Monday, April 7, 2014

My Share in the Conversation...A Father's Sins

A Father’s Sins by J Dawn King

Debut author, J Dawn King’s book, A Father’s Sins, grabbed my interest and held it from the very first page until the last. I did not want to put it down. I adored the prologue! It was well done and set the stage for the events that follow.

Since this narrative is a variation, changes are to be expected. A few of the characters have different personalities but those changes are the basis for the premise. Mr. Bennet was a hard man and blamed Lizzy for his foolish actions. George Darcy made a mistake in his youth that hurt his children. They ultimately pay for their father’s sins as Lizzy does for her father’s.

Darcy and Elizabeth are pretty true to character and I loved them both.  This is a wonderful Darcy and a witty, caring Elizabeth. There is no insult at Meryton, as Lizzy is not present at the Assembly. The major obstacles to the courtship of my favorite hero and heroine are mostly from outside sources and those hindrances abound.

Lord and Lady Matlock, their heir, Henry and dear Colonel Fitzwilliam are absolutely delightful. They are some of my favorite characters and play a pretty major role in the story as does Georgiana. Lizzy helps Georgiana to ‘stand tall’ and become a more confident young woman.  The process is endearing.  There are a few new characters, Mrs. Nichols, for one, and some familiar ones, the Hills, that also have a significant part in the events.The Gardiners live up to my expectations of Lizzy’s caring and well-mannered aunt and uncle, who play an important role in Lizzy's life. Wickham is up to no good and is utterly despicable. Caroline Bingley is disgusting. Lady Catherine is her usual self but Anne is a bit ‘stronger’. Charles Bingley learns to stand up for himself rather than let others lead him. In Jane’s character I was a bit disappointed, but under the circumstances, I could ‘kind of’ understand why she might be somewhat altered.

On several occasions the author used Elizabeth’s voice to make a statement that I have tried to live by in my life. To summarize, ‘It is not so important what happens to you, as what happens in you.’ A person can let circumstances or words hurt him or not affect him. It is a choice! (And can be such a life changing choice) I was moved by this theme and was glad that Mrs. King allowed our heroine to grow in wisdom and character from her father’s sins rather than be destroyed by them.

The narrative is fast-paced, action-packed, suspenseful and emotional, is angst driven and not bogged down with detail. Darcy and Elizabeth are in company through a good part of the book, although not necessarily under the best of circumstances. Their ‘together time’ is what I like best and it is clean with no explicit sex.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Even though I hated for it to end, I felt really good inside---very satisfied. For a first novel, J Dawn King did an excellent job and I am impressed with her writing. I understand she has more works in progress and I eagerly await them. Thanks for a book well done!

4.5 out of 5 stars

J Dawn King  is generously giving away A Father's Sins to two lucky people. The giveaway is international and is for one paperback and one eBook. To be entered leave a comment below as I always love reading your 'share in the conversation'!  Good luck to all. Be sure to include your email address in the comment. To prevent unwanted spam, put your email address with (at) instead of @. Winners will be chosen in a random drawing. Giveaway will end at midnight, April 10, 2014. (I have extended the giveaway an extra day since I was a day later posting my review.) If you leave comments here and on the post by J Dawn King, you will double your chances of winning a book.

37 comments:

  1. I hadn't heard of this book before. It sounds interesting. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
    -Sandy

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    1. Sandy, you forgot to leave your email to be entered in the giveaway. If you read "A Father's Sins", I hope you enjoy it and will let me know what you think.

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    2. You are welcome, Sandy! It's so good to have you stop by. I miss hearing from you. I hope you get a chance to read this one. You will like it very much, I'm sure.

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  2. oops! I did forget.
    tinkcook at yahoo dot com
    I did remember to enter it below.

    Went out to Amazon and read some of the reviews. Sounds like you have quite a story and I think I'm going to enjoy it very much.

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    1. That tickles me that you went and investigated my story. The reviewers have been so kind. I wish you success in the giveaway so you can read it for yourself. Thanks for the email.

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  3. This sounds like an interesting variation. I'd be interested in the print version.
    julia (dot) ergane at gmail (dot) com

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    1. Julia, thank you so much for your interest. I wish you success.

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    2. Thanks for stopping by, Julia. It is a very good variation. Good luck with the giveaway.

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  4. After reading the review I have added the paperback (thankfully available in Canada) to my wish list

    meikleblog at gmail dot com

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    1. Why thank you, Vesper. And, thank you for letting me know it was finally available in Canada. Wow! The things a person learns. Best wishes.

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    2. I'm so glad that you added it to your list. I hope you get to read it soon.

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  5. Wow Janet! I'm sold. I totally want to read this one. Thanks for sharing your review thoughts.

    Thanks for the giveaway opportunity too.
    sophiarose1816 at gmail dot com

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    1. Sophia, didn't Janet do a thorough job with this review? I deeply appreciated that she clearly understