Mr Darcy to the Rescue by Victoria Kincaid Audio - Guest Post and Giveaway

Today I'm welcoming Victoria Kincaid back to the blog. She has made Mr Darcy to the Rescue available on audio and has come here with an excerpt of the story and a giveaway of an audio version for one of  you. I'll share the blurb and then hand over to Victoria.

Book Description

When the irritating Mr. Collins proposes marriage, Elizabeth Bennet is prepared to refuse him, but then she learns that her father is ill. If Mr. Bennet dies, Collins will inherit Longbourn and her family will have nowhere to go. Elizabeth accepts the proposal, telling herself she can be content as long as her family is secure. If only she weren’t dreading the approaching wedding day… Ever since leaving Hertfordshire, Mr. Darcy has been trying to forget his inconvenient attraction to Elizabeth. News of her betrothal forces him to realize how devastating it would be to lose her. He arrives at Longbourn intending to prevent the marriage, but discovers Elizabeth’s real opinion about his character. Then Darcy recognizes his true dilemma… How can he rescue her when she doesn’t want him to?


Guest Post & Excerpt

Thank you for having me for a guest, Ceri!  I believe that Mr. Collins is, hands down, the most amusing character in Pride and Prejudice (perhaps all of Austen).  Lydia, Mrs. Bennet, and Lady Catherine all have their humorous moments, but I don’t find them as laugh-out-loud funny.  I’m not sure why.  Perhaps it’s me.  Perhaps it’s Collins’s unending stupidity.  Perhaps it’s because he does no real damage to the protagonists in the story.

When I set out to write Mr. Darcy to the Rescue it was to imagine what would happen if Elizabeth said “yes” to Collins’s proposal.  But it also allowed me to explore other aspects of P&P that had always intrigued me.  For one thing, Collins makes a great foil for Darcy, who doesn’t suffer fools gladly.  One of the sad things about the original P&P is that Darcy and Collins don’t share more scenes together; so I added some and the results are explosive.   I’d also wanted to write dialogue for Collins because he’s such an idiot.  It’s almost impossible to go too far in writing over-the-top conversation for him.  So that was great fun.  I hope my readers will also think the Mr. Darcy to the Rescue audiobook is great fun!

Please enjoy this excerpt from Mr. Darcy to the Rescue:

“…And now nothing remains for me but to assure you in the most animated language of the violence of my affection!”

It must be admitted that Elizabeth Bennet’s attention had drifted a little as her cousin, Mr. Collins, had enumerated at great length his reasons for choosing to marry and why he had very rationally selected Elizabeth for this “honor.”

Now as Elizabeth focused on his words, she had to stifle a laugh at the idea that his affection for her was violent or deep or anything more than nonexistent.  In fact, he had not even managed to produce any “animated language.”  Instead, he had merely assured her that his language was animated.  It was a bit like having someone declare it was raining when you stood in bright sunshine.

Oh, merciful heavens, he was still talking!  “To fortune I am perfectly indifferent, and you may assure yourself that no ungenerous reproach shall ever pass my lips when we are married.”  As he drew breath for another long-winded speech, Elizabeth knew she must say something—and quickly!

“You are too hasty, sir!  You forget that I have not yet made an answer—”

Mr. Collins waved his hand airily.  “We may dispense with these formalities.  We both know how you shall respond.”

“We do?”  Elizabeth expected smoke to be streaming from her ears by now.

“Yes, I have spoken with your most excellent father, and he assured me how felicitous he found this event.”  He graced her with a smile, which presumably was intended to be charming, but oozed insincerity.

“He did?”  Elizabeth found these words hard to credit.

“Indeed.  I assured him that our union is already a foregone conclusion since we are united of one mind and one heart.”

“We are?”  Elizabeth could not stay silent any longer.  “Pray, sir, when did that happen?”

Mr. Collins merely looked bemused.  “I…do not believe I can supply you with the exact date.…”

Elizabeth shrugged.  “I keep a journal.  I shall have to go back to see if I recorded it.”  She tapped her lip with her finger.  “I hope it did not escape my notice.”

Her erstwhile suitor blinked rapidly, fiddling with his cuffs.  “Your father did caution me that you should speak with him first before making any decision regarding my most generous offer.”  He shrugged.  “I do not see the necessity since we both know that another offer of marriage may never be made to you…  Miss Elizabeth?”

Mr. Collins had been so caught up in the sound of his own voice that it took him a few moments to realize that Elizabeth was halfway across the drawing room floor.  He hastened to catch up with her.

“Where are you going, my most precious love blossom?”

The sound of this ridiculous pet name almost stopped Elizabeth altogether, but she had a more urgent mission.  “I must speak with my father,” she muttered.

“Why?”

“To assure myself his wits are in order.”

“Hmm?”  Mr. Collins’s tone was quizzical.  “I assure you he was of quite sound mind this morning when I spoke to him.”

Briefly, Elizabeth considered the possibility that Mr. Collins was so stupid he was incapable of being insulted.  Elizabeth would be tempted to laugh if the situation were not so dire.  Why would her father give Mr. Collins the impression he wanted her to marry him?

Buy Links

You can buy the audio of this now! - Audible US / Audible UK. If you would like to read this but would prefer to read with your eyes you can do that too. It is available in ebook and paperback - Amazon US / Amazon UK.

Author Bio

Victoria has a Ph.D. in English literature and has taught composition to unwilling college students. Today she teaches business writing to willing office professionals and tries to give voice to the demanding cast of characters in her head.

She lives in Virginia with an overly affectionate cat, two children who are learning how much fun Austen’s characters can be, and a husband who fortunately is not jealous of Mr. Darcy. A lifelong Austen fan, Victoria has read more Jane Austen variations and sequels than she can count – and confesses to an extreme partiality for the Colin Firth miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice.

Visit her at www.victoriakincaid.com

Goodreads • Twitter • Amazon US Author Page •

Giveaway Time

Victoria is kindly offering a giveaway of an audiobook of Mr Darcy to the Rescue. To enter, just leave a comment on this blog post by the end of the day on Tuesday 24 July. You could tell us what you like about audios, or which of Victoria's books you'd like to see available on audio next :)

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