Monday 30 November 2020

Back to the Bonnet by Jennifer Duke - Excerpt and UK Giveaway

Book promo picture: Back to the Bonnet by Jennifer Duke
Today I’m happy to be welcoming a new visitor to the blog, Jennifer Duke. Jennifer has written a Pride & Prejudice-inspired book, called Back to the Bonnet.

This book is a Mary Bennet-focussed book which gives her a secret life, including time travel. Sounds pretty wild! Let’s take a look at the blurb and then I’ll hand over to Jennifer for an excerpt from Back to the Bonnet. Jennifer is also offering a UK ebook giveaway.

Book Description

“Oh really, Miss Mary!” He lowered his voice and leant closer. “Does convention hold you back? You who deny all conventions of time, twisting it from its proper course?”

Matrimony is not a destiny that attracts plain but clever Miss Mary Bennet.

With her family’s fortunes threatened by their own foolish mistakes, deceptive rogues and the inconvenience of male heirs to her family home, the future looks unstable, even bleak. But Mary possesses a secret weapon . . . a bonnet that allows her to travel in time.

In orchestrating events according to her own inclinations, Mary takes an unconventional route to protect her family from ruin. However, she is unprepared for the dark path down which duty and power will lead her.

Excerpt from Volume One, Chapter Twelve - ‘Sermons & Scandals’

Book cover: Back to the Bonnet by Jennifer Duke
    Mr Chamberlayne bowed. Will you do me the honour?”

    Thank you,” I whispered, placing my hand in his. It is most kind of you to ask me when there are so many other women to chuse from.”

    But, my dear, there is no other Miss Mary Bennet.”

    As he led me down the dance, I made a small squeak, unable to hide my surprise.

    What is it? Did I tread on your toe?” he asked, before taking the hands of the lady next to me and turning about with her.

    My sister Lizzy,” I said, when he was opposite me once more. Shes dancing with Mr Darcy.”

    He squinted over at them. What of it?”

    To me, the look shared by Lizzy and Mr Darcy might either betray a mutual desire to partake in a duel or to make straight for Gretna Green. She always said she would never dance with him.”

    Women are always changing their minds about one thing or another,” he said, rolling his eyes. Not at all like men.”

    I glared at him. Lack of obstinacy is hardly a flaw. However, you wont find me being so changeable.”

    Of course not,” he said, smile lines creasing at his eyes. You never change anything, do you?”

I continued in conversation with him at supper and Charlotte came to sit opposite us.

    You surprise me, Miss Mary,” said Chamberlayne. He made to pour me wine but I placed my hand over the glass. I thought you would be an advocate of Mary Wollstonecrafts ideas.

    What I mean is that there are certain roles we adopt in society and certain boundaries within which we navigate that have been established for our own good and to ensure stability.”

    You just want to be careful that a boundary does not become a noose,” he said.

    Whatever do you . . .” my words trailed off as my attention was drawn to Mama who was toasting Janes good fortune with anyone who would clink glasses with her. Her boasts rang out across the room that Jane would soon be engaged to Mr Bingley and that this piece of good fortune would throw the rest of us into the way of other men of wealth. I clutched my cutlery, feeling the heat rise in my cheeks.

    Chamberlayne glanced at her. Can I serve you some chicken, Miss Mary?” he said, spearing a slice from the dish in front of him.

    I ventured to look at Mr Bingley who, thankfully, appeared not to have heard Mama. Mr Darcy, on the other hand, was regarding her with an expression of unconcealed alarm. Lizzy, too, had gone quite red and even whispered to Mama in an attempt to prevent further inappropriate speeches of unfortunate volume.

    I assumed that Lydias cheeks were merely rosy from the amount she had had to drink, rather than from any kind of embarrassment, for she chattered away merrily, holding out her glass to be refilled by an obliging officer.

    It is a most elegant room,” said Charlotte, taking in the high ceilings and fine windows. Mr Bingley has found himself a most charming residence, do not you think?”

    Indeed,” said Chamberlayne, grasping the subject with enthusiasm. Though I admire older buildings. Your house is Elizabethan, is it not, Mary?”

    As I looked up from my plate, I realised that my friends were trying to draw me out of my mortification. It is.”

    A manor built in the traditional E shape, for the queen,” said Charlotte.

    Indeed,” I said, though I like to think of it as an M. It could be an M you know, if seen from another perspective.”

    How whimsical! Is that because of your own name?” asked Chamberlayne.

