Unexpected Gifts by Maria Grace - Guest Post and Excerpt

I’m happy to welcome Maria Grace back to Babblings of a Bookworm with a festive offering. Unexpected Gifts is a Pride & Prejudice sequel set at Christmas time. One thing I love about Christmas and the run up to New Year is the feeling of optimism and hope. I am an unabashed optimist and the New Year always seems to me to be a good chance for a fresh start. 

Maria Grace joins us today with an excerpt of Unexpected Gifts, which she will introduce, but first I will share the blurb with you.

Book Description

Yuletide 1814, the Darcys are celebrating their third wedding anniversary and the baby Elizabeth is expecting. Overprotective and perhaps overbearing, Darcy is ready to do anything for Elizabeth’s comfort, including defying the will of his aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh who demands their presence to bestow a gift that absolutely cannot wait.

What sort of gift is so urgent it cannot wait for a more auspicious time?

Christmastide 1815, the Darcys hope for a particular sort of joy to bring a close to a dark and difficult season. It only seems fitting that an unexpected—and unwelcome—guest disrupts their small family house party. Could the unexpected gift they bring be the key to the fulfillment of the Darcys’ most heartfelt desires?

The Knight Before Christmas by Marilyn Brant - Review

Today I'm pleased to be bringing you a seasonal post. It's always satisfying when you are blogging about something at the right time of year! Marilyn Brant has brought out an Emma-influenced story which is set at Christmas time, The Knight Before Christmas, and she was so kind as to give me a copy to read and review. Let's look at the blurb and then I'll tell you what I thought of the book :)

Book Description

THE KNIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS is a light contemporary romance by New York Times & USA Today bestselling author Marilyn Brant, who also penned the award-winning and Jane Austen-inspired novels ACCORDING TO JANE and PRIDE, PREJUDICE AND THE PERFECT MATCH.

When successful building contractor Austin Knightley returns to his hometown of Crystal Corners, Minnesota after a decade away, he vows to avoid pampered and popular types like his old high-school crush Emma Westwood—the town's biggest queen bee and self-appointed matchmaker—only to get swept into a community Christmas project she's now organizing.

With nods to Jane Austen's classic novel EMMA, this modern heroine may be a little "clueless" in the Midwest, but she's got gifts to share and plenty to learn from the boy next door, who's all grown up and handsomer than ever. Even when a snowstorm threatens to derail her plans, she's determined to figure out how to set things right and save THE KNIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS.

This sweet and heartwarming holiday romance is a story that can be enjoyed by readers of all ages.

The Knight Before Christmas - Review

It’s been ages since I’ve read a Marilyn Brant book, so I was very interested to hear about this one, which I thought at first was a modernisation of Austen’s Emma. However, if you read the blurb, it’s clear that it’s a story with nods to Emma rather than replicating the story.

We start with the heroine, Emma Westwood, who is basically the princess of Crystal Corners, the small town where she has always lived in Minnesota. She is from a rich background, and her family uses their money for good; they run a charitable organisation, which Emma manages. Emma is very much a people person. She is genuinely interested in others, and tries to use her influence for good. It’s fair to say that Emma is a little spoilt, but she is a good person with good motives.

One of the ways that she has shown interest in making others happy is in her matchmaking. She’s made a fair few matches, often deciding that men she has dated would be a better fit with other people! Despite all her friends Emma is a little lonely. She has never met anybody that she would like to settle down with but she longs for a loving relationship that she sees all around her. Emma is very close with her parents, but this year, for their wedding anniversary, they are taking a holiday to Europe and will be away over Christmas, so she is more alone than usual.

Emma has a community project that she is focusing on completing; having fond memories of a knight statuette that she received as a small child, she works throughout the year to give every child in the town a personalised statuette, which reflects their interests. These are presented at Christmas time.

Emma has always had a soft spot for knights in shining armour:

One day, though, she wanted a real-life knight. 

And, with the certainty of someone well accustomed to getting what she desired, young Emma Westwood figured it was only a matter of time until her fantasy became a reality.

When there is a problem with the custom cabinet that Emma has ordered for the statuettes she could do with a knight in shining armour to help….

Austin Knightley was in school with Emma but he was never a fan, despite her attempts to win him over. Austin moved away from Crystal Corners and has made a successful building company. He’s moving back to the area for family reasons, as the health of Austin’s parents is starting to cause concern. Austin has 3 younger siblings, who all live locally, and only child Emma can’t help but be attracted by the warmth she sees in his family. Although Emma is interested in Austin and being friends, she is well aware that the feeling isn’t mutual:

It was strange that after all these years, it still rankled that she couldn’t win Austin over. It was as if he’d made a judgement call against her when she was a kid and refused to reverse that verdict. 

It’s a shame then, that he might be the person with the skills available to help her out when she needs a new cabinet made at short notice. Austin is willing to help for the good of the community, but he’s not working for Emma. He wants her to roll up her sleeves and pitch in. To his surprise she is happy to do just that. The unfortunate side-effect of this might be that his perception of her changes…

This is a very sweet romance which develops quickly. Emma is far more likeable than Austen’s Emma, but the flipside of this was making Austin a little less likeable than Mr Knightley - or perhaps less admirable, as Austin isn't unlikeable by any means. Austen’s Mr Knightley didn’t need to change throughout the arc of the novel, but in this book, the opposite was true. Emma didn’t change much at all, but Austin had to make some attitude re-adjustments and get rid of long-held misconceptions.

