Sanctuary by Cat Andrews – Excerpt & Giveaway

Good Afternoon everyone,

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and that the first days of fall have been kind to you. I am currently on vacations doing a road trip through Portugal so, to be honest, it still feels like summer to me 🙂 I’ve been to many different beaches and I’ve taken the time to read a lot, so many more reviews are coming up 🙂

One of the books that is travelling with me is the first volume of Sanctuary by Cat Andrews and I’ve taken some nice pictures with it, but I haven’t started it yet. I was hoping to start reading it during this road trip but I have now realized I’ve been overly optimistic. 

So instead of bringing you a review of book 1, today I am sharing an excerpt of book 3 which has just been released.  I’ve heard lots of great things about this book, and I find the setting very alluring so I am eager to read it. Anyway, I hope you like the excerpt, and please do not refrain from commenting, not only to apply to the giveaway, but also to share your encouragement to Cat Andrews who I am sure will appreciate it 🙂 

I would like to thank Cat Andrews for visiting. It is her first time at From Pemberley to Milton, but I hope it is not the last. It has been a pleasure working with such a sweet author 🙂

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She studied him in the gray, dreary light of the morning, and her heart ached as she wondered how she was going to tell him that once again, the past was forcing its way into the present.

Will Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet are deeply in love, and together with Will’s young son Jack, they are looking forward to their happily ever after on the shores of Great Diamond Island.

For Will, the future has never looked brighter: he’s wild about Elizabeth, has found a best friend in Charles Bingley, and his new consulting business is slowly gaining momentum—as is his fledgling relationship with his father. 

Elizabeth, too, is deliriously happy: she’s crazy about Will and is embracing her role as Jack’s “new” mom, she loves her job at the Portland Children’s Library, and is looking forward to having her younger sister Lydia settled close by.

It seems they’ve left their troubled histories behind and are heading into the future as a blissful family of three. But can anyone truly forget—or escape—a past that is determined to reassert itself? Can a new love withstand the forces that seek to destroy it?

***

Sanctuary is a contemporary love story inspired by Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but uses Austen’s characters only as a launching point; it is not a meticulous and faithful retelling of the original. It contains mature content and is intended for adult readers.

You can find Sanctuary at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

and on Kindle Unlimited

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INTRODUCTION TO EXCERPT:

Much of Volume 3 focuses on the rebuilding of the relationship between Will Darcy and his father Robert. They haven’t been close for a very long time – since Will was a child – but they’ve slowly started to work to overcome a past full of anger and hurt. This excerpt is a scene from Chapter 3; an olive branch has been offered, and Robert is visiting Will, Elizabeth, and Jack at their home in Maine for the very first time. This is a conversation between Elizabeth and Robert that takes place when they go on a short walk to the beach with Jack—but without Will.

~~~

It was silent for a long moment, the only sounds the waves lapping onto the shore and Jack’s voice as he chattered to himself while playing tag with the waves.

“May I ask you a question, Elizabeth?” Robert asked.

She turned to him, feeling a slight pang of unease. “Of course,” she answered, keeping her expression impassive.

“What are your intentions toward my son?” His voice was calm and matter-of-fact.

“My intentions?” 

“It sounds like a foolish question, but I don’t know you. Not yet.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Your son does.”

“I realize that,” he answered gruffly. “Fitzwilliam is wealthy. A widower with a young son. Smart. Handsome.”

“He’s all of those things, you’re right.” She looked him in the eye, fully understanding what he was alluding to. My son is a prize catch. “But those aren’t the things that drew me to him. Well, I did notice he was handsome.” 

She shook her head, her playful expression turning serious. “As you said, you don’t know me. If you did, if you had any idea of what’s made me into the person I am, you would know it’s not Will’s money I want, it’s Will.” Her eyes turned to Jack as he sat in the damp sand, digging up shells and rocks. 

“I have everything I want, everything I need, right here. I don’t want more, and I don’t need things. I just need Will and Jack. As long as they’re happy…” She shrugged. “I guess that’s my answer. My intention toward your son is to love him and make him happy.”

Robert was studying her closely, and the expression on his face indicated he seemed satisfied.

“Your son is a remarkable man,” she continued, “and a wonderful father.” She paused for a moment, remembering something from their conversation in the house. “When we were talking earlier, you said I was determined. Will is too, you know. He’s overcome so much—I don’t have to tell you what he’s been through. You’ve experienced it as well, experienced the same loss. It’s too bad you had to go through those losses without each other. Going through them together may have made the grief easier to bear for both of you.”

“Has he told you everything?”

She nodded. “Everything. I don’t think there’s anything I don’t know about him. And there isn’t anything he doesn’t know about me. I know about his mother, I know about Anne, I know about Richard…and I know about you.”

He looked at her warily, and she knew she needed to keep talking and say what she wanted to say, as it might be her only chance.

“I’m having a hard time reconciling you, the man I’ve spoken with today, with the man Will has told me so much about. Unflattering things. Terrible things. It makes me wonder, and worry—not for me, but for Will and Jack. And maybe it’s not my place to ask you this, because Will isn’t my husband, and I’m not Jack’s mother.” She took a deep breath, gathering her courage. 

“But now I need to turn your question back to you. I need to know where your heart lies. I need to know that you have the best of intentions where Will and Jack are concerned, because they mean the world to me. They are my world.”

“Elizabeth—”

“Please let me finish.” He nodded. “I want to make sure your motives for this reconciliation are what you say they are, that you just want another chance with your son and grandson and want to be part of their lives. Will is putting his trust in you, but it isn’t easy for him.” Her eyes bore into his, trying to read him. “If–if you’re being deceptive or dishonest, it will hurt him deeply. You know that, don’t you?”

“It is your place to ask me, Elizabeth. You have every right to ask and every right to know. I see how much Fitzwilliam loves you, it’s as plain as day. The way he looks at you, the way he talks to you and about you—his feelings are quite obvious. And I can see that you feel the same way about him and that you care for my grandson a great deal.”

His eyes traveled to Jack. “I told you my son is a different man. You know he’s a different man. But I’m a different man, too. I’m not the person I was six months ago. I know I have a lot to make amends for, and some things…it won’t be possible to fix them. I’ve done things I’m ashamed of, and I have to live with that and with the fact that I’ve caused my son a great deal of pain.”

He took a deep breath and turned back to her. 

“All I want is a chance to right what I can, to apologize, and to start again. If he gives me that opportunity, I promise you, it will not be wasted, and he will not regret it.” He swallowed roughly. “May I have your trust as well, Elizabeth?”

She looked at him with watery eyes and when she spoke, her voice was soft but firm. 

“As long as Will feels he can trust you, I will too. But please, Robert…don’t give us a reason not to.”

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Cat Andrews has always been an avid reader, but didn’t discover Jane Austen until her love of a certain British actor led her to the BBC’s 1995 production of Pride and Prejudice, because she just had to know—why all the fuss over this Darcy guy? What followed her viewing of that glorious miniseries was an inhalation of and immediate fixation on all of Austen’s novels, though Pride and Prejudice remains her favorite (and that certain British actor will always be, to her, the quintessential Darcy).

Her discovery of Jane Austen Fan Fiction opened up a whole new world, and thus began her addiction, and months and months of sleep deprivation, as she immersed herself in JAFF. After reading a modern Pride and Prejudice variation that she fell in love with, she was inspired to begin a cautious but earnest foray into the world of writing.

In real life, Cat has spent thirty-plus years working in healthcare. She is a confirmed thalassophile and enjoys life on the shores of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where she grew up, fell in love with her own Mr. Darcy, and raised a family. More often than not, you can find her at the beach with a book in her hand and her toes in the sand.

Sanctuary is her debut novel and yogu can contact her throught the followinf social media:

Website: www.catandrews.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/cat.andrews.583

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/cat_andrews_author

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Cat Andrews would like to offer one ebook copy of any Sanctuary volume the winner chooses. The giveaway is international and to apply to it all you have to do is comment on this post and let us know what you thought of the excerpt, or your thoughts about the book in general. The giveaway is open until the 5th of October and the winner will be announced shortly after.

Good Luck everyone!

Accusing Mr. Darcy By Kelly Miller – Excerpt & Giveaway

Good Afternoon everyone,

After having received Kelly Miller at From Pemberley to Milton in the beginning of the month with the cover reveal of her latest book, Accusing Mr. Darcy, I am very happy to welcome her once more today with an excerpt and a giveaway. I am currently listening to the audiobook of Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match which has some interesting twists (never seen a Wickham behave like that), but I am very curious about both Death Takes a Holiday at Pemberley (which by the way is currently on sale for 0,99$), and Accusing Mr. Darcy. I believe these two books will differ from canon in a very interesting way, and they got me curious. The excerpt we are sharing today, however, is as closest to canon as you can get, and  is everything one wants to read in JAFF, I hope you like it as much as I did 🙂

Thank you for visiting again Kelly, and thank you for organizing the tour Janet 🙂

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Could Fitzwilliam Darcy harbour a shocking, sinister secret?

Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet count themselves among the many guests of the Kendall family, whose estate lies amidst the picturesque hills, gorges, and rocky slopes of the Peak District in Derbyshire. Elizabeth’s cousin Rose Kendall believes her dashing brother-in-law, Captain James Kendall, is Elizabeth’s ideal match. Rose’s husband, Nicholas, hopes his good friend Darcy—a rich, proud, and taciturn gentleman with a spotless reputation—will fancy one of the other eligible lady guests.

News of a brutal killing at a neighbouring estate sends a wave of shock through the genial group of friends and family. When one of the Kendalls’ guests is attacked, all of the gentlemen become suspects, but the former Bow Street runner tasked with investigating the crime finds the evidence against Mr. Darcy particularly compelling.

In this romantic mystery, the beloved couple from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice cross paths with a ruthless killer. When faced with dire warnings against Mr. Darcy, will Elizabeth heed them or follow the dictates of her heart?

You can find Accusing Mr. Darcy at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

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This excerpt takes place the morning after Elizabeth Bennet’s arrival to her cousin Rose Kendall’s estate and is in Elizabeth’s point of view.

