Readers often ask me where I get my ideas for my medieval historical romances. After all, it’s a time period quite different to our own. My inspiration comes from all kinds of places; my dusty personal collection of research books; magazine articles; guide books of historic sites I’ve toured; even programs I’ve watched on the History Channel. My latest release, A Knight’s Temptation, Book Three of my Knight’s Series, was inspired, in part, by a piece of jewelry I imagined.

I love jewelry. At one point in my life, I thought of pursuing a career in antique jewelry. When I studied some time ago now with Sotheby’s in London, England, I toured the fabulous museums there and saw room after room filled with beautiful objects from all kinds of historical time periods and cultures. I stood in stunned awe on more than one occasion; the glittering displays of human ingenuity and creativity were truly breathtaking.

Several mornings during my year abroad, I stayed the night at a friend’s apartment in London and we headed out before daybreak to Bermondsey Market to see what bargains she and I could find at the antique dealers’ open-air stalls. Neither of us had a lot of money to spend, but the excitement of maybe discovering a treasure was worth the early start.

Portobello Road was another of my haunts. One of my favorite pieces of jewelry—a delicate silver and sparkling marcasite necklace inset with a pearl—came from a Portobello antique dealer. I wear the necklace on special occasions. It reminds me of my incredible year overseas (during which I met the man who became my husband), the excitement of my market expeditions, and the uniqueness of vintage jewelry.

Jewelry is a beautiful way to adorn our bodies. What others give us, such as engagement rings, is a reflection of their intimate feelings for us. But jewelry can also represent great power; for example, a signet ring worn by a medieval lord. Pressed into soft wax to secure a parchment, the seal left by such a ring held the importance of a signature.

The pendant in A Knight’s Temptation is an exquisite jewel of such power. I deliberately made it a ruby pendant, blood red in color, because it reflects the significance of bloodlines through my series. The jewel was bought by Moydenshire’s lord Geoffrey de Lanceau (readers will recognize him from A Knight’s Vengeance, award-winning Book One of my series) as a gift for his beloved wife to celebrate the difficult birth of their daughter. However, the pendant was stolen on its way to de Lanceau. My book’s hero, Aldwin Treynarde, is ordered to get the jewel back before his lord’s enemies get hold of it, sell it, and use the money to stir up a bloody rebellion. If Aldwin succeeds in his quest, he hopes to finally be awarded his dream of knighthood.

Of course, nothing goes exactly as Aldwin planned, especially when he meets my headstrong heroine, Lady Leona Ransley. She snatched the pendant from her drunken father’s safekeeping and arranged a meeting in a tavern to exchange the jewel for the reward. She’s very devoted to her father—but smart enough to know his guests, who gave him the pendant, are plotting treachery. When Aldwin meets Leona, he senses she knows more about the jewel than she’s willing to admit. He takes her hostage, intending to deliver her to de Lanceau for questioning, and a dangerous, sexy, thrilling adventure unravels that neither of them ever expected.

All because of a ruby pendant.

Thank goodness my antique necklace hasn’t gotten me into anywhere near as much trouble.

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To read an excerpt from Chapter One of A Knight’s Temptation, please click here.