I liked the nods to Emma but sometimes I wished they were stronger. For example, there were some characters which shared names with characters in Austen’s book and I expected them to have some of the same sort of roles that they did in Austen but that wasn’t the case.

I found the book reminiscent of a Christmas feelgood film in that that the relationship developed very quickly. I would have preferred a slower pace, which may partly have been because I was looking for it to be like Emma, where friends develop into more, rather than the relationship being romantic from early on.

If you are in need of some festive feelgood, with a sprinkle of Austen, and even a Christmas miracle then this book is certainly worth a go. I’d rate it as a 3½ star read.

*I received an ebook of this story from the author for my honest review.

Author Bio

Marilyn Brant is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of over 20 books in the genres of contemporary women’s fiction, romantic comedy, and mystery. Her debut novel about Jane Austen won the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Golden Heart Award® (2007), and she was named Author of the Year (2013) by the Illinois Association of Teachers of English. She’s a travel addict, a music junkie, and an insatiable book collector, who loves to discuss story structure and periodically contributes novel beat sheets to the popular screenwriting website, SaveTheCat.com. Marilyn’s family believes she’s lost unquantifiable hours to the allure of “Tasty” videos on Facebook, but she refuses to substantiate this claim. For more about her writing, visit Marilyn’s website: www.marilynbrant.com

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads 

Buy Links

The Knight Before Christmas is available to buy now in both ebook and paperback - Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon CA / Add to Goodreads shelf

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An Unexpected Merry Gentleman by Anngela Schroeder - Guest Post, Excerpt and Giveaway

Are you feeling festive yet? I hope so, because I am welcoming author Anngela Schroeder back to the blog with a seasonal novella, An Unexpected Merry Gentleman. I'll share the blurb with you, and then hand over to Anngela for her guest post. She's also brought a giveaway!

Book Description

 ‘Tis the season to be jolly and Mr. Darcy and his sister have been invited to Netherfield for Christmas with Bingley’s business associate and the Bennets of Longbourn. There is no comfort or joy for this taciturn man when he discovers the sparkling Elizabeth Bennet finds him proud and arrogant. His only choice is to win her heart, but is it too late to change her opinion of him?

Twelfth-Night Cake and the Rosings Ghost by Robin Kobayashi - Guest Post and Giveaway

Today I'm welcoming a new visitor to the blog. Robin Kobayashi has written two young adult novellas featuring characters from Pride & Prejudice. This latest story, Twelfth Night Cake and the Rosings Ghost is set in the festive season. Robin has stopped by with an excerpt of the story and the chance to win an ebook! Read on for more details.

Book Description 

In this Christmas novella set in the year 1818, a plucky little girl must contend with a mischievous ghost at Rosings.

Colonel Fitzwilliam and his eight-year-old daughter, Sofia-Elisabete, pass a winter’s month at Rosings, the estate of his aunt, Lady Catherine. There, the Colonel must help his illegitimate child, who is half-British, half-Portuguese, navigate the prejudices of their world as his outspoken daughter clashes with the imperious Lady Catherine.

One evening, on the first day of Christmas, they hear the tale of the mysterious Rosings Ghost who, centuries ago, vexed the inhabitants of Rosings during the twelve days of Christmas. The next morning strange things begin to happen. Why has the Rosings Ghost returned now? Why does a furious Lady Catherine blame Sofia-Elisabete for all of the ghost’s pranks?

Will our girl hero Sofia-Elisabete, with the help of her father, uncover the real secret of the Rosings Ghost and put an end to its tricks?

Guest Post from Robin Elizabeth Kobayashi

I’ve always imagined that there was more to Colonel Fitzwilliam’s story than meets the eye. A key scene in Pride and Prejudice occurs at Rosings, where Elizabeth Bennet is grilling him and making him feel awfully uncomfortable about justifying his life-style choices. Finally, in an effort to cut her off, the colonel says, ‘These are home questions…’

What other choices had he made in his lifetime? And which ones did he regret, particularly those made during a time of war? If he rose to the rank of colonel or lieutenant colonel, he must have seen some military action. So, I placed him in Portugal when Napoleon’s army is about to invade that country for taking sides with England. In Lisbon, he meets a beautiful Portuguese girl, and that’s when Sofia-Elisabete, his illegitimate daughter, is conceived.

My novel I, Sofia-Elisabete, Love Child of Colonel Fitzwilliam: A Perfect World in the Moon, which is told from Sofia-Elisabete’s point of view, describes in both a humorous and poignant fashion her beginnings as an abandoned foundling, her search for her father and their close relationship when she finds him, and the tragedy that occurs when, at the age of five, she runs away from home to find the perfect world in the moon – a utopia that she believes will cure her father’s bouts with melancholy.

