Wednesday 29 July 2015

Winners of Sketching Mr Darcy by Lory Lilian!

Hello Readers!
Today I announce the lucky winners of the 'Sketching Mr Darcy Giveaway by Lory Lilian!

I would like to say thank you to Lory for kindly sharing an excerpt with us from her new book and being so gracious as to answer my questions. I hope you all enjoyed reading the post and thank you all for leaving such wonderful comments. (Apologies for the late announcement but I am not in the UK)

So without further ado!

Congratulations!!!
Marcia Vasquez & Becky C, you have both won a paperback copy of Sketching Mr Darcy by Lory Lilian.
Daniela you have won an e-book copy of Sketching Mr Darcy by Lory Lilian.
Please contact me with your details, (see 'contact me' page at the top of the blog)

Thank you again Lory its always a pleasure to have on My Kids led Me Back to Pride & Prejudice. I wish you success with your new book!

(Winner picked using Random.org)

Monday 20 July 2015

Sketching Mr Darcy by Lory Lilian ~ Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway!

Fetch the smelling salts!!! Lory Lilian has a new book out, Sketching Mr Darcy!!!

It is no secret that Lory Lilian is one of my favourite authors!
Lory creates secondary characters you will adore and keeps her primary characters as close to Austen's as possible.
Lory's description of thoughts, feelings, wit, banter and humour, are what make Lory such a brilliant storyteller.

Therefore it should come as no surprise that I have been besides myself with excitement  since discovering Lory had a fifth book on the way and lo and behold it is a forced marriage scenario, my favourite!  

I am elated to be welcoming Lory today, for an interview, excerpt and giveaway! 
I had a task deciding what to ask as I had a million questions but I hope the few I have asked, you will enjoy.


Hello Lory and welcome! 

Q. When did you fall in love with Jane Austen?
I first came across Jane Austen when I was 13, and the first book I read was Pride and Prejudice. It was love at first sight and it is my favourite book in the world! I still carry a copy of PnP with me (paper!) wherever I travel! It is therapy for hard moments. Of course I love all the other Jane Austen’s books- she was a genius!

Q. What compelled you to write JAFF, much to our delight?
In the winter of 2004, I was searching the internet for Pride and Prejudice information during a break from a very demanding job. I discovered Derbyshire Writers Guild, then Firthness, and then Hyacinth Gardens. At that time, especially after seeing PnP 95, I have been already obsessed with Darcy and Elizabeth for many years, imagining them in various scenes that did not belong to the original story. To be honest, I thought I was a little bit crazy and I was ashamed to admit this obsession to anyone (LOL). Then I suddenly discovered that there were thousands of people out there sharing the same passion and the same madness. I spent the next six months reading hundreds of stories (and, of course, sleeping very, very little) and interacting with many JAFF fans. Neither Firthness nor Hyacinth Gardens is alive now, sadly. I miss those times. I have some wonderful cyber friends from those days whom I miss, too.
Then, in 2005, I started to write, because I have lots and lots of ideas spinning in my mind! Rainy Days—my first book — was first posted on DWG, so it was PG general; I finished it, and I even wrote the wedding night, keeping it PG 13! Then, I started posting it on HG — which was an adult site — and some cyber friends started to “demand” me to enhance some scenes – so this is how my NC 17 writing carrier started lol.
So here I am, on my fifth book – and my first forced marriage scenario!
Why I am doing it? Because I just cannot have enough of Darcy and Elizabeth. Jane Austen implied so much and told us so little, and I simply cannot have enough of them. I keep thinking of scenes, dialog, situations involving them, and every time I read Pride and Prejudice again or watch P&P-95 once more, these scenes came to my mind with overwhelming insistence (LOL). I could easily fill 10 books if I had enough time.

Q. What is it about Pride & Prejudice that resonates with you?
The reason why I love this story so much (besides Jane Austen’s genius and her fabulous writing) is Elizabeth and Darcy’s relationship.
For me, Darcy and Elizabeth can only belong together with no other men or women interfering with them. Despite pride, prejudice and many other things, Darcy and Elizabeth are meant to be together and they will be ‘the happiest couple in the world’, no question about that for me! 
 And I think this is part of the answer regarding the desire of reading (and writing) more about this aspect of their happy married life. Jane Austen implied so much and told us so little, and we simply cannot have enough of it.

Q. Favourite Pride & Prejudice scene and why?
The Netherfield Ball dance – it is like a duel of wit with two opponents with different kind of skills but equal value, ready to perform to their best
.
Q. How did you come up with the idea for your new book?
The idea for Sketching Mr. Darcy came to me during a 600 km drive, alone in my car ! In two days I had the entire story planned! Of course, it took me two years to actually publish it, but this is a … different story lol. The first title was “My husband, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy”, but I changed it after some debate with my awesome editors Ellen and Margaret.
It is my first FMS, and the first challenge was that most of the book takes place in a month time! Can Elizabeth fall in love with her husband in such a short time? Well – let’s see: in canon, she met him again and witnessed his changes at Pemberley – and a few days ago, when she found about Lydia’s elopement, she was already certain that he could have been the right man for her! So yes, I think it was possible, even more so if she was “trapped” in the same house with him and “forced” to be the recipient of his generous care and tender affection.
The second challenge for me was to keep the right amount of mush and angst, to come with new characters and new situation to avoid boring the readers.
And the third one was to keep the story under 400 pages, which I almost did.

LASTLY THE QUESTION I LIKE TO ASK EVERYONE! BE HONEST LOL

Q. If you were in Elizabeth’s place in that era, knowing of the entail, would you have accepted Mr Collin’s proposal?

Mr. Collins’s proposal? No way – under no circumstances, because of his lack of wit and common sense (I have a long passage dedicated to him in my new book)

About Darcy’s proposal at the parsonage – a proposal from a man who is bright, well educated, witty and handsome, and very rich –in 1811 - knowing this would have helped my family ? Most likely I would have said yes, despite his faults.  If he looked like Colin in PnP 95 – hell YES ! lol 

Excerpt ~

The book is a forced marriage scenario and I hope you will read it to see how things got to the point to make the marriage necessary. This is an excerpt from chapter 6, following Darcy’s proposal, which did not go very well, but not as bad as in the cannon, either, due to the fact that he already had the chance to redeem himself a little bit in Elizabeth’s eyes. The following scene is between Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner.  - Lory Lilian

“Lizzy, what worry me are the feelings with which you accepted Mr. Darcy’s proposal. It is not your will but rather the burden you agreed to carry, the sacrifice you agreed to make for your family. You seem angry and bitter, so I must ask: Are you angry with Mr. Darcy because there is another man whom you had hoped to marry?”

“Not at all, Aunt; I might be angry and bitter, but it does not have to do with Mr. Darcy himself. We had the chance to speak today more than we did during his entire stay at Netherfield. I have little with which to reproach him regarding his behaviour towards me. ”

“Very well—I am relieved to hear that. I was afraid that… You mentioned Mr. Wickham quite often in your letters, and I thought you might—”

“Oh, Mr. Wickham is not… I mean—he is, beyond all comparison, the most agreeable man I ever saw, but he is certainly not the reason for my concern regarding this marriage.”

“I see…Lizzy, you know that I grew up in Lambton—a small town only five miles from the Darcys’ estate, Pemberley. I knew Lady Anne Darcy quite well; she was the most wonderful lady that ever existed.”

“Yes, you told me that. You seemed quite charmed by everything related to Pemberley.”

“You may laugh, but you do not understand what it means to be part of this family. You do not know the extent of their name and their fortune. I would never imagine that someone from my family could one day become a Darcy and I cannot help wondering why Mr. Darcy would want to marry you! Yes, you are beautiful, smart, witty, kind, and generous, and I love you dearly. But I imagine there are many other young ladies equally beautiful and smart with impressive fortunes and connections who would be happy to marry him.”

“I asked myself and I asked him the same. He said the gossip was his fault, and it was his duty to propose to me and protect both our families from the rumours. I felt he was forced by his honour and by his concern for his family to propose, and that is unfair to both of us.”

