GUEST POST & EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT - FASCINATION & FALSEHOODS: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING DARCY

 

Today we are delighted to welcome author Jayne Bamber to My Jane Austen Book Club as she celebrates the release of her newest Austen variation, Fascination & Falsehoods: The Importance of Being Darcy.

For readers who enjoy imaginative reimaginings of Pride and Prejudice, this novel offers a fascinating premise. In this story, Jane and Elizabeth Bennet are orphaned at a young age and raised by none other than Lady Catherine de Bourgh, while Fitzwilliam Darcy grows up under circumstances far removed from those we know in Austen's original novel. The result is a fresh take on beloved characters, family relationships, and the paths that ultimately lead to love.

What makes this variation especially intriguing is its homage not only to Jane Austen but also to Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest. With witty dialogue, unexpected twists and familiar characters placed in entirely new circumstances, the story promises to delight readers who appreciate both Austen's timeless romance and Wilde's sparkling humour.

Today, the author is sharing an exclusive excerpt that introduces us to a young Elizabeth Bennet preparing for her first London season—and reveals the beginnings of her rather charming fascination with the name "Darcy."

We hope you enjoy this sneak peek into Fascination & Falsehoods: The Importance of Being Darcy. Be sure to let us know in the comments what you think of this inventive new twist on a beloved classic!

Maria Grazia 💕

AUTHOR GUEST POST: JAYNE BAMBER, THE GUARDIAN GAMBIT

 

Hello, Readers! I am delighted to share my new release, The Guardian Gambit, a mash-up of Pride & Prejudice + Emma that is inspired by The Parent Trap – it’s a wild ride!

The story begins with Elizabeth Bennet and Jane Fairfax discovering they are identical twins when they meet for the first time just before their 21^st birthday. With the encouragement of their intrigue-loving aunt – Mr. Gardiner’s widow, now known as Lady Gresham – the twins exchange places and scheme to reunite their parents, Elizabeth’s “guardian” Mr. Bennet and Jane’s “aunt” Miss Bates.

NEW RELEASE! THE SISTERS HOLIDAY BY JAYNE BAMBER

 

Hello, readers! It’s such a treat to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club  to share my upcoming release, The Sisters’ Holiday, which is coming to Kindle next month!

 

Inspired by the film “The Holiday” this Jane Austen retelling sees the two eldest Bennet Sisters switch places with their cousins, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood after Christmas together at Longbourn. 

MURDER, MISCHIEF AND MR. DARCY: JAYNE BAMBER’S CLWYD CASTLE

 

Hello dear readers,

We’re thrilled to welcome back Jayne Bamber to My Jane Austen Book Club! Jayne is well known for her clever and creative Austen-inspired stories, and this autumn she’s bringing us something delightfully different — a whodunnit with a Jane Austen twist!

Just in time for Spooky Season, Jayne introduces her upcoming release, Clwyd Castle, a mystery inspired by the cult classic film Clue. Expect wit, intrigue, and a gathering of familiar Austen faces — including Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Henry Tilney, and even Lady Susan — all drawn into a darkly comic web of secrets and blackmail.

Let’s hear from Jayne herself and enjoy an exclusive excerpt from this thrilling new tale...

JAYNE BAMBER, THE COUNTESS AND HER SISTER: A NEW PRIDE & PREJUDICE VARIATION

Today on My Jane Austen Book Club, I’m delighted to welcome back Jayne  Bamber to share a playful sneak peek at her latest Pride & Prejudice variation, The Countess and Her Sister. She has given us a list of “Ten Things to Know” about this new release—and trust me, it’s a delightful mix of humor, drama, and romance. After that, you’ll find a special excerpt and the full blurb to tempt you further!

JAYNE BAMBER PRESENTS HER NEW PRIDE AND PREJUDICE VARIATION: KINDLY MEANT INTERFERENCE

Hello readers, it’s great to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club! I’m so excited to share another sneak peek of my new release, Kindly Meant Interference, which is coming to Kindle on June 18th. I had a blast writing this P&P variation, largely because I really have a soft spot for Caroline Bingley. 

In this retelling, she plays an integral role in Darcy and Elizabeth’s love story. After overhearing Darcy say he will never marry her on the night of the assembly, Caroline decides that the best way to continue enjoying access to Pemberley and Darcy’s social connections is to be the dearest friend of his future wife. And when Darcy admires Elizabeth’s “fine eyes” at Lucas Lodge, Caroline knows who his future bride ought to be. 

Today I am sharing an excerpt from that party at Lucas Lodge. When Caroline sees Elizabeth not as a rival but more of a project, the course of the story takes a very different course….

