Strong Objections to the Lady Blog Tour! ~ Guest Post, Excerpt & Giveaway!

Hello, my friends! I'm excited to have the lovely Jayne Bamber on today! I think her new book Strong Objections to the Lady sounds fantastic! A healthier, more lively Anne is very intriguing! Don't you think? Below, Jayme tells us a little more about her Anne and there's an exciting excerpt for you to read!  I hope you enjoy it! Plus, there is a link to a giveaway - be sure to check that out!

An Accidental Anne-tagonist

It’s great to be back at So Little Time…! I am delighted to reveal a little more about my upcoming release, Strong Objections to the Lady.

The story begins in Kent, the day after Mr. Darcy’s failed proposal at the Hunsford proposal, and from there things take a pretty drastic turn from canon, beginning with the sudden death of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. This makes Anne de Bourgh the new mistress of Rosings Park, a prospect which delights her. I knew going into the story that I wanted Anne to be livelier than Elizabeth ever suspected, but within just a few chapters of showing what Anne begins to do in the aftermath of her mother’s death, it became clear than Anne was more than even I bargained for. 

That Anne is perfectly healthy, and even capable of being hell-on-wheels when she wants to be, is only the first of many revelations about her. She imbues all the same confidence of a rich girl in want of society as Emma Woodhouse, mingled with the indecorous and impulsive energy of Lydia Bennet, and I came to enjoy writing her character so much that she became one of the prime drivers of the entire tale, at every twist and turn. From Anne setting a piano on fire, to spiking an entire meal, to pushing poor Mr. Darcy into hurting his own feelings, she has some wonderfully vivid moments in this novel, on the path to her own happy ending.

I have an excerpt to share with you all today, from early on in the book, when Elizabeth first learns the shocking history that begins to justify some of Anne’s erratic and eccentric behavior….

   
     Anne laughed gently, though Elizabeth still felt all the awkwardness of not inviting her inside, particularly when it was so evident that Anne was distraught. “Perhaps you had better come inside and have some tea – or, if you like, I find that fresh air and a long walk can do wonders for one’s spirits.”

     “A long walk with a friend might suit. I would not trespass on Charlotte’s tranquility, but if she can spare you....”

     “She has Maria, and would not wish you left alone, and neither would I. Let me fetch my bonnet and tell Lucy I mean to step out.” 

     This was accomplished quickly enough, but Elizabeth returned to find her friend dabbing at tears with the corner of her shawl. “I am sorry,” she said in a shaky voice. “I hardly know what came over me.”

     Elizabeth waited for Anne to dry her eyes, and then offered her an arm as they ambled out of the garden together, toward the path that led through the meadow. “You needn’t apologize for your feelings, which are perfectly natural at such a time. You have lost your mother.”

     “You know it is not so simple. As I said before, there is no reason to pretend when the truth will suffice. After living a lie for so long, I am glad that I can behave with honesty now.” 

     Elizabeth peered curiously at Anne. She had suspected there was more to Miss de Bourgh than met the eye, and her reaction to Lady Catherine’s demise had instantly raised questions, but since then Anne had seemed more intent on prying information out of Elizabeth, rather than divulging any secrets of her own. “When you say living a lie, am I to understand that you are not ill?”

     “I am not anything my mother has presented me as.” 

     “But why would she – that is, you are obviously a perfectly normal girl. Why pretend otherwise?” 

     Anne knit her brows as she considered. “I wish I could answer such a question. I may never fully understand, though I have long supposed that it was easier than the truth, for her.” 

     “And what is the truth?” 

     “I was a perfectly normal girl, five years ago. At seventeen, I was just what a rich, accomplished girl ought to be. A little over-eager, a little boisterous, perhaps, but that is natural, in my estimation, for a girl counting the days until her debut in society, when she might step out of the shadow of her beautiful elder sister.” 

     “Sister?” Elizabeth could not suppress a little gasp, and her reaction seemed to please her companion. 

     “She was my best friend, but she was ever so much better than me. My mother knew it –  the whole world knew, I think. Certainly Darcy agreed; they were betrothed, once.”

     This time Elizabeth willed herself not to react; she froze, and gave a faint nod for Anne to continue. 

     “She died five years ago. Darcy had just lost his father, and their wedding was postponed. My mother was very angry about it. She feared he would give the engagement up all together. She decided to give Isabel another season, and postponed mine, thinking to devote all her energy to finding Isabel someone better than Darcy – someone so grand he would seethe with envy and regret. She devoted six weeks to her pettiness before Isabel fell ill. It all might have been avoided, my dearest friend alive and well today, had not my mother been so bent on childish revenge against a young man in mourning.”

     “Good God, that is shocking,” Elizabeth breathed, fairly bowled over by Anne’s revelation. “What happened to your sister?”

     Anne’s voice trembled. “She caught pneumonia and died.”

     “How awful!”

