Tuesday 5 September 2017

An Announcement from Christina Boyd - New Anthology Coming Soon!

You may remember how much I enjoyed reading The Darcy Monologues, an anthology from a collection of wonderful authors, brought together by editor Christina Boyd. Well, Christina has an announcement about a new project, so I will hand over to her. Please note that there is a fantastic international giveaway associated with this post, so read right to the end :)

Oops, I’m at it again. 

I’m Christina Boyd, the editor of The Darcy Monologues, and I am thrilled to finally announce that my next anthology project, Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes and Gentlemen Rogues, is well underway.

Coming soon: Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen's Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues, Edited by Christina Boyd

Jane Austen’s masterpieces are littered with any number of unsuitable gentlemen—Willoughby, Wickham, Churchill, Crawford, Tilney, Elliot—adding color and depth to her plots but often barely sketched out to the reader. Have you never wondered about the back story of her rakes and gentlemen rogues? Surely, there's more than one side to their stories. 

I have always been drawn to characters that are not simply one dimensional. Through first person point-of-view, Philippa Gregory masterfully created empathy in her Plantagenet and Tudor novels: one novel I would find myself championing a queen and in the very next, she had become the villain! Author Laura Hile skillfully penned nobody’s favorite, Elizabeth Elliot from Persuasion in her Mercy’s Embrace series, and turned her into a true heroine we all might sympathize, all the while remaining faithful to the seemingly superficial and vain snob Jane Austen created. Even my own anthology The Darcy Monologues gave voice to the previously concealed wit and charm of the proud, brooding, and officious Mr. Darcy, allowing us some quality time in his handsome head. 

Inspiration for Dangerous to Know
Inspiration for Dangerous to Know
After publishing The Darcy Monologues in May 2017, murmurings began about another project. Maybe from Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s point-of-view? With a surfeit of quality Jane Austen fanfiction recounting Lizzy’s story, I thought it might be a more titillating challenge to expose the histories of Jane Austen’s anti-heroes. It is a universal truth, despite our wisdom, we are captivated by smoldering looks, dangerous charms ... a happy-go-lucky, cool confidence. Alas, some of us fall for the one that needs to be mended. All the while, our BFFs are shouting to deaf ears, “He is a cad! He is a brute! He is all wrong!” But isn’t that how tender hearts are broken...by giving credit to the undeserving? How did they become the men Jane Austen wrote? The challenge was just too delicious to not undertake.

Once again, a Dream Team of authors were approached to join this project. Titles were bandied about: everything from “Consequently a Rogue” taken from the Jonathon Swift quote “He was a fiddler and consequently a rogue” to “Rakes and Rogues” to “Jane Austen’s Gentlemen Rogues”. “Mad, bad, and dangerous to know,” the very phrase used by Lady Caroline Lamb to describe Lord Byron, married the previous suggestions and—voila! A title was born.

As an editor, I have been extremely fortunate to work with some incomparable authors in the past. This project is a testament to my providence. It has been a pleasure to have several authors from The Darcy Monologues anthology including Karen M Cox, J. Marie Croft, Jenetta James, Beau North, Sophia Rose, and Joana Starnes join Amy D’Orazio, Lona Manning, Christina Morland, Katie Oliver, and Brooke West on creating this current collection of stories. The intent: create short stories, each told from one of Austen’s male antagonists’ eyes—a backstory and, or parallel story from off-stage of canon—all the while remaining steadfast to the characters we recognize in Austen’s masterpieces. As in The Darcy Monologues, these authors certainly can turn up the heat with but the turn of a phrase!

Here are a few quick lines from a sampling of the authors to whet your appetite:

We arranged to fight our duel at that place where all the most elegant duels were fought: the secluded gardens near the Circus, accessed by the Gravel Walk; naturally, the occasion was to be held at dawn. I had been in my chair, subject to the shavings and combings and clippings of old Morley until at last, I cried out, “’Tis enough man! I am not gone to my wedding day!”

Morley frowned at me, his dark eyes sharp with disapproval. “Your wedding day? That is not a day I shall likely live to see so I must keep at my art on these, more common, events.”—Captain Frederick Tilney, For Mischief’s Sake, Amy D’Orazio

I smiled drowsily as she caressed my chest. “I love you, Clémence.”
Her fingers stilled as I closed my eyes in pleasurable exhaustion and drifted towards sleep. 
She did not reply. —Mr. George Wickham, A Wicked Game, Katie Oliver

Yes, fellows, since you press me so hard, yes, I confess it: Cupid's darts have winged me. If you must have the story, pass me that bottle first. I can lift it with my left hand without paining my collarbone excessively. Now, you may not like what you are about to hear. You think lightning will never strike you. But let me tell you, last year on Basingstoke Down, I was neither looking to fall in love, nor looking for someone to fall in love with me, when all unawares—but stay, I must go further back… —Mr. Tom Bertram, The Address of Frenchwoman, Lona Manning

What say you? Are you in? Everyone may be attracted to a bad boy…even temporarily...but heaven help us if we marry one. Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes and Gentlemen Rogues will be released mid-November and is listed at Goodreads so you might add to your “Want to Read” list. 

