Hey Everyone! I'm so excited to be part of the Aerendgast Blog Tour! My stop brings you a very intriguing excerpt and a giveaway of a paperback copy of Aerendgast: The Lost History of Jane Austen!! Woot!
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Book Blurb:
Violet Desmond has just learned from her dying grandmother that the life she’s been living is a lie.
Left with only a locket, a newspaper clipping, and a name–Atherton–Violet sets off to discover her hidden personal history. Simultaneously, the London academic begins to have vivid dreams in which a woman from the past narrates her life story involving the same locket, a secret marriage, and a child. A story intimately connected to Jane Austen.
Violet reluctantly agrees to receive help from cavalier treasure hunter, Peter Knighton. Blacklisted from his profession, Knighton can almost taste the money and accolades he’d receive for digging up something good on Austen; the locket alone is unique enough to be worth plenty to the right collector. It would be enough to get his foot back in the door.
The unlikely pair begins a quest for answers that leads them to Aerendgast Hallows. Knee-deep in hidden crypts, perilous pursuits, and centuries-old riddles, Violet must put her literary expertise to the test as she battles to uncover the secret that her loved ones died trying to reveal, before an unknown enemy silences her as well.
Excerpt:
Prologue
24 June 1802 Chawton, Hampshire
The rain pounds the roof above my head with a violent melody. Its sound, which I have always loved, now seems to taunt me. The pain increases with every breath. My heaving ribs feel as though they will break and rip apart my fiery skin at any moment, leaving me more bare and exposed than I already am. Like a dam full to bursting, I can no longer hold the sobs inside. I well up and rupture. Tears run down my cheeks, dripping off my chin, one after another, endlessly, like the rain.
“For heaven’s sake, you have to push!” My sister Cassie’s voice seems far away. I can barely make out my mother’s figure sitting silently by the fire, watching the embers crackle and singe. My head, however affected, knows they are in the room with me, but in my heart I feel as alone as Sisyphus—and with a task just as monumental to perform.
Where is my husband? I torture myself with the question over and over. Then, as suddenly as it has begun, with one monumental effort, it is over. I hear the cry of a new born child. The room goes hazy. My mother and sister are whispering, but I cannot make out what they say. Why is my baby not placed in my arms? Where is my baby?
I scream, but no one else seems to hear me. My mother leaves the room with a handful of rags. I feel that something is wrong, yet my limbs remain inert. I can do nothing. Try as I might to move out of bed, my body seems paralyzed, and my mind is shutting down. Feverish and near delirium, I can only lie here listening to the pounding rain and waiting for my child to be laid in my arms. Instead, I can just make out the muffled voices of my sister and mother. ”The baby is dead,” they say. And the world goes black.
Author Bio:
Rachel was born and raised in Los Angeles, which naturally resulted in a deep love of the UK from an early age. Reading and writing have been favorite pastimes for as long as she can remember. Rachel has a BA in English Literature from Scripps College and an MA in London Studies from Queen Mary, University of London. Her focus is 19th century British Literature. She enjoys hiking, musical theatre, fancy water, pilates, vegan baking, good tv and movies, and researching new book ideas!
Jane Austen has always been an author near and dear to Rachel's heart for her ability to tell a story so compelling, it remains relevant hundreds of years later. And for creating Henry Tilney.
Connect with Rachel Berman
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Blog Tour Schedule
* * *Giveaway!* * *
It's giveaway time!! Meryton Press is giving away ONE paperback of
Aerendgast: The Lost History of Jane Austen
to ONE lucky winner! This giveaway is open Internationally! To enter fill out the Rafflecopter and leave a comment!
Thank you, Rachel Berman and Meryton Press!
- One person will win a paperback of Aerendgast.
- Open Internationally.
- Last day to enter: March 16, 2015
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Please, leave a comment! We'd love to hear from you! Remember, to enter the giveaway you MUST fill out the Rafflecopter (shown above). If you need help entering, email me by clicking on the email icon at the top of the sidebar. Thanks!
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Winners have been picked for The Secret of Pembrooke Park Blog Tour giveaways! There was one winner picked from the comments from this blog, So little time... 