~~~

The footman who opened the door for Elizabeth received a greeting and a cheery smile as she passed over the threshold. She took the stone steps two at a time and veered left when she reached the bottom. She had a particular destination in mind: Rose had described a path that followed the river for half a mile before diverting through a forest of oaks and winding up the crest of a hill. On her morning jaunts in Hertfordshire, she tended to walk at a swift rate; for this reason she went unaccompanied whenever possible. While walking with a companion had its advantages, it invariably required a more moderate speed than she preferred.

As she assumed her usual rapid pace, an immediate rise of her spirits followed. The exhausting monotony and confinement of the three-day journey had been a trial, so she welcomed the opportunity to stretch her legs at last.

“Miss Bennet!”

Elizabeth froze, and her contented smile evaporated. The voice was unmistakable. Of all people, of all times—why did he interfere with her walk? As his footsteps drew nearer, her promise to Rose came to the forefront of her mind. Damn! She would be polite and make her escape as soon as possible. With a controlled breath, she spun around and spoke with affected cheer. “Good morning, Mr. Darcy.”

The gentleman reached her with a few extended strides of his long legs. He had not been visible when she walked by. He must have been hidden by one of the trees along the river. “Good morning, Miss Bennet. It seems you formed the same notion as myself. I thought to walk before breakfast. Shall we proceed together?”

She floundered. Her usual adroitness at producing plausible excuses or witty repartee at a moment’s notice failed her. In the absence of a polite way to decline his offer, her jaw stiffened. “I must warn you that most people who agree to accompany me on my morning walk end by bowing out. Despite my slight stature, I prefer to move at a quick pace and can maintain it for a long time.”

Mr. Darcy’s lips edged up. “I shall take my chances. I believe I shall manage to keep up.”

She blinked at the gentleman whose smile transformed his countenance. He had never smiled so in her presence before. Despite his unpleasant disposition, his appeal could not be denied, and a contented expression rendered him remarkably handsome—the handsomest man of her acquaintance. Well, she would make the best of the situation. At least she would not be required to slow her pace, and Mr. Darcy was not apt to talk overmuch.

“Very well.”

Precluding any further discourse that might delay the activity, Elizabeth resumed walking. Mr. Darcy’s visage revealed surprise, but he required no more than a few steps to reach her and match her velocity. While it did not surprise her that a man of his height could maintain her stride with ease, in her experience most gentlemen would much rather ride a horse.

True to form, Mr. Darcy did not engage her in much conversation although he pointed out several objects of note as they progressed. When they strode past the river, he informed her of the animal life therein and indicated several spots ideal for fishing. He even persuaded her to stop and view a group of turtles sunning themselves on a log. At her exclamation that she had never seen turtles before, he explained how they came to be there: an uncle of Mr. Duncan Kendall had been a Navy Admiral and had brought a group of them back from a trip to Spain, presenting them to the then ten-year-old Duncan Kendall as a gift. Thus, Elizabeth benefitted from Mr. Darcy’s knowledge of the estate, attained during his many previous visits.

The path took a circuitous course up a hill, and Elizabeth exerted herself to maintain her previous speed. Walks from her house at Longbourn to the top of Oakham Mount each morning had inured her to such activity. Although her breathing accelerated, she maintained an unruffled presence. More than once, Mr. Darcy directed glances at her with his eyes flared in either alarm or disbelief. Although the gentleman maintained his position at her side, the heaving of his breath became audible and a sheen of sweat appeared upon his temple.

By the time they reached the top of the hill, Elizabeth, too, perspired a bit, but she had energy to spare, having been invigorated from the exercise. She continued to a clearing that provided a prospect of the house, the gardens she had walked through with Miss Darcy the day before, and the River Wye. Although she anticipated exploring other areas of the estate in the days and weeks to come, she would return to this spot during her stay. The summit was a similar distance and elevation to Oakham Mount and provided stunning views.

Elizabeth’s gaze landed upon Mr. Darcy, standing at her side. His breathing, though still audible, had slowed. He wiped his forehead and temples with a handkerchief.

Her lips formed a wry smile. “I hope I did not tire you overmuch. Near my estate in Hertfordshire, I take a path similar to this each morning. It is an exhilarating way to start the day.”

Mr. Darcy laughed.

The euphonic sound—unexpected from such a man—made her start and set off a peculiar agitation in her empty stomach.

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Kelly Miller is a native Californian and Anglophile, who made her first visit to England in 2019. When not pondering a plot point or a turn of phrase, she can be found playing the piano (although like Elizabeth Bennet, she is errant when it comes to practicing), singing, and walking her dogs. Kelly Miller resides in Silicon Valley with her husband, daughter, and their many pets.

Accusing Mr. Darcy is her third novel published by Meryton Press. Her previous books are: Death Takes a Holiday at Pemberley, a Pride and Prejudice Regency romantic sequel with a touch of fantasy; and Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match, a Pride and Prejudice Regency romantic variation.