    No. You see, at the age of six, when a historical book taught me that Queen Elizabeth had had her cousin Mary executed, I considered that, from another angle, the E shape might look like an M. So, in my mind, our house has been M shaped from that time, in solidarity with the unfortunate queen who lost her liberty and her birthright, followed by her head, of course.”

    Chamberlayne laughed. She did try to have Elizabeth assassinated, though.”

    I shrugged.

    When supper was cleared away and people began to get up from their seats and mingle about the room, Mr Bingley tapped his glass with a spoon.

    I should just like to thank you all, once again, for joining me at Netherfield this evening. I for one am having a most agreeable time.” A grin stretched across his face. All there is left for me to wish for is a song. The pianoforte awaits! Whom can we persuade to sing for us?”

    The gathering had quietened to listen to Mr Bingley and the muteness continued in the general tentativeness that is generally felt when no one wishes to push themselves forward as the focus of attention. In the lull, a twittering of laughter could be heard. I looked towards a door which must have led to the small room with the paintings. There was another burst of giggling but louder this time.

    Surely we can prevail upon somebody?” said Mr Bingley.

    Miss Morris, a girl I did not know well, looked frantically about the room, then rushed over to open the door. The doorway framed the room inside like a theatre curtain drawn back to reveal a scene from a licentious play. Mr Denny sat in a too relaxed posture on the chaise longue and Lydia threw her arms about him and kissed him on the lips. Catching sight of their scandalised audience, Mr Denny moved Lydia aside.

    Miss Morris, allow me to explain. I did not know that Miss Lydia was about to—”

    Were meant to be engaged!” wailed Miss Morris as she fled the room to the accompaniment of shocked gasps, piteous comments and accusations.

    Mama had been struck into silence, which was quite something. Papa went white. Lizzy was crying with humiliation and Jane looked close to fainting when Miss Bingley swooped upon her saying, You will get your family out of this house at once. At once, Miss Bennet.”

    Through the doorway I could see the painting of the woman holding the bonnet and the other standing behind. It seemed almost as though they were looking at me, willing me to do something.

    Were going.” Lizzy gripped my arm, frowning at me. Mary, I do not see how you can be smiling at a time like this. We need to leave. Now.”

    Tearing my gaze from the portrait, I looked at Lizzy. Ill get my bonnet.”

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Author Jennifer Duke

Author Bio
 

Jennifer Duke grew up in Basingstoke - a town in Hampshire, England, which Jane Austen visited for shopping and balls when her family lived in the nearby village of Steventon. Loving stories from a very early age and being the second of four sisters, Jennifer delighted in reading stories to her younger siblings.

She went to Bath Spa University to study English Literature with Creative Writing and gained a 2:1, later going on to achieve a distinction for her MA in English Literature at Oxford Brookes University.

She has had many jobs - including coffee barista, trainee English teacher, nursery nurse, nanny, housekeeper and dog walker - but kept returning to writing fiction.

A longstanding love of Jane Austen's novels led to her first published novel Back to the Bonnet.

As well as writing, she is interested in mindfulness, environmental issues and painting. She loves animals, history, art, travel and being out in nature. Currently, she is working on a fantasy novel inspired by ancient art at Chauvet-Pont d'Arc cave in the south of France, a story set 35,000 years ago - a slight change from Regency England! She also has plans to write a post World War Two romance inspired by Jane Eyre.

Back to the Bonnet is available now on Amazon in paperback and Kindle eBook formats.

You are cordially invited to sign up to Jennifer Duke’s newsletter via her website homepage or contact page.

Website: jennifer-duke.com / Goodreads page / Twitter: @JenniferEDuke / Facebook: @inkwellies / Youtube: Jennifer Duke - author

Book cover: Back to the Bonnet by Jennifer Duke
Buy Links

Back to the Bonnet is available to buy now in Paperback, Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.   

Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon Canada  / Amazon Australia / Add to Goodreads shelf

Giveaway Time!

Jennifer is running an eBook giveaway for UK residents only (or those who buy their ebooks from Amazon UK, due to gifting restrictions): To enter, visit Jennifer’s author website and sign up to the newsletter, which you can do on the homepage or contact page. Include ‘UK’ in the ‘last name’ box; if you are a UK resident, and you will be automatically entered into the giveaway.

A winner will be selected at random on 12th December and contacted shortly afterwards to arrange the receiving of their free eBook.

