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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Persuasion - Behind the Scenes by Various Authors - Blog Tour

Today I am bringing you a post that I'm really excited about for a few reasons. One, the Austen Variations authors have brought out a joint work (woohoo!). Two, it's based on Persuasion! Much as I love P&P, I also love Austen's other works, so I am so pleased to see a new book based on another of her novels. Thirdly, I am welcoming Kara Louise back to the blog, which is always lovely.

Let's have a look at the blurb of Persuasion - Behind the Scenes, and then hand over to Kara Louise for a guest post, including an excerpt. If you read right until the end, you will find that there's a giveaway too!

Book Description

You pierce my soul.

Before Jane Austen wrote that romantic letter from Captain Frederick Wentworth to Anne Elliot, she crafted a masterful story of heartbreak and longing that still resonates with readers today.

But what of those scenes that Jane Austen never wrote?  What Persuasion fan doesn't want to listen in on Anne and Wentworth's first courtship, laugh at the follies and foibles of the Elliot family, sail along on Captain Wentworth's harrowing adventures at sea or attend Wentworth and Anne's wedding.

Twelve authors of Austen-inspired fiction:  Diana Birchall, Marilyn Brant, Jack Caldwell, L.L. Diamond, Maria Grace, Cassandra Grafton, Kara Louise, Susan Mason-Milks, Jane Odiwe, C. Allyn Pierson, Mary Lydon Simonsen, and Shannon Winslow collaborated to put this unique collection that fills in "missing" scenes from Austen's classic work, sure to delight any true Persuasion fan.

Guest Post from Kara Louise

I want to thank Ceri for allowing me to visit her blog today to talk share with you about a newly released book, Persuasion ~ Behind the Scenes. This is an anthology of missing scenes from Jane Austen’s novel written by 12 different authors. 

As I pondered what to write about for this post, I began looking closely at Persuasion and realized how conducive it is for writing missing scenes. Why is that? Well, there is a lot of backstory. In fact, the whole initial romance between Anne Elliot and Frederick Wentworth takes place before the novel begins. How did they meet? What was their love like? What were they like? What was his proposal like? What about when he applied to Sir Walter Elliot for her hand? How was it that Lady Russell was able to persuade Anne to give him up?

There are other backstories, as well. Their cousin, William Elliot, has a backstory that affected his relationship with Anne’s family. What happened? Wentworth’s time at sea has a backstory. There was Charles Musgrove’s proposal to Anne, and Mrs. Smith has a backstory.

In addition to backstories, there are many scenes that are only briefly alluded to, or barely mentioned at all. How did Wentworth hear about his sister and the admiral letting Kellynch? What were his feelings when he went to visit his sister and her husband at Anne’s home? Can we have more details on Anne and Wentworth’s first encounter? How did the engagement come about between Benwick and Louisa? And finally, what about the wedding - and after - for Wentworth and Anne?

As you can see, Persuasion is the perfect novel to be expanded upon.

Now, here is a little teaser of a post I wrote on Wentworth’s reflections as he rode to visit his sister and the admiral at Kellynch. 

~*~

“Whoa!” Captain Frederick Wentworth gave a slight tug on the reins, bringing his horse to a stop. He took in a deep breath and his heart began to pound as looked at the crossroads before him.

Taking the road to the left would lead to Taunton, where his brother had served as cleric. How often he took this road when he was visiting Edward. His mouth grew dry as he slowly turned to the right. The road to the right led to Kellynch Hall.

He gave the horse a slight kick and pulled the reins to the right. He did not wish to gallop to Kellynch; he would take it slowly, for the feelings that had resurfaced since discovering his sister and her husband were letting Anne’s home, or at least her former home, had assaulted him with great force.

Has it really been eight years? Wentworth felt as though it was just yesterday that he travelled this road. He knew it well, almost by heart.

As the horse moved slowly along, Wentworth took in the landmarks that were familiar, yet not. There was the gnarly old tree with the large hole in it. He and Anne often commented about the birds or animals that might seek refuge in it. He believed the wise owl would have claimed it as its domain, while Anne thought it would be a perfect respite for a peaceful pair of nesting doves.

The road crossed a dried stream bed, and he recollected how it had flowed with water when he had been here last, after several days of rain. Up ahead and around the curve would be the large tree under which he and Anne sat, shaded by the canopy of leaves.

At the turn in the road he came to abrupt halt. The tree had broken off along the trunk and fallen. Its tangled, lifeless branches were strewn across the meadow, void of any greenery. A few small twigs were sprouting from the trunk where it had split, attempting, so it seemed, to bring life back into it. He surmised it was a useless case.

