Today I'm welcoming a new visitor to the blog. Alice Isakova has written a sequel to Pride & Prejudice,
Georgiana Darcy: A Sequel to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. She's come here today with an excerpt and giveaway! Let's read the blurb, and then I'll hand over to Alice.
Book Description
With her temptingly large dowry, the beautiful and talented Georgiana Darcy catches the eye of numerous suitors, not all of whom wish to marry purely for love. As Georgiana navigates the treacherous waters of courtship, her story becomes intertwined with that of Anne de Bourgh, her wealthy but painfully awkward cousin, who stirs up trouble when she sets her sights on a young gentleman with a rank far below her own. In so doing, Anne encounters the opposition of her proud and domineering mother, the formidable Lady Catherine de Bourgh, and sets in motion a chain of events that brings a damaging secret to light and threatens to destroy Georgiana's dreams of happiness. Intrigues, gossip, and elopements further complicate Georgiana's efforts to find love and avoid the snares of fortune-hunters.
Written in a sparkling, witty, humorous style on par with Jane Austen's own in Pride and Prejudice, Alice Isakova's Georgiana Darcy continues the tale that has delighted readers for over two centuries.
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Hello readers, and thank you, Ceri, for having me as a guest on your blog. I am really excited to share my debut novel Georgiana Darcy with all of you. The following is an excerpt from chapter eleven of my book, in which Georgiana learns how to waltz with the help of Sir Matthew Leigh, a young gentleman vying for her heart.
Excerpt from Georgiana Darcy: A Sequel to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice
Hearing
Georgiana practicing on the pianoforte, Sir Matthew Leigh smiled to himself,
and with a book in hand, he followed the sound to the drawing room.
"I
hope I am not disturbing you, Miss Darcy," said he upon entering.
"No,
not in the least. I am practicing some new music, that is all. It is a
difficult piece, and I have not yet mastered it, but if you do not mind hearing
my mistakes, you are welcome to stay."
"I
am always glad of an opportunity to hear you play, Miss Darcy—even your
mistakes are charming."
Sir
Matthew settled into a chair and opened his book, but it is doubtful whether he
profited at all from the volume, for half the time his eyes were directed at
Georgiana rather than at the page before him.
At
last, the gentleman dropped all pretence of reading and came towards the
pianoforte. Leaning his elbows on the instrument, he looked into Georgiana's
eyes deeply until she cast them down shyly to the keys below. Yet, the slight
smile on her lips gave proof that she did not find these attentions displeasing.
"What
are you thinking of now, Miss Darcy?" asked Sir Matthew softly.
"I
was just remembering the ball we attended on Friday… the dancing—it was such a
happy evening."
"And
you would like to dance again now, perhaps?"
"Well,
yes—only, of course, the next ball will not be for some time," came
Georgiana's answer.
"Must
we really wait that long? We could dance here, right now."
"What,
just you and I, right now?"
"Yes,
why not?"
"But
Sir Matthew, consider," laughed Georgiana, "What kind of dance will
it be with just two people? The English country dance and the quadrille are
designed to be performed by several couples at once. It will not be the same
with only one couple."
"Perhaps
if the English country dance or the quadrille is what you have in mind, but we
could try something else instead, such as… Miss Darcy, do you know the
waltz?"
"I
have heard it mentioned—it is popular in Germany, I believe."
"It
originated in Germany,
yes, but the waltz has since spread to other parts of Europe,
and recently it was introduced in England. The advantage of the waltz
is that it can be performed as successfully by one couple as by several
together. When I was last in London,
I learned the steps of the French waltz—I could teach you if you like."
"Oh
no, I think it would be better if you did not. Though I know little of the
waltz, I have heard that it is not a very proper dance."
Raising
himself back up to a standing position, Sir Matthew answered, "Doubtless,
that is the opinion of some stuffy, old clergyman of the Puritan persuasion.
When the dance is better known in England, I am certain that it will
become widely accepted. Miss Darcy, I have seen the waltz, and I can assure you
that it is a very beautiful dance—here, if you will stand up, I can show
you."
Somewhat
reluctantly, Georgiana obeyed. As the gentleman led her across the floor to the
centre of the room, he explained:
"The
dance begins with a short march, which leads into the first part—the slow
waltz. The next part is the sauteuse, which is faster and consists of a series
of springs and leaps. Last of all is the jetté, which is faster still. Would
you like me to show you the march steps first, Miss Darcy?"
"Yes,
I suppose."
"Then
let us begin. Instead of facing each other, we start with standing side by side,
and we face in the same direction, like this. Now, I will reach my arm across
behind you and place my hand on the back of your shoulder—and you do the
same."
The
next thing Georgiana felt was the electric sensation of Sir Matthew's arm
encircling her shoulders. Hesitantly, she followed suit by lifting her own arm
and placing it on the back part of his shoulder.
"Now,
Miss Darcy, we must bring the outer arm around to the front so that we may join
hands."
Georgiana
obediently but tremulously placed her hand in his.
"Next,
we take four steps forward: one… two… three… four."
Georgiana
had always considered dancing, regardless of what kind, to be a romantic,
exciting amusement, but neither the English country dance, nor the Scotch reel,
nor the quadrille was anything like this. With Sir Matthew's arm on her
shoulder, and her arm on his, they were essentially in an embrace. She had
never danced so close to a man before—he was so near, in fact, that she could
hear his breathing and feel his warmth. All this was somewhat foreign to her
sense of female delicacy, but she had no wish to pull away, although the
thought kept returning to her mind that perhaps she should.
He,
in turn, was thinking of how exceedingly gracefully Georgiana executed even
those first few simple steps of the dance. Her dainty, slippered feet pointed
beautifully and landed lightly, as if stepping on a cloud. Positioned so close
to her, the gentleman was better able to observe, in minute detail, the
perfection of Georgiana's person: her delicate, rose-coloured mouth; her soft,
satiny curls framing a lovely face; her flawless, glowing complexion, made more
enchanting by her modest blushes. He felt himself grow more enamoured of her
with every moment. Holding her little hand in his, he said:
"Now
I make a half-turn to face you, and then we step so that we are again
positioned side by side, only this time, we will be facing in opposite
directions. From here, we encircle each other's waists from the front with one
arm, and with the other, we join our hands above our heads in the form of an
arc."
Sir
Matthew spoke gently and looked at Georgiana tenderly, his eyes seeming to
caress her. Feeling as if in a haze, she managed to summon just enough presence
of mind to inquire,
"And our feet? What do we do with them?"
"With
our feet, we perform the pas de bourrée step, and at the same time, we turn
together in a circle. But even more important is what we do with our eyes; in
the waltz, while revolving about their own axis, the partners must look into
each other's eyes without breaking the gaze."
Georgina did her best to comply, but at last
she could bear it no longer, and laughing softly, she turned her face away.
"No,
no, Miss Darcy, do not look away! We must dance the waltz properly!"
The
maiden forced her clear orbs back to his, and with their eyes thus fixed on
each other, they turned slowly in a rotating embrace. Although there was no
music to accompany their dance, both felt then, and remembered their time
together afterwards, almost as if there really had been music; the moment was
perfect as it was.
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About the Author
Born in Eastern Europe, Alice Isakova spent the latter part of her childhood in the United States before finally settling in Australia. There she obtained a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Adelaide and won multiple university prizes for outstanding academic achievement.
Alice now lives with her family in rural Tasmania. She spends her free time either writing or pursuing her passion for fitness, especially the disciplines of rhythmic gymnastics, yoga, and ballet.
Georgiana Darcy: A Sequel to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is Alice Isakova's first book.
Buy Links
This book is available to buy now!
Giveaway Time!
Alice is offering a generous giveaway; 5 ebooks of
Georgiana Darcy: A Sequel to Pride & Prejudice are up for grabs for visitors to Babblings of a Bookworm. To enter, just comment on this blogpost by the end of the day on
14 October. It would really help me if you could leave me some contact details so that I can get in touch with you in case you are a lucky winner. If we're Facebook or Goodreads friends just let me know, add a Twitter handle or tell me you've followed the post and I'll add a comment when the winner is chosen :)
Thank you so much to Alice for visiting us today. I wish you all the very best of luck with your book!
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