Giveaway Time!

To help us celebrate this project, we have prizes! One international Grand Prize via rafflecopter link below:
  

One print copy or ebook of Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues (when published), a print or ebook of The Darcy Monologues, one set of Jane Austen Playing Cards, one 16 oz. PEMBERLEY drinking glass, and Accoutrements Jane Austen novelty tattoos.  

Prizes!
This loot could be yours!

Got to play to win! If you “lose the game, it shall not be for not striving for it.”
—Christina Boyd, @xtnaboyd of The Quill Ink

35 comments:

  1. Thank you, Ceri! Am so looking forward to getting your hands on this collection. It's really shaping up to even more than I had imagined. Can't wait!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm really looking forward to reading this one, Christina, so I was happy to join in the announcement excitement! I think it's going to be a fantastic project!

      Delete
  2. Yay! I'm so excited to see the announcement for Dangerous to Know on your blog, Ceri. Appreciate your kind support of our stories. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As much as authors like our support for their writing, I appreciate authors kind support of my reading too Sophia! This is such a great idea for a project, and I am really excited about it. Thank you for sharing the post :)

      Delete
  3. Oh. My. Goodness! What fantastic news to find in my inbox this morning.

    This sounds so amazing, Christina. Just the list of authors and the above snippets have me drooling over my iPad! It's definitely going on my Want to Read list at Goodreads as soon as I've finished here. Can't wait for November, and I'm now trying to think of a tour I can take these gentlemen on as I did with The Darcy Monolgues last week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You heard it here first, folks. Anji wants to go on tour with a bunch of bad boys!

      Delete
    2. And why not, Joanne? Especially when they're written by a bunch of writers like you guys!

      Delete
    3. I know! I was excited to hear about this too, Anji. Not long to wait before we can get our sticky little mitts on it :)

      Delete
  4. Thanks for helping share the news, Ceri :) This is going to be a fun collection!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't it a fun idea for a book! It must be a nice change for you authors to take a break from heroes and have some fun with the less respectable characters. Thanks so much for dropping by, Karen :)

      Delete
  5. Thanks for hosting Christina's announcement, Ceri! So glad the Austen bad boys are having their stories told. It's wonderful to be part of your Dream Team again, Christina, and can't wait to read the whole collection!

    That's such a great plan, Anji! Yes, a tour with the gentlemen rogues, that should be fun ;) Hope we can meet on that one!! Take care and good luck with the planning.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That'd be fantastic Joana. Then I could ambush you to sign BOTH books for me! Such a shame that geography got in the way of us meeting this time.

      Delete
    2. I was very pleased to join in the excitement, Joana. You two be safe on your rogue road trip :)

      Delete
  6. Thank you for spreading the news about Christina Boyd’s new anthology Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes and Gentlemen Rogues … or, Bad Boys Babbling Backstories.

    Since you enjoy wordplay, Ceri, here’s an apt pun for today’s announcement:
    The gentleman had grounds for complaint after his wife had a harrowing time with a RAKE at a garden party.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Groan, so bad :) Thank you so much for dropping by, Joanne!

      For those of you who may not know, J. Marie Croft's wittily captioned pictures sparked the idea for this anthology. The one in question is above. They were all so funny, but who would have thought that a funny picture would spark an anthology? You can add 'muse' to your CV!

      Delete
    2. Joanne! You are a master wordsmith!

      Delete
  7. What fun. We can't help but be drawn to the bad boys.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A lot of people like bad boys, Becky. Funnily enough, they don't attract me. I like good boys instead, which isn't fun, but is far more sensible! I am more of an Elinor than a Marianne.

      Delete
    2. I cantbwiatbtonhear how you like it!

      Delete
    3. Or rather: can't wait to hear

      Thankfully I do not edit via iPhone and Siri. Haha!

      Delete
  8. One does wonder what set them on their path...

    Looking forward to finding out!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Absolutely, Carole. The back story of a bad boy is always interesting, what made them become what they are?

      Delete
    2. I know, right? Because they surely dos not start out that way...

      Delete
  9. always thought a few of those bad boys could use the HEA

    denise

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too, Denise. Don't tell anybody but I always wanted Henry Crawford to have a HEA :)

      Delete
  10. Yay, can't wait to read it! I'm so excited!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too!! I hope you will enjoy it as much as I am editing it!

      Delete
  11. So looking forward to reading this. Good luck with publishing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm looking forward to it too, Sheila. I really enjoy anthologies, as they are easy to pick up and put down and I seem to be really busy this year, so I find it fits in with life well.

      Delete
  12. We have a winner. Congratulations! "DarcyBennett" WON the "Dangerous to Know" anthology announcement grand prize that includes a paperback or ebook of the new anthology when released in November, a paperback or ebook of "The Darcy Monologues", a Pemberley glass, Jane Austen playing cards, and novelty Jane Austen tattoos! Thank you all for your interest and support of our upcoming anthology🎩💗 #RakesAndGentlemenRogues

    ReplyDelete

If you're not logged in to Google please leave your name in your comment or it will post as anonymous. Thanks! - Ceri