Blog Tour: Jane Austen's First Love by Syrie James

Today I welcome the lovely Syrie James to my blog! I have asked her a few questions about her new release, Jane Austen's First Love!

 

 

 

 

 

 

"In the summer of 1791, fifteen-year-old Miss Jane Austen is determined to accomplish three things: to do something useful, write something worthy, and fall madly in love. While visiting at Goodnestone Park in Kent for a month of festivities in honor of her brother's engagement to Miss Elizabeth Bridges, Jane meets the boy-next-door—the wealthy, worldly, and devilishly handsome Edward Taylor, heir to Bifrons Park, and hopefully her heart! Like many of Jane’s future heroes and heroines, she soon realizes that there are obstacles—social, financial, and otherwise—blocking her path to love and marriage, one of them personified by her beautiful and sweet tempered rival, Charlotte Payler.

 

Unsure of her own budding romance, but confident in her powers of observation, Jane distracts herself by attempting to maneuver the affections of three other young couples. But when her well-intentioned matchmaking efforts turn into blundering misalliance, Jane must choose between following her own happily-ever-after, or repairing those relationships which, based on erroneous first impressions, she has misaligned."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Welcome Syrie!

 

 

Hi! I’m so happy to be here today at Laughing with Lizzie. I’m ready for questions, so fire away!

 

 

 

1. Okay, a boring but very important question! How did you first come across Jane Austen and fall in love with the Regency world of dancing, carriages, and courtship?

 

Funny you should ask! Actually, I was a bit of a late-bloomer when it comes to Austen. I’ve heard stories from women who said they first became entranced by Austen when they were eleven or twelve years old, when their Austen-loving mother or aunt or grandmother introduced them to Austen’s books, which they would read and discuss together. That would be such a lovely way to discover Austen! However, it didn’t happen that way for me. (My parents did encourage me to read from an early age, starting with all the classics of children’s literature, and I became a total bookworm—for life.)

As reading and writing were my two greatest passions, I majored in English in college—and it was there, in a British literature course, that I was first introduced to Jane Austen. I have no memory of that class now, but we must have read Pride and Prejudice and Emma, and I must have loved them, because out of all the books I was required to purchase in college, those are among the few that I kept all these years.

Fast forward to 1995-96, when a tidal wave of Jane Austen movies came out. SENSE AND SENSIBILITY starring and adapted by Emma Thompson, and the A&E mini-series PRIDE AND PREJUDICE starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle, became two of my all-time favorites. I fell madly in love with Austen, the world she lived in and created, and All Things Regency. I wanted to live in a Jane Austen movie! I read—or re-read—all the novels. I read her juvenilia, her biographies, and her letters. I was devastated that there were only six novels and no Austen memoirs. So I decided to write them myself. J  I started with The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen and followed with The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen and Jane Austen’s First Love.

 

 

2. Of Ms. Austen’s six major novels, which is your favourite? What appeals to you about her work and her writing? The characters, the story, the humour?

 

I love all of Austen’s novels, but I suppose Pride and Prejudice is my favorite—I’ve certainly re-read it more often than the others. It’s the book I always pick up when I need my “Austen fix.” I love P&P because of its brilliant storyline, the way it grabs you from page one and doesn’t let go. The characters are so beautifully drawn. I admire Austen’s skill in creating Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s character arcs as they overcome their pride and prejudice (ha!) and go from initial dislike to falling in love. That’s the heart of the story, and it’s wonderful. There’s good reason why that plotline continues to be imitated over and over!

I love Jane Austen’s novels for all the reasons you mention. Even though she wrote over two hundred years ago, her work is timeless. Her characters are still familiar and feel very real, because they deal with many of the same kinds of personal, social, and economic problems that we face today. We identify with her heroes and heroines because they all have flaws (well, maybe not Anne Elliot and Fanny Price!) and they have to own up to their mistakes and correct them before they are rewarded with a happy ending. Austen subtly weaves in a lesson in all of her novels, and I love that. Plus, Austen’s wit and humour are fabulous! So much of her dialogue is infused with biting wit, and her fools are fun to laugh at. All I have to do is think about Mr. Collins, and I can’t help but smile!