After finishing the novel, I wanted to know what happened to these characters of Sofia-Elisabete and the colonel. Sofia-Elisabete, who is half-Portuguese, Catholic and a love child, is very much an outsider. How does she feel growing up in England during the Regency Era? Her father, who adores her, refuses to hide her in the countryside, to be brought up by strangers.

In my novella Twelfth-Night Cake & the Rosings Ghost, I imagined how the bold and outspoken Sofia-Elisabete would clash with the bold and outspoken Lady Catherine at Rosings. And all this clashing would take place during the Christmas season, a time of peace and goodwill to all people. But the colonel and his daughter aren’t the only two visitors at Rosings. The Rosings Ghost has returned; a ghost that very much enjoys playing pranks! Lady Catherine, who doesn’t believe in the Rosings Ghost, blames Sofia-Elisabete for everything that goes wrong. What’s a young eight-year-old to do?

This past year I’ve been immersed in writing YA historical fiction that appeals to all ages, finishing three novellas about the lovable, strong-willed Sofia-Elisabete and her close relationship with her father, Colonel Fitzwilliam. Twelfth-Night Cake & the Rosings Ghost is the first novella to be released in this series. My sincere thanks to Ceri for helping me launch the Rosings Ghost novella on her site!

Excerpt from Twelfth-Night Cake & the Rosings Ghost

Lady Catherine, who calls Sofia-Elisabete ‘the little brown one’, is making our girl hero eat tasteless gruel as punishment for taking her ladyship’s candy to give to the poor children. Hungry as ever, Sofia-Elisabete gulps down the remains of Anne de Bourgh’s chocolate. She wonders why her color matters. She never thought of herself as a color before. Towards the end of this scene, she questions the colonel about her brown-tinged skin.

On my third and final day of eating cruel gruel, which is how I dubbed it, I got it into my brain that my own suffering would no longer do. Breakfast over, and no one attending to me, I seized Annie’s cup of chocolate and, quick, quick, quick, I slurped up what remained in it. Now, most mornings after breakfast, Annie would hie to the stable to call on her beloved ponies, Sylvester and Macdougal, and she, being an eccentric, would kiss them and slobber them and talk like a stable boy to them and rub them down with fresh straw. I hear you cry, ‘Surely you are funning?’ I own that I had spied on her the other day. Having burst into giggles at her silliness and stable-boy talk, I was found out and banished from the stable.

Feeling emboldened by my chocolate caper to-day, I sneaked into the stable where I eavesdropped on Annie’s conversation with her ponies. She told them how naughty I had been. She growled like a dog at my ‘gggrruel punishment’ – a wit she is not – and how I needed to be taught a lesson for having done a bad thing, a very bad thing by stealing Lady Catherine’s medicinal drops. ‘She be a bad ’un. A’n’t I right, Sylvester? You knows I am.’ She fed a carrot to her pony.

Well, I never! I waited for Annie to quit the stable, and that’s when I pilfered her prized driving-whip. One of the ponies stamped his hoof in protest. ‘Shush, Macdougal,’ warned I, shaking my finger at him.

The sun in a cloudless sky had begun to melt the thin layer of frost on the ground. I sallied forth to the garden; from there, I bounded down the sloping lawn to reach the meadow land, my very own secret meadow. I pranced about, cracking the long whip – crac crac – again and again and again. I imagined myself atop a gleaming barouche, driving four-in-hand, my team of chocolate unicorns galloping to the great beyond. ‘Gee up! Awhi! Awhi!’ shouted I, mimicking a driver.

Unbeknown to me, papai had sighted me from a window at the manor-house. What a strange scene I must have presented to the servants, leaping about and crac-crac-ing my whip and taking a tumble now and then on the slippery ground. But papai was used to my peculiar ways. He strode out across the brown meadow to join me.

Having heard papai’s approach, I spun round to face him, my countenance flushed with exercise. ‘Papai, I’m driving a barouche and four with chocolate unicorns.’ He slowed his step in a most quizzical manner. ‘Come here, silly gooseberry,’ ordered he with an outstretched hand. But I sensed a trace of trouble on his face. Would he lecture me about my hoydenish ways?

I stepped away from him. With mingled feelings of childish panic and impish glee, I darted off like a hunted hare, doubling and turning. ‘Ha! Ha!’ I, the prey, taunted the hunter. But I was no match for a keen sportsman like my papai, who seized me by the back of my unlucky scarlet cloak and thereafter confiscated the driving-whip, scolding me that it wasn’t a toy and that I could hurt myself or someone or something.

‘Egads!’ He drew back. ‘What’s that big brown stain on the front of your pinafore?’

‘Methinks it’s mud.’ I felt my soiled pinafore.

Papai sniffed. ‘It smells chocolate-y. I wonder how it got there?’

‘I do believe…’ I puzzled my wits together for inspiration, ‘the chocolate unicorn nudged me with his magical horn.’

Papai cast a sceptical look at me. ‘I dare say you’re lying. Did you sneak about and drink chocolate at breakfast?’

It has long been a maxim with imps like me that one must always answer a question with another question to get oneself out of a scrape. And if one is very lucky, the all-knowing grown-up will have forgotten his question by then.