Jayne Bamber

JAYNE BAMBER, JUST BETWEEN US: AUTHOR GUEST POST, EXCERPT, GIVEAWAY.

 

Hello, readers! It's a treat to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club to share about my newest release. My eleventh novel, ‘Just Between Us’ is available for pre-order, and at the end of this post I’ll be sharing an excerpt from this Pride & Prejudice retelling….

 Jane Austen once said, “My characters shall have, after a little trouble, all that they desire.” I give the Bennet sisters more than just a little trouble. Kitty has a minor heartbreak when her unrequited crush marries another, while Lizzy and Darcy have a whirlwind courtship but are separated for two years, and Jane gets her man but at a very steep cost. 

AUTHOR GUEST POST & EXCERPT: JAYNE BAMBER, A QUICK SUCCESSION OF BUSY NOTHINGS

 

Today, we are thrilled to host author Jayne Bamber as our esteemed guest blogger. Jayne is here to present her latest release, a delightful fusion where the worlds of Pride & Prejudice and Mansfield Park collide. In her new work, titled A Quick Succession of Busy Nothings the Bertrams and Crawfords find themselves entangled in the bustling village of Meryton. The Bertram family faces upheaval, while the Crawfords seek new adventures. Amidst the backdrop of matchmaking schemes and societal intrigue, Jayne weaves a narrative that promises to enthrall readers of Austen-inspired fiction.We're privileged to offer you an exclusive excerpt from the book, so scroll down as Jayne Bamber shares a glimpse into her intriguing new story. MGxx

A NEW NOVEL BY JAYNE BAMBER: HANDSOME, CLEVER AND RICH

 

It’s great to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club! Today I am here to share another excerpt of my new release, Handsome, Clever, & Rich, which is now available on Kindle Unlimited.

 

This Pride & Prejudice variation is a crossover with another of my favorites, Emma, and the titular heroine plays an important role in the story. While Emma’s love story is a gradual progression, Elizabeth’s path to romance is much rockier in this story. This retelling has styled her a Bennet by marriage rather than birth, and after a youthful elopement and brief marriage, the widow of four years has sworn never to wed again… until Elizabeth is convalescing at Netherfield and a moment of passion with Mr. Darcy leads to a compromise that jeopardizes the reputation of her Bennet relations.

FIVE DAUGHTERS OUT AT ONCE, A PRIDE AND PREJUDICE VARIATION: AUDIOBOOK RELEASE. INTERVIEWS, GIVEAWAY, EXCERPT

Happy Sunday, everyone. Let's celebrate the release of the audiobook of Jayne Bamber's Five Daughters Out at Once: A Pride and Prejudice Variation all together. Scroll down and have a look! You'll find two  interviews, one with author Jayne Bamber and one with actor Stevie Zimmerman, a lovely excerpt from the book and a great giveaway.  

JAYNE BAMBER, FIVE DAUGHTERS OUT AT ONCE. AUTHOR GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY

 

Hello Dear Janeites, it is a pleasure to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club to kick off the blog tour of my new release, Five Daughters Out At Once.

AMAZING GIVEAWAY: JAYNE BAMBER'S AUDIOBOOKS

Hello, dear Janeites! It is a delight to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club. I am hard at work on my eighth book, Five Daughters Out At Once, and I will be back later this month to share an excerpt from this novel after it is available on Kindle. For now, at least, I am happy to share other good tidings pertaining to the number five: my fifth audiobook is now available on Audible!

To celebrate the accomplishment, I am hosting my biggest giveaway ever, and raffling off five copies of each of my audiobooks. The newest release is NorthFanger, narrated by the fabulous Amanda S. Brown, who also narrated Madness in Meryton. These, and all my other novels, are still available on KU of course, and I hope to have all of my JAFF novels available as audiobooks by summer time.

For those of you that may have missed my newest release, NorthFanger, last fall, it is a short gothic parody that merges Pride & Prejudice with Northanger Abbey as Elizabeth Bennet leads the charge against a horde of vampires and their dastardly leader – a villain we all know and loathe.

I have included descriptions of all the audiobooks below, and raffle winners will be given their choice from among the five audiobooks. I always say happy reading, but for now, Happy Listening!

JAYNE BAMBER

BLOG TOUR AND GIVEAWAY: NORTHFANGER BY JAYNE BAMBER

Are you ready for a Gothic Austen mash-up? NORTHFANGER is a a campy, vampy Northanger Abbey/ Pride and Prejudice crossover just released by Jayne Bamber. Read an excerpt and take your chances to win a copy in the giveaway below. Enjoy and ... good luck!