“Yes, I understand that—partially. I mean—he heard the reports, and he came to propose to you, though he could have pretended to be oblivious and waited for the rumours to disappear in time. But once you refused him, he could have left. Yet, he persisted and tried to persuade you to accept him. Why? Forgive me for being insensitive to your feelings, but you and your family have everything to gain from this marriage while he wins nothing.”

“I asked him that too. He said that he wanted to put an end to the gossip as soon as possible to protect his family. And he said he was certain that I would be suited for the position of his wife. He said he would not have proposed to me, all gossip aside, had he not been certain that I would be a proper Mrs. Darcy,” Elizabeth replied, her emotions growing.

“He seems a very sensible and wise man, capable of recognising and appreciating your qualities, Lizzy. And, if he considers you suited to be the future Mrs. Darcy, he has made you an extraordinary compliment. I hope you are wise and sensible enough to recognise that.”

“Do you not believe me capable of accomplishing the duties required of being Mrs. Darcy? Do you doubt I am suited for the role?”

“I believe you capable of accomplishing anything you want, Lizzy. The question is: Do you want to do this? Are you willing to go through the circumstances that forced this alliance and to really become Mrs. Darcy? I am sure Mr. Darcy is not an easy man to live with, and the fact that you do not really know each other—nor will you have time to do so before the marriage—will only make things more difficult. You will need patience, wisdom, and strength. As Mrs. Darcy, you will have a duty to raise this marriage to the level of your predecessors. I am sure Mr. Darcy will expect and demand a lot from you, and so will everyone else. It is not something to be taken lightly.”

“I know that, Aunt. There are many things I need to think of before tomorrow. Besides, Mr. Darcy already told me that he has some requirements. I shall see if I can—or want to—accept them. Both he and I have time to change our minds. Nothing is decided yet.”

“You should search both your heart and your mind before making the final decision, Lizzy. Search deeply and earnestly; this is a decision for your entire life, a decision that will affect many people besides you and Mr. Darcy, starting tomorrow.”

“I know that, Aunt. If I could only make ‘tomorrow’ wait a little longer.”


Thank you for stopping by today Lory, as always it has been a pleasure. 
I am thoroughly enjoying reading 'Sketching Mr Darcy' and I hope readers will enjoy it also. Thank you for kindly answering my questions, for the excerpt and the generous giveaway!

Giveaway Time!!!!

Are FMS one of your favourites too?  
Comment below for a chance to win a copy of  Sketching Mr Darcy! 
The Giveaway is open internationally!! 
2 x paperbacks and 1 x e-book. 
The Winners will be announced on 29th July 2015.

Good luck Everyone!!!!

Sketching Mr Darcy is now available to buy!!

Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com

As always I delight in hearing your thoughts!

Wednesday 15 July 2015

Winner of Pride & Proposals by Victoria Kincaid Giveaway!


Hello Readers!
Today I announce the lucky winner of the 'Pride and Proposals' Giveaway by Victoria Kincaid.

I would like to say thank you to Victoria for kindly sharing an excerpt with us from her new book and for giving readers a chance to win an e-book copy! Readers you can follow Victoria Kincaid on her FacebookWeb Page and Blog. 

Lastly I would like to thank everyone who stopped by and left a comment to enter the giveaway! So without further ado!

Congratulations!!!
Michelle. J! You have won an e-book copy of 'Pride & Proposals by Victoria Kincaid!!
Please contact me with your details, (see 'contact me' page at the top of the blog)

Thank you again Victoria, I look forward to reading your new book and thank you to all that participated.

(Winner picked using Random.org)

Thursday 9 July 2015

Ross Poldark Blog Tour ~ Excerpt!


Hello readers!
I am very delighted to be a part of the 'Ross Poldark Blog Tour' and excited to be sharing an excerpt with you today.

Broadcast here on the BBC in early March and on PBS in June, the eight part series based on the first two Poldark novels, has been receiving high praise Indeed.