‘Papai, am I as brown as chocolate?’ I peered up at him with the saddest eyes I could muster.

He started at my question. ‘Nay. Your skin is a…lovely, light brown colour – very milky, with a bit of chocolate in it.’

‘Like your milky tea?’

‘Ye-e-e-s,’ faltered he.

‘But you hate milky tea.’

Papai gave a slight grimace, his eyelids crinkling. ‘True. That’s why I sweeten it with sugar.’

‘Am I your sweet little girl?’

‘Quite so.’ Papai tugged at his cravat. ‘You’re my sweet little girl, the colour of very milky tea.’

I sensed his relief, he having summoned up a grin for me. I wondered why my milky tea-ness caused him to fidget. Did my brown-ness vex people for some reason? I thought about people colours – the milky-white young ladies, the scarlet-faced old men, the nut-brown farmers. My wee brain couldn’t make sense of why that sort of thing mattered.

Papai strode through the meadow, his hands clasped behind his back, thinking many a deep thought, for a prodigious thinker he is. I ran alongside him, trying to keep pace with his manly stride. I clasped my hands behind my back likewise to summon up some deep thoughts of my own, as mine were always coming and going whenever they pleased. ‘Papai, I feel a deep thought coming round finally,’ said I with pride. And he laughed at me, wearing those sad, crinkling eyes of his.

About the Author

Robin Elizabeth Kobayashi is a native Californian who has lived in both Los Angeles and San Francisco. When she was twelve, she used to haunt the public library where they had a section of books called “Classic Fiction”. She made it her goal to read all of these books, starting with the A’s (Alcott, Austen), then the B’s (Brontë), but she got stuck on the D’s, because Dickens’ books were just so l-o-o-o-n-g in length. She never did finish her reading challenge. She never did understand Pride and Prejudice at the time; that would come much later. Fast forward several decades. After reading countless JAFF eBooks, many of them superb, she never thought she had a story to tell. Until one day she began to write about a half-Portuguese half-British girl living in the Regency Era. That novel, I, Sofia-Elisabete, Love Child of Colonel Fitzwilliam: A Perfect World in the Moon, received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews which also selected the novel as an Indie Best Books of the Month (August 2018). During the day, she works as a senior legal writer and editor for a leading global publisher.

Connect with Robin on Facebook and Goodreads

This novella is available to buy now: 

• Amazon US • Amazon UK •  Barnes & Noble • Smashwords • Add to your Goodreads Shelf

Giveaway Time

Robin is kindly offering to give away 5 ebooks to visitors of Babblings of a Bookworm! To enter, just comment on this blog post before the end of the day on Monday the 19th of November. Please leave a way for me to contact you in case you are a winner.

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Christmas at Darcy House by Victoria Kincaid - Guest Post and Giveaway

Today I'm welcoming Victoria Kincaid back to the blog. Victoria has a new book out which spends Christmas at Darcy House and she's come here with a guest post and international giveaway. Let's look at the blurb and then hand over to Victoria for a guest post.

A Very Austen Christmas by Robin Helm, Laura Hile, Wendi Sotis, and Barbara Cornthwaite

Today I'm happy to be able to bring you an excerpt of A Very Austen Christmas by Robin Helm, Laura Hile, Wendi Sotis, and Barbara Cornthwaite. I really enjoy anthologies, and I'm looking forward to reading this one. Laura Hile is kindly offering an ebook giveaway of A Very Austen Christmas to an international commenter on this post too :)

Let's read the book blurb and then I'll share an excerpt with you

A Very Darcy Christmas by Victoria Kincaid - Winner

Recently, Victoria Kincaid joined me with an excerpt and giveaway of her Christmas-themed book, 'A Very Darcy Christmas', which sees the Darcys first Christmas as a married couple not go as planned as family descend on Pemberley. Victoria kindly offered a giveaway of an e-book of the story to a commenter on the post. The winner, chosen at random, is:

Sheila!

Edited to add: As Sheila has explained in the comments below, since her initial comment she has read the book, so she asked me to choose another winner who is:

Mary!

Hopefully Mary hasn't succumbed and bought herself a copy. I will be in touch.

Thank you so much to all of you who visited the post and commented, and of course, huge thanks to Victoria for visiting the blog and providing a giveaway.

As an aside, I hope this post looks ok, my internet has gone down so I am publishing via my phone! Technology, eh :)

A Very Darcy Christmas by Victoria Kincaid - Except and Giveaway

What do you have planned for Christmas? A quiet celebration of your nearest and dearest, or maybe something more chaotic? Victoria Kincaid's latest story sees the Darcys first Christmas as a married couple; they had planned something quiet, but the best laid plans can sometimes go awry :) Read on for a post from Victoria about Christmas in Jane Austen's day, more details about 'A Very Darcy Christmas' and a chance to win a kindle version of this story.

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Nowadays we tend to think of gift-giving as one of the central parts of Christmas celebrations. Certainly businesses and stores encourage us to think of the season that way.  But in Jane Austen’s time, gift-giving was not a big part of the holiday.  Parents or other relatives might give presents to children.  On Boxing Day, employers often gave money and Christmas boxes with gifts of clothing and other goods to their servants. Wealthy landowners (like Mr. Darcy) might give gifts of food or other necessities to tenants or people in the neighborhood who were down on their luck.  But there was no widespread exchange of presents between adults of equal station, and it was not considered an essential part of Christmas the way it is today.

