Today we’re meeting author Marie Laval, talking about all things love, and her latest release.
What is your favourite love song and why?
It has to be the nostalgic ‘Les Feuilles Mortes’ (Autumn Leaves) by the wonderful and charismatic Yves Montand, who wasn’t only a great singer but a fantastic actor too (did you know that he and Marilyn Monroe had a ‘thing’ once? ‘Les Feuilles Mortes’ was written by the poet Jacques Prévert, and listening to it gives me shivers every time, particularly the live version of a 1981 concert in Paris which has a beautiful piano accompaniment.
What is your favourite romantic film and why?
There are so many great romantic films I found it hard to pick just one. Instead I cheated a bit and chose North and South – a series based on a novel by Elizabeth Gaskell. Simon Armitage is a brilliant John Thornton played by Simon Armitage and I love the smouldering looks he gives Margaret… That kiss in the railway station at the end is one of the most romantic kisses I have ever seen on the screen.
Which film couple is your favourite?
I have always been a fan of old Hollywood films, and one of my all time favourite actresses is Katharine Hepburn. She was wonderful with Cary Grant in Bringing Up Baby and Philadelphia Story, but even more so in films where she starred with Spencer Tracy. Perhaps it’s because they were a couple in real life, but the love and the sheer fun between them just light up the screen.
Do you have a favourite ongoing romance storyline from a TV show or series?
I used to watch X Files years ago and I always found that the chemistry between FBI agents Mulder and Scully was phenomenal. As the plot lines became a bit too complicated for me, I kind of gave up and stopped watching so I don’t know if they actually got together at the end. There may not have been a real romance storyline going on but I thought they made a great couple.
Which celebrity always makes you swoon? I don’t even have to think about that one. It has to be Daniel Craig… I always use him as an example when we describe actors and films during my French lessons at school, and have a habit of going on about him being the best James Bond ever, so much so that it has become a joke with my students. They always tease me about Daniel Craig, and how it will never be the same again without him playing James Bond…..
Tell us all about your latest book, Queen of the Desert:
Sometimes the most precious treasures exist in the most barren and inhospitable of places …
Harriet Montague is definitely too much of a gentlewoman to be frequenting the backstreet taverns of Algiers. But her father has been kidnapped whilst on an expedition to the tomb of an ancient desert queen, and she’s on a mission to find the only person who could save him.
It’s just unfortunate that Lucas Saintclair, the man Harriet hopes will rescue her father from scoundrels, is the biggest scoundrel of the lot. With a bribe in the form of a legendary pirate treasure map, securing his services is the easiest part – now Harriet must endure a treacherous journey through the desert accompanied by Saintclair’s band of ruffians.
But on the long, hot Saharan nights, is it any wonder that her heart begins to thaw towards her guide – especially when she realises Lucas’s roguish façade conceals something she could never have expected?
QUEEN OF THE DESERT is available as ebook from Amazon and Kobo
Find out more about Marie
Originally from Lyon in France, Marie now lives in Lancashire and writes historical and contemporary romance. Best-selling LITTLE PINK TAXI was her debut contemporary romantic novel with Choc Lit. A PARIS FAIRY TALE was published in July 2019, followed by BLUEBELL’S CHRISTMAS MAGIC in November 2019 and bestselling romantic suspense ESCAPE TO THE LITTLE CHATEAU which was shortlisted for the 2021 RNA Jackie Collins Romantic Suspense Award. HAPPY DREAMS AT MERMAID COVE is her latest contemporary romance. QUEEN OF THE DESERT is Mary’s second historical romance, following on from ANGEL OF THE LOST TREASURE which features another member of the Saintclair family.
She also writes short stories for the bestselling Miss Moonshine anthologies, and is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Authors. Her novels are available as ebooks and audiobooks on Amazon and various other platforms.
For more information on Marie visit:
Buckley Books 