 

3. Where did your inspiration come from for this book, to look into the life of Jane Austen, rather than perhaps write a book based around her novels and characters?

 

When my obsession with Jane Austen began, I had never heard of Jane Austen fan fiction. Rather than feeling compelled to write a continuation of her stories and characters, I was more intrigued by the woman behind the novels. I read stacks of biographies and Jane’s preserved correspondence, seeking to understand the author herself.

 

It’s well known that Jane Austen never married. But how, I wondered, could she have written with such insight about relationships and matters of the heart, if she hadn’t experienced those emotions first hand? I believe that Jane Austen must have had a love affair (or two!) of her own. My first Austen novel, The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen, fulfilled my need to give the mature Jane Austen a romance. I interwove a dashing, fictional gentleman—a real kindred spirit—with the facts of Austen’s life, hoping to make it hard to discern where fact ended and fiction began.

 

But what of young Jane? Who was her first love? The inspiration for my new novel began to germinate when I was re-reading Jane’s preserved correspondence. I was struck by three sweet and tender references she made to Edward Taylor, who she met as a teenager while visiting her brother Edward Austen in Kent. We know so little about Jane’s romantic life, yet here was a solid clue, in her own words, about a young man with whom she was clearly besotted! And he was a real person! I was stunned that no one had ever written about him. So I wrote the book I wanted to read: the story of Jane Austen’s First Love. 

 

 

 

4. How did you go about discovering and researching information about this 'shadowy suitor' so that you could write this book?

 

Austen biographers only briefly mention Edward Taylor as Jane’s first crush, no doubt because there was very little information about him. I spent many months surfing the web, searching for clues. Thankfully Edward Taylor was a member of the landed gentry, so I was able to find nuggets of information about him: dates of birth, marriage, and death; time served in the military and in Parliament; the background of his parents, basic facts about his eight siblings, his ancestors, and his family estate. But I was determined to know more. I wanted to understand who Edward Taylor was as a young man, when Jane Austen met him.

 

I kept combing through obscure files on the internet. To my great excitement, I came upon The Taylor Papers, the memoirs and letters of Edward’s brother, Lieutenant General Sir Herbert Taylor. These memoirs bring Edward Taylor out of the shadows, revealing him to be a member of an extraordinary, highly accomplished family who had an unusual upbringing. I learned so much from this book! It helped me understand who Edward Taylor was, and why Jane cared for him so deeply.I was excited to bring him and the teenage Jane to life in my novel.

 

Bifrons Park

 

 

5. I am very much looking forward to reading this story. What are a few of the most interesting or shocking or surprising things you discovered while researching and writing this book?

 

I was surprised to learn that Edward Taylor served in the military. That was an unusual choice for an eldest son and heir to the family estate. But after reading his brother Herbert’s memoirs, I understood what motivated that yearning—and I made it an integral part of Edward Taylor’s character in my novel.

 

I was surprised to discover that the Taylor family left their ancestral home, Bifrons Park, and removed to the continent for eleven years, where all eight children were raised and educated. I was amazed to learn that Edward Taylor and his siblings were fluent in four or five languages, learned to draw from Raffaelle’s frescoes at the Vatican, and all played a musical instrument so proficiently that they gave concerts wherever they lived or visited across Europe. I was astonished to learn that the Taylors were close friends with royalty, government leaders, and aristocrats at the highest echelons of society. What an extraordinary life the young Edward Taylor had led by the time he returned to England and met Jane Austen! No wonder she fell madly in love with him!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Grand Giveaway Contest

Win One of Five Fabulous Jane Austen-inspired Prize Packages

 

To celebrate the holidays and the release of Jane Austen's First Love, Syrie is giving away five prize packages filled with an amazing selection of Jane Austen-inspired gifts and books!

To enter the giveaway contest, simply leave a comment on any of the blog stops on the Jane Austen's First Love Holiday Blog Tour.

