We chat with author Alexandra Vasti about her latest hot, hilarious Regency romp Earl Crush, which follows a reclusive earl and the wallflower-turned-radical-pamphleteer who turns his life upside down.
Hi, Alexandra! Welcome back! What have you been up to the last six months since we last spoke?
Hello! Thanks so much for having me back!! In the last six months I got tenure, hit the USA Today bestseller list for the first time, sold three more historical romances to my publisher, and made my son a rainbow narwhal cake for his third birthday (a special request which involved more tears than all the other events put together, to be perfectly honest).
With it being the new year, have you set any goals for the year?
Yes! My goal is to write two new romances and to have them be even rompier, sexier, and more inventive than anything I’ve written to date. I’m also very excited for the release of my first sapphic romance in September, Ladies in Hating.
Your latest novel, Earl Crush, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Heartfelt, spicy, kind-hearted, rompy, and … zebras! (Read and find out for that one.)
What can readers expect?
Earl Crush tells the story of Lydia Hope-Wallace, a wallflower heiress who secretly publishes radical political pamphlets. When she finds out that her pen pal, the Earl of Strathrannoch, is on the verge of financial ruin, she decides to journey to Scotland and propose a marriage of convenience. Unfortunately, when she arrives, the earl has no idea who she is—because his brother has been catfishing her for the past three years.
Where did the inspiration for Earl Crush come from?
Before I wrote the book, I had the first scene crystal clear in my mind: painfully shy Lydia knocks on the door of the earl’s castle, proposes to him, and then discovers to her horror that he has no idea who she is. Usually proposals come at the end of romance novels, and I loved the idea of having the proposal be the first scene of the book. But more than that, I wanted to write a story about fear and love and bravery. What happens if you take a leap of faith—and fail? How do you gain the courage to try again?
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
Lydia is a character who grapples with severe social anxiety, and it was a joy to watch her discover that she is enough, exactly as she is—that she does not have to change to be worthy of love. I also really enjoyed incorporating the words of real historical women—many of them 18th– and 19th-century writers and historians—into Lydia’s letters and political pamphlets. Women have been standing up against oppression for a very long time, and I loved putting their powerful words front-and-center in 2025.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing Earl Crush? How did you overcome them?
Yes! Both Lydia and Arthur are reserved and cautious characters, and I found that what they really wanted to do, when left to their own devices, was stare at each other longingly and do nothing. I had to thrust them into the middle of some outrageous plot hijinks in order to get them to act on their feelings!
What’s the best and worst writing advice you’ve received?
The best writing advice (for me!) is to read, and read, and read some more. I am a voracious reader both inside and outside my genre, and that informs my writing immensely.
The worst advice … hmm. In general, I dislike any advice that’s too prescriptive. Writers are a varied bunch with extraordinarily diverse needs, goals, and processes. So I’m a big fan of tossing out any advice that doesn’t serve you as a writer!
What’s next for you?
My third novel, titled Ladies in Hating, comes out September 23, 2025. It’s a sapphic Regency romance about a pair of rival Gothic novelists who get trapped in a haunted manor together while doing research for their next books. It’s spicy, super romantic, and the tiniest bit spooky too.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up in 2025?
I loved Flirting with Disaster by Naina Kumar and Let’s Call a Truce by Amy Buchanan, both of which came out last week! In the coming weeks, I can’t wait to read Never Gamble Your Heart by Lindsay Lovise, A Tropical Rebel Gets the Duke by Adriana Herrera, and A Gentleman’s Gentleman by TJ Alexander.
