Leenie Brown

The Library at Dingestow (Charlotte Bosanquet)

For July, I am going to do the Wednesday post theme differently. Instead of picking a particular sort or topic of images to share, I am going to pick a series of books to feature. This month, I’m choosing the Darcy Family Holidays series for two reasons. First, it is the book bundle I have on sale this month so it’s a great time to pick it up if you haven’t already added it to your collection. And second, book four in this series will be published in August, and I’d like to spend some time celebrating the series as I am deep in editing and publishing details. 🙂

We’ll start with book 1, Two Days before Christmas.

I chose this image because the rather long excerpt below is of a conversation that takes place in a library.

Brush and watercolor and pen and black ink over graphite, c1840. *The Library at Dingestow*, Charlotte Bosanquet (1790 – 1852). Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

“Am I being a fool?”

Richard shook his head. “No.”

Darcy looked at him, hoping that his cousin would elaborate on his reply.

“What can I tell you that you do not already know?”

“Her family is ridiculous,” Darcy said.

“And so is Aunt Catherine.”

“Her father’s estate is mismanaged.”

“That is not Miss Elizabeth’s doing,” Richard replied with a smile. “Her father has an estate; that is the relevant point — she is a gentleman’s daughter.”

“But she has little to bring with her to a marriage.”

“Besides herself,” Richard countered. “Is Pemberley in need of funds?”

“No, but she will likely bring her younger sisters with her — all three of them, hoping to be thrown into the paths of wealthy gentlemen. Silly younger sisters.” Darcy shook his head at the thought.

Richard grimaced. “That could be a problem, but is it great enough to require that you give up Miss Elizabeth to another?”

Darcy scrubbed his face again. “No. I have argued all these points over and over, and the answer is always the same.”

Richard cocked a brow. “A fool does not put so much thought into a decision, does he?”

Darcy shook his head. “I suppose not.”

“Then marry her. Claim some happiness for yourself.”

“Darcy, I had heard you were here,” Lord Matlock said as he entered the library through the door that led to his study. “To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?” He tipped his head and surveyed Darcy from head to toe just as Richard had done.

“He’s getting married,” Richard replied.

[from Two Days Before Christmas]

Get *Darcy Family Holidays, Volume 1 (books 1-3*) for $2.99 until the end of July.

Summer (Brian Crain)

I think I need a sign that says “Gone Editing” for this month. I have come to the end of the manuscript for Sketches and Secrets of Summer, and that means it is time to start editing and getting all the things done for publishing. I expect the release day for this book to be in early August. (Stay tuned for the exact date and preorder info.)

Since I will be editing and getting Sketches ready for publication this month, July’s Music Monday story excerpts will all be from that book! And since this book is set in the summer (and it is currently summer in my part of the world), the theme for our music selections this month is “Summertime.” We’re starting July’s theme this week with a song that often plays while I am writing or editing and has the perfect title to get us started on our summery theme. 🙂

Now, here is your first peek at Sketches and Secrets of Summer (Darcy Family Holidays, book 4):

And here’s a little info about the story:

Stuart Alford is the romantic hero of this story. He is a second-born son who has unexpectedly inherited his family’s estate and his older brother’s children. Aaron is Stuart’s younger brother and holds the living at Kympton, which means this story is set in Derbyshire.

While you are waiting for *Sketches* to publish, why not give the first three books in this series a read (or reread 😉 )? If you don’t already have these titles, they are on sale in this bundle for the month of July. Just click the image above to find all the stores where this book is available.

Titles in this compilation are *Two Days Before Christmas, One Winter’s Eve,* and *A Scandal in Springtime*.

MAILING LIST PATREON

The July 2021 Saturday Broadsheet

The Saturday Broadsheet, with all my writing life updates, is now available at the link at the bottom of this short post. In this issue of the Broadsheet you will find:

Info about what is posting on my blog — which you probably already know except for new Monday and Wednesday themes for this month.
My progress on my writing and publishing projects. (I finished a manuscript!) There is a sneak peek at Sketches and Secrets of Summer included.
Two books that I have on sale for the month of June, plus a link to a multi-author promotion that one of the books is in, and a link to a fellow JAFF author’s current countdown deal.
A video that I find inspires my imagination and makes walking on my treadmill enjoyable (and turns it into an imagination workout and not just a walking workout. 🙂 )

Click here to read the July 2021 Saturday Broadsheet

Have a great weekend!

I’ll be back on Monday with a story and song pairing. (July’s theme is Summertime << in case you didn’t read that in the newsletter or forgot.)

Off to the Honeymoon (Frederick Morgan)

And so we come to the end of our month of wedding pictures. I thought that this one was a good way to close off the month. 🙂 The short excerpt below is from the very beginning of a honeymoon for Darcy and Elizabeth and is from the epilogue of For Peace of Mind.

“And then there is my impression of you.” He kissed her lightly on the forehead. “It has never wavered. Your eyes still enchant me, your laugh and smile are still bewitching, and your figure still tempts me beyond all rational thought.”

He bent his head and kissed her softly.

“You remain now as you were then, the loveliest of all women.”

[from For Peace of Mind]

SALE ENDS TODAY!!! (June 30)
*For Peace of Mind* can be purchased as a standalone novel or as part of *Darcy And…* a bundle of five Pride and Prejudice variations.

Man Going Down – Period Dramas (P&P, N&S, S&S)

Although this video is not new to YouTube, it is new to me. I just came across it when doing a search for something to share today, and it made me think of an Austen character that I have written as a romantic hero who was no such thing in the original story. 😉

I’m talking of course of Wickham in my story Through Every Storm. He and Lydia had fun falling in love and flying too high (as the lyrics say) when they were young. However, eight years have passed between when they were forced to marry and when the storm that will either shatter or cement their marriage begins. And what Lydia needs in this story is a “man going down” — someone who can find the strength to not only weather the storm himself but help her through it as well.