Increase your chances of winning by visiting multiple stops along the tour! Syrie's unique guest posts will be featured on a variety of subjects, along with fun interviews, spotlights, excerpts, and reviews of the novel. Contest closes at 11:59pm PT, December 21, 2014. Five lucky winners will be drawn at random from all of the comments on the tour, and announced on Syrie’s website on December 22, 2014. The giveaway contest is open to everyone, including international residents. Good luck to all!

 

·         Author’s website: http://www.syriejames.com/

·         Tour info & participants:  http://www.syriejames.com/LatestNewsPageNEW.php

·         Prize packet info & images: http://www.syriejames.com/JAFLPrizePackages.php

·         Links to purchase online: http://www.penguin.com/book/jane-austens-first-love-by-syrie-james/9780425271353

·         Syrie’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSyrieJames

·         Syrie’s Goodreads page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/806500.Syrie_James?from_search=true

·         Twitter handles: @SyrieJames, @PenguinUSA, @Austenprose, @orangeprm

·         Twitter hashtags: #JAFLBlogTour, #JaneAusten, #HistoricalFicton, #HolidayGifts, #Romance, #Reading, #BNGiftTip   

 

Thank you again to Syrie for this interesting interview, and good luck with the new release! I will be reviewing it in the next few months as well, so watch out for my thoughts! I am looking forward to it!

Your affectionate friend,

The Falmouth Connection by Joana Starnes excerpt - with giveaway!

Today I welcome the lovely Joana Starnes to my blog, who asked me whether I would read an excerpt from her latest novel, The Falmouth Connection, and I was only too happy to oblige! There is also a giveaway, so watch for the details at the end of the post. I hope you enjoy my reading!

"Just as Mr. Darcy finally decides to propose to the enticing Miss Elizabeth Bennet, she is summoned to Falmouth, to meet a relation she never knew she had.
Thus, the ill-starred Hunsford proposal is avoided – but before he could even begin to understand his luck, adverse circumstances hasten to conspire against him, and Fitzwilliam Darcy is compelled to follow the woman he loves to the far reaches of Cornwall, into a world of deceit and peril where few – if any – are what they seem to be…"






And it is not everyday that you get a mention in the dedication - thank you Joana!

**GIVEAWAY - ends Tuesday 18th November**

In celebration of the release, the lovely Joana is offering 2 ebook copies of her story.

To enter, leave a comment below and the two winners shall be picked randomly.

Please leave your email address. I will then pass on the winners email addresses to Joana who will be in touch.

Good luck, and thank you again to Joana for offering this giveaway! And good luck with the book! I will be posting my review sometime in the near future as well!

Your affectionate friend,

A Regency House Party

Today I welcome the lovely Sophia and Ellen to my blog to tell us about a very special event which is happening in May!

Regency House Party

Have you ever dreamed of living a Regency fantasy? Travelling back in time to live on a country estate in 1815 with all the romance and adventure it may involve. While you are enjoying life at the mansion, just over the Channel less than 100 miles away a month later Waterloo will happen. You are living under the threat of French soldiers and pirates fighting for Napoleon landing on your beach that you can almost see from the manor.

 

 

 
A unique event in Regency Society is to take place this coming spring!

Not in the last decade and seldom before then have Regency Guests all lived together under the same roof for an extended period of time, as they will do at The Jane Austen Society of Europe's event, May 8 to 12th 2015.
 
The Regency Era is a great favourite amongst living history enthusiasts, re-enactors, bookworms and all. An age of extremes from great opulence to terrible poverty. An age of; beauty, war, scandal, political turmoil over the King and the beginning of the industrial revolution. All this brought to life for us when we learn of the superstars of the age; The Prince Regent, Wellington, Jane Austen, Napoleon, Beau Brummell, waltzing and scribing through it, leaving us with a vivid picture of how we were in Great Britain at the start of the 1800's.
 
Spend a week, like Elizabeth Bennet or Mr. Tilney, on the country estate of ‘Mount Amelia’. Walk in the lovely surrounding gardens, dance in the ball room, and maybe fall in love or take a visit to Kings Lynn to enjoy lunch.  