If Jane Austen met Charlotte Bronte and they drank too much port, the Poldark Saga would be their literary love child.” — Poldarkian.com  

Captain Ross Poldark rides again in the new Sourcebooks Landmark tie-in editions of Ross Poldark and Demelza, the first two novels in the acclaimed Poldark Saga by Winston Graham.

In celebration, The Ross Poldark Blog Tour will visit thirty popular book blogs specializing in historical, romance and Austenesque fiction. Leave a comment on any or all of the blog stops to enter a fabulous giveaway contest! Which includes copies of the books and a stunning Anglophile-themed prize package.

Ross Poldark Excerpt from Chapter 6 ~

The shirt she was wearing had old tears in it as well as new, and the breeches were of faded brown corduroy. Her feet were bare, and she had lost the round cap. Her face was pinched and white, and her eyes, a very dark brown, were much too big for it.

“What is your name?” he said.

“Demelza.”

“Your Christian name, though?”

“Please?”

“Your first name.”

“Demelza.”

“A strange name.”

“Mother were called that too.”

“Demelza Carne. Is that it?”

She sighed and nodded, for she was well filled, and the dog under the table grunted with her.

“I come from Nampara. Beyond Sawle. Do you know where that is?”

“Past St. Ann’s?”

“I am going home now, child. If you cannot walk I’ll take you first to Illogan and leave you there.”

A shadow went across her eyes and she did not speak. He paid what he owed and sent word for his horse to be saddled.

Ten minutes later they were up and away. The girl sat silently astride in front of him. Garrick followed in desul-tory fashion, occasionally dragging his seat in the dust or peering suspiciously around to see what had become of the thing he had sometimes chased and often wagged but could not locate.

They cut across the moors by a mining track worn deep and hard and pitted by the passage of generations of mules. The countryside hereabout was entirely abandoned to the quest for minerals. All trees, except an occasional ragged pine, had been cut down for timber, every stream was discolored, patches of cultivated land struggled among acres of mine refuse and mountains of stone. Engine sheds, wooden derricks, wheel stamps, windlasses, and horse gins were its adornment. Trenches and adits grew in the back gardens of the tiny cottages and huts; potatoes were hoed and goats grazed among the steam and the refuse. There was no town, scarcely even a hamlet, only a wide and sparse distribution of working people.

It was the first time he had been to Illogan that way. With the improvement in the pumping engine and the new lodes of tin and copper available, Cornish mining had been going ahead until the slump of the previous few years. People had migrated to those fortunate districts where the veins were richest, and the home population had increased rapidly. In the growing depression of the early eighties, many of the breadwinners were out of work and the doubt arose as to whether the population could be maintained. The danger was not immediate but the specter was there.

The girl in front of him gave a wriggle.
“Could ’ee let me down ’ere?” she said.

“You’re but halfway to Illogan yet.”

“I know. I doubt I shall be going ’ome yet a while.”

“Why not?”

There was no answer.

“Does your father not know you’ve been out?”

“Yes, but I was lended my brother’s shirt and breeches. Father says I must go to fair whether or no, so he says I can borrow Luke’s Sunday f ligs.”

“Well?”

“Well, I ain’t got what I went for. And Luke’s clothes is all muddy. So I reckon—”

“Why did you not go in your own clothes?”

“Father tored ’em last night when he give me a thrashing.”

They jogged on for some distance. She turned and peered back to be sure Garrick was following.

“Does your father often beat you?” Ross asked.

“Only when he’s bin takin’ too much.”

“How often is that?”

“Oh…mebbe twice a week. Less when he an’t got the money.”

There was silence. It was late afternoon and needed another two hours to dark. She began to fumble with the neck of her shirt and untied the string. “You can see,” she said. “’E used the strap last night. Pull me shirt back.”

He did so, and it slipped off one shoulder. Her back was marked with weals. On some the skin had been broken, and those were partly healed, with dirt smeared on them and lice at the edges. Ross pulled the shirt up again.

“And tonight?”

