Guest post written by Miss Wick and the Duke Dilemma author Violet Marsh
Two-time Golden Heart finalist Violet Marsh is a lawyer who decided it was more fun to write witty banter than contractual terms. A romance enthusiast, she relishes the transformative power of love, especially when a seeming mismatch becomes the perfect pairing. Marsh also enjoys visiting the past—whether strolling through a castle’s ruins, wandering around a stately manor, or researching her family genealogy online (where she discovered at least one alleged pirate, a female tavern owner, and several blacksmiths). She indulges in her love of history by writing period pieces filled with independent-minded women and men smart enough to fall for them. Marsh lives at home with Prince Handy (a guy who can fix things is definitely sexier than a mere charmer), a whirlwind (her daughter), and a suburban nesting dog (whose cuteness Marsh shamelessly uses to promote her books).
About Miss Wick and the Duke Dilemma: The daughter of a pirate and a newly titled duke must team up to solve a decades-old family mystery in this clever historical rom com—perfect for fans of Evie Dunmore and Manda Collins! Released March 17th 2026.
Long before I published my first historical romance, I read them voraciously. It wasn’t that I wanted to lose myself in a sepia-toned past filled with whimsical balls and idyllic carriage rides down flower-blossoming lanes. No—I read them for the women who upended expectations and trudged down steamier passageways. I, a young adult on the cusp of entering the workforce, wanted to read about women crashing through barrier after barrier.
I gravitated toward heroines like Susan Wigg’s Lucy Hathway—a fierce suffragette from The Firebrand who braved the condemnation of society by becoming a single mother to a toddler she rescued during the Chicago Fire. Her marriage of convenience to a financer began his complicated journey to not just accept but to champion women’s rights. There was Lisa Kleypas’ Sara Fielding, the successful authoress from the countryside whose research brought her into the dangerous world of gambling house owner, Derek Craven in Dreaming of You. Amanda Quick’s Lavinia Lake became a private investigator in Regency London, exploring parts of the city far removed from the crowded, candle-lit Mayfair ballrooms in Slightly Shady.
Although I still enjoyed the descriptions of historic clothing and places—both high class and low—I was there for the tales of women triumphing in their hard-fought careers against the sexism of the age. I wasn’t reading for an accurate portrayal of a typical 19th century miss. No, I wanted to take a journey with heroines who I could identify with, despite the decades separating our lives. As I was about to embark upon a historically male profession, I took encouragement from these fictional characters.
I’ve always viewed historical romance as a product of the author’s time, rather than when the story is set. The distance of the past bestows upon writers the opportunity to grapple with current social concerns in a removed, historic setting. This crucial separation allows readers to draw their own connections—to see where modern culture has not yet reached its promise of social justice.
The success of Bridgerton shows how audiences don’t want to just lose themselves in a rich tapestry of the past—they crave stories of those who pushed against boundaries…boundaries that might have moved or shifted but have not disappeared. Current historical romances offer a wealth of impressive women, both inspirational and aspirational. Scarlett Peckham’s gender-flipped rake, Seraphina Arden, doesn’t live the carefree life of her male counterparts. Where sexual freedom is lauded in a man, it is condemned in a woman. While Seraphina may struggle internally in The Rakess, she is never cowed and champions the rights of all women. Adriana Herrera’s Luz Alana Heith-Benzan is a Caribbean heiress who fights against prejudice to promote her rum at the 1889 Paris Exposition. Never compromising, Luz is the consummate businesswoman on the world’s grandest stage in A Caribbean Heiress in Paris.
Although Miss Wick and The Duke Dilemma is a quirky rom com—populated by a bad-mouthed parrot and a fiercely protective gosling—my heroine is a proprietress of a coffeehouse who is determined to seek justice for her family’s economic mistreatment during the Enclosures. She’s ready to dive into any adventure and tackle injustice, whether against people or animals. The hero—a duke whose massive physique doesn’t fit with the era’s ideal body type of a gentleman—is a shy introvert trying to discover his true personality after his domineering grandfather dies. The book is a romp through the underbelly of late 1750s London, but it also touches upon classism and cruelty toward the weak. My hope as an author is that readers chuckle at the comedic moments but also can take inspiration from the main characters just as I did as an undergrad and law student pouring over the works of Wiggs, Kleypas, and Quick.