Kelly’s blog page is found at www.kellymiller.merytonpress.com, her Twitter handle is @kellyrei007, Instagram: kelly.miller.author, and she is on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Author.Kelly.Miller

Contact Info: 

Amazon Author Page 

Goodreads Author Page 

Facebook 

Twitter 

Blog

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Want to know more about this book? There is still time 🙂

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Meryton Press would like to offer 8 ebook copies of Accusing Mr. Darcy to readers following the blog tour. The giveaway is international and to apply all you have to do is click on this Raffle link.

Good Luck everyone!

Accusing Mr. Darcy By Kelly Miller – Cover Reveal, Excerpt & Giveaway

Good Afternoon everyone,

How are you this week? 

I have returned to the office and it’s my first time there for an entire week since February so I’m once more listening to audiobooks in my commutes, which is great because my audiobook TBR is starting to look like my ebook/paperback TBR…never ending. 

But today I’m not here to talk about audiobooks (even if two of my favourite books have been released in audio this week). I’m here with another topic I absolutely love! Can you guess what it is? If you’ve been following From Pemberley to Milton, you probably guessed by now that we will reveal a cover today! Covers are definitely one of my favourite topics and I love to be the one revealing them to you, especially when the final work is so beautiful as this one! 

Today I’m sharing with you Accusing Mr. Darcy, Kelly Miller’s latest book which was released today, and whose cover was developed by the talented Janet Taylor. 

The cover has a silhouette which I absolutely love to see in book covers, but it is a profile silhouette which is not so common to see. I loved the simplicity and taste of this silhouette and the combination of colours in the front cover. The dark blue with the golden leaves is just perfect! Also, the silhouette kind of reminds me of Richard Armitage and that is always a plus isn’t it? I haven’t read the book yet, but being a mystery I feel this cover captures it’s tone, and increases my will to read it.

You’ve probably noticed  that I am a huge fan of Janet Taylor’s cover art which always reveals not only a profound knowledge of the story with little elements hidden in the cover, but also an incredibly good taste, so I decided to ask Janet to talk to you a little about the cover herself. I always ask her about her creative process because I often see little details in her covers that have a special meaning, and I love hearing her talk about them, so I hope you like to read more about the story of Accusing Mr. Darcy’s cover as much as I do.

~~~

Accusing Mr. Darcy Full Wrapper, Behind the Scenes by Janet Taylor

This cover is completely different from anything I have ever done before, and I guess you could call it “my baby.” I designed it as a generic version last year. I had seen several stock photos that caught my eye, and I purchased them, knowing I would use them eventually. The more I looked at them, the more I felt they would make a nice cover, so I started playing. 

One stock photo was a square cobalt blue background with subtle leaves at the top and a gold gradient leaf design at the bottom. I separated the two and used each part to create the background for the full wrapper. The subtle leaves are the top of both the back and front covers. The gold leaf design is at the bottom front under Kelly’s name and on the spine. The other stock photo was the partial sketch of a man. I changed some of his features, and I also changed the colors. If I was going to put the stock photos together, I needed the background for the sketch to be the same blue as the first stock photo. I also made his outlines yellow to go with the bottom leaf design. The outcome was the basic design for a full wrapper that stayed tucked away in my files for future use. 

When I read Kelly Miller’s manuscript, Accusing Mr. Darcy, I knew “my baby” might have found a home. I added Kelly’s title and name; then started looking for a stock photo of a scene I wanted to depict for the back cover. When I found the one you see, I knew it was the perfect setting, except for color, some wires in the background, and a female walking down the street. I changed the color to match the yellows of the front, got rid of the wires, and put a Regency male over the female. Now I had the ideal scene for Kelly’s book. The result is what you see today.

Kelly’s novel is an intriguing murder/mystery. I believe it is her best work to date. The intensity and intrigue of who is behind the murders is spellbinding. The romance between Darcy and Elizabeth is swoon worthy. (They have lots of page time! 😊) Kelly grabbed my attention from the first page and kept it to the very end. I hope all of you love Kelly’s book as much as I do and can see why I wanted “my baby” to wrap around “her baby” to make a complete package.

Thank you, Rita, for asking me to give you some background for the design of the cover for Accusing Mr. Darcy. Thank you, Kelly, for allowing me to share your day! 😊

~~~

So here is the beautiful cover Janet is talking about 🙂

Isn’t it a marvellous cover? I love how perfect the photo in the back is for a mystery story. The cobblestone street made me think of Jack the Ripper which transported me to England and to a world full of mystery. I loved the second silhouette, how beautifully blended in the strong blue of the cover the image was, and how the street light captured the golden tones in the front.

Once more, Janet Taylor designed a cover that would convince me to buy the book, even if I didn’t know the story. Which reminds me, I haven’t talked about the book blurb yet, have I??

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Could Fitzwilliam Darcy harbour a shocking, sinister secret?

Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet count themselves among the many guests of the Kendall family, whose estate lies amidst the picturesque hills, gorges, and rocky slopes of the Peak District in Derbyshire. Elizabeth’s cousin Rose Kendall believes her dashing brother-in-law, Captain James Kendall, is Elizabeth’s ideal match. Rose’s husband, Nicholas, hopes his good friend Darcy—a rich, proud, and taciturn gentleman with a spotless reputation—will fancy one of the other eligible lady guests.

News of a brutal killing at a neighbouring estate sends a wave of shock through the genial group of friends and family. When one of the Kendalls’ guests is attacked, all of the gentlemen become suspects, but the former Bow Street runner tasked with investigating the crime finds the evidence against Mr. Darcy particularly compelling.

In this romantic mystery, the beloved couple from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice cross paths with a ruthless killer. When faced with dire warnings against Mr. Darcy, will Elizabeth heed them or follow the dictates of her heart?

You can find Accusing Mr. Darcy at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

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My love of reading began in childhood, and has stuck with me all of my life. One thing that has evolved over the years is my choice of reading materiel. As a child, an enduring obsession with horses dominated my interest, so I read everything I could find on the subjects of horse breeds, riding, and horse-training.

In my early teens, long before I had any awareness of Jane Austen or her books, I developed a fondness for mysteries. My mother and aunt, both avid readers, purchased mystery novels each week by many different authors. Once they had both read these books, they ended up at our house, so I never wanted for books to read. I learned to favor books by Agatha Christie and Ruth Rendell, AKA Barbara Vine, as well as the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine anthology books.

Accusing Mr. Darcy came about because I wanted to challenge myself to write a Pride & Prejudice story that would center around a murder mystery. I wanted this tale to be unlike any other I had read, so I changed Elizabeth’s Bennet’s family background a bit and made slight alterations to Mr. Darcy’s as well. Then I placed Elizabeth and Darcy at a house party in Derbyshire along with a host of new characters. My research into the Peak District uncovered several interesting destinations for my characters to visit in the story, and I arranged to tour these locations on my trip to England in 2019.

I hope readers will enjoy the twists and turns comprised in this story. I had a great deal of fun writing it!

 

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This excerpt, in Darcy’s point of view, is from the day Darcy arrives at his friend Nicholas Kendall’s estate.

Over several games of billiards, Darcy and Nicholas told each other of their recent activities and spoke of the issues each had encountered of late at their respective estates. Afterwards, carrying glasses of brandy, they took seats in a pair of chairs situated before a large window overlooking the River Wye.

“I am happy you are here, Darcy. I imagine when I wrote to you of a house party, it gave you pause, but you may rest easy. None of our female guests will plague you with unwanted attention.”

Nicholas’s words, designed to reassure him, instead reawakened the apprehension they had been meant to dismiss. He swirled the amber liquid in his glass, grasping for a politic way to voice his concerns. “I am glad you think so, yet how can you be so certain? It would be easier for me to believe your statement if you said none of the guests were unmarried ladies.”