So how did they celebrate Christmas during the Regency?  They decorated houses with greenery and lit yule logs and went to church.  But they also did a lot of socializing.  The Christmas season ran from the beginning of December through Twelfth Night, and during that time people would visit friends, hold dinners and parties, play parlor games, and eat lots of good food.  In other words, Christmas was a time to hang out with your friends and family.

This Regency propensity for partying inspired a central idea in my novel, A Very Darcy Christmas.  In it, newlyweds Elizabeth and Darcy are besieged by relatives who arrive at Pemberley uninvited and take advantage of their Christmas hospitality.  The Darcys end up with Lydia, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, and Lady Catherine all under one roof—as well as two friends of her ladyship’s who she hopes will pay court to Georgiana.  As you can imagine, mayhem ensues.  While the inhabitants of Pemberley enjoy parlor games and yule logs and fine dining, they also suffer through Mrs. Bennet’s hysterics over an impending French invasion and Lydia’s tendency to accidentally set things on fire.  
I had great fun writing about how Pride and Prejudice’s characters enjoy a traditional Regency Christmas—but with a uniquely Austenesque twist.  Hopefully you will have just as much fun reading it!

Book Description

Elizabeth and Darcy are preparing for their first Christmas at Pemberley when they are suddenly deluged by a flood of uninvited guests.  Mrs. Bennet is seeking refuge from the French invasion she believes to be imminent.  Lady Catherine brings two suitors for Georgiana’s hand, who cause a bit of mayhem themselves.  Lydia’s presence causes bickering—and a couple of small fires—while Wickham has more nefarious plans in mind….The abundance of guests soon puts a strain on her marriage as Elizabeth tries to manage the chaos while ensuring a happy Christmas for all.

Meanwhile, Georgiana is finding her suitors—and the prospect of coming out—to be very unappealing.  Colonel Fitzwilliam seems to be the only person who understands her fondness for riding astride and shooting pistols.  Georgiana realizes she’s beginning to have more than cousinly feelings for him, but does he return them?  And what kind of secrets is he hiding?  

Romance and merriment abound as everyone gathers to celebrate a Very Darcy Christmas.  

Excerpt

“You barely had an opportunity to make the acquaintance of Mr. Worthy or Viscount Barrington.”  Aunt Catherine gestured to the two men seated on either side of her chair.  “The viscount’s ancestral estates are here in Derbyshire.” 

This was at least the fourth time her aunt had relayed that information—as if propinquity would be Georgiana’s primary criterion for choosing a husband.  “Indeed?  How interesting,” Georgiana said as she focused on cutting her meat into smaller and smaller pieces.  In truth she found Lord Robert intriguing.  While Mr. Worthy was impossible in every way, the viscount was handsome and well-spoken.  But Georgiana had no opportunities to speak with him alone; her aunt was always present, directing the conversation.  

Lord Robert smiled and appeared ready to speak when Mr. Worthy interjected, “My family’s land is in Kent.  It is very fertile.”  

William seemed to catch something in his throat and coughed loudly into his napkin.  

Mr. Worthy continued, oblivious.  “We have implemented all of the latest techniques in crop circulation.” 

One of William’s eyebrows rose.  “Crop rotation?”

“Exactly!”  Mr. Worthy beamed at William as if he were a small child who had solved a mathematics problem rather than a powerful landowner who had corrected the other man’s inaccurate language.  

William cut his meat rather more forcefully than usual, but he said nothing.  

“Mr. Worthy’s mother and I are second cousins,” Aunt Catherine intoned. 

Is that the only reason Aunt Catherine is imposing this man upon me? wondered Georgiana.  She could not possibly believe we would make a good match.

She would have preferred to familiarize herself with the viscount, but he had become involved in a conversation with Mr. Bennet.  Richard was engaged in discourse with Mrs. Wickham.  Mr. Worthy, on the other hand, regarded Georgiana like an eager puppy, awaiting her next words.  I really should speak with him.  Under the table she wiped damp palms on her dress.  She had never claimed much expertise in the art of making conversation.  But Mrs. Annesley had given her advice about it: “You may always ask the other person about his or her life.  Everyone loves to talk about himself.”  

That was the answer.  She could ask one question, and then he would do all the talking.  “What sorts of crops do you plant on your estate?” she asked him. 

The man beamed at her, sitting a little straighter in his chair.  “Well, in our north fields we have wheat, although the steward has suggested switching those to corn.  That could increase the yield by up to twelve percent.  The east fields were fallow last year, but now we have them planted with a heartier variety of potatoes.  And then in the west—oh, I should add that one of the east fields is dedicated to barley because my steward thought…”

Half an hour later the occupants of one end of the table were still listening to the fascinating tales of Mr. Worthy’s adventures in crop rotation.  He spoke with the superior air of someone who condescended to share great pearls of wisdom that others should be grateful to receive.  Georgiana cast a sidelong glance at her brother.  Although he could usually talk about agriculture for some time, even his eyes were glazing over.  Of course, this was a monologue rather than a discussion.