“Oh, he’d give me a banger tonight. But I’ll stay outdoors and not go ’ome till he’s below again.”

They rode on.
Ross was not oversensitive to the feelings of animals—it was not in his generation to be so, though he seldom hit one himself—but wanton cruelty to children offended him.

“How old are you?”

“Thirteen…sur.”

It was the first time she had sirred him. He might have known that those undersized, half-starved waifs were always older than
they looked.

“What work do you do?”

“Looking after the ’ouse and plantin’ taties an’ feeding the pig.”

“How many brothers and sisters have you?”

“Six brothers.”

“All younger than you?”

“Es-s.” She turned her head and whistled piercingly to Garrick.

“Do you love your father?”

She looked at him in surprise. “Es-s—”

“Why?”

She wriggled. “Cos it says you must in the Bible.”

“You like living at home?”

“I runned away when I was twelve.”

“And what happened?”

“I was broft back.”

Darkie swerved as a stoat scuttered across the path, and Ross took a firmer grip on the reins.

“If you stay out of your father’s way for a time, no doubt he’ll forget what you have done wrong.”

She shook her head. “He’ll save un up.”

“Then what is the use of avoiding him?”

She smiled with an odd maturity. “’Twill put un off.”

They reached a break in the track. Ahead lay the way to Illogan; the right fork would bring him to skirt St. Ann’s whence he could join the usual lane to Sawle. He reined up the mare.

“I’ll get down ’ere,” she said.

He said, “I need a girl to work in my house. At Nampara, beyond St. Ann’s. You would get your food and better clothing than you have now. As you are under age I would pay your wages to your father.” He added, “I want someone strong, for the work is hard.”

She was looking up at him with her eyes wide and a startled expression in them as if he had suggested some-thing wicked. Then the wind blew her hair over them and she blinked.

“The house is at Nampara,” he said. “But perhaps you do not wish to come.”

She pushed her hair back but said nothing.

“Well then, get down,” he continued with a sense of relief. “Or I will still take you into Illogan if you choose.”

“To live at your house?” she said. “Tonight? Yes, please.”

The appeal, of course, was obvious; the immediate appeal of missing a thrashing.

“I want a kitchen maid,” he said. “One who can work and scrub, and keep herself clean also. It would be by the year that I should hire you. You would be too far away to run home every week.”

“I don’t want to go home ever,” she said.

“It will be necessary to see your father and get his consent. That may be hard to come by.”

“I’m a good scrubber,” she said. “I can scrub…sur.”

Darkie was fidgeting at the continued check.

“We will go and see your father now. If he can be—”

“Not now. Take me with you. I can scrub. I’m a good scrubber.”

“There is a law to these things. I must hire you from your father.”

“Father don’t come up from ’is core till an hour after cockshut. Then he’ll go drink afore he do come ’ome.”

Ross wondered if the girl was lying. Impulse had prompted him that far. He needed extra help as much in the house as in the fields, and he disliked the idea of handing the child back to a drunken miner. But neither did he wish to cool his heels in some bug-ridden hovel until dark with naked children crawling over him, then to be confronted by a gin-sodden bully who would refuse his suggestion. Did the child really want to come?

“About Garrick. I might not be able to keep Garrick.”

There was silence. Watching her closely, he could plainly see the struggle that was going on behind the thin, anemic features. She looked at the dog, then looked up at him and her mouth gave a downward twist.

“Him an’ me’s friends,” she said.

“Well?”

She did not speak for a time. “Garrick an’ me’s done everything together. I couldn’t leave ’im to starve.”

“Well?”

“I couldn’t, mister. I couldn’t—”

In distress she began to slip off the mare.

He suddenly found that the thing he had set out to prove had proved something quite different. Human nature had outmaneuvered him. For if she would not desert a friend, neither could he.


Book to film adaptations can be great, as we know from Pride & Prejudice 1995. However to truly understand and appreciate the depth of a story, alongside what the author is trying to convey, the book must be read and this chapter certainly had me wanting to read more! 

Giveaway!