“In truth, there will be”—Nicholas canted his head and completed an internal count—“five unmarried ladies, not including my engaged sister. Even so, I know all of them and their situations well enough to stand by my previous statement in all confidence.”

Such an assertion could not but intrigue Darcy, but he refrained from asking the questions that filled his head. Ingrained habits learned over his adult life took over: he never displayed more than a mild interest in any unmarried ladies.

“Of our female guests, there are a couple whom you may decide to pursue.” Nicholas waggled his eyebrows.

Despite his friend’s teasing demeanour, Darcy’s jaw tensed. “Nicholas…”

His friend gave a hearty laugh. “You should see your face—such a serious expression. Come now, give me a modicum of credit. None of our female guests will be interested in you for mercenary reasons. Two of the ladies, Miss Selina Oliver and Miss Barbara Lambert, are Rose’s close friends. They are both from prominent families and are wealthy. They need not marry at all unless they wish to. Rose is confident of their fine characters, and I trust my wife’s judgment. In my opinion, either of these two ladies would make a fine match for you if a mutual attraction developed. Both ladies are accomplished, affable, and attractive.”

Darcy pressed his back against his chair and rubbed his chin. His friend’s descriptions of the two ladies made them sound agreeable, yet many other ladies who had been introduced to him in the past had appeared promising at first, but they all disappointed him. “If they are so amiable, eligible, and attractive, why have they not married before now?”

Nicholas smiled as he lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “I might ask the same of you.” A moment later, his smile widened. “Although…not everyone sees you as amiable.”

He pursed his lips. He could not dispute his friend’s assertion. At times, his taciturn nature had caused insult to others when it had not been his intention.

“As to Miss Oliver and Miss Lambert, both are the youngest children in their families, and they came out at the age of nineteen. Rose told me that both ladies have declined offers of marriage by fine, eligible gentlemen. Neither lady has yet met a gentleman she wished to marry, nor will either of them settle for anything less than a love match.”

Darcy took a leisurely sip of brandy. Based on Nicholas’s description, the ladies piqued his interest—not that he would admit it. “Well, I do not doubt Mrs. Kendall’s sincere belief that she has judged her friends with accuracy. I hope she is correct, yet people tend to see what they wish to see in those they care for.”

“I thought you would be sceptical, but you will see the truth of the matter soon enough.”

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Kelly Miller is a native Californian and Anglophile, who made her first visit to England in 2019. When not pondering a plot point or a turn of phrase, she can be found playing the piano (although like Elizabeth Bennet, she is errant when it comes to practicing), singing, and walking her dogs. Kelly Miller resides in Silicon Valley with her husband, daughter, and their many pets.

Accusing Mr. Darcy is her third novel published by Meryton Press. Her previous books are: Death Takes a Holiday at Pemberley, a Pride and Prejudice Regency romantic sequel with a touch of fantasy; and Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match, a Pride and Prejudice Regency romantic variation.

Kelly’s blog page is found at www.kellymiller.merytonpress.com, her Twitter handle is @kellyrei007, Instagram: kelly.miller.author, and she is on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Author.Kelly.Miller

Contact Info: 

Amazon Author Page 

Goodreads Author Page 

Facebook 

Twitter 

Blog

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Meryton Press would like to offer one ebook copy Accusing Mr. Darcy to one of my readers. The giveaway is international an open until the 11th of September. To apply to it all you have to do is comment on this post and let us know what you thought of the cover.

Good Luck everyone!

Darcy’s Clan by Lari Ann O’Dell – Cover Reveal

Good Afternoon everyone,

This is the week of cover reveals here at from Pemberley to Milton. Just a few days ago we revealed to you the magnificent cover of When Duty Calls from Belén Paccagnella with a design created by my favourite artist, Janet Taylor. The cover was stunning with a taste that can hardly be copied, and today we are once more bringing to your attention the cover of another wonderful book. This time, we will bring to you Darcy’s Clan by Lari Ann O’Dell.

This cover is very different from When Duty Calls, but equally appealing! I’m currently reading the book, and I must say the cover really depicts what you’ll find in it.

But Mrs. O’Dell would like to share with you what her initial ideas for this cover were, and how it could connect with the plot itself, so it’s time to give her the floor 🙂

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Hello, Rita. I am thrilled to be here at From Pemberley to Milton. It is with great excitement that I tell you and your lovely readers about my upcoming release, Mr. Darcy’s Clan, and share a bit about my amazing cover. 

When I was writing Mr. Darcy’s Clan, I knew I wanted to create a compelling portrayal of vampires. In some ways, my vampires, also called Firstborn Sons, are very much like the vampires we have seen across all mediums. (No, they don’t sparkle. Mr. Darcy would hate that.) Yet, it was also my intention to build new characteristics into my vampires. In this variation, vampires are fully integrated into English society. They are revered and respected, and they live by a strict set of laws called the Dictates. I felt that my cover should also be unique, but still be recognized as a JAFF novel. I worked with a talented cover designer, Jane Dixon-Smith, and asked for a cover with a a touch of blood and no direct sunlight, while admitting that beyond that I was not quite sure what I wanted. 

Jane is a brilliant designer, and she took my vague suggestions and worked her magic to create the cover I am revealing today. It is definitely my favorite of all my book covers. In this variation, the sun never shines directly in England as that would be very deadly for the vampires who reside there. This element of the story is mentioned several times throughout the novel, but three particular instances stand out, and I would like to share a few teasers that refer to this phenomenon. 

The first occurs in an exchange between Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, just after they learn that Jane is stranded at Netherfield.

“This was a lucky idea of mine!” she cried, as if she had been personally responsible for the rain.

Her husband scowled at her. “My dear, you must be descended from Henry VIII to have such control over the weather. Why, ever since his reign the sun rarely shines in England, which makes it so accessible for the vampires and their ilk.”

The second is at the Netherfield Ball, and gives a glimpse of how Darcy feels for Elizabeth.

Darcy sensed the moment Elizabeth Bennet entered Netherfield. Her scent was a heady mix of lavender, roses, and something that was uniquely Elizabeth, something akin to sunshine. Darcy was unsure how that was possible, as the sun never shone directly upon England, and had not done so in centuries.

Finally, the third key reference, again at Netherfield Ball, is spoken in jest by Elizabeth, toward the end of the evening and before a very important reveal. 

“You seem to hold yourself responsible for a great deal, sir. Is it your fault the sun does not shine directly in England as well?” Elizabeth said in a desperate attempt to diffuse the tension.

Mr. Darcy’s Clan’s intriguing cover sets the tone for my book. It depicts Mr. Darcy, above Pemberley, where much of the story takes place, and the lack of direct sunlight on the cover hints at the darker tone of this variation. There is a bit of blood dripping from the title, as it is a vampire variation, but fear not, dear readers, this book is not overly graphic or violent. Darcy and Elizabeth endure many misunderstandings, trials, and tribulations over the course of their journey together, but it does indeed end with a happily ever after.

And now…without further ado, here is the cover:

 

 

So, what do you think of it? I think the ambience really reflects the storyline, which I’m absolutely loving! And the detail of the blood falling off the title is a nice touch. I also love the fact that Mr. Darcy does not appear transfigured in the cover because in the book we don’t really think of him as a vampire, but as a normal gentleman. And this guy’s features are really sexy, aren’t they? Pemberley seems a little different from the usual images we see, but if you read the book, you’ll see that there is indeed a difference 🙂

I am loving the book as much as I loved the cover, so if you want to know why, please stop by on April 2nd for more details 🙂

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The upper echelon of English society—comprised of vampires, or Firstborn Sons—is a world Elizabeth Bennet has no desire to join. She has little exposure to Firstborn Sons until Mr. Bingley arrives in the neighborhood and falls in love with her sister Jane. His mysterious friend, Mr. Darcy, attracts Elizabeth’s attention, but she is convinced he is hiding a dark secret. In spite of this, powerful feelings draw her to him. She learns a shocking truth when Mr. Wickham appears, and disaster strikes at Netherfield. Forced into Mr. Darcy’s supernatural realm, a confusing new world of danger threatens their deepening love. How can they find eternal happiness when members of his illustrious clan are plotting her demise? Can Mr. Darcy rise beyond his past to save her or will he lose her for all eternity?  