Even if you are not based in the UK Jennifer would love for you to sign up for the newsletter, so she can keep in touch with you about future giveaways and offers!

Note about comments:  If you have any problems adding your comment please contact me and I will add your comment for you :)

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Friday 27 November 2020

A Life Worth Choosing by Anngela Schroeder - Guest Post, Excerpt and Giveaway

Today I’m happy to be welcoming Anngela Schroeder back to the blog with her upcoming Pride & Prejudice variation, A Life Worth Choosing. This book has such a great premise, melding my favourite book, P&P, with one of my favourite Christmas films, It’s a Wonderful Life.

Now, let’s look at the blurb and then hand over to Anngela for a guest post, excerpt and giveaway opportunity.


Book cover: A Life Worth Choosing by Anngela Schroeder
Book Description

“You could not have made me the offer of your hand in any possible way that would have tempted me to accept it.” 

Reeling from the unexpected rejection of his proposal, Fitzwilliam Darcy prepares to quit Hunsford for London but not before he defends himself against Elizabeth Bennet’s accusations. He cannot forgive her harsh words; her assertion Mr. Wickham would have made a better son has cut him to the core.

Suffering an accident while delivering the fated letter, he wakes to a world he does not know—and to those who do not recognize him. With a new life, a different  name, and a fresh chance at winning the woman he loves, Darcy must decide which is A Life Worth Choosing ––the past he remembers or a future he has created for himself.

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Monday 23 November 2020

Fitzwilliam Darcy Undone by Sue Barr - Blog Tour, Excerpt and Giveaway

Book Cover: Fitzwilliam Darcy Undone by Sue Barr
Today I’m happy to be welcoming Sue Barr back to the blog with her latest book, Fitzwilliam Darcy Undone. This book is a Pride & Prejudice variation set in a world where magic exists.

First, I’ll share the blurb with you, and then I’ll hand over to Sue for a bit of a saucy excerpt, and a giveaway opportunity.

Book Description 

She’s the outcast in her family…

Elizabeth knows she’s different from the rest of her family. She has visions and strange dreams and sees things others do not. With the advent of the odious Mr. Darcy and his friends from Netherfield Park, as well as the amiable Mr. Wickham of the _____shire Militia, her powers seem to increase and her greatest fear is that she won’t be able to contain them and will be discovered.

He has eight hundred years of tradition to uphold…

No Darcy has married a non-magical woman since arriving on the shores of England with William the Conqueror in 1066.  However, his kind – Miatharans – are dwindling in numbers. Miatharan magic only flows through aristocratic blood lines, so his strange obsession with Miss Elizabeth Bennet is puzzling as she is not of noble blood. Just a country squire’s beautiful daughter who has him slowly becoming undone.

Friday 20 November 2020

Blog Tour: Northfanger: A Gothic Austen Mash Up by Jayne Bamber

Book cover: Northfanger by Jayne Bamber
Today I’m happy to welcome Jayne Bamber back to the blog with her new book, Northfanger: A Gothic Austen Mash Up which sounds like a seasonally spooky read. Let’s look at the blurb, and then I will hand over to Jayne for an excerpt. There’s a rafflecopter link too, if you’d like to enter to win a copy!

Book Description

A campy, vampy fusion of Pride & Prejudice with Northanger Abbey...

Elizabeth Bennet and her cousin Catherine Morland travel into Kent to visit the recently married Collinses in the village of Hunsford, near the great estate of Rosings Park. Elizabeth anticipates that the visit will be very dull indeed, while Catherine believes adventure and romance await them there, just as in the gothic novels she adores.

Within a week, both women have their expectations subverted by the sudden arrival of a vampire into their midst. The ladies at the parsonage take flight, accompanied by the outraged Colonel Fitzwilliam, his outwitted cousin, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy – and an out-of-control fledgling vampire.

Proving herself indispensable during the undead Darcy debacle, Elizabeth becomes the heroine her cousin Catherine always knew she was – and enviously wishes to be herself – as she leads them to Bath in search of the wily Silas Bennet, an expert in all matters vampiric.

But amidst the hunt for Uncle Silas, other predators enter the fray, all in search of one very old man, and a very young vampire. In Bath they encounter the Tilneys, the Thorpes, and an array of familiar faces and vicious villains bent on wreaking bloody havoc, leading a merry band of misfits to take shelter in a place too spooky not to hold secrets of its own: Northanger Abbey.