“…Naturally, it required a great deal more irrigation.”  Mr. Worthy paused to take a breath, but Georgiana had been waiting to pounce on the slightest lull.  

“And what do your tenants think about such improvements?” she asked.  Surely Mr. Worthy’s improvements had created a vast deal more work for them. 

“The tenants?” he echoed as if he had never heard the word before. 

“Have they been supportive of all the changes?” she asked.  Both Richard and William were now watching with avid interest.  They must have had the same thought.  

“W-why yes—of-of course!  I believe so…” he stammered. 

In other words, he had never asked them.  William always emphasized the importance of working with the tenants and involving them in any major changes on the estate.  After all, it was their livelihood.  

Mr. Worthy’s briefly troubled expression gave way to one of renewed enthusiasm.  “Oh, and I neglected to tell you about the new fertilizer we have been experimenting with!”  Georgiana cast an imploring look at her aunt, but the older woman’s eyes were closed.  Good gracious, the man had managed to put her to sleep at the dining table!  

This would not do.  If Georgiana must tolerate the man’s ramblings, then her aunt must suffer as well. She glanced around the table for tools with which to enact a plan.  Her eyes fell on a metal cover over a basket of rolls. 

Reaching out her fork as if she were stretching her arms, she allowed the utensil to fall on the cover with a loud clatter.  The noise startled Aunt Catherine awake with a jerk. 

“As I was saying,” she declared quite loudly to Mr. Worthy, “Georgiana is an accomplished player of the pianoforte.  She will oblige us with some music after dinner.” 

“How wonderful!” Lord Robert chimed in.  He had been speaking with Mr. Bennet on his other side but now took fresh interest in their discourse.

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Giveaway Time!

Victoria Kincaid has kindly offered to give a kindle version of 'A Very Darcy Christmas' to one of you lovely people (open internationally). To enter, just leave a comment on this blog post. You can tell us what type of Christmas you hope to have, or if you have any good stories of Christmases that didn't go to plan we'd like to hear about those too! Make your comment by the end of the day on Thursday 22 December to enter and please leave a way for me to contact you in case you are the lucky winner.

Thank you so much for dropping by, Victoria!

Regina Jeffers - Celebrating Christmastide + Excerpt and E-book giveaway of 'Mr Darcy's Present'

I have the pleasure of welcoming Regina Jeffers to the blog today with a post relating to how the festive season used to be celebrated in history. Regina is also kindly offering an e-book giveaway of her latest book, 'Mr Darcy's Present' to two commenters here. Read on for more details!

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A Jane Austen Christmas by Carlo DeVito - Excerpt and Giveaway

Last weekend, the clocks went back here in the UK, so it's getting dark earlier now, and once that happens, I can start to believe that we're in the run up to Christmas. Obviously Christmas these days is very different to what it was in Austen's time (says a person who does most of their present shopping online!). Many of the things we view as 'traditional' are actually Victorian in origin, though some traditions from earlier have made it through to the present day.

Today I have an excerpt from 'A Jane Austen Christmas' by Carlo DeVito, a book focusing on what Christmas could well have been like for the Austen family, with the spotlight on six Christmases in particular. Read on for an excerpt and a giveaway of a hardcover copy to a reader in the United States/Canada. Let's set the scene with a short excerpt showing a little of the preparation that would have been done for Christmas...

Holidays with Jane by various Indie Jane Authors

I saw this book featured on a few blogs and it sounded like something I’d really enjoy; a collection of contemporary short stories, each by a different Indie Jane author (Jennifer Becton, Melissa Buell, Rebecca M Fleming, Cecilia Gray, Jessica Grey, Kimberley Truesdale) and each focusing on a different one of Austen’s works. The stories have some linkage although they don’t cross over at all, for example, Catherine Morland runs a dressmaking business and she is making the Dashwood sisters’ dresses, Emma runs a gift shop where Edward buys a present for Elinor, and probably the strongest link is an Austen-themed coffee shop chain called ‘Mansfield Perk’. I really liked the fact that the stories were linked, it brought the book together nicely.

Here’s a quick rundown of the stories:

The Work of an Instant by Jennifer Becton, based on 'Persuasion'

Here, Dr Anne Elliot is a doctor on a naval base. She gave up her engagement to Frederick Wentworth 7 years ago, believing that she couldn’t bear the separations that would be inevitable once Frederick was working towards his dream of becoming a Captain. But Anne gets a chance, in the work of an instant, to realise that if she had her time again, she’d choose differently. This was a really lovely short story, which echoed back to the original in a number of ways. I particularly liked this part, showing the Miss Musgrove’s view of Anne, which I thought was really similar to ‘Persuasion’:

‘Of course, neither Louisa nor Henrietta had the least idea of what they had interrupted. They viewed her as some sort of asexual problem-solving machine. 

And perhaps that was all she was destined to be.

Well, if that were the case, then she would be the best asexual problem-solving machine possible.’