The Regency House Party is to make modern ladies and gentlemen live and act for a period of four days as their counterparts did in 1815. Not only are the guests supposed to live as it is the year of 1815 but they also have to conduct themselves as to their stories, the guests will have an alternative identity during the house party.  Guests of different nationalities from the great and independent America to the old but traditional sea country of Denmark. For the first time the Danish Jane Austen Society will participate in the event.
 
As the head of the Danish society, and a young lady, I myself am looking forward to seeing the Norfolk County, taking long strolls in the grounds of Mount Amelia and enjoy the early spring, but I am also looking forward to dancing at the Regency ball during my stay in Kings Lynn. Mostly I am looking forward to getting to know the other guests of the house party.
 
Since Ellen and Chris, heads of the Jane Austen Society Europe, invited the Danish society I have been involved in the planning. Giving a helping hand with the publicity.   I hope that young people from around the world will participate in future events. I am furthermore to help and assist during the event, in Norfolk.
 
I will now leave you lovely readers in the capable hands of Ellen.
 

Thanks Sophia 

 
From a young age I have been enchanted by romantic novels being old enough to remember the likes of David Rintoul playing Mr Darcy! Then in 2005 watched the tv-serial about a house party in Herefordshire filmed for Channel 4 in which a whole country estate went back to live in the 1800s .
 
Since 2009 Christopher and I have thoroughly enjoyed organising historical re-enactments, meeting so many new friends from all walks of life and many countries. This gave us the idea of forming the Jane Austen Society of Europe to enable communication of all fans and followers of Miss Austen and her life and the times in which she lived and the society she portrayed.
 
 The House Party runs between May 8 to 12th 2015 in an unspoilt corner of north Norfolk where the town of Kings Lynn sits proudly guarding the estates of the north coast and the homes of many genteel and royal landowners in an area of about 75 miles.
 

We aim to provide and cater for differing interests whether you are a regency lady who loves needlework or an aspiring swordsman.
 
 
Part of the time will be devoted to dancing, which was the "pop" cult activity in 1815 .Every young person wanted to learn the correct way to dance - it was the only chance to meet and socialize with the opposite sex . In modern times, Regency re-enactors meet with a Costume Ball taking centre stage and on May 10th ours will take place in Kings Lynn Town Assembly Halls with a Careme Dinner. Many such balls were held 200 years ago but we believe ours to be the first there for centuries.
 
 
A recreation of the 1994 "EMMA" production's Donwell Soiree will take place on Saturday May9th when local Norfolk cuisine will be provided in a rustic 3 course Dinner.  
All are welcome to attend as a resident guest or to enjoy attending any of the events whether it’s the House activities or the Costume Ball or Donwell Soiree.
 

We can give advice and assistance to both seasoned and new prospective attendee’s
 
This Regency House Party Experience will give different impressions and memories to every individual.
 
The organisers aim to give everyone of their guests an enjoyably special time giving perspective on the past and also the future.
 
 
  To discover more details please see http://regencyhouseparty.simdif.com/index.html
 
or email regencyball@yahoo.co.uk

 

I really wish I could attend this! Hopefully it won't be a one of thing and I can make it one year! It sounds like a lot of fun!


Your affectionate friend,

Blog Tour: To Refine Like Silver by Jeanna Ellsworth - with giveaway!

Today I am part of the blog tour for the lovely Jeanna Ellsworth's latest story, To Refine Like Silver. Jeanna has also provided a giveaway - details at the end!

"If Mr. Darcy had met Elizabeth Bennet in his beloved Derbyshire, would he have recognized her as the love of his life instead of dismissing her as someone “not handsome enough to tempt” him? This alteration of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice adds a little spirit, flirtation, and charm to everyone’s favorite characters.  Early in the summer of 1811, Elizabeth Bennet travels to Derbyshire to help her aunt and uncle settle in as new owners of Saphrinbrooke. Elizabeth is soon introduced to the estate’s nearest neighbors: Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and his sister, Georgiana, who is suffering the results of a fateful trip to Ramsgate. Having endured several life tragedies herself, Elizabeth reaches out to the young lady of Pemberley. Under her radiant influence, both Darcy and Georgiana begin to look for help outside of themselves. To Refine Like Silver is a romantic and spiritual journey where more than one of our favorite Regency characters must learn to fully rely on God. Their trials bring depth to the beloved story, and Mr. Darcy ultimately learns that our trials do not define us; rather they refine us."


