Sanditon – by Jane Austen, Completed by Another Lady

In early 1817 Jane Austen began writing a story called ‘Sanditon’. She was only able to work on it for around 7 weeks before her health deteriorated to such an extent that she had to abandon it. She died around 4 months later, bequeathing the unfinished manuscript to her neice, Anna Austen Lefroy. There are a number of continuations of the book (there’s a list here) but the reason I chose to read this one, written in 1975, was because I saw a recommendation on a blog (if I recall correctly, it was The Bookrat) saying that they hadn’t noticed the join between Austen’s words and the completion. I thought I’d go into it without knowing where the join took place either.

Suddenly Mrs Darcy by Jenetta James - Review

Today the 'Suddenly Mrs Darcy' Blog Tour stops off here with my review of the book. Here's the blurb:

Elizabeth Bennet never imagined her own parents would force her to marry a virtual stranger. But when Mrs. Bennet accuses Fitzwilliam Darcy of compromising her daughter, that is exactly the outcome. Trapped in a seemingly loveless marriage and far from home, she grows suspicious of her new husband’s heart and further, suspects he is hiding a great secret. Is there even a chance at love given the happenstance of their hasty marriage?

And here's my review:

Giveaway Winners - A Peculiar Connection and Young Jane Austen

I'm very pleased to announce some giveaway winners...

Young Jane Austen: Becoming a Writer by Lisa Pliscou

There are many biographies of Jane Austen, most of which focus on her writing years. We know that Jane wrote plays and stories from around the age of 12 but this biography instead focuses more on her life before she started writing, to look at what formed her up until that point. Not much is known of Austen’s childhood, but Pliscou has pulled together what was known of general life at the time, and of the Austens’ lives in particular. The first section of the biography is in a speculative style, i.e. third person, but giving an insight on what may have been Jane Austen’s point of view at the time in question:

The Husband Maker by Karey White

Charlotte is a real romantic; she wants a man to fall madly in love with her and settle down with her forever. But in reality, this doesn’t seem to be happening. In fact, the men that Charlotte dates ARE settling down and getting married, but it always seems to be to whoever they start dating after they break up with her.

Guest Post and Giveaway - A Peculiar Connection by Jan Hahn

I am pleased to welcome Jan Hahn today. Jan is the author of 'An Arranged Marriage', 'The Journey', 'The Secret Betrothal' and most lately 'A Peculiar Connection'. With this step of the blog tour there is also a giveaway; a commenter on this post can win an ebook of Jan's latest book, 'A Peculiar Connection'. Jan is going to tell us about her dream of Darcy...

Guest Post and Giveaway - Young Jane Austen: On Being “Farmed Out” As a Baby by Lisa Pliscou

Today I'm pleased to welcome author Lisa Pliscou, who has written a book called 'Young Jane Austen: Becoming a Writer', focusing particularly on Austen's early life, which is due out this month, on the 20 April. When I looked at Lisa's website to find out more about the book I was particularly struck by a snippet on there which mentioned that Jane Austen had been sent to live with a family in the village as an infant. I know this wasn't particularly unusual for the times but as a mother myself, it seems a completely unnatural situation!

Lisa has written us a blog post on the 'farming out' of babies, and there's an opportunity for one of you to win a copy of the book too. So without further ado, I'll pass over to Lisa.

Reconciled for Easter by Noelle Adams

This is the fourth book in the 'Willow Park' series, each following a different couple. They are stand-alone stories, but the characters crop up as secondary characters in more than one book. This is the story of Abigail and her estranged husband Thomas, who is the brother of Lydia, the heroine of book three, ‘Family for Christmas’. Abigail and Thomas are separated, but have been attempting to reconcile. This hasn’t been going very well and they’ve taken a six-month break from counselling. At the end of the six months they are going to make a final decision whether to get back together or divorce.

Review: A Peculiar Connection by Jan Hahn

I'm pleased to welcome the blog tour for  'A Peculiar Connection' by Jan Hahn which stops here today for me to share my review of the book.

Book Blurb:

Will a mysterious note from the past doom the love of Jane Austen’s most beloved couple?

A Peculiar Connection begins near the close of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Bent on preventing the engagement of her nephew to Elizabeth Bennet, Lady Catherine de Bourgh declares that any union between Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth would be “a sin against Heaven itself!”  Her shocking revelation, along with a cryptic message written over twenty years earlier, thrusts the couple into a whirlwind of heartbreak and disbelief.

Could a deserted mansion in Derbyshire or a small church hidden in the wood hold the key to solving the puzzle?  And why is Elizabeth inexplicably drawn to the portrait of three young boys in Pemberley’s gallery?

Determined to confirm or refute Lady Catherine’s accusation, Darcy and Elizabeth are forced to embark upon a twisted trail into bygone days and family secrets.  All the while, they must endure the exquisite torture of denying the indisputable desire that still hovers between them.

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Planned Reading for April 2015

I can't believe it's April already, this year is going so quickly! My recovery from my accident has moved on a stage, I am finally able to bear weight on my bad leg, but it's so weak! I have some leg exercises to do to help my muscles recuperate which my children find very amusing :)

Anyway, since it's spring I decided to do some 'spring-cleaning of sorts'. I have a few reads that I need to catch up on, so I hope to do that this month, including some of my planned reads from last month, 'Emma & Elizabeth' and 'The Husband Maker'. In addition I have some other outstanding reads that I intend to catch up on...