Mr. Darcy’s Clan is available for pre-order at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

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Lari Ann O’Dell first discovered her love of Pride & Prejudice when she was eighteen. After reading a Pride & Prejudice variation she found in a closing sale at a bookstore, she said, “This is what I want to do.” She published her first novel, Mr. Darcy’s Kiss, two years later.

Born and raised in Colorado, she attended the University of Colorado in Boulder and earned a bachelor’s degree in History and Creative Writing. After graduating college, she wrote and published her second novel, Mr. Darcy’s Ship. Her third novel, Mr. Darcy’s Clan, is her first supernatural variation, and she is working on two more fantasy variations. She is now back at school and pursuing a degree in Nursing. She adores her two beautiful nephews, Hudson and Dean. She currently works at a middle school and writes whenever she can.

 

You can find her through the following social media:

Facebook 

Twitter

Amazon Author Central 

Goodreads Author Page 

Facebook Author Page 

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When Duty Calls By Belén Paccagnella – Cover Reveal

Good Afternoon everyone,

After doing the cover reveal of Obstacles, Belén Paccagnella’s debut book, I was very pleased to be invited by Meryton Press to repeat the feature and bring you all the cover of Mrs Paccagnella second novel! When Duty Calls will be available for pre-order today and unlike Obstacles its action takes place in 1812.

The book explores a forced marriage scenario and I’m quite interested in seeing how Mrs Paccagnella will elaborate this plot. Will Elizabeth slowly fall for Darcy? Will she blame him for what has happened? Whatever path Mrs Paccagnella decides to take, it will be perfect for me because I am a huge fan of forced marriage scenario books 🙂

Want to know more about this story? Check out the blurb:

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The Netherfield ball brings about many changes for the population of Meryton, and more so for the female residents of Longbourn. Mr. Bingley’s departure leaves the eldest, Jane Bennet, heartbroken whilst Mr. Collins’s proposal induces Miss Elizabeth to make a hasty escape. During her flight, she happens upon Mr. Darcy, a gentleman she despises. A moment of solitude in the woods leads to rather improper behavior, and the couple departs with the promise they will tell no one about their minor indiscretion. When their secret is finally uncovered, marriage becomes the only solution to saving Elizabeth from social disgrace. Her other grudges against Mr. Darcy are amplified by resentment and the prospect of spending her life with a man she can never respect. Nonetheless, the marriage takes place, forcing the young couple to deal with their pride and prejudices as husband and wife.

Originally posted online almost twenty years ago, this Regency tale of redemption narrates the struggles of two people, their differences, and their rocky start. But will they succeed in overcoming lies, misunderstandings, and their own errors to finally find love?

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What do you think? And did you know this book was written over 20 years ago? That’s impressive isn’t it? And I bet it still has that feeling that books written in the beginning of JAFF had 🙂

But today we are not here to talk about such things, share any excerpt that may give you an idea of what to expect, nor to talk about the creative process behind the book. We are here to talk about one of my favourite things: Covers! If you want to have a sneak peek at the story, I invite you to visit Meryton Press’s site as their authors have been sharing their favorite romantic scenes there, and today it is Belen Paccagnella’s turn to do so. She chose a scene from When Duty Calls, so all you need to do is click on this link and get directed to this first scene of this hot new release 🙂

Here at From Pemberley to Milton, we will be focusing on covers, and this one is incredibly beautiful and the classic painting demonstrates an incredible taste in my opinion. It also appears to reveal a little of what we will find in the book, and if it does, I wonder how Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth found themselves in this position if their feelings were not yet fully developed.

But what am I doing?! Talking to you as if you’ve seen the cover already…Well…here it is 🙂

What do you think? Don’t you think the faint colours in the path and grass give this cover a lot of elegance? What about the back cover? Do you think it will reveal something else? Let’s see!

What do you think this back cover means? Who are all those people in the picnic? And where are they? Is that at Pemberley? I really loved the type of painting that was chosen for this cover. Even if the style is not impressionist, some of the brush strokes do remind me a little of it, and the amount of detail we see in the back cover is very alluring! This is certainly one of the books I would love to possess on paperback 🙂

Have you noticed that small heart token in the spine? I bet it means something too! Now all we need to do it read it to find out exactly what it means 😉

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Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Belén Paccagnella discovered the world of Jane Austen fan fiction after watching the 1995 BBC miniseries of Pride and Prejudice. In her teens, she lived in Brazil when her family moved to the city of Curitiba due to her father’s work. She moved back to Buenos Aires a few years later, where she studied agronomy but finally pursued a different career and started working in the development and administration of shopping centers.
In 2001, she began writing both Regency and modern stories, adapting the Pride and Prejudice storyline to different backdrops, merging drama, humor, and adventure while creating characters with unique traits. Almost two decades later, she published Obstacles, a modern variation released in 2018 by Meryton Press.
Belén still lives in the suburbs of Buenos Aires where she shares her home with her pets while spending her time working, reading, and writing.

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The bog tour will start in a week, please stop by at the below blogs for more information on this book 🙂

March 11 Diary of an Eccentric

March 12 So Little Time…

March 13 Austenprose

March 16 Babblings of a Bookworm

March 17 More Agreeably Engaged

March 18 Savvy Verse & Wit

March 19 Interests of a Jane Austen Girl

March 20 Austenesque Reviews

March 23 From Pemberley to Milton

March 24 My Vices and Weaknesses

The Pilgrim – Cover Reveal

Hello dear readers,

How are you today? I am very happy because today I get to publish one of my favourite type of posts. Guess what? It’s cover reveal day!

I am even happier because the person who designed the cover we are revealing today is Janet Taylor, and I’m sure you know by now that I am a big fan of her work. She is incredibly talented and her covers are always classy, designed with superb taste, and always reveal small details about the story in them, which I consider a plus in a cover.

Today we are revealing the cover for Don Jacobson’s The Pilgrim: Lydia Bennet and a Soldier’s Portion which has just been released for pre-sale today, so if you are a fan of Don’s wonderful work, you can pre-order it asap on Amazon.

Before actually revealing the cover, we would like to share a little insight of the story and give you some more information about the cover.

 

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“My life has been very much like an unfinished painting. The artist comes to the portrait day-after-day to splash daubs of color onto bare canvas, filling in the blanks of my story. Thus grows the likeness, imperfect as it may be, which you see today.”

                                          Lydia Fitzwilliam, Countess of Matlock, letter to her sister

                                                         Elizabeth Bennet Darcy, March 14, 1831.

 

Does it matter how a man fills out his regimentals? Miss Austen never considered that query. Yet, this question marks the beginning of an education…and the longest life…in the Bennet Wardrobe saga.

Lydia Bennet, Longbourn’s most wayward daughter, embarks on her quest in The Pilgrim: Lydia Bennet and a Soldier’s Portion. This biography reveals how the Wardrobe helps young Mrs. Wickham learn that honor and bravery grow not from the color of the uniform—or the gender of its wearer—but rather from the contents of the heart.