Two lucky winners will each receive one trade paperback copy of Ross Poldark and Demelza, and one grand prize winner will receive a prize package containing the following items:

(2 ) Old Britain Castles Pink Pottery Mugs by Johnson Brothers
(1) Twelve-inch Old Britain Castles Pink Pottery Plater by Johnson Brothersr
(1) London Telephone Box Tin of Ahmad English Breakfast Tea
(1) Jar of Mrs. Bridges Marmalade
(1) Package of Duchy Originals Organic Oaten Biscuits
(2) Packets of Blue Boy Cornflower Seeds by Renee's Garden Heirloom (1) Trade Paperback Copy of Ross Poldark & Demelza, by Winston Graham

To enter the giveaway contest simply leave a comment on any or all of the blog stops on the Ross Poldark Blog Tour until 11:59 pm PT, August 10, 2015. Winners will be drawn at random from all of the entrants and announced on the Buzz at Sourcebooks blog on August 13, 2015. Winners have until August 20, 2015 to claim their prize. The giveaway contest is open to US residents and the prizes will be shipped to US addresses. Good luck to all!



THE ROSS POLDARK BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE:

July 06           My Jane Austen Book Club (Preview)
July 07           Booktalk & More (Excerpt)                                   
July 08           Reading, Writing, Working, Playing (Review)
July 09           vvb32 Reads (Preview)
July 10           The Paige Turner (Review)                                 
July 10           My Kids Led Me Back To P & P (Excerpt)                                
July 11           Austenprose (Review)                                          
July 12           Laura's Reviews (Preview)                                                          
July 13           Peeking Between the Pages (Review)                         
July 13           Reflections of a Book Addict (Preview)                                               
July 14           Living Read Girl (Review)                        
July 15           Confessions of a Book Addict (Review)
July 16           vvb32 Reads (Review)                 
July 17           Paige Turner (Review)                             
July 18           Truth, Beauty, Freedom & Books (Preview)                           
July 19           Marie Antoinette’s Gossip Guide (Excerpt)                             
July 20           Laura's Reviews (Review)                                   
July 20           The Calico Critic (Review)                                               
July 21           So Little Time…So Much to Read (Excerpt)
July 21           Poof Books (Excerpt)                                            
July 22           Babblings of a Bookworm (Review)
July 23           Austenprose (Review)                                          
July 24           Peeking Between the Pages (Review) 
July 25           My Love for Jane Austen (Excerpt)
July 25           Living Read Girl (Review)
July 26           Delighted Reader (Review)
July 27           My Jane Austen Book Club (Review)
July 27           Austenesque Reviews (Review)
July 27           Laura's Reviews (Review)
July 28           She Is Too Fond Of Books (Review)
July 29           English Historical Fiction Authors (Preview)                         
July 30           vvb32 Reads (Review)
July 30           Babblings of a Bookworm (Review)
July 31           CozyNookBks (Excerpt)                                       
Aug 01           The Calico Critic (Review)
Aug 01           More Agreeably Engaged (Review)
Aug 02           Scuffed Slippers Wormy Books (Review)
Aug 03           Romantic Historical Reviews (Review)
Aug 03           Psychotic State Book Reviews (Review)                    

            
Blurb ~
In the first novel in Winston Graham’s hit series, a weary Ross Poldark returns to England from war, looking forward to a joyful homecoming with his beloved Elizabeth. But instead he discovers his father has died, his home is overrun by livestock and drunken servants, and Elizabeth—believing Ross to be dead—is now engaged to his cousin. Ross has no choice but to start his life anew.
Thus begins the Poldark series, a heartwarming, gripping saga set in the windswept landscape of Cornwall. With an unforgettable cast of characters that spans loves, lives, and generations, this extraordinary masterwork from Winston Graham is a story you will never forget.