One thing that often doesn’t translate well to a modern update is Wentworth’s letter, which is possibly the most exquisite page of a book that I’ve ever read. This isn’t quite as delicious as that, but it was a very lovely and worthy letter, possibly the best modern update Wentworth’s letter I’ve read so far.

Mischief and Mistletoe by Melissa Buell, based on 'Northanger Abbey'

This was such a lovely story, featuring the sweet Catherine. She is the only daughter of a pastor, homeschooled, no TV and a small social circle which has resulted in her being extremely naive compared with most 18 year olds. However, Cate is a very talented designer and seamstress, running her own online business, ‘Cate’s Creations’. Most of Cate’s dresses are remade thrift store finds. Cate was taught to sew by her neighbour, Mrs Allen, who has taken her on as a bit of a protégé and given Cate a great opportunity - she is going to take on all the design work for costumes for a theatre production out of town. There she meets a young divinity student, Henry Tilney, whose sister Eleanor is going to assist Cate with the costume-making. The girls become firm friends, and when Cate needs to stay in the area longer than the Allens she arranges with Eleanor to stay at Northanger Estate. I enjoyed this story, but I would have liked for it to be developed a bit more.

A Tale of Three Christmases by Rebecca M Fleming, based on 'Sense & Sensibility'

This was a wonderful story, which made me both laugh and cry. The tears come from the situation Maggie Dashwood finds herself in. A few weeks before Christmas, Maggie’s father dies. She, her mother, and her sisters are probably going to have to move away from their family home due to an archaic clause which means that the property has to be willed, complete, to a male heir. Maggie goes up to her hideaway in the attic and finds a beautiful box. Inside is a notebook and a letter from her father, asking her to write a diary of the next three Christmases. It’s a beautifully thoughtful idea of her father’s, because not only does it give Maggie a connection to her father now he’s gone, but it also gives her an outlet away from the dysfunction that exists within her family, especially at a time of loss.

The laughter came from Maggie’s attitude towards her sister Marianne. I haven’t read Sense & Sensibility in a number of years, but I remember that I found Marianne unbelievably self-absorbed and tiresome... Maggie shares my view, and had a number of acerbic comments to make on it:

‘It’s not the trees’ fault that Marianne got lost, in the middle of a tantrum-induced walk, right as a March storm broke. If Wills hadn’t been having his own Byronic fit, she might have wandered all afternoon and into the evening, but he found her and was able to escort her home. From that point on? They were disgustingly inseparable.’ 

One thing I think is hard to update in 'Sense & Sensibility' is the Lucy Steele scenario, why Edward would stick with a relationship which he clearly wasn’t invested in, but here the author gave an explanation which I thought was really plausible. This was an excellent story.

With Love, From Emma by Cecilia Gray, based on 'Emma'

This was my favourite story of the collection, I just loved it. Emma runs a florist and gift store. She also keeps bees, from which she harvests wax for candles etc. We catch up with her at her best friend, Taylor’s wedding to West, which is being held on Christmas Eve. Emma is particularly proud of herself because she counts herself as personally responsible for making the match:

‘They all talk as if some celestial Cupid had been involved. 

Cupid wishes.’

Emma is joined at the wedding by her neighbour, Lance Knightley. He moved to the area about a year ago, and his bar is two stores along from Emma’s shop. Over a number of incidents throughout the last year, Emma and Lance have become friends. She is very attracted to Lance but is fighting it because she believes he sees her like a sister. Emma is constantly having to stop herself drooling at Lance, which led to a number of very amusing thoughts from her:

‘The man knew how to lean against a wall. Did models take classes in stuff like this, or did it just come naturally to attractive people?’

The thing I loved most about this story is that to me it captured the essence of Emma from Austen’s story – Emma was a busybody who felt she knew best, however, it was because she cared about people that she interfered and the fact that she did it with love always made me feel fond of her. This Emma has chosen to bring joy to the world through her gift store. I also liked the bee motif running through the story. Aside from keeping bees, Emma is also very much a queen bee herself. However, when Emma decides to match up Harriet with Elton she explains to Lance how a new queen bee is made, and it illustrates how she views her interference in others’ lives:

“That’s all it takes. A little extra nourishment and tenderness and you have a queen.” 

That’s always been the secret to my business. That anyone can feel like a queen, can be a queen, with the right love.’

Another thing I thought was a nice touch about this story is that Emma is quite a lonely person; although she mentions having friends the only one you really see is Taylor, and Emma’s parents are both dead. I think Emma Woodhouse was potentially fairly lonely, she has a very small social group and her socialising is curtailed somewhat by her father’s health.

I had to read this story twice, I loved it so much! It also hits a number of markers which exist in Austen’s story. Due to the shorter format, some of the characters from ‘Emma’ are absent, such as the Bates ladies and Jane Fairfax so we don’t have to see the bad side of Emma’s character that they bring out. Emma thinks back to a number of events throughout the year that she has understood one way when she could have interpreted them differently, for example:

‘For such a fancy car, he drove slowly and cautiously, taking full stops at every opportunity. You’d think a cop was following us. Or that I was his sister, I thought with a sigh. He probably drove like a hot-riding manic with women he actually wanted to date. 

