An adventure in the frozen wastes of the Arctic may not seem an obvious fit with a Regency romance but for author Nicola Cornick, the two-week voyage to Spitsbergen, north of Norway, sparked the idea for her novel Whisper of Scandal.

Her imagination had already been fuelled by earlier research into dashing naval officers of that era, such as Nelson.

She said: “I found the idea of these real-life heroes, who were explorers and full of daring deeds, absolutely fascinating.

“During Nelson’s early life he had these amazing episodes such as wrestling a bear and his ship narrowly avoiding being crushed by sea ice near the North Pole.

“I thought it would make a fabulous story.”

On the expedition she experienced a number of challenges first-hand, such as when their ship become trapped in ice, she was seasick and they had close encounters with polar bears. Back at her Wantage home, she translated those into prose with plenty of mementos from the voyage to aid her memory.

“My husband Andrew is a prize-winning amateur photographer and he took some fabulous pictures I looked at while writing,” she said.

In Whisper of Scandal, newly widowed society hostess Lady Joanna Ware’s late husband is feted as a national hero.

But it quickly becomes apparent that his private and public personas were very different and the story raises interesting parallels with today’s cult of celebrity.

She said: “Lady Joanna and an explorer friend of her husband have to go on an expedition to northern Norway.

“She is a fish out of water in the Arctic, where it is incredibly uncomfortable and cold, whereas he is in his element. It is a bit like Victoria Beckham dating Bear Grylls.”

Her novels have won an army of fans here and in America plus several awards, not least because of her impressive research and attention to detail. She has a degree in history from London University and an MA from Ruskin College specialising in heroes and hero myths. Her expertise is on show later this year in Channel 4 series Restoration Man, in an episode that focuses on a former brick-and-tile works in Uffington, below White Horse Hill. She knows the area well, having volunteered as guide and historian at 17th-century Ashdown House — which she describes as “one of the most beautiful and atmospheric historic houses in England” — for ten years.

Whisper of Scandal is the first of six books in a series entitled Scandalous Women. Each is a standalone story but many of the same characters appear.

“I’ve always liked the idea of strong females doing unusual and sometimes outrageous things,” she said.

“The more I research the Regency period, the more I realise women undertook all kinds of work, travelled to far-flung places and had adventures and experiences that were far from the sequestered lives we imagine them living.”

She loves the Regency period because it was glittering and glamorous, but also an age of discovery in terms of industry and the building of canals. “It was a period in history of great contrasts and when they were on the cusp of something new.”

The second book in the series, One Wicked Sin, out this month, is set in Wantage during the Napoleonic Wars, while the third, Mistress of Midnight, follows in August.

She said: “The story of French prisoners of war in England has fascinated me since I came across a footnote about them in a book about the Battle of Trafalgar. The officers were allowed to live in small country towns, such as Wantage, on parole and gave their word they would not attempt to escape.

“They were entertained by the gentry at balls and parties and naturally some tried to escape, others had love affairs or married and plenty got into fights with the locals, so a very rich background for a book.

“One of the highlights of my research was visiting the Vale and Downland Museum and holding an original letter written from a French officer to a London bank, requesting they send £123 to the banker in Wantage to pay his bills.”

* Whisper of Scandal and One Wicked Sin are published by Mira at £6.99 each.