Heartbreak: intense and overwhelming grief, especially through disappointment in love.
Heartbreaker: a person, event or thing causing heartbreak.
When I looked these words up, I was surprised to find out the first one dates back to 1575; the second one came into usage about a hundred years later.
So we’ve had heartbreakers for more than 500 years! That’s a boatload of bad boys for sure!
And in the 16th and 17th century they had another word for heartbreaker–rakehell. A licentious man who is sexually unrestrained and immoral. Yes, just because it’s history doesn’t make it boring. These guys were anything but! They lived the high life, going from woman to woman and leaving heart break in their wake.
The Rake’s Progress: The Orgy by William Hogarth
During the English Restoration rakes were quite popular and dashing aristocrats, witty fellows who were sexually irresistible. My favorite Restoration rake is Jack Horner from Wycherly’s play The Country Wife. Horner, a charming and notorious rake, puts the rumor about that he’s now a eunuch due to the “French pox” (syphilis) in order to put suspicious husbands off their guard and give him access to their wives. What ensues is a steady stream of women into Horner’s chambers and a series of very funny encounters. You know that heartbreak is just around the corner for these women, but who can blame them for their folly?
There’s nothing so irresistible as a bad boy!
I have a bad boy of my own making in my historical romance, Only Scandal Will Do. Duncan Ferrars, Marquess of Dalbury has a hellacious reputation as a rake (rumor has it he’s slept with over 500 women!). Out for another night of sport, he tries to charm one more woman–and finds he’s met his match!
Blurb for Only Scandal Will Do:
He has the woman of his dreams, but what price will he have to pay to win her heart?
Kidnapped and sold at auction in a London brothel, Lady Katarina Fitzwilliam squelches an undeniable attraction to the masked stranger who purchased her, pits her wits against him, and escapes him and the scandal that would ruin her life.
Unable to resist temptation in a London brothel, Duncan Ferrers, Marquess of Dalbury, purchases a fiery beauty. She claims she’s a lady, but how can she be? No lady of his acquaintance in polite society is anything like her. Then he discovers she is who she says, and that this latest romp has compromised her reputation. He knows how that is. One more scandal and he’ll be cast out of London society, but he needs a wife who’ll provide an heir to carry on his illustrious family’s name. He seeks out Katarina, intending only to scotch the scandal, but instead finds his heart ensnared. He’s betting their future he’ll capture her heart, but does he have what it takes to win the wager?
WARNING: A blade-wielding heroine who crosses swords with a master of sensuality.
Only Scandal Will Do is available at Amazon, Lyrical Press and Barnes & Noble, as well as other e-retailers.
Leave a comment telling me who your favorite heartbreaker in romance is and you’ll be entered to win my prize of a $10.00 Amazon or Barnes & Noble Gift Card and you’ll also be entered for the Grand Prize Drawing!
We have THREE grand prizes. You as a reader can go to EACH blog and comment with your email address and be entered to win. Yep, you can enter over 200 times!
Now what are those prizes?
1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet
2nd Grand Prize: A $100 Amazon or B&N Gift Card
3rd Grand Prize: A Swag Pack that contains paperbacks, ebooks, 50+ bookmarks, cover flats, magnets, pens, coffee cozies, and more!
So be sure to write your comment below
WITH YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
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Now, to continue on the Hop, click the button below. Thank for stopping by!
Jenna Jaxon Romance--because passion is timeless. 
Zsadist from the Black Dagger Brotherhood series.
bituin76 at hotmail dot com
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I think the hottest heart breaker right now is Damon from Vampire Diaries, but it seems that maybe the title should also go to Elena. She has been breaking heats throughout the show as well, but still maintains the heroines role. Damon has those qualities that make you want to swoon, and with Elena you see his harsh, cold exterior melt and his eyes blaze….yumm!!!
ferose24@aol.com
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Only because I have to choose only one….I will go with Rhet Butler.
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My favorite heart breaker is Rhett from Gone with the Wind. They belonged together.
Mary
mary_reiss @ hotmail.com
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I would say: Kresley Cole’s Lothaire, Jeaniene Frost’s Bones, JR Ward’s Z & V, & Charlaine Harris’s Eric 🙂
Thanks for the awesome giveaway!
cassandrahicks1989@yahoo.com
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I really liked Jamie Fraser in Outlander.
parisfan_ca@yahoo.com
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I really liked Jamie Fraser in Outlander.
AnnaM.
doxisrcool at aol dot com
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Darcy in Pride and Prejudice because of his arrogant proposal.
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Forgot my email. elainecsc@aol.com
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I don’t know that I have a favorite heartbreaker at the moment. I’ve observed though that women are always attracted to the heartbreaker bad boys when they should be noticing the guy who’s going to stick around. Maybe we think we can reform them?
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Willoughby from Jane Austen’s SENSE AND SENSIBILITY is such a cad.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
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It’s hard to be definite about this but I think that Christian Grey from “50 Shades” is a good example.
mestith@gmail.com
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Eric from Sookie Stackhouse series, Acheron from the Dark Hunter series.
vampiremistress2010(at)gmail(dot)com
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which one to choose, I don’t think I have a favorite at the moment, but I love the ones that fight it because their fall is that much sweeter.
Thanks for the giveaway
kat.harris35@gmail.com
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Thanks for the history! and thats a hard one! Hm.. maybe Roarke from the In Death series or Eric from TB.
-Amber
goodblinknpark(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
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So glad to see you as part of another great blog hop!
bas1chsemail at gmail dot com
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don’t have any fav at the moment thanks for the hop! – regnod(at)yahoo(d0t)com
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For me the heartbreaker is a bad boy who goes kicking and screaming into love! When he falls he falls hard!
The only heartbreakers I have encountered are literary! And my all time fav is Mr Darcy!
grapeapril75(AT)gmail(DOT)com
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A hero can break my heart when he gives all of himself to a woman while fighting it tooth and nail. Fighting himself for control and then finally releasing it. Mm…heartbreakin’ heros!
And I thin Damon Salvatore is my favorite…either him or Eric Northman.
jennalynneellis(at)gmail(dot)com
Thank you for the giveaway opportunity!
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Jamie from Outlander.
Thanks for the giveaway!
by.evie at yahoo dot com dot br
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Lucian from Strict Machine by justus roux talk about heartbreak
amber.landez@yahoo.com
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My favorite heartbreaker is Eric Northman from the Southern Vampire novels. He is such a bad boy and I love him for it Thanks for giveaway.
kaylyndavis1986@yahoo.com
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Ollie Green from Bound Together by Marie Coulson is my heartbreaker — I can’t believe he didn’t fight harder for Layla … I’m hoping they end up together in the end!
theresa.esterline@gmail.com
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My favorite heartbreaker is Damon on Vampire Diaries.
Thanlks for the chance!
sqwalker2@hotmail.com
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I was reading Scandal just today. It’s really good. My dog started mulling during our hike, so I too her home, grabbed scandal and read for an hour while I exercised on my elliptical. In fact, I should go exercise again. Just because my dog is missive about a blizzard doesn’t mean I can’t get my exercise. I’m loving this book. So glad I bought it.
Liza2write at yahoo.com Who really wants entered in this cool giveaway. fingers crossed.
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opps I forgot to mention my heartbreaker. Rhett Butler…he broke my heart.
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