Image credit Camilo Queipo Photography

WEDNESDAY 8TH MARCH 2023 Cley-next-the-Sea author, Louise Allen, has WON the Shorter Romantic Novel Award with her novel, The Earl’s Mysterious Lady, for the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s (RNA) annual Romantic Novel Awards for 2023. The awards celebrate excellence in romantic fiction in all its forms.

Louise lives on the North Norfolk coast with her husband and a garden that fights back. She is the author of over 70 historical romances and several non-fiction history titles. Almost all are set in the years spanning Jane Austen’s lifetime, a period on the threshold of the modern world that she finds endlessly fascinating. When she isn’t writing and battling the garden she enjoys traveling and collecting original Regency prints.

She commented, ‘I was thrilled to be shortlisted for a Romantic Novel Award and beyond delighted to have won in my category, the Shorter Romantic Novel. The community of writers that make up the Romantic Novelists’ Association create books that stir the emotions, celebrate life and provide a wonderful dose of positivity in a world that sorely needs it. It is an honour to be part of that community and to have received this award.’

Jean Fullerton, the RNA Chair, commented, ‘Once again the judges have had the almost impossible task of choosing winners for each of our romantic awards categories. Huge congratulations to our worthy winners.’

Sharon Ibbotson, the RNA Awards Coordinator, said, ‘Our Romantic Novel Awards in 2023 had nearly five hundred entries, which were whittled down to nine very worthy winners by our amazing reader-judges. Along with the winner of the Popular Romantic Fiction Award, their stories made people laugh, smile, weep and above all, fall in love. I am delighted to congratulate them for their success in our awards.’

The awards, which have been held since their inception in 1960, are highly respected in the UK publishing industry. Previous winners include Santa Montefiore, Joe Heap, Julie Cohen and Milly Johnson. The awards are unique in that they are judged entirely by readers, without input from any industry professionals.

The award categories for this year were as follows: The Fantasy Romantic Novel Award, the Jackie Collins Award for Romantic Thrillers, the Katie Fforde Debut Romantic Novel Award, the Christmas/Festive Holiday Romantic Novel Award, the Shorter Romantic Novel Award, the Romantic Saga Award, the Jane Wenham-Jones Award for Romantic Comedy, the Historical Romantic Novel Award, the Contemporary Romantic Novel Award, and the Popular Romantic Fiction Award (voted for by librarians, booksellers and book bloggers/reviewers).

The winners of the awards were announced during the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Romantic Novel Awards ceremony, which was held at the Leonardo Royal Hotel London City on Monday 6th March 2023.

THE EARL’S MYSTERIOUS LADY BOOK BLURB (Publisher: Mills & Boon Historical)

Young Viola ran away leaving Guy Thurlow, the Earl of Easton, at the altar. Now Cressida Williams, she is shocked when Guy moves back to his family estate. He doesn’t recognise her and they begin falling in love, but how can she tell him who she is without losing him?

LOUISE ALLEN’S MEDIA DETAILS

Website – www.louiseallenregency.com
Twitter – twitter.com/LouiseRegency

Blog – https://janeaustenslondon.com