MADNESS IN MERYTON BLOG TOUR: EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY

Hello, readers! It’s a treat to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club to kick off my blog tour for my upcoming release, Madness in Meryton. This is my sixth Austenesque novel, and I have to say, I think it is my favorite one yet!

Like Elizabeth Bennet, I enjoy human folly, and there is plenty of it to be had in Madness, which is a mischievous twist on the Groundhog Day trope. The day being relived takes us through Elizabeth’s meeting with Mr. Wickham in Meryton, and his accusations about Mr. Darcy that evening, but as the day continues repeating, it begins to vary widely and with shocking results.

I will be sharing an excerpt with every post on my blog tour, and today’s except features an idea of my own invention, that the Bennet sisters’ first encounter with Mr. Wickham in set during Meryton’s monthly market day. This scene is set at the market about a week into Elizabeth’s redundant loop, at a time when she is chiefly fixated on promoting the attachment between Jane and Mr. Bingley, though the seemingly endless repetition has made her reckless and rash….

OUTMATCHED BLOG TOUR: EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY

Hello! My name is Jayne Bamber and it’s great to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club, to talk about my new release, Outmatched,  a fusion of Sense & Sensibility and Mansfield Park – coming to Kindle May 8^th. I kicked off my blog tour at AustenAuthors by discussing the first deviation from canon I entertain in the story: Maria Bertram’s rejection of Mr. Rushworth when Sir Thomas returns from Antigua. Today I would like to share a taste of the next twist to turn Mansfield Park upside down – Mrs. Rushworth is not willing to take no for an answer. I can’t give The Big Secret away, but I would like to share just a little bit of one of the most pivotal moments in the story, which ultimately inveigles the cast of Sense & Sensibility in the Bertram family fracas….

JAYNE BAMBER, MY FANON FAVORITES - GUEST POST, EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY

Hi everyone, it’s great to be here and talk about my upcoming release, Strong Objections to the Lady. This is my fourth novel, and after a year last week (yay!) of writing full time, I love being able to sink my teeth into all the best parts of Jane Austen Fan Fiction.  

NEW RELEASE! A SISTER'S CURSE BY JAYNE BAMBER: GUEST POST, EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY

Hello, it’s good to be back at My Jane Austen Book Club!

I am so excited to share an excerpt with you from my new release, A Sister’s Curse. The story is another high-angst tale, with Elizabeth meeting Fitzwilliam Darcy – and his entire extended family – much earlier on. In fact, she finds herself a part of his extended family long before they ever fall in love – it’s complicated!

UNEXPECTED FRIENDS & RELATIONS - BLOG TOUR WITH AUTHOR JAYNE BAMBER

 The Faults in Austen’s Stars: Flawed Heroines

By Jayne Bamber, author of the Friends & Relations Series

In all the facets of Jane Austen’s genius, perhaps the most delightful is the reality she imbues in all her characters. No one is quite perfect, making them all the more relatable. We can easily imagine ourselves as one or other of her heroines, not because they are as perfect as we might wish to be, but because they, like us, are not. Elizabeth Bennet, the paragon every Janeites wishes to be, is prejudiced and faulty in her judgement. Anne Eliot is too easily persuaded, and Fanny Price rather a bore and a prude. Each of the Dashwood sisters lacks one of the titular traits, while experiencing rather too much of the other, and Catherine Morland literally accuses her future father-in-law of murder (yikes.)

BLOG TOUR: HAPPIER IN HER FRIENDS THAN RELATIONS. AUTHOR GUEST POST AND GIVEAWAY

Evil Jane!

By Jayne Bamber, Author of Happier in Her Friends Than Relations  

Giving you flowers or giving you the finger?

As a reader (okay, addict) of Austen fanfiction for over a decade I have, like many of you, consumed a lot of JAFF over the years, and have seen all sorts of wild liberties taken with the characters and storylines we love so dearly.

One of my favorite tropes in fanfiction is raising antagonists to Supervillain Status, and it’s been done with a lot of characters from Pride & Prejudice – Lady Catherine, Caroline Bingley, and George Wickham (the usual suspects) are often upgraded to evil masterminds with nefarious schemes against our dear Lizzy and Darcy. Even characters like Mr. Collins, Lydia Bennet, and Mrs. Bennet, who are more chaotic-neutral (or idiotic neutral?) than true evil, have taken their turn as villains, as have revered supporting characters like Mr. Bennet, Georgiana Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam. So why not the angelic Jane Bennet?