Twists of Fate by Joana Starnes - Guest Post and Giveaway

I’m happy to be welcoming back an author who I have featured many times, Joana Starnes. Joana has written a new book, Twists of Fate, which is a Pride & Prejudice variation coming out later this month, and it looks like it will be an excellent read! 

Joana has been so kind as to come here with a guest post and ebook giveaway. Let’s look at the blurb and then I’ll hand over to Joana.

Book Description 

What if Mr Collins shocked Elizabeth with his base conduct at the time of his proposal, thus sending her dashing out of her house, and into the arms of Mr Darcy? What if that accidental encounter was witnessed, and impropriety was assumed? What if Mr Darcy was glad of the excuse to marry his heart’s desire – only to have his best hopes blasted within hours of his wedding? What if he found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time more than once?

Evil rumours, an early marriage, a dreadful misunderstanding, an old secret and good intentions gone awry. What if ‘I do’ is not the end, but the beginning of the adventure? 

Guest Post from Joana Starnes

Hi, Ceri! Thanks for hosting me today on the blog tour for Twists of Fate, my latest Pride and Prejudice variation.

The book trailer has the premise in a nutshell (and the background music is so dreamy!):

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So, it’s an early-marriage scenario – which, I must admit, is my favourite trope. I love to read and write books that focus almost entirely on our dear couple. It’s so appealing to imagine them thrown together sooner, and brought into a compact bubble where they are compelled to interact virtually all the time. They must live together before they even know how that is to be done. It’s a journey of discovery for both of them as they learn more about each other and about their own feelings. 

Sometimes they get it wrong and, as Jami Dragan said a few years ago, “they hurt each other’s feelings in a rich variety of ways.” (I love the poignancy of that phrase! You have such a way with words, Jami!).

So it would be fair to say that in early marriage scenarios Elizabeth and Mr Darcy are the heroes but also the villains of their own story, and the ones who, knowingly or unknowingly, set up the main stumbling blocks on their way to each other.

Such is the case in my upcoming book. Mere hours after their wedding, Mr Darcy puts two and two together and makes 500 (the dreadful misunderstanding mentioned in the trailer), so the early days of their marriage of necessity are more fraught than they should have been (because I just can’t keep things simple and angst-free :D ).

So, where do they go from here? To their HEA of course (I can’t bring myself to write anything else). But how?

I think that, even at the best of times, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy would have difficulties in communicating, given their different personalities. She speaks the language of the extrovert. He needs to learn to share his thoughts after years of keeping them largely to himself.

When those natural difficulties are compounded by misconceptions, our favourite couple will need that much more courage and common sense in order to break the wall of silence and find their way to each other.

I hope you’ll enjoy their journey down this alternate path, and especially their courtship dance (three steps forward, one step back), once Mr Darcy has his late-night epiphany:

‘…if it was not in his power to set her free, he could strive to make her happy. Court her. Lavish her with affection. Was it so unreasonable to hope that, in time, she might come to love him too?

Darcy leaned back in his seat, and his lips curled up into a faint smile. It was an engaging prospect, courting his own wife. The fact that he had never courted anyone was dismissed as immaterial. Throughout his time on the marriage mart, he had received more than his fair share of attention without the slightest effort – or, to put it plainly, he had received ample attention while actively working to discourage it. So, why should he not succeed when his heart was in it? When he would do anything to please the one and only woman worthy of being pleased?’

(Twists of Fate © 2021 Joana Starnes)

For all my appalling habit of torturing Mr Darcy, I did try to rein in the angst this time, I promise! Twists of Fate was written as a sunny replica to Mr Bennet’s Dutiful Daughter. Mr Bennet is alive and well. Elizabeth doesn’t enter into marriage with foreboding and reluctance. Mr and Mrs Darcy’s misconceptions are resolved sooner rather than later. Thus, when new challenges come, they are dealt with very differently.

Twists of Fate will be released on 22 July and is now available on pre-order. 

Check out the Amazon page, there’s an excerpt posted there for your reading pleasure :)

Thanks for stopping by, and thanks again, Ceri, for having me as your guest today!

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I am with Joana on this one, I love an early marriage scenario - lots of page time together, and the drama in such books often comes from within, which I prefer to a very eventful book, particularly as Joana has assured me of a happy ending! I am really excited to read this one.

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Author Bio

Joana Starnes is the author of eleven Austen-inspired novels and a contributor to the Quill Ink anthologies. All her novels are available at Amazon in Kindle and paperback, and some in Audible too: Joana’s Amazon Page.

You can connect with Joana on:

Facebook / Austen Variations / Website / Instagram / Twitter

As a many time visitor to Babblings of a Bookworm, I've featured Joana many times. Here are link to some previous posts:

• From This Day Forward ~ The Darcys of Pemberley ~ A Pride & Prejudice sequel - My review
• The Subsequent Proposal ~ A Tale of Pride, Prejudice and Persuasion - My review
• The Second Chance ~ A Pride & Prejudice / Sense & Sensibility Variation - My review
• The Falmouth Connection ~ A Pride & Prejudice Variation taking the characters to  Cornwall - My review
• The Unthinkable Triangle ~ A Pride & Prejudice Variation that dwells on the most uncomfortable love-triangle of them all. Still not been brave enough to read it! - Guest post
• Miss Darcy’s Companion ~ a variation which sees Miss Elizabeth Bennet employed instead of the scheming Mrs Younge. - Guest Post / My review
• Mr Bennet's Dutiful Daughter - a Pride & Prejudice variation that sees Elizabeth marrying for the good of her family - but the bridegroom isn't aware of her feelings - My Review
• The Darcy Legacy ~ a Pride & Prejudice variation with some 'spirit' - My Review
• The Journey Home to Pemberley  ~ Pride & Prejudice variation which sees E&D meeting close to Pemberley - My Review
• A Timely Elopement ~ a Pride & Prejudice variation which sees Mr Darcy's Hunsford proposal interrupted by news of an elopement - My Review

Buy Links

Twists of Fate is available to pre-order now. You can pre-order in kindle, but Joana's books are available in Paperback, Kindle and some are also available in audio, so let's keep our fingers crossed that it becomes available in more formats :) 

• Amazon US • Amazon UK • Amazon CA • Add to Goodreads shelf

Giveaway Time!

 

Joana is offering 2 Kindle copies of Twists of Fate. The giveaway is international and is open until 12 Jul 2021. Please leave a comment for a chance to win. Best of luck!

More giveaways already are or will be available on the blog tour, details below!

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

 

Blog Tour Schedule

 

17 Jun 2021 ~ Austen Variations ~ Giveaway and Excerpt: A ride in the rain

 

24 Jun 2021 ~ Austen Variations ~ Ongoing Giveaway and Excerpt: A fiery Mr Darcy

 

28 Jun 2021 ~ Austenesque Reviews ~ Cover Reveal, Giveaway and Excerpt: A very un-Hunsford-like proposal

 

5 Jul 2021 ~ Babblings of a Bookworm ~ Giveaway and Guest post: Breaking the wall of silence

 

8 Jul 2021 ~ From Pemberley to Milton ~ Giveaway and ‘Ask me anything!’ (I’ll try to answer without too many spoilers)

 

1 Jul 2021 ~ Austen Variations ~ Ongoing Giveaway and Excerpt: If anything can go wrong… (Murphy’s Law ~ the JAFF version)

 

16 Jul 2021 ~ Austenesque Reviews ~ Giveaway and… [my lips are sealed, but I hope you’ll like it]

 

22 Jul 2021 ~ Austen Variations ~ Launch Day!

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