Cutting My Coat...

...to suit my cloth! There's a fashion revolution going on in A Wolf in Duke's Clothing

Not that I'm anti-headgear at all, and in fact, I love hats with all my heart and soul — but Miss Felicity Templeton never has occasion to adorn her noggin — well, not until a very special occasion.

This strikes me as I've finished the first round of edits on Volume II of The Shapeshifters of the Beau Monde, in which the heroine has an deep and abiding love for bonnets, the only frivolous aspect of her appearance and character. But I'll say no more about that right now.

“ The fashions of the day would not suit Felicity at all. This suits her intentions at the beginning of the novel, which is to make as bad an impression on the ton as she is able, but this soon changes along with other desires.”

A liberty I've taken in the world-building in this series — apart from the whole Shapeshifters in 19th century England thing — is with Felicity's wardrobe. She's a horsewoman and physically robust with it, and immediately made me realize that the fashions of the day would not suit her at all. This suits her intentions at the beginning of the novel, which is to make as bad an impression on the ton as she is able, but this soon changes along with other desires. Her friend Lady Jemima Coleman is a clandestine couturier and luckily has a collection of flattering garments ready for Felicity when she wants them.

They are not high waisted, they are not pastel colors, they are bereft of lace and fiddly bits. They suit her strong shoulders, her hourglass figure — they are anachronistic... if we choose not to believe that Jemima is a visionary, setting the trends to come and changing the face of fashion in her time.

I choose to believe Jemima is laying the groundwork for the future. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

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A Wolf in Duke's Clothing, the first instalment in The Shapeshifters of the Beau Monde series is published by Sourcebooks and available for pre-order now!