Still the long drive gave us time to chat.’

Perhaps that was why he was driving slowly, you clueless woman!

It’s a Wonderful Latte by Jessica Grey, based on ‘Mansfield Park’

I was interested to see that Jessica Grey was writing the book based on ‘Mansfield Park’ because as far as I know, she really doesn’t like it! The story opens with Jane Austen and her sister Cassandra, sipping tea in the afterlife. Jane gets visited by another spirit, a Mr Clemens. I didn’t know what that name signified until Jane said this:

“Here to beat me over the head with your own shinbone, Mr. Clemens?”

And then it all became clear who Mr Clemens was, which gave me a giggle.  He has an assignment for Jane, down on Earth, like Clarence had in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’. Jane is sent to Mansfield Perk, where the manager, Evie, also dislikes ‘Mansfield Park’. On a personal note, I’ve only read ‘Mansfield Park’ twice – the first time as a romantic teen, and I really didn’t think much of it at all. I read it again a couple of years ago and I realised that it’s not a romance. There are romantic relationships, but that isn’t the main point of the book, and once I realised that I stopped being disappointed in the lack of romance and instead appreciated the book that I feel Austen intended to write. Funnily enough, Jane puts this view to Evie:

“...it’s Edmund Bertram I can’t stand.” 

Jane looked up from fiddling with the wallet with an amused smile. “Is that so?” 

“Oh yes, he’s a horrible romantic hero.” 

“Maybe it’s not a romantic book.” 

I stared at her blankly. “But-but-“ I spluttered. “Huh, I’ve never thought of that.”

Evie, who is the coffee shop owner’s granddaughter, works in the coffee shop with her cousin Izzy, and Frank, reliable Frank who is always there in the background. The store is visited by siblings Jake and Maggie Piper, who are new management of the mall the store is based in, wanting them to take part in a fund-raising celebration in the run up to Christmas. The fund-raising is for a theatre project, which isn’t a charity that’s close to Evie’s grandmother’s heart, but to paraphrase, ‘because Jake Piper was so ridiculously hot and Evie is so ridiculously shallow’ she convinces herself that it’s a good idea to support the project. Evie and Frank are usually in agreement on most things, but this time he feels that she’s not making the decision for the good of the store and it causes some friction in their relationship. Added to this, for some reason Evie doesn’t feel comfortable with Maggie Piper’s interest in Frank and his hot biceps!

There was an interesting point made, which I had never considered before:

“You are a bit like Edmund...or Emma. Emma was basically Edmund in a dress.”

I think there are definitely some similarities between the characters! Aside from these observations on Austen’s stories I also really enjoyed the tone of the story and the humour, Evie’s character was very likeable.

This story also contained my favourite quote of the book, which had me pausing my reading to share it on Goodreads:

“An angel?” I squeaked. “Like she’s on a mission from God? 

“No, that’s The Blues Brothers. But she could be an angel. A JANE-GEL.”

Pride & Presents by Kimberley Truesdale, based on ‘Pride & Prejudice’

In this story the Bennet family run the Longbourn Community Centre, which does a lot for disadvanted kids in the neighbourhood. Liz is trying to convince her father that she’s up to the job of taking over running the centre so that he can retire. She’s successfully secured a load of donations for the Christmas party, and is feeling pretty upbeat when two visitors arrive. Basketball star Charles Bingley and his friend, Will Darcy, who is a lawyer, would like to volunteer, because their community centre gave so much to them when they were growing up. Everybody loves Charles, but Will is cold and seemingly uninterested and Liz resents him for his moodiness. Lydia’s new friend Wickham is a real contrast to Darcy, he’s charming, outgoing and friendly and even agrees to be Santa for the kids’ Christmas party. However, Liz learns that first impressions can be deceptive, and that she has made misjudgements.

As part of the work Liz is taking over from her father, she’s spent a lot of time on the paperwork for renewing the lease and Longbourn’s non-profit status but around the time that Wickham dumps Lydia, the paperwork goes missing along with a flash drive containing the backups. Liz realises that she may have blown both the future of Longbourn and any kind of future for her and Will. Plus they don’t have Santa for the Christmas show. What Liz needs is a Christmas miracle.

This was an enjoyable short story. It was interspersed with the poem ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ and each line of the poem tied to a section of the story, which was a nice, Christmassy touch. I felt that this story might have benefitted from being a little longer. In ‘Pride & Prejudice’ the reader can see that Darcy is interested in Elizabeth before he asks her to marry him but here I don’t think it’s so clear. However, it’s still a story I enjoyed reading, and it was a nice festive way to round out the collection!

I really enjoyed reading this anthology. All of the stories were enjoyable, though I thought some worked better as short stories than others. Although they were all written by different authors, and so they are all slightly different in style they went together really nicely and I particularly liked the way the stories were linked, which I thought brought them nicely together into a collection. I can definitely see me picking up this book again when I want a quick fix of something Austenesque. I would recommend this book to anybody who likes contemporary-set JAFF. There are no sex scenes which may relieve you or disappoint you, depending on your view! I’d rate this as 4½ stars.