In the process, she realizes that she must be broken and repaired, as if by a kintsugi master potter, to become the most useful player in the Bennet Wardrobe’s great drama.

The Pilgrim explores questions of love, loss, pain, worry, and perserverance. All of these are brought to bear as one of the silliest girls in England grows into the Dowager Countess., a legend within the Five Families.

This 151,000-word novel is the seventh, and next-to-last, volume in the Bennet Wardrobe Series. Each book along the way has revealed more about how the mysterious Wardrobe has led Miss Austen’s Bennets to learn that which they need in order to take part in its ultimate mission.

As Mirta Ines Trupp, author of The Meyersons of Meryton notes:

“Multifaceted and nuanced, The Pilgrim: Lydia Bennet and a Soldier’s Portion, speaks to the verities of life. Once again, Don Jacobson has combined the essence of Pride and Prejudice with an esoteric story line and the universal themes of redemption and forgiveness in this well-crafted narrative.”

The cover design by Janet Taylor offers readers insights into the great themes which run through the life of the young woman who has to pass through many veils to arrive at that place where she has learned that which she needs.

The band of roses across the bottom bears particular significance—the three roses with tears—as Lydia and the readers experience love and loss. Those who obtain a copy of the paperbound book will discover even more important iconography…the spine roses (also weeping), the kintsugi cup, the overarching presence of the Wardrobe, and the ribbon and music…that brings the visual and the word together.

Perhaps, though, the most powerful representation of Lydia’s long pilgrimage as she passes through the Wardrobe’s Universe is Maxim Vorobiev’s Oak Fractured by Lightning. Here the artist offers a visual metaphor for the ineffable loss he experienced in his life. Lydia is broken and reconstructed after facing trials of similar potency.

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Are you ready for the cover revea of  The Pilgrim: Lydia Bennet and a Soldier’s Portion? We’ve been talking about it, but now it is time for you to be the judge 🙂

 

What do you think of this cover? Isn’t it beautiful and proof of an excelent taste? Janet Taylor never dissapoints, and in my opinion the roses across the bottom do  give it a very beautiful touch.

But as you know, for me the back covers are just as important as the front covers, so I have to share the full cover with you so you may observe all the details!

What do you think about it? It made me very intrigued because there is something dark and profound about it. As this is never how I imagine Lydia to be, I believe this book must bring another layer to her character, which makes me want to read it.

If you want to know more about the Wardrobe series, please follow Don Jacobson and check his amazon page 🙂 His books are truly wonderful and well built so they definitely deserve your attention. 

As mentioned before this book is now available for pre-order and will be delivered to your kindle on September 10th.

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Don Jacobson has written professionally for forty years. His output has ranged from news and features to advertising, television and radio. His work has been nominated for Emmys and other awards. He has previously published five books, all non-fiction. In 2016, he published the first volume of The Bennet Wardrobe Series—The Keeper: Mary Bennet’s Extraordinary Journey, novel that grew from two earlier novellas. The Exile is the second volume of The Bennet Wardrobe Series. Other JAFF P&P Variations include the paired books “Of Fortune’s Reversal” and “The Maid and The Footman.”

Jacobson holds an advanced degree in History with a specialty in American Foreign Relations. As a college instructor, Don teaches United States History, World History, the History of Western Civilization and Research Writing.

He is a member of JASNA-Puget Sound. Likewise, Don is a member of the Austen Authors collective (see the internet, Facebook and Twitter).

He lives in the Seattle, WA area with his wife and co-author, Pam, a woman Ms. Austen would have been hard-pressed to categorize, and their rather assertive four-and-twenty pound cat, Bear. Besides thoroughly immersing himself in the JAFF world, Don also enjoys cooking; dining out, fine wine and well-aged scotch whiskey.

His other passion is cycling. Most days from April through October will find him “putting in the miles” around the Seattle area (yes there are hills). He has ridden several “centuries” (100 mile days). Don is especially proud that he successfully completed the AIDS Ride—Midwest (500 miles from Minneapolis to Chicago) and the Make-A-Wish Miracle Ride (300 miles from Traverse City, MI to Brooklyn, MI).

 

Contact Info:

Don Jacobson’s Amazon Author’s Page

Goodreads Author’s Page (with blog)

Author Website (with blog)

Twitter (@AustenesqueAuth)

 

 

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Obstacles – Cover Reveal

Good Morning everyone,

I hope you’ve enjoyed this beautiful week and that you are as ready as I am for the weekend! I had to travel to Germany on business this week so I decided to stay a little longer and do some sightseeing in Berlin which I hadn’t visited in over a decade. This time I’m visiting the city alone and even if it is strange for me to be all by myself for a couple of days, I’m finding it quite nice because not only I get to go exactly where I want to when I want to, but also because it gives me plenty of me time which I’m using to catch up with my TBR pile 🙂 The problem is that new books keep coming out and I am often taken off track. The latest book that took me away from my TBR pile was Obstacles by Belén Paccagnella. She is a new Meryton Press author who decided to take our dear characters into a completely different environment, and I have been feeling the need for something different lately, so this caught my attention.

But let me share the book blurb with you so you may know of what I’m talking about.

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Not all obstacles are restricted to the show-jumping arena…

Though Elizabeth Bennet lives an uneventful life instructing young equestrians at Longbourn, the family farm, she dreams of winning a show-jumping competition on Liddy, her spirited mare. But her life is upended when a team of world-renowned riders arrives at Netherfield, the neighbouring estate, and uses it as their training headquarters. As she assists the newcomers and their prize-winning mounts, she meets William Darcy, a wealthy and arrogant—albeit talented—rider with Olympic aspirations. He first insults and then ignores Elizabeth, and her feelings teeter between disgust at his hauteur and admiration for his equestrian prowess. As she discovers first-hand the rigors of a world for the elite, will Elizabeth change her perspective about love, trust, and the foibles of her own family?

Originally known as “Obstacles to Overcome,” Obstacles pays homage to Pride and Prejudice in the highly competitive world of equestrian show jumping.

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Different right? I had never heard of a premise like this and I can easily see it becoming a movie, but do you know what else caught my attention? The cover! You know how I love covers, and I really liked some details on the cover of Obstacles like the scrapbook and the scissor. These small details can make a huge difference:) Also the back cover is equally appealing, I can clearly picture Elizabeth Bennet in that environment, I know that in regency she is not that fond of horses, but if you think of a modern Elizabeth, this is just how I imagine her 🙂

Fun fact: the horses on the back cover where running in the fields surrounding Netherfield from the 1995 adaption when Janet visited the place in 2012. She took the picture herself and decided to use it here because it was fitting to the story 😉

But I’ll let you take your own conclusions and move along to the BIG COVER REVEAL🙂

So what do you think of it? Have you heard from this book before? What about the author? Do you want to find out more about her? You can read all about Belén I’m the author bio below 🙂

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Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Belén Paccagnella discovered the world of Jane Austen fan fiction after watching the 1995 BBC miniseries of Pride and Prejudice. In her teens, she lived in Brazil when her family moved to the city of Curitiba due to her father’s work. She moved back to Buenos Aires a few years later, where she studied agronomy but finally pursued a different career and started working in the development administration of shopping centres.

In 2001, she started writing both Regency and modern stories adapted from the Pride and Prejudice storyline, merging drama, humour, and adventure while creating characters with unique traits.

Belén still lives in the suburbs of Buenos Aires, where she shares her home with her daughter and her pets while spending her time working, reading, and writing.

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It’s already on Amazon!

If the blurb and cover got you curious, please don’t forget to follow the blog tour in the usual blogs starting on September 17th!