This book is completely different to any other book I have read before. It is also very unique in the world of Jane Austen fan fiction and a really interesting take on Jane's beloved characters. They are taken on a very different journey than we know, but it was fascinating to see the characters we love given such a different journey and I really enjoyed it. What surprised me the most with this book was how much the story touched me as I read; this is a very spiritual book. It doesn't preach 'at' you, but many of the characters go on a spiritual journey, but it didn't feel like you were reading a sermon or being told what to do, it was very enlightening and sweet to follow the characters on their journeys. But more on this later!

As I said, the story and backgrounds to many characters, particularly the Bennet family, is very, very different. Elizabeth has had may trials to deal with in this story, but as a result she is an amazing character. She is so strong and positive. She has many of the good traits we love in Elizabeth, but they are magnified, as it were, because of her experiences. You can't help but love this Lizzy. She needs this extra strength of character as during the first half of the book she is a real help to both the Darcys, but in very different ways. How she helps them is amazing and a really wonderful journey to read and feel apart of. Of course, I mentioned Lizzy has had some horrible experiences in her past and they do come to haunt her in the second half of this book, but then it is lovely as the tables are turned and we see Darcy helping Lizzy! But I don't want to spoil all the good bits for you and give away the plot so you'll have to read it yourself for the details!

I don't know where to start with Darcy! He is such a charming character in this story.  As Elizabeth meets him in Derbyshire, he is relaxed and at ease and they get off to a much better start, and immediately Darcy is interested in Elizabeth. You will love him! He is more flirty and fun and even quite bold and forward with Elizabeth! It was lovely to see the side of him we begin to see in canon at Pemberley and when they are engaged, right from the start. As well as the fun and flirtatious side, Darcy also goes on a journey through the story and you get to know him and his character really well. Watching him trying to deal with what has happened to Georgiana - which is much worse than in canon! - is heartbreaking and you feel so much compassion towards him. Seeing so many different sides to Darcy and his true nature means you can't help but love him! And as he falls more and more in love with Elizabeth he is just adorable. And for me, Darcy's journey I found the most touching to read and follow.

Individually Darcy and Lizzy are brilliant characters in this tale, but their relationship together is just perfect. As I said, they meet in much better circumstances and get off to a better start and immediately like each other - Lizzy even claims that "He was going to be a good neighbour"!  It is very different to hear Lizzy say as much about Mr Darcy straight away, but it is quite refreshing! They both start falling for each other very quickly and have such a delightful courtship - they are so flirtatious with each other and it is adorable! (For example when Lizzy asks "Are you calling me impertinent?", Darcy responds "Does it rain in England in November?" - I love it!) They quickly become very easy and open with each other as well, which is due to how Lizzy helps Darcy in this story. As I said, the spiritual aspect of this book is just great. Lizzy starts to teach the rather cynical Darcy, due to events in the recent past, about how to forgive and remember the past only as it gives you pleasure! It really was amazing watching how Lizzy helped him, and then how he helps Lizzy later on in the story. You will really love Lizzy and Darcy, I know you will!

The other major character in this story is Georgiana. It is hard to explain what she goes through without giving away the story, but poor Georgiana has suffered and is not coping well. Until Elizabeth comes along. Lizzy really has a task with helping bring Georgiana out of her saddened state. Georgiana really is very altered and not in a good state, and so the journey she experiences is the most dramatic and I found myself very emotional involved in her journey and just willing her to become herself again. The relationship the two of them build up as a result is just wonderful and so... pleasing to read. Also, what was very sweet was how the relationship forming between Darcy and Lizzy helped Georgiana as she wished to see her brother happy. When the three of them were together it made for some of my favourite scenes!

As I said, this is sort of a book in two halves, and in the second half the past comes back to torture poor Lizzy, but luckily Darcy is around to help! Again, I don't want to give away all the juicy details but suffice to say that seeing Darcy help Lizzy in a similar way to how she helped him was really lovely and really seems to strengthen their relationship. Ok, a word of warning, you will not like Mrs Bennet. At all. But just roll with it! Mr Bennet had an interesting alteration, being an ex-clergyman, and he had a really interesting roll throughout the story and I liked this twist to his character.

