Preludes: A Modern Persuasion Improvisation by Riana Everly - Guest Post, Excerpt and Giveaway

I’m very happy to be welcoming Riana Everly back to Babblings of a Bookworm with her latest book, which is something quite different for her. Rather than a historical story it’s a modern update. The story is called Preludes: A Modern Persuasion Improvisation. I have the blurb to share with you, a guest post from Riana about Preludes, plus an excerpt. Riana is also kindly offering an ebook giveaway. Read on for more details.

Book Description 

A heartfelt and absorbing modern interpretation of Jane Austen’s Persuasion.

Eight years of heartache…

Anne Elliot is a successful composer, a shining light in the world of music. But her heart still aches for the man who left her eight years ago when she was persuaded to put her career above her heart.

Eight years of anger...

Fred Valore has found fame and glory as a brilliant orchestra conductor. He has studied in Europe, travelled the world, but cannot forget how Anne rejected him eight years ago. And now he’s coming home.

Suddenly, Fred and Anne are living in the same city again, and forced to work with each other. Old feelings are hard to ignore, but now Fred is waltzing about town with an attractive musician, and Anne has caught the eye of a handsome businessman.

When a whirlwind of misunderstandings gets in the way of a tentative reconnection, is their long-lost love doomed to remain a thing of the past? Or can they somehow find a path back to each other to make beautiful music once again?

~ ~ ~

Set in the vibrant and arts-loving city of Toronto, Canada, Preludes is perfect for Austenites and Contemporary Romance lovers alike.

Dance the Tide by Cat Andrews - Blog Tour, Deleted Scene and Ebook Giveaway

Today I am happy to be welcoming Cat Andrews back to the blog with her latest book, a Pride & Prejudice-inspired modern called Dance the Tide. Those of you who read stories on the forums may well recognise the title, as I know this was a popular one, and now you get the chance to own it!

Cat joins us with a deleted scene from Dance the Tide and an ebook giveaway. I’ll share the blurb with you and then hand over to Cat to introduce the deleted scene. 

Book Description

FROM THE BACK COVER:

The higher the wall around your heart, the harder you fall when someone knocks it down.

Wealthy businessman Will Darcy is fiercely protective of his privacy and his family. When his sister is the victim of a violent crime, he takes her away from Boston to their Cape Cod beach house, where he hopes she can heal in peace—and he can restore his equilibrium.

Ecohydrologist Elizabeth Bennet is happily residing in the seaside town where she grew up. Her career, friends, and family keep her busy, allowing her to avoid any romantic entanglements—as those only lead to heartbreak.

A brief encounter on the beach between Elizabeth and Will leads to misunderstandings and lousy first impressions. They go their separate ways, confident they’ll never see each other again. But fate has other plans when Will turns out to be the best friend of her sister’s boyfriend.

When they meet again under more favorable circumstances, Will soon realizes his initial impressions of Elizabeth were unfounded—and really, her eyes are magnificent. And with some dedicated effort, Elizabeth begins to see a different man—the real Will—buried beneath his arrogant, reticent façade.

Romance blossoms as Elizabeth struggles to conquer her insecurities and Will works to overcome his distrust. But every relationship occasionally finds itself in rough waters, and greater forces can tug a couple under the waves. For their love to triumph, Will and Elizabeth will need to have faith in one another, move beyond their fears…and dare to dance the tide.

This novel is a contemporary, non-Canon variation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. It contains adult content and is meant for mature readers. Miscarriages and a sexual assault occur off-page, but are discussed during the course of the story.

PUBLISHER: Nine Beaches Press

Parallels by Linda Gonschior - Blog Tour, Excerpt and Giveaway

Today I’m welcoming Linda Gonschior to the blog. I have featured her work previously as part of the anthology Then Comes Winter but today she joins us with the blog tour for part 3 of her Reflections series, Parallels. This is a modernised story based on Pride & Prejudice and begins with Reflections, followed by A Tarnished Image, and the story concludes in Parallels. Linda joins us here with an excerpt and giveaway of the story. 

Book Description

Love, heartbreak, and self-discovery
are life’s greatest challenges,
no matter who your parents may be.

Will and Elizabeth Darcy faced those challenges twenty years earlier, yet marriage taught them patience, understanding, and most importantly, the irreplaceable value of one another. Now their children are about to embark upon that path, hopefully to learn those lessons more gently and avoid the mistakes of their parents.

This third book in the Reflections series brings to a conclusion the story of a couple whose love drew them together in spite of themselves and continues to test them when least expected.

An Unexpected Harvest by Cat Andrews - Blog Tour, Excerpt and Giveaway

I’m happy to be welcoming Cat Andrews back to the blog today with her new book, An Unexpected Harvest. Some of you will have read Sanctuary, which is a 3 part story that takes Pride & Prejudice-inspired characters to a modern setting in New England. If you haven't, I recommend that you do - you can read my review of part one of it here.

Well, An Unexpected Harvest is also a modern, but this time it’s all in one book, and has a bit of a twist in the approach to the characters. I don’t have time to read a lot of stories posted online these days but I did read this one, and really enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to seeing how the published version turned out! 

Cat is joining us as part of her blog tour to celebrate the book’s release, and she’s brought an excerpt and giveaway for Amazon US / UK /CA kindle customers. Let’s look at the blurb and then I’ll hand over to Cat for her excerpt.

Book Description

Elizabeth Bennet left her affluent New England home at the age of sixteen and never looked back. She’s built a fabulous life in Boston and loves everything about the city—especially her dream job as creative director at an advertising agency.