Also, if you want this book to be uploaded to your kindle as soon as it is out, you’ll be happy to know that the book is available for pre-order from today until the 3rd of September!

If you look for it at amazon it is already there! You can follow this link to go straight to it 🙂

The book will be released on September 4th, and I’m looking forward to read your reviews of it 🙂

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As I mentioned earlier I am currently traveling in Germany on business and yesterday when I was about to pay for a postcard I was buying, I saw this amazing tote bag!!!

Of course I couldn’t resist and bought every single one the store had, unfortunately they only had 3, so I’m keeping one to myself, I’m offering another one to a dear friend and I thought that one of my readers may like this bag too, so I’ll be offering it to a randomly chosen reader.

You know the drill, just comment on this post and let me know you’d like the tote bag. The giveaway is international and is open until the 8th of September.

Good luck everyone!

A Most Handsome Gentleman Cover Reveal

Hello everyone,

I hope you are enjoying the beginning of the weekend 🙂 I am having a wonderful time at home with hubbie and my kindle, that’s all a girl needs to be happy right?

I’m also happy because today I’m having the opportunity to share with you the cover for Suzan Lauder’s new book, A Most Handsome Gentleman.

You know how much I love covers, and how important I consider them, so I was thrilled to be doing the cover reveal of such an interesting book! Suzan Lauder is a talented author who comes up with very interesting premises and characters, so I was already expecting something different when I heard about this book, what I wasn’t expecting though was a HOT Mr. Collins!!! Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you, there is a hot Mr. Collins in this story…but let me share with you the book blurb so that you can find out for yourself of what this book is all about.

 

 

Elizabeth Bennet’s life is uncomplicated until she meets a quartet of new men: the haughty but handsome Mr. Darcy, the pert-with-a-pout Mr. Bingley, the confident and captivating Mr. Wickham—and then there is her father’s cousin, the happy man towards whom almost every female eye has turned.

Mr. Collins is HOT—well, incredibly handsome in Regency-speak—beautiful of face, fine of figure, elegant of air, his perfect clothing and hair matching his Greek god-like form. Unfortunately, when he opens his mouth, Elizabeth wishes he were mute. With affected servility and prideful self-conceit, he capitalizes upon his exquisite appearance and fixes on Jane Bennet as his bride.

Can Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy form an alliance to stop Jane’s suitors from issuing challenges—and will Elizabeth coax a smile from Mr. Darcy?

Bestselling Regency romance author Suzan Lauder delivers a hilarious Austenesque romance suitable for all readers of Pride and Prejudice.

 

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Interesting isn’t it? I think this will be a very fun read and I can’t wait to get my hands into it.

What I also consider interesting is the cover! I never imagined I would ever like to see a Mr. Collins in a cover, but this book made it possible! As always Janet Taylor did an amazing job! This time she had the help of several handsome man…

But I guess it is time I share with you the beautiful cover of A Most Handsome Gentleman…

 

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What do you think of this cover? Isn’t it beautiful? My favourite gentleman is certainly the one at the center, who I’m hoping is Mr. Darcy. God…I hope that’s not Collins! In what world would I be if I considered Collins more handsome than Darcy?. The one on the left is also very appealing, but I clearly prefer the one in the center. There is something darker about him and I like that. Also, he has a book :))) If that book turns out to be Fordyce’s Sermons I’ll just go and hide my head in the sand for the next weeks…

I also love the heart on the word handsome, don’t you think that is an adorable detail?

And what bout the back cover? What do you think you’ll find in it? Well, a cover reveal is not a very good one if we do not reveal the entirity of the cover right? So here is the full cover 🙂

I love the back cover too and I wonder how Janet created such an image! Even though it’s not hard to imagine some couples in this circumstance during regency, I do not believe any painter would dare to put it on canvas, so I’m imagining this is all her creation… Either way, congratulations Suzan and Janet! this cover is absolutely gorgeous, I love it !!!

Book should be available on or about October 1, 2017.

 

 

A lover of Jane Austen, Regency period research and costuming, cycling, yoga, blogging, and independent travel, cat mom Suzan Lauder is seldom idle.

Her first effort at a comedy, A Most Handsome Gentleman is the fourth time Lauder has been published by Meryton Press. Her earlier works include a mature Regency romance with a mystery twist, Alias Thomas Bennet, a modern short romance Delivery Boy in the holiday anthology Then Comes Winter, and the dramatic tension filled Regency romance Letter from Ramsgate.

She and Mr. Suze split their time between a loft condo overlooking the Salish Sea and a

150-year-old Spanish colonial home near the sea in Mexico.

Suzan’s lively prose is also available to her readers on her blog, road trips with the redhead www.suzan.lauder.merytonpress.com, on her Facebook author page https://www.facebook.com/SuzanLauder, and on Twitter @suzanlauder.

 

 

A note from Suzan Lauder on the cover for A Most Handsome Gentleman or #HOTCollins

When this novella was serial posting at A Happy Assembly, I included a handsome Regency man’s portrait at the end of each chapter, each one intended to represent Mr. Collins in the story. Commenters there added a few portraits of their own and piped in on their idea of who might be the best #HOTCollins in this comedy twist. Over the last couple of months, I’ve shared many of those portraits in weekly posts on Facebook and Twitter, and readers have replied with amusing compliments. Because each of these hot men could be Mr. Collins in my story, any one could become good cover art for a book. My readers are savvy enough to realize I wouldn’t post the “real” cover, however, which is here for your enjoyment today. I had a great time working with Janet Taylor on the choice of HOT gentlemen as well as the amorous scene on the back cover, which is from later in the novella. I’m sure everyone will agree it’s a catchy cover for a twisted plot twist on Pride and Prejudice!

 

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Thank you for allowing me to do the cover reveal today ladies, and I wish you much success with this book! Also, I hope you give me more information about each man on the cover, and maybe a little spoiler about the scene in the back 😉

 

My Mr. Darcy and Your Mr. Bingley Back Cover Reveal

 

Good Morning dear readers,

How are you today?

I’m very happy to bring you today a partial cover release for Linda Beutler’s latest book, My Mr. Darcy & Your Mr. Bingley! And why partial you may ask? Because I will only be revealing the back cover! The lovely Ceri is revealing the front cover at Babblings of a Bookworm, so I would suggest visiting her blog to check the lovely front cover Janet Taylor worked on.

I believe you all know how much I love beautiful covers, so it makes me very happy to be able to be a part of this double cover release, but I’m also very happy because I got a chance to work with Janet and Ceri! It is an honor to be doing a separate front and back cover reveal with such a lovely lady and JAFF connoisseur as Ceri, I love her blog and her reviews, so I’m very proud to be joining her on this post 🙂

But the back cover is not the only thing I would like to share with you today! My Mr. Darcy & Your Mr. Bingley has just gone live at Amazon during the night!!! If like me you cannot wait to read it, you’ll be able to buy it right away through the below links. As the book went live just a few hours ago, when half the world was still asleep, you might even be the first to get it 🙂

 

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

 

After reading A Will of Iron and considering it one of my top 10 favorites from 2015, this is the greatest of news for me and I’m looking forward to read it.

But I’m sure you’re eager to know more about this book, so before showing you the back cover, I’ll let you read the book blurb 🙂

 

Jane Bennet had a heart to break after all, and I am a party to it.

—Fitzwilliam Darcy

One simple, uncharacteristic subterfuge leaves Fitzwilliam Darcy needing to apologize to nearly everyone he knows! When Charles Bingley reaps the sad repercussions of Mr. Darcy’s sin of omission, Elizabeth Bennet’s clear-eyed view of the facts gives her the upper hand in a long-distance battle of wills with Mr. Bingley’s former friend. By the time Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth meet (repeatedly) in the groves of Rosings Park, neither knows the whole truth except that somehow, someway, their future is inextricably linked to the courtship of Charles Bingley and Jane Bennet.