     Anne pursed her lips, fighting back tears. “My mother was never the same after Isabel died. She never treated me the same, either.” 

     “What do you mean? Is this why she had such a care for your health?”

     “She never really believed me ill. It was merely an excuse to hide from it all. She knows she was to blame for trusting quack doctors, for putting Isabel in that situation in the first place –  I merely made the mistake of pointing it out to her. You must understand, I was seventeen, bereaved, and very angry. My mother never forgave me. She even told me once that she wished it had been me that she had taken to London that year.”

     “Surely that does not mean that she wished it was you....”

     “Yes, it does. I know, Elizabeth. She threatened to have me declared mad, simply for speaking my mind, and locked us both away from the world, claiming I have poor health, when really she wanted to hold me prisoner, to keep me silent. To punish me. I wonder, at times, if Bedlam would have been the happier alternative, after all.”

     “Surely not! Perhaps she was only afraid of losing you.”

     “She lost me the day my sister died, and she knew it. From then on I had to wear a mask, it was the only way to avoid her constant, grating displeasure. Truly, Elizabeth. My life came to a halt five years ago, and I cannot lament having the liberty now to resume it.”

     Elizabeth fell silent at what felt like the end of Anne’s sad history; she had much to consider already. Everything she thought she had known about Anne de Bourgh had been called into question more than once the previous day – now her perception was utterly shattered. She considered every visit to Rosings since she had arrived. All the while, Anne had remained silent in a corner, looking sickly, but it had merely been an act, a ruse to keep the worst of her mother’s disapproval at bay. The real Anne was the woman she had seen yesterday, who had sat in Charlotte’s parlor, drinking brandy in her tea and laughing at the world. It was miraculous, she thought, that the girl was capable of any good cheer at all, after everything she had suffered. 

     “I hope you do not think ill of me, Elizabeth,” Anne finally said, breaking the contemplative silence. 

     “Not at all, though I will own to being astonished.”

     “You must understand, that eager seventeen-year-old is within me still. It was such a turbulent time – even before I lost Isabel, I was far from content. I wished to be out in society, to experience more of the world, like her. I was very cross not to have a season, and when I lost my sister I felt as though my life had ended.” 

     “It is a trying age,” Elizabeth agreed. “Even without the grief.”

     “Exactly so. It all became too much, and my mother chose to shut me up, to shut me away from the world, because I was not as calm and perfect as Isabel. It has been so long since I have spoken my mind, since I have truly enjoyed anything. Well, I mean to make up for it now.”

     Elizabeth still felt some doubt. Certainly somewhere, beneath all the repressed resentment, there must be some grief in Anne’s heart for the loss of her mother. For now, at least, Anne had dried her tears, and looked much recovered from her previous distress. “I wish to go to London,” she said. 

     “To finally have a proper season?”

     “I would stay there forever, if I could.” Her expression clouded over. “I shall have to fight the rest of my family, but I am determined to have my own way – it is long overdue.”

Strong Objections to the Lady
by Jayne Bamber


A tale of… 

Intrigue & Inheritance… 

Meddling & Manipulation… 

Sisterhood & Self-Improvement... 

 When Lady Catherine de Bourgh learns of Mr. Darcy’s proposal to Elizabeth Bennet, her wrath sets in motion a series of events at Hunsford Parsonage which embroil Darcy and Elizabeth in a family fracas that grows more complicated daily. 

The shades of Rosings Park are soon polluted by the shocking transformation of its new mistress and her guests, as well as secrets of the past and schemes for the future. 

Appearances and alliances shift amidst the chaos wrought by a well-intentioned house party, and Darcy and Elizabeth must finally face their feelings for one another despite mounting obstacles and misunderstandings of every kind.

 
Buy: Amazon US (paid link) • Amazon UK • Amazon CA
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FTC Disclaimer: Link to Amazon US. I am an Amazon Associate. Should you purchase a copy of the book through the link provided, I will receive a small commission. Thanks! 

*~*~*

Blog Tour Schedule

12-9-19 Babblings of a Bookworm
12-12-19 Obsessed with Mr. Darcy
12-13-19 My Jane Austen Book Club
12-19-19 So Little Time...
12-21-19 My Love For Jane Austen
12-23-19 Diary of an Eccentric
12-27-19 Interests of a Jane Austen Girl
1-2-20 All That They Desire
1-3-20 Austenprose
1-7-20 More Agreeably Engaged
1-10-20 Austenesque Reviews
1-16-20 From Pemberley To Milton



Strong Objections to the Lady will be available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited on December 21st, with a paperback soon to follow. I will be sharing more excerpts throughout my blog tour, and there is an e-book giveaway you and enter by clicking here. You can also follow me on Facebook for more updates! ~ Jayne Bamber

Thank you so much for visiting us here, Jayne! I'm really looking forward to reading your newest story! 

Friends, be sure to enter the giveaway at this Rafflecopter link!  Also, let us know your thoughts in the comments below!