SPOTLIGHT ON ... A LOT OF PRIDE AND SOME PREJUDICE BY PETRONELA UNGUREANU + GIVEAWAY

I'm always surprised and happy to find Austenite friends loving Jane and her works just all over the world. And when they decide to write fan fiction and want to share their fondness and their achievements I'm always glad to let them share here at My Jane Austen Book Club. Today I'd like you to meet and welcome Petronela Ungureanu from Romania. Read an excerpt from her "A Lot of Pride and Some Prejudice" and try to win 2 e-books in the giveaway contest linked to this post  (see rafflecopter form below).

Maria Grazia

Read an excerpt 

-    “My dear miss Clairon I am mortified, I cannot explain how such an abominable mistake could have been produced. Please allow me to apologize profusely, I intend to take drastic measures for this unforgivable negligence.

Lord Salisbury was indeed very mortified, since the luggage of his guest, Miss Clairon, had been misplaced, and the old governess was purple with embarrassment. Lord Salisbury was ceaselessly waving his short chubby arms like he was trying to express the magnitude of his regret, yet Miss Clairon seemed to be unmoved. Through the peephole of the dining room’s door, Portia was observing with tremendous amusement the entire  commotion from the hall, when she suddenly realized that she was not alone. She turned around in a startling rush and she saw a tall, imposing man observing her with an amused expression on his face,. There was no reproof in his eyes, just a cheerful flicker of extreme diversion. When he spoke, his voice was kind and his tone excessively polite.

-    Were you listening at the door, Madame, or were you looking through the peep
hole?

-    I am sorry, sir…I was…

Portia couldn’t find her words, her face colored with embarrassment. The gentleman kept smiling at her, vastly enjoying her moment of discomfort.

-    Do not worry, I promise I won’t share your indiscretion with anyone. You must be the new bride…miss Thorpe, am I right?

She finally lifted her eyes from the ground and answered defiantly:

-    And who might you be, sir? You should have made your presence known…

-    Indeed I should …I am Phillip Salisbury, and I shall soon have the honor of being your future brother in law. So, you see, you must not feel uneasy, for this is a family matter…

-    I wasn’t spying on anyone, sir, I was merely trying to find the dining room….you have such a big house, one could get lost in it.

-    I am sure you have…Let us not quarrel about that, miss Thorpe, I would rather enjoy the opportunity to get to know each other and surely to have the privilege of hearing you play, my brother says you are a most extraordinary piano player.
-    I fear he has exaggerated my talents, Lord Salisbury. May I ask when shall I have the honor of meeting Miss Salisbury, I hear she shares my enthusiasm when it comes to music and I would exceedingly cherish a musical companion…

 -    She keeps to her room for the moment, she has a frightful cold and I am afraid we shall not have the privilege of seeing her today. Did you make any plans for your wedding, miss Thorpe? I hear my brother wishes to get married in the family chapel near Portsmouth, I am sure it will agree with you…although the family mausoleum is dreadfully near…

-    I was not aware…I did not have the chance to explore any plans, but I am sure we have enough time to consider…

-    One more week until the happy event, one might see it as being too soon…

-    Indeed too soon.

-    Portia lowered her eyes, for fear he might observe her sadness, but he seemed too much preoccupied analyzing her hands.”

-    I don’t see an engagement ring on your finger, Miss Thorpe, was my brother so careless as to overlook such a crucial detail?

Portia smiled and hid her hands behind her back in a childish impulse.

-    It was my mistake, Lord Salisbury, for I have forgotten it at home, back in Bedfordshire, it is my fault indeed…

-    One might suspect that you dislike the ring, miss Thorpe.

-    No indeed I do not, it is the most glorious piece of jewelry I have ever laid my eyes on.

-    Then my brother is a very lucky man, he has secured your affection along with your admiration for his taste in jewelry, he must be a happy man indeed. Pray, do tell me, do you know each other long?”.

Book Blurb

On the verge of losing her home and her position in society, Miss Portia Thorpe is fighting all her battles with her very heart. When Lord Salisbury is offering his friendship and support, she develops a most unsuitable inclination towards him. Surrounded by uncertainty and some very strange events, Portia must face the future where her estate, Valhalla, lost at poker by her father, gets a new mysterious owner. Will she manage to find her place in the new order of things? Will she accept an unexpected marriage proposal, just to save her home? With some pride, a little prejudice and all the courage in the world, she will eventually find a solution.

The author 

Petronela Ungureanu is a journalist and a writer of romance and fantasy living in a picturesque part of poetic Romania. She takes great pleasure in simple things like walking barefoot in the grass, or reading Jane Austen in front of a good fire, surrounded by her numerous purring cats. When the time feels right, she mysteriously withdraws in her favorite corner where she concocts fantastical stories about elves, fairies, gnomes and other wondrous creatures.

You can find her blogging at www.unikorna.blogspot.com and on Facebook  

Giveaway

 +

Win Petronela Ungureanu's A Lot of Pride and Some Prejudice + her Lost in the Seven Worlds. Take your chances in the rafflecopter form below. This contest is open internationally and ends on November 10th.




a Rafflecopter giveaway