Blurb ~
In the enchanting second novel in Winston Graham’s beloved Poldark series, Demelza Carne, an impoverished miner’s daughter Ross Poldark rescued from a fairground brawl, now happily finds herself his wife. But the events of these turbulent years test their marriage and their love. As Ross launches into a bitter struggle for the right of the mining communities, Demelza’s efforts to adapt to the ways of the gentry (and her husband) place her in increasingly odd and embarrassing situations. When tragedy strikes and sows the seeds of an enduring rivalry between Ross and the powerful George Warleggan, will Demelza manage to bridge their differences before they destroy her and her husband’s chance at happiness?

Against the stunning backdrop of eighteenth century Cornwall, Demelza sweeps readers into one of the greatest love stories of all time

As always I delight in hearing your thoughts!

Winners! 'Mistaking her Character' Virtual Book Tour


Hello Readers!
Today I announce the lucky winners of the 'Mistaking her Character' Virtual Book Tour by  Maria Grace.

I would like to say thank you to Maria for kindly sharing an excerpt with us from her new book and for giving readers a chance to win a e-book copy! Readers you can follow Maria Grace at her blog Random Bits of Fascination.

Lastly I would like to thank everyone who stopped by and left a comment to enter the giveaway! So without further ado!


Congratulations!!!
Sheila & Euridice! You have both won an e-book copy of 'Mistaking Her Character' by Maria Grace!!
Please contact me with your details, (see 'contact me' page at the top of the blog)

Thank you again Maria, I look forward to reading your new book and thank you to all that participated.

(Winner picked using Random.org)

Tuesday 7 July 2015

'A Will Of Iron' Blog tour - Excerpt!


Welcome to the third stop on the 'A Will Of Iron' Blog Tour! Kindly brought to you by Jakki at Leatherbound Reviews & Meryton Press!  Today author Linda Beutler is kindly sharing an excerpt with us from Anne de Bourgh's diary!

Hello Linda & welcome!

Tamara! Thanks so much for providing a stop on the 
'A Will of Iron Blog Tour!' In this twisted little macabre romp, the main plot line, occurring in “real time” (meaning Regency 1812), is shadowed by journal entries from the deceased Anne de Bourgh. (The journals are in six-month volumes, and in this story we are concerned with July 1 through December 31, 1811, and January 1 through April 8, 1812, when Anne is found dead from complications of an illicit pregnancy). 
The following are two such entries appearing at the end of Chapter Three, Cooing to Broken Hearts. In this story, Darcy and Colonel Alexander Fitzwilliam (I’m done writing Richards when Jane Austen did not like the name) have whisked Georgiana off to Rosings after the debacle with Wickham at Ramsgate. Loathsome as this may seem, Rosings would have been the closest family enclave to Ramsgate. 
My version of Lady Catherine de Bourgh is foremost concerned with preserving the family name, and would not have “outed” Georgiana, but would rather have protected her reputation, if not the girl’s spirit. So herewith we have the sometimes sympathetic, sometimes sarcastic Anne’s view of the matter.

Excerpt ~

7 July 1811

Mama has outdone herself. Even within Little G’s hearing, her verbal blows rain down on Darcy constantly, and worse now that Alex has had to return to his duties. How Darcy bears it, I do not know. Mama insists he propose to me, thinking this will stabilise a home for Little G, who by all appearances is quite contrite. Poor Darcy is due to leave tomorrow. Little G will stay until August, and we are all in search of a more thoroughly researched companion for her. Once a lady is hired, Little G and said companion will travel to Pemberley. Darcy is expecting guests—some people named Bingley. Mama sniffs that they are nouveau riche, as though the de Bourghs were not. She hates the French but loves employing their insults. —A de B

23 July 1811

I think we have found a companion for Little G. Mama is crowing with the credit of it, but it is, as usual, undeserved praise, as she only knew someone who knew someone, when in truth, Darcy found notice of the woman from a gentleman at his club whom Mama knew only distantly. The lady was here yesterday, a Mrs.Annesley, and we all liked her, not that my opinion was required. Darcy and Alex interviewed her, and Darcy had previously contacted her references. She is a widow of perhaps thirty-five years of age who lost the three children she bore her husband one after the other to a fever, and then lost the man himself. Life may have beaten a lesser woman, but Mrs.Annesley is intelligent and without complaint. Once my cousins had completed their interview, they allowed my mother a share of the conversation, and nothing Mama said discomfited the lady in the least. This I witnessed for myself as Mama insisted, “Anne and I shall observe her and give you our opinion.” She never asked what I thought, but had she, I would have said I found the woman quite pleasingly observant.

