Character Spotlight ~ Kaye Dacus' William Ransome & Julia Witherington

Today the spotlight shines on Capt. William Ransome & Julia Witherington


Kaye Dacus follows her contemporary novels with a Regency Era romance about a proud Naval captain and an heiress to a Jamaican sugar plantation. For lovers of historical romance, all the ingredients are present so what are you waiting for?

Enjoy this insight into William and Julia! Thanks, Kaye:~

Brief physical description

Captain William Ransome

Thirty-four years old. He's been at sea since he was twelve, serving under Captain, then Admiral Sir Edward Witherington. Though I never give his exact height in the novel, he's not overly tall--after all, if he were, he'd be hitting his head on those low beams in the ship! William has dark, wavy hair and intense, pale-blue eyes. And he looks good in a uniform!

Think Paul McGann.

Julia Witherington

Though she'll be thirty in just a few weeks, Julia can still pass for a much younger woman. Not classically beautiful--her round cheeks and slightly pointy chin keep her from that--she has deep green eyes and luxurious, thick hair the color of polished mahogany with sunlight bouncing off it.

Think Anna Friel.

Strengths and weaknesses:

William is trustworthy, loyal, and honorable--sometimes to his own detriment. After all, it was his overly heightened sense of honor that made him decide to walk away from Julia instead of proposing to her twelve years ago.

Julia holds on to the past a little too much--whether it's refusing to admit that her twin brother, lost at sea at age fifteen, is truly gone or making the decision to never forgive William for breaking her heart. But she also took over the running of her father's sugar plantation in Jamaica as a teenager when her mother succumbed to melancholia and could no longer handle it. She is a protector by nature--and tries to protect both her inheritance and William from the machinations of her unscrupulous relatives.

Quirk (if any)

Because of his position as someone who must maintain tight control over a crew of more than eight hundred men, William has learned to mask his reactions and emotions. Great for on board ship, not so great for the drawing room.

Julia would rather talk about the tariffs on imported sugar than fashion, making her an oddity in the level of society in which she now finds herself. She can plan a dinner party for twenty with ease, but could not for the life of her pick out a morning dress from a walking dress.

Your inspiration for the character

The inspiration for the entire trilogy came from my infatuation with the character of Lieutenant William Bush, as portrayed by Paul McGann, in the Horatio Hornblower movies. In the third movie in which he appears, he tells Horatio that he doesn't know if there's ever a good time for a naval officer to marry--which of course got my creative wheel turning. What kind of woman would it take to make him change his mind? And out of that seed grew William Ransome and Julia Witherington.

Background to the story

When young Julia Witherington doesn't receive the proposal for marriage she expects from William Ransome, she determines to never forgive him. They go their separate ways--she returns to her family's Caribbean plantation, and he returns to the Royal Navy.

Now, twelve years later, Julia is about to receive a substantial inheritance, including her beloved plantation. When unscrupulous relatives try to gain the inheritance by forcing her into a marriage, she turns to the only eligible man to whom her father, Admiral Sir Edward Witherington, will not object--his most trusted captain and the man who broke Julia's heart, William Ransome. Julia offers William her thirty-thousand-pound dowry to feign marriage for one year, but then something she never imagined happens: She starts to fall in love with him again.

Can two people overcome their hurt, reconcile their conflicting desires, and find a way to be happy together? Duty and honor, faith and love are intertwined in this intriguing tale from the Regency era.

Thanks Kaye - I am in the middle of Willam and Julia's story now :) Looking forward to getting back to it!

Tomorrow I have a special spotlight on Randy Singer's Jason Noble from his newly released, The Justice Game - it is great :)

Relz Reviewz Extras

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Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/v/mEkwnzBtM7g

For more information and images of characters in Ransome's Honor, visit: http://kayedacus.com/2009/06/11/ransomes-honor-the-character-casting-process/

To learn more about the inspiration behind the Ransome Trilogy, visit:

http://kayedacus.com/2009/06/11/ransomes-honor-the-character-casting-process/

And for more images of the characters and settings in the Ransome Trilogy, visit:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42643214@N00/sets/72157615767545921/