Will Darcy has never lived anywhere but in rural Stockbridge, Massachusetts. He lives the quintessential small-town life and loves everything about the country—especially his family’s farm, which he’s doing his best to modernize and return to prosperity.

When her older sister moves back to New England, Elizabeth reluctantly pays a visit to the hometown she left behind. Soon enough, the city girl meets the country boy and the insults and misunderstandings fly—but so do the sparks.

No one is more surprised than Elizabeth and Will when those sparks turn into a brilliant flame, and the 300 miles between them that once felt far too close suddenly turns into an unbearable distance.

The city girl and the country boy know a good thing when they see it—even if they don’t see it nearly enough. Can they overcome their greatest challenge and find common ground—and their happily-ever-after?

***

This novel is a modern variation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but with a slight spin on the usual cast of characters. It contains adult content and is meant for mature readers.

Headstrong Books One and Two by Melanie Rachel - Excerpt and Giveaway

Today I'm welcoming Melanie Rachel back to the blog with her latest Austenesque novels. She's written a three part story, and the first two parts are already available with the third to follow later this month. Unlike Melanie's earlier books, this latest series, Headstrong, is a contemporary story. Let's look at the blurbs of both books, and then you can enjoy an excerpt from book one, Headstrong Book One: Improvise. Melanie has also brought a giveaway for one of you!

Book Description - Headstrong Book One: Improvise

A few months after teaming up with Major Richard Fitzwilliam to thwart a terrorist attack in Europe, USMC Staff Sergeant Elizabeth Bennet is back in the States as a civilian. Her training in cyber-security makes finding work easy, and she’s learning to fit into her new life. But there is lingering fallout both from the attack and her life before it that she's not yet prepared to face. Complicating matters is the major’s handsome cousin.

Co-owner of Darcy Acquisitions, CEO of FORGE, and guardian to his younger sister, Will Darcy is stretched to his limits. When Richard sets up an interview at FORGE for his friend Elizabeth Bennet, Will insults her instead of hiring her. In making amends, Will falls for the witty, troubled Marine with long legs and fine eyes.

Falling in love is easy, but do these two very different people have what it takes to make love last?

Book Description - Headstrong: Book Two: Adapt

The holidays are approaching, and Will Darcy has a lot to be thankful for. His cousin Richard is coming home from the Marines, his sister Georgiana is flying back from university for a visit, and he’s in love with Elizabeth Bennet.

But his well-ordered life is about to be turned on its head.

There's a prank war being waged between Elizabeth and Richard, which might be funny if he weren't constantly caught in the middle. Georgiana's hostility to Elizabeth is puzzling--how can she have it out for somebody she's never met? And just when Elizabeth is starting to trust Will with the truth about her difficult past, someone from his own reappears to cause havoc.

Strange things are happening all around, and Elizabeth seems to be in the middle of it all. Is she involved? A target? Or is she just caught in the crossfire of someone conspiring against his own family?

Emma and the City by Amy Hilliges - My Review

Amy Hilliges recently visited the blog with an guest post plus an excerpt and giveaway of Emma and the City. Today I'm sharing my review of the book. Read on for my review, and for an opportunity to enter Amy's generous giveaway.

Book Description

When arrows fly, Cupid better get out of the way . . . or risk being shot

It-girl and blogger Emma Worth appears to have it all: beauty, brains, connections and a fabulous Manhattan apartment. Emma makes it her business to tell others what to wear and who to date because she knows best. Obviously.

Despite her designer outfits and glitzy New York lifestyle, something's missing . . . If she only knew what it was. That is, until a hot A-lister swoops into her life and sends Emma's pulse racing and fills her head with red-carpet fantasies.

Emma's neighbor Adam Knightley is disapproving, telling her she needs to fix her priorities and stop chasing celebrity pipe dreams. The man would look hot on a red carpet himself, if only he’d stop frowning for more than five seconds.

When Emma’s matchmaking backfires and her meddling causes mischief, what's a girl to do? Try to lie her way out of it, of course.  Anyway, who cares, right? Because Emma's finally getting the kind of attention she deserves. Except in her fantasies, things looked a lot different. And it didn’t feel this heartrendingly painful . . .

Love her or hate her, Emma is back––with a sexy makeover, 21st-century problems, and another chance to redeem herself in this grippingly entertaining, thoroughly original retelling of the Jane Austen classic.

* * *

Collide by Melanie Stanford - Blog Tour - Guest Post and Giveaway

Today I'm joined by Melanie Stanford. Melanie is the writer of Sway and Clash, which are both nods to Austen's Persuasion, the first book being a modernisation of Anne and Captain Wentworth's story, and the second being a follow on focusing on the Elizabeth Eliot character. Melanie's latest book, Collide is a modernised version of North and South. These are pretty rare; in fact, I don't think that I've ever read one.

If you haven't read Mrs Gaskell's North and South I would heartily recommend that you do so. It's a wonderful book, looking at people across class divides and differences between the North and South of Victorian England. There is also a bit of a Pride & Prejudice-ish style romance and arguably the most delicious hero ever. John Thornton is an amazing man - both in terms of business and as a person. He runs a successful business from humble beginnings but what is more admirable than this are his personal qualities - he is hardworking, honourable and fair. He isn't perfect, and by the end of the novel has become a bit of a philanthropist, in addition to being a wonderful son and a loyal man ...... thump.... just swooned! You can see why something this complex, looking at Victorian issues might well be hard to translate to a modern day story and that is just what Melanie is here to discuss today. She's also brought a giveaway! Read on for more details.