Where would we be without Mr Wickham! He makes plenty of appearances and... well let's just say there are some surprising and... moving situations and conversions involving him. 

While Bingley never let Netherfield, he meets Lizzy (and his Jane!) in Derbyshire and is as amiable as we expect! We also get to see more of his almost brotherly relationship with Darcy which was nice. However, don't even get me started on Caroline Bingley who still manages to cause problems! She is not at all happy with this Miss Bennet who seems to have caught Darcy's eye and she does all in her power to get her out of the picture and made me very angry in the process! But, she receives her due, eventually, and that is all I shall say on the matter!

I mentioned the spiritual theme to this book and how it touched me and affected me reading it, not only due to the characters' journeys, but also on a personal level. What I was delighted to find when I got to the end of the book was a section entitled 'Darcy's Prayer Book'; in the story Elizabeth gives Darcy a prayer book which she has written of praises to help her which she feels will help him in a similar way to overcome his struggles, and he copies some of her prayer book into one of his own. Many of her little mottos she lives her life by were great and important for everyone to remember, and I had wished I had jotted some of them down as I read, and so when I found the prayer book nicely printed for me at the end I was thrilled! It is a lovely addition and the perfect ending to such a touching and emotional story.

One last thing I must mention is Jeanna's wonderful talent with metaphors which is aways a brilliant running theme through her stories - it is very unique as I have never come across anything similar. In this story, as suggested by the title, the ongoing metaphor is about refining silver, and how the process of refining ourselves is similar. Darcy spends the book listening to Lizzy's clues about it and works to find out the full meaning behind this metaphor and it is just brilliant. I won't give it away as it is so great to see it unfold through the story, and how a variety of different characters are refined through the story! I always love this aspect to Jeanna's novels.

As you can see, this is a very different and unique book. It is emotionally very touching and I was completely drawn into it as I read. It was a book where reaching the 'happy ending' - and not just for Lizzy and Darcy - has never felt more satisfying!

 

**GIVEAWAY - ends Monday 10th November**

In celebration of the release, the lovely Jeanna is offering 1 paperback copy (US only) and 1 ebook copy (international) of her story.

To enter, leave a comment below and the two winners shall be picked randomly.

Please leave your email address and state whether you will be entering for the paperback or the ebook. I will then pass on the winners email addresses to Jeanna who will be in touch.

Good luck, and thank you again to Jeanna for offering this giveaway! And good luck with the book!



Your affectionate friend,

Snow Storms and Kissing Games by Sarah Johnson and an excerpt - with giveaway!

Today I welcome Sarah Johnson to my blog! I will be reviewing her recent novella, Snow Storms and Kissing Games, and I also have a video of myself reading an excerpt from her latest novel, Just to Hear 'I Love You'. And there is also a giveaway - details below!



"A sudden and fierce snow storm causes Elizabeth, Jane, and Lydia Bennet, as well as their would-be rescuers, Mr Darcy and Mr Bingley, to take shelter in an empty cabin. Lydia’s suggestion to pass the time with games might be just what Bingley needs to prove Jane truly cares for him. Will Elizabeth’s prejudices of Mr Darcy hold up under the scrutiny of being stranded with him? What changes could possibly come from the effects of ‘Snow Storms & Kissing Games’? 
A 'Pride & Prejudice' Novella Variation"

This was a really fun little story which I would sum up as short and sweet! 

It begins around the time when Jane is invited to dine at Netherfield Park. Due to the threat of snow and Mrs Bennet's instance that Jane still go to her dinner at Netherfield, Lizzy decides to accompany her sister. And, unbeknownst to them, Lydia decides to follow them as well! Consequently, when the snow begins to fall they must seek shelter in a nearby disused cottage. As panic ensues back at Longbourn, a note is sent to enquire whether the Bennet daughters made it to Netherfield, and upon hearing that they did not, Darcy and Bingley rush to the rescue to try and find them! However, this means that once they do find them they must also join the ladies in the cottage as the weather takes a turn for the worst!

