KIT
A LETTER FROM EVIE A
ROGUE OF ONE’S OWN IS A ROMANCE SET IN 1880,
but with the heroine being a suffragist, it’s also a timely story as 2020 marks the 100-year anniversary of women’s suffrage in America. When we make it to the ballot box these days, no matter who we are or what we have, our voices all carry the exact same weight. A Rogue of One’s Own is a nod to the many women who fought for a hundred years to make it so. We meet Lucie, who is dedicated to getting British women equal rights. She is quite happy with her solitary routine and stubborn focus, until Tristan, a man she’s known since childhood, crashes into her life with an immoral offer. It throws Lucie off-balance—Tristan is attractive, infuriatingly decadent, and at second glance, they have much more in common than expected. This might be Lucie's one shot at experiencing passion, but against the backdrop of Victorian society, the consequences could be rather severe for her. She also worries that a relationship will see her stretch herself too thin. In trying to get her fellow women more freedom, Lucie expected to limit herself to being just one thing: an activist. One hundred and forty years later, Lucie’s dilemma resonates with me—I’m not an activist like her, but I have a time-consuming passion—writing—and sometimes, juggling family, job, interests, and getting enough sleep can feel as though I’m never doing enough for any one thing. In this story, I wanted a woman who wouldn’t have to choose between her heart and her head. I wanted her to have her cake and eat it, too, to be able to fully experience the multitudes we all contain. Lucie’s attraction to Tristan forces her to reevaluate her vision of herself: what is truly important to her, and how to find a new balance? Writing her story made me reflect on my own priorities: where do I really wish to focus my time and efforts? Where do I most want to make a difference? Which of my indulgences are here to stay? I believe that we all can make a difference with our actions every day, but sometimes, it’s also necessary to just take a breather, and if A Rogue of One’s Own provided such a moment of escapism or even inspiration for your book club members, I’d be one happy author.
A conversation with
EVIE DUNMORE
Tell us about A Rogue of One’s Own! What inspired you to write this story?
A Rogue of One’s Own was inspired by the fact that until 1882, British women would lose their legal rights and property to their husbands when they got married. I was wondering how to square a passionate love story with oppression—which doesn’t sound very romantic, but it was the reality for British women at the time. Lucie, my heroine, leads the suffrage chapter in Oxford, and she has seen enough to know that the Victorian cult of domesticity was largely an illusion. At the same time, she is not immune to love or desire, and her work is quite lonely, too, so when she falls head over heels in lust—and soon in love—with a dashing man from her past, she needs to go back to the drawing board. I wanted her to “have it all,” and had a lot of fun figuring out how to make it happen under the circumstances. What do you feel are the main themes/issues that are addressed in A Rogue of One’s Own? What price are you willing to pay for freedom? And: can a woman really have it all? Both Lucie and Tristan built their lives around achieving independence: Tristan wants financial independence from his tyrannical father, and Lucie from the laws and morals that say a woman is “less than” just because she is a woman. They both rebel against stifling Victorian conventions that stipulated in minute detail how people should dress, act, and love. But society makes them pay for being different, and they have to decide how far they are willing to go for their principles. In the end, Lucie and Tristan find some freedom in each other because they accept and adore the other for exactly who they are. As for Lucie, I wanted her to be able to have a relationship, but not at the expense of everything else she stands for. I believe a love worth having supports and enhances other goals you might have in life instead of erasing them.
I BELIEVE A LOVE WORTH HAVING SUPPORTS AND ENHANCES OTHER GOALS YOU MIGHT HAVE IN LIFE INSTEAD OF ERASING THEM.
Did the book require any special research? If so, please provide any interesting details about your research. Vinegar Valentine cards. I knew they existed before I wrote Rogue but was delighted to build them into the story. We might think of Victorians as prim and proper, but they actually had a rather dark and merciless streak, Vinegar Valentine cards encapsulate it perfectly: prettily crafted cards with absolutely cutting rhymes and remarks that were often anonymously sent to “annoying” acquaintances or people one disapproved of. How did your writing process change, if at all, while writing this novel? A Rogue of One’s Own is my second novel and the first book I wrote under contract. Everything I had heard about “Second Book Syndrome” came true: a deadline, an editor, and the surprise success of Bringing Down the Duke were lurking at the back of my mind and stalling my process. Publicly sharing my creative work made me feel vulnerable in ways I hadn’t expected. I was very lucky in that I could leave my family for a few weeks and go back to my mum’s place to move the story forward. My mother put food next to my laptop twice a day and told me: get on with it. Writing Bringing Down the Duke wasn’t easy, but I was still doing it leisurely sipping latte in shabby-chic Berlin cafés on my off days while writing Rogue was a rather more humbling “mom to the rescue” experience. What do you hope readers will take away from this story? I hope A Rogue of One’s Own does for others what romance novels usually do for me: provide some fun escapism and an immersive emotional journey. And perhaps a sense for how far we have come as women, thanks to brave individuals standing up for what is fair in ways big and small.
WE MIGHT THINK OF VICTORIANS AS PRIM AND PROPER, BUT THEY ACTUALLY HAD A RATHER DARK AND MERCILESS STREAK . . .
PHOTO INSPIRATION 1880S WOMEN’S MAGAZINE ADVERT
ANTI-SUFFRAGE VALENTINE VINEGAR CARDS
WOMEN COMPOSITORS WORKING AT THE VICTORIA PRESS, 1860S LONDON, ENGLAND
THE RANDOLPH HOTEL, OXFORD
THE FASHION MAGAZINE THAT INSPIRED MY PERIODICALS IN THE STORY
FEMALE OXFORD STUDENTS PUNTING
About the
AUTHOR EVIE DUNMORE is the USA Today
bestselling author of Bringing Down the Duke and A Rogue of One's Own. Her League of Extraordinary Women series is inspired by her passion for romance, women pioneers, and all things Victorian. In her civilian life, she is a consultant with a M.Sc. in Diplomacy from Oxford. Evie lives in Berlin and pours her fascination with nineteenth century Britain into her writing. She is a member of the British Romantic Novelists' Association (RNA). Evie_Dunmore EvieDunmore.com • EvietheAuthor • EvieDunmoreAuthor