In this Pride and Prejudice “what-if”, the additional dash of backbone and “far-sighted” action to the character of Mr. Bingley begs the question: how is Mr. Darcy to impress Elizabeth Bennet if Bingley does his own matchmaking? And how is Elizabeth Bennet to trust Mr. Darcy when even faith in a most beloved sister falters?

 

Linda Beutler’s professional life is spent in a garden, an organic garden housing America’s foremost public collection of clematis vines and a host of fabulous companion plants. Her home life reveals a more personal garden, still full of clematis, but also antique roses and vintage perennials planted around and over a 1907 cottage. But one can never have enough of gardening, so in 2011 she began cultivating a weedy patch of Jane Austen Fan Fiction ideas. The first of these to ripen was The Red Chrysanthemum (Meryton Press, 2013), which won a silver IPPY for romance writing in 2014. You might put this down as beginner’s luck—Linda certainly does. The next harvest brought Longbourn to London (Meryton Press, 2014), known widely as “the [too] sexy one”. In 2015 Meryton Press published the bestseller A Will of Iron, a macabre rom-com based on the surprising journals of Anne de Bourgh.

Now, after a year-long break in JAFF writing to produce Plant Lovers Guide to Clematis (Timber Press, 2016)—the third in a bouquet of books on gardening—we have My Mr. Darcy and Your Mr. Bingley bursting into bloom.

You can contact Linda Beutler though the following social media:

Twitter: @oregonclematis

Facebook: Linda Beutler Author

Wandering Pemberley’s Gardens (blog at MP)

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And now, without further ado…the back cover of My Mr. Darcy & Your Mr. Bingley!

Isn’t it lovely? And aren’t you curious about the design in the back? I’m personally eager for the blog tour to start to learn more about the story behind this cover and all the details involving its creative process… Or maybe we can even find out about it a little earlier, so stay tuned for more information on this book and its cover 🙂

And if you still haven’t seen the front cover, please check it out at Babblings of a Bookworm or visit Amazon.

 

Mr Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter Cover Reveal & Giveaway

Hello dear readers

Today I bring you a very special post! Along with 9 other wonderful bloggers, I’m happy to reveal to all of you the cover for Joana Starnes newest book, Mr. Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter!

Along with the cover, I would like to share with you some fun facts I discovered while doing my research for this post, the book blurb and…a giveaway sponsored by Joana Starnes.

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Joana’s new book has a very beautiful portrait on it’s cover, it is titled Portrait of Miss Frances Vinicombe, date unknown, and it’s an oil on canvas that measures 92×71 cm painted by John Opie, a Cornish historical and portrait painter.

He painted many great men and women of his day, including members of the British Royal Family, and others who were most notable in the artistic and literary professions. One of the people he painted was Mary Wollstonecraft who was an English writer, philosopher, and advocate of women’s rights. During her brief career, she wrote novels, treatises, a travel narrative, a history of the French Revolution, a conduct book, and a children’s book. Wollstonecraft is best known for A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792), in which she argues that women are not naturally inferior to men, but appear to be only because they lack education. She suggests that both men and women should be treated as rational beings and imagines a social order founded on reason.

Wollstonecraft died at the age of 38, eleven days after giving birth to her second daughter, leaving behind several unfinished manuscripts. This daughter, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, became an accomplished writer herself, as Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein.

I believe Mary Wollstonecraft’s life story and beliefs would make her a perfect Elizabeth Bennet, but John Opie painted her in a later stage of her life so the person on Joana’s book cover is not Mary Wollstonecraft but Miss Frances Vinicombe.

I tried to obtain more information on her, but I couldn’t find much. I know she was born in Devon, England ans she was painted in mourning clothes but everything else remains a mystery. I guess that is a good thing isn’t it? We will not have any prejudice concerning the cover as we will be left with only our own imagination and creativity. Every time we look at Mr. Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter we may imagine what type of live that beautiful woman may have had.

 

But I’ve been talking and talking (or writing) without even showing you the cover, and I would by no means suspend any pleasure of yours, so you can find the cover below:

What do you think? Miss Frances Vinicombe was a better choice for the cover wasn’t she?

I am very intrigued by the painting on the cover, especially by the clothes Miss Vinecombe is wearing. Why is she wearing black? Where was she when this portrait was painted? Who ordered this painting, and where was it kept? I’m not sure if I will ever know the answers to these questions, but at least some might be answered if I ever visit Russia. And, no, that was not a mistake, the painting is currently on display at The Hermitage Museum in Russia, so if you ever visit St. Petersburg, you’ll have a chance to look at the intriguing Miss Vinecombe.

You can also find in this museum paintings of some of my favorite artists such as Van Gogh, Camille Pissarro, Paul Cézanne, and Alfred Sisley, but also from Degas, Gaugin, Renoir, Monet, Picasso, , Kandinsky and so on.

Isn’t this a major enticement to visit St. Petersburg? Not that I needed another excuse to visit one of the most beautiful cities in the world 🙂

 

 

But I’m digressing and by now I already spoiled who Mr. Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter is, but in case you are still wondering why Elizabeth Bennet is a Dutiful Daughter, please read the book blurb.

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***Book Description***

When Colonel Fitzwilliam’s disclosures are interrupted by the bearer of distressing news from Longbourn, Miss Elizabeth Bennet is compelled to consider an offer she would have otherwise dismissed out of hand. An offer of marriage from the all-too-proud Mr Darcy.

Yet how is she to live with a husband she hardly knows and does not love? Would she be trapped in a marriage of convenience while events conspire to divide them? Or would love grow as, day by day and hour after hour, she learns to understand the man she married, before she loses his trust and his heart?

Available at: Amazon.com

***Author Contacts***

Facebook: All Roads Lead to Pemberley/ Joana Starnes Facebook Page

Twitter: Joana Starnes/ Twitter

Goodreads: Joana Starnes Goodreads Author Page

Amazon:  Joana Starnes Amazon Author Page

 

 

***Blog Tour***

This book will go on a tour, don’t miss the several stops to find out more about it, and have an extra chance at the giveaways!

 

November 17/ My Jane Austen Book Club/Launch Post & Giveaway

November 18/Pemberley to Milton/Book Review & Giveaway

November 19/Obsessed with Mr. Darcy/ Book Review & Giveaway

November 20/ A Covent Garden Madame Gilflurt’s Guide to Life/Guest Post

November 21/ Margie’s Must Reads/ Book Review & Giveaway

November 22/ Babblings of a Bookworm/ Book Review & Giveaway

November 23/Diary of an Eccentric/Book Review & Giveaway

November 24/ Happy Thanksgiving

November 25/ So Little Time… So Much to Read/ Excerpt & Giveaway

November 26/ Just Jane 1813/Interview with Joana Starnes

November 27 / My Kids Led Me Back to Pride and Prejudice/ Guest Post & Giveaway

November 28/ More Agreeably Engaged/ Vignette & Giveaway

December 2/ Austenesque Reviews/ Excerpt & Giveaway

 

***It’s giveaway time***

 

Joana Starnes would like to offer our readers 3 copies of Mr. Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter. One reader will receive a paperback and two will receive an ebook copy. They will also receive assorted Austen-related mini-gifts. The giveaways are open to international winners.

Also, as a special bonus, all Rafflecopter entrants will receive an exclusive excerpt of the book that will not be included in the Amazon sample.

To enter the giveaway, just click here.