Will I see her? He shook his head, wondering which he feared more: encountering her again or not seeing her. The family was apparently going to reside in Bath, so most likely he would be spared having to face her. A very familiar sense of regret flooded him, causing an ache that was as fresh as when she first broke off their engagement. In recent years those feelings had gradually diminished as he resolutely pushed them down when they chanced to surface. Until, that is, he received the letter from his sister, informing him about their letting of Kellynch.

Another bend in the road and a slight incline were all that was left before he would have his first view of the manor since leaving these parts in great anguish of soul.  He nudged the horse along, knowing exactly what he would see. The place was etched in his mind, and it held such tender memories as well as heartrending ones.

He shook his head and kicked the horse soundly. Enough of this sentimentality! Miss Anne Elliot has no hold over my heart any longer!

The horse took off in a fierce gallop, as if sensing its rider’s mood, leaving a trail of kicked up dust behind them.

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Author Bio

Kara Louise began writing Austen inspired stories in 2001 and began publishing them in 2006. She has written sequels, variations, different POV retellings, and modern versions of “Pride and Prejudice.”

She grew up in the San Fernando Valley, just north of Los Angeles. She and her family moved to Kansas from Los Angeles in 1991, and in September, 2013, she and her husband moved to 5 wooded acres in the St. Louis area to be near their son and his wife. They now have two granddaughters they enjoy spending time with. They also love animals, and have an ever changing number of cats and dogs.

Buy Links

You may have made the decision that you must buy this book immediately. If you have made this decision I will try and help you as best I can. Here are some buy links:

Amazon UK / Amazon US / Amazon CA / Goodreads

Giveaway Time!

There is a wonderful giveaway accompanying the blog tour. Take a nosey at these prizes!

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Blog Tour Schedule

Check out the other stops on the blog tour!

Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Bet by Marilyn Brant

Earlier this year I read the first book in this series, Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Match, where Beth Ann Bennet registers for Lady Catherine’s online dating agency under false pretences, and finds herself dating Dr Will Darcy, who has also registered with the agency for motives other than finding love. I really enjoyed that book, and you can see my review of it here. The main secondary characters in that book are Beth’s best friend Jane, and Will’s cousin Bingley McNamara. These two characters were both wonderful but pretty different.

I absolutely loved Jane in the first book. Aside from liking her in her own right, because she was funny and intelligent I also liked her because she was such an amazing friend. Since single mum Beth had no family living close to her she relied on her friend Jane, who helped out with babysitting, provided a shoulder to cry on for Beth when required, moral support, fashion advice and practical support in terms of helping out providing meals for Beth and her son Charlie when Beth was strapped for time or cash. She was the type of friend that anybody would count themselves as lucky to have.

Bingley was likeable but maybe not so entirely admirable as Jane. Rich boy Bingley was responsible for Will registering with the dating agency in the first place, having offered to fund a clinic for single mums in return for Will having 5 dates with a woman. Although it may have seemed to Will like Bingley was just having fun with him in fact Bingley was trying to get Will out there and opening his heart to someone. Bingley is a good man but nowhere near as nice as Charles Bingley of Pride & Prejudice – imagine more of a Charles Bingley/Colonel Fitzwilliam hybrid who is similar looking to Darcy – very pleasant thing to imagine isn’t it! With such wonderful secondary characters in the first book I was so pleased to see that there was going to be a second book, this time featuring on Bingley and Jane.

We start the story at Beth and Will’s wedding – something has gone awry between Jane and Bingley. She is angry and hurt, and extremely prickly towards him due to him having let her down, and he feels pretty much the same.

‘Jane had seemed so...nice, for want of a better word. Too sweet for him to want to tamper with or tease too much, although Beth hinted there was more to Jane than her pleasant veneer might suggest.
He hadn’t believed that at first but, oh, he believed it now, as she swivelled to face her friend, shooting another death stare in his direction’

Actually, Jane has done Bingley a disservice – he isn’t what she thinks. In fact, both of them mislead people into thinking they are different than they are under the surface. She thinks Bingley is an uncaring player, but although he’s played the field quite a bit and has a shedload of money and a propensity to gambling he is a decent man, and he’s a lot less thoughtless and selfish than Jane believes. Jane is very cautious with men because in her experience they don’t have genuine long term interest in her. Her last serious relationship left her very badly hurt which has left her unwilling to take the risk of trusting a man or letting him close to her. Her misunderstanding with Bingley just reinforces her belief that she needs to keep her defences up with him.