Little G is much changed. She is loath to play any instrument except that in Mrs. Jenkinson’s room, and she seems to have developed a horror of performing. Perhaps it is only a horror of my mother; one could not fault her for that. What is it about music that renders my mother such a fool? I notice Little G wearing childish clothes, and she does not walk out as she used to. The summer flowers in the cutting garden are at their height, but she will not go abroad, even with me. She has not spoken of her experience with Wickham but she did confide to me that she never liked Mrs. Younge, Wickham’s accomplice, and she wishes she had the courage to have said so to Alex, who would have been more sympathetic than her brother. G believes she has bitterly disappointed Darcy. I daresay she has, though Darcy will not hear of it. Wickham had her believing he was in constant convivial correspondence with Darcy and there was no schism in their childhood friendship. Poor Little G. It is thus proved that it is possible to know too little of the world and to be made weak by cosseting—as if the example I embody is not proof enough. She is not a spoilt child…far from it. For all her physical and material advantages, she persists in a profound shyness and modesty. This is manifested more now than ever.

G will remain with us for perhaps ten more days. Mrs. Annesley will join the family here as soon as she has settled her affairs in London where she lives with a brother. They will remain for another five days or a week and then proceed to Pemberley to stay through August and September. Once the heat of summer breaks, Little G will return to town and await the pleasure of her brother and Alex. I do agree with Mama to this extent: the girl needs distractions. More music lessons, more drawing…anything to restore her confidence.

I do admit to some envy. How I would love to trade Mrs. Jenkinson for Mrs. Annesley. Mrs. J is a dear old thing but has little wit. Mrs. Annesley is clever. I am unkind, but I come by it honestly, do I not? —A de B


I do not know about you, but I am certainly looking forward to reading more of Anne's diary, her dry wit and matter of fact observations, certainly make for a funny read. Thank you for sharing Linda, I look forward to more from Anne and finding out what secrets she has to reveal!
Good luck with 'A Will Of Iron' and I look forward to the rest of the blog tour!
Thank you Leatherbound Reviews Meryton Press, for another Austen related blog tour!

Book Blurb  

The untimely death of Anne de Bourgh, only days after his disastrous proposal at the Hunsford parsonage, draws Fitzwilliam Darcy and his cousin Colonel Alexander Fitzwilliam back to Rosings Park before Elizabeth Bennet has left the neighborhood. In death, Anne is revealed as having lived a rich life of the mind, plotting rather constantly to escape her loathsome mother, Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Anne’s journal, spirited into the hands of Charlotte Collins and Elizabeth, holds Anne’s candid observations on life and her family. It also explains her final quirky means of outwitting her mother. Anne’s Last Will and Testament, with its peculiar bequests, upheaves every relationship amongst the Bennets, Darcys, Fitzwilliams, Collinses, and even the Bingleys! Was Anne de Bourgh a shrewder judge of character than Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy combined?


Blog Tour Schedule

Linda Beutler
7/6: Review at Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell 
7/7: Guest Post & Giveaway at More Agreeably Engaged
7/9: Review at Wings of Paper
7/10: Guest Post & Giveaway at So Little Time… 
7/11: Review at Half Agony, Half Hope
7/12: Excerpt & Giveaway at My Jane Austen Book Club 
7/13: Review at Songs and Stories
7/14: Review at Austenprose
7/15: Guest Post & Giveaway at Babblings of a Bookworm 
7/16: Review at Margie's Must Reads
7/17: Excerpt & Giveaway at Best Sellers and Best Stellars 
7/18: Guest Post & Giveaway at My Love for Jane Austen 
7/19: Excerpt & Giveaway at The Calico Critic 
7/20: Review at Diary of an Eccentric

As always I delight in hearing your thoughts!