Haymakers (Frederick Morgan)

Engraved by C O Murray after a picture by Frederick Morgan (1856-1927) / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons

In tomorrow’s chapter of From Tolerable to Lovely, we are no longer at the ball. Therefore, I thought it would be a good idea to give you another image to hang the story one. As you can see from the first few paragraphs of chapter 3 below, Darcy, Elizabeth, Bingley, and Jane are on a walk in the country. They will be on a walk again in the final chapter as well, though they won’t be alone for all of that walk, which is why I have chosen to share the image above.

~*~*~

A well-worn path winding its way through the Hertfordshire countryside lay before Darcy, and a pretty lady walked at his side. This was not how Darcy had imagined his call at Longbourn going. He had expected to spend fifteen minutes to half an hour in the sitting room feeling very ill-at-ease and struggling to engage in polite conversation, which he hoped he might be able to turn toward things which were not merely common topics of conversation so that he could learn more about Miss Elizabeth.  

Instead, he had found himself standing in the sitting room at Longbourn for only five minutes while Bingley arranged to go for a walk with Miss Bennet with Darcy and Miss Elizabeth as proposed chaperones. Mrs. Bennet was so far beyond delighted to have Bingley showing such interest in her eldest daughter that neither Darcy nor Miss Elizabeth was given an opening to refuse being included in the walking party.

And that had brought Darcy to this wonderful prospect of fresh air, good exercise, and Miss Elizabeth’s companionship.

[From Tolerable to Lovely, a Teatime Tales novelette]

~*~*~

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Napoleonic Ball – Regency Dances: Cotillion and Reel

Welcome back to Wordless Wednesdays. As I start these up again after my summer break, the plan is to not post every week. I have not settled on a frequency yet. This week’s post goes well with both the first and second chapters of From Tolerable to Lovely since the story begins at the Meryton Assembly and this was the video I had playing on repeat while writing chapter 2’s dance scene. 🙂

~*~*~

“Do you dance, Miss Elizabeth?”

“I do when asked, Mr. Darcy.” She quirked an eyebrow and waited.

“My apologies, that did not come out as I meant.” Darcy gave a small self-deprecating laugh. “I believe what I meant to ask was, do you wish to dance, Miss Elizabeth?”

The half-smile that she wore twitched, and Darcy was sure that she was going to laugh, but she managed to suppress the urge. Her eyes, however, danced in merriment.

“Indeed, I do wish to dance. Did you have a particular partner in mind for me?”

[From Tolerable to Lovely, a Teatime Tales novelette]

~*~*~

Leenie B Books
Click to find all of Leenie’s books at your favourite retailer.

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The Saturday Broadsheet (August 2020)

We are still enjoying some hot temperatures here. It has been a very warm summer for us, but those temps make our Saturday evening beach walks quite enjoyable. This picture is from this past Saturday’s walk. We checked out Conrad’s Beach. This vantage point if looking back to where our car is parked — waaaaaaay over there near the white house. Because this area with it’s sand dunes is a breeding ground for the Piping Plover (a small shorebird), everyone crosses from where they parked on the road across the boardwalk and to the sandy beach beyond. The beach is worth the trek.

My husband starts vacation from one of his jobs next week, so maybe we’ll be able to venture further afield to walk on some beaches that aren’t so close to where we live. That could be fun. 

But enough of that. Let’s get on with all the writing, publishing, and book news you have opened this post to find. 🙂 

Writing News

The only writing project I have worked on to any extent since my July update has been Her Convenient Forever. I thought it was going to end at chapter fifteen which I hit last week. However, it hasn’t ended yet. 🙂 Therefore, I have not started any serious work on any other writing project. 

In editing news, I have gotten my manuscript back for Protecting Miss Darcy and will be starting the final read-through while making corrections this week. I’m still working towards having it ready to publish by September 3. 

That reminds me! There was one other thing that I got written since I last posted. I wrote an epilogue for Protecting Miss Darcy / the Marrying Elizabeth series. I’ll schedule that to post this coming Thursday. 

Continue reading The Saturday Broadsheet (August 2020)

TSB: Three Books – One Free; One New Release, One Soon-to-be-Unpublished

Settle into a comfy reading spot. This is a long one. 🙂


Summer is here in Nova Scotia, and there is no denying its arrival as the weather has let us know, without question, that a new season is upon us. (We’ve had several hot days which is a little earlier than normal for us.) I have had my first osteopath appointment since the clinic was shut down because of the pandemic, and while it was helpful, I still have a long way to go to get all the kinks worked out. However, I now have a treatment plan in place, and that feels good. 

As I mentioned in the last Saturday Broadsheet, I am cutting back and taking it a bit easy this summer for health reasons. This will include some changes to what is being posted each week on my blog and the frequency of this newsletter. Starting in July, the Saturday Broadsheet will be delivered once per month. 

I have added a new change to my summer business plans.

Continue reading TSB: Three Books – One Free; One New Release, One Soon-to-be-Unpublished

MM: My Father’s Son (The Tenors)

PUBLISHED TO YOUTUBE BY THE TENORS VEVO ON JUNE 18, 2015.

Isn’t this a perfect song for the Monday after Father’s Day Sunday? I thought it was. 🙂 I have paired it with an excerpt from At All Costs. Bingley looked up to his father and learned many good lessons from him. In fact, one of these lessons is where the title of this book comes from. It’s here in this line, which is from very, very near the end of the book: “My father taught me many things, but the one he stressed more than any other was that a man must protect that which is dear to him at all costs.” Below is another place in this book where Bingley is thinking about his father.

At All Costs, Chapter 4 Excerpt

“Harris is to leave with you when you leave Derbyshire, is he not?” Bingley cut a sidelong glance at Richard, who nodded, as they walked. Harris was an ever-present annoyance that Bingley would gladly see gone. “Is it not possible to send him back to Brighton early?”

Richard laughed. “I have no reason to do so.”

Bingley sighed. “That is unfortunate.”

And it was unfortunate indeed, for that very gentleman happened to be the one that brought Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth to Pemberley. It was also Harris who took Jane’s arm as they strolled around the garden, and it was Harris who claimed the seat next to Jane when they all finally paused for a rest. And it was also Harris who was now monopolizing the conversation.

“It is a lovely day, is it not?” Harris asked as they sat in the shadow cast by Pemberley across the side garden at this time of day.

It was the consensus that it was indeed a fine day — for the weather was pleasant. However, for two of the party, the day was not so fine as it could have been. Bingley was in general annoyed by the presence of Harris and, in specific, irked by Harris’s attentions to Jane.

Continue reading MM: My Father’s Son (The Tenors)