Jane also suffers from being labelled as ‘nice’. This is something that I think canon Pride & Prejudice Jane would definitely have suffered with. If you are too nice people feel they can ride roughshod all over you, put upon you and generally be selfish while you put up with it. Jane has been overlooked, taken advantage of and under-esteemed for far too long, and she’s only really beginning to realise this. Bingley is a nice guy, but he doesn’t let people take advantage of him or make him feel guilty for ensuring that he’s treated properly, and that’s something that Jane could definitely learn from him.

Forced to spend time together while spending time with Beth’s son Charlie, Bingley realises that he has misjudged Jane:
‘She was passionate and genuine with the people she loved... He didn’t know what she was hiding or why, but he knew he’d only gotten the briefest flashes of the real Jane so far.’
So he sets about improving their relationship, and he and Jane work on becoming friends. But can men and women ever be friends?

I so enjoyed this book. I loved the humour, both Bingley’s and Jane’s, and there were some really funny scenes, such as their surreptitious face pulling contest while having a trip out with Charlie, Bingley’s summary of the artistic movement of pointillism, and Jane’s feelings on Emo haikus. There are a few nods to ‘When Harry Met Sally’ aside from the ‘can men and women ever be friends?’ question, including references to a couple of my favourite scenes from the film. I also loved that fact that when Bingley’s selfish, spoiled cousin Caroline comes to stay that he calls her out on her behaviour – how I would have loved to have seen canon Bingley do that! I feel a little traitorous in admitting this, but I preferred Jane and Bingley’s story to Beth and Will’s! I would definitely recommend reading this book, but to get the most out of it, read Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Match first.

Disclaimer – I received an e-arc of this book from the author for my honest review.

Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Match by Marilyn Brant

In this story Beth Ann Bennet is a 26 year old single mum who is training to be a social worker. She signs up to a dating website to try and find a man to study for her sociology module, which is focusing on gender stereotypes.  To make her dating profile more attractive she tells some lies on it, changing her job, her age and omitting to mention her child.  She isn’t ashamed of who she is, although she modestly underrates her attractiveness, but she isn’t actually pursuing a relationship here, just trying to get some research done.  She even uses a pseudonym to sign up with. Will Darcy, gorgeous doctor, is trying to get some funding for a new clinic to provide treatment for single mothers and their children, who wouldn’t be able to afford treatment otherwise.  His rich cousin, Bingley has agreed to make a large donation, in return for workaholic Darcy having 5 dates with somebody and bringing them to Bingley’s birthday party. This is why Darcy signs up for online dating.  He is pretty truthful on his application, the only lie he tells is his reason for signing up.

Beth notices Darcy’s profile online and they exchange emails.  She didn’t intend to meet her case study subject, but she is enticed enough to meet with him for coffee and finds she is much more attracted to him than she had anticipated.  The attraction is mutual, and they have a few more dates.  In the course of this she finds out that he hates social workers and would actively avoid dating a single mum.  This is due to his own childhood bad experiences of step-families and bad social workers, plus the perception he has of social workers who deal with his single mum patients. So Darcy is massively prejudiced, but Beth not so much. They both have their share of pride, but I wouldn’t especially call either of them proud. Both of them keep people at an emotional distance, but for him it’s more self-preservation, and she has been focused on raising her child, who is just coming up to school age. Once Beth realises the views Will holds she can’t see any future for the relationship, built as it is on deceit, but both of them are already in deeper than they had intended...

The story wasn’t was what I was expecting.  From the title I expected a modern update of Pride and Prejudice with a recognisable story arc, but this doesn’t follow the lines of Pride and Prejudice at all. There are recognisable names and characters, but the dynamics between them are different, particularly between Beth and Will, and the events are pretty different.  This is not to say that I didn’t enjoy the story, I liked it very much, but it wasn’t what I expected.  The main similarity to me was the theme of realising what prejudices are held and overcoming them.

Both Beth and Will were really admirable characters, if you could overlook the initial lying!  He was so focussed on improving life for people who were struggling financially both for their benefit and for the greater good of society, and is also a caring son.  Beth had been left by her husband around the time their baby was born and had been raising her son on her own since then while trying to train in a job that was more fulfilling emotionally than financially. I very much enjoyed seeing Beth and Will’s story, and there were many occasions when I doubted that it would be possible to provide them with a happy ending.  In fact, I had real trouble putting the kindle down and I read it pretty much in one sitting!