The premise of the story of having Lizzy, Jane, Lydia, Darcy and Bingley getting snowed into a small cottage together was rather fun! The 5 of them was a very interesting mix and made for some... interesting scenes and conversations! 

One of the real problems with novellas is that due to the length, the story often feels rushed or unrealistic, particularly when it comes to Darcy and Lizzy who often need to go from Lizzy really not liking Darcy to loving him in a very few pages! This problem was tackled well in this book because of where the story picks up; by this point Lizzy is not completely set against Darcy as 1. Wickham hasn't come on the scene to blacken his name and 2. The full issue around Jane and Bingley hasn't reached its peak as Bingley hasn't been persuaded to leave the neighbourhood. Therefore, while Lizzy isn't a friend of Darcy's at the beginning of this tale, it is much easier for her opinion to change when they are forced to get to know each other more, as situations arise during their forced time together which reveal certain aspects to Darcy's personality that Lizzy had perhaps overlooked or ignored before.  These 'situations' which arise I don't want to ruin for you, but the use of games (and don't let 'kissing' worry you - it's nothing very scandalous!) as a distraction while they wait for the weather to improve comes in very handy for many different reasons and many different people!

The time in the cottage is very important for Lizzy and Darcy's relationship as Lizzy learns that perhaps her initial opinion of Darcy wasn't quite correct and that maybe she was being too harsh on him. Once the weather is better and they get back to Netherfield, Darcy and Lizzy begin to quickly become more than friends and it is very cute to see their relationship change! Darcy is unbelievably cute in this story - but in a good way! We see his teasing and also his more forward (and persuasive!) side which was fun. And as the last line of the novella states, "who would have thought that snow storms and kissing games could bring two people such as us together!"

Jane was sweet, as always, in this book but she had a slightly less 'looking through rose-coloured glasses' and a more realistic view on the world, which made a change. Her and Lizzy were sweet in this tale! Bingley is also very sweet and the forced confinement together proves to be very beneficial for the couple!

We mustn't forget that Lydia also was snowed in with them! Due to certain topics of conversation which arise we begin to see a different Lydia and the whole experience ends up having a positive effect and influence on her which was lovely! I will let you read it to see exactly how!

Caroline Bingley still had to make her appearance and she was just as annoying as she should be, and very fun to laugh at!

This really was a light-hearted, cute and fun read! Short and sweet, as I said. I enjoyed it! Perfect if you need a break or 'pick me up' during the day or as an uplifting read before bed!

In other exciting news, I am just entering the world of audiobook narration and my first book to narrate is going to be this one, Snow Storms and Kissing Games! A shorter novella to get me going, so keep your eyes peeled for that in next few months!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mary Bennet’s life changes forever when a childhood accident leaves her isolated in a silent world. Her sister Elizabeth emerges as her fiercest champion and unstinting protector. When further tragedy befalls Longbourn, Aunt and Uncle Gardiner embrace their orphaned nieces into their London household. Mary and Elizabeth must face the disapprobation of London society as they endure a Season of intense scrutiny. Will Mary’s own dearest wish— just to hear ‘I love you’ —ever come to be, or will her deafness forever consign her to life apart? The sisters must face their past and Mary’s worst critic when another family’s tragedy lands directly on their doorstep. Will they both have the strength to return love from unexpected suitors?"

** GIVEAWAY - ends Thursday 6th November **

Sarah has provided me with a giveaway with four lucky winners! I have an ebook (international) and paperback (US only) of both Snow Storms and Kissing Games and Just to Hear 'I Love You'.  

To enter, leave a comment below and the winners will be picked randomly.

Please leave your email address and which draws you would like to be entered into (remembering the paperbacks are US only, but ebooks are international).

If you are one of the lucky winners, I will pass on your email to Sarah who will be in touch.

Good luck!

 

Thank you again to Sarah for this giveaway, and for the brilliant extract! I wish you all the best with these stories and any future stories! I have already read and enjoyed her first story, Leaving Bennet Behind: Chosen, (review here) and so I am looking forward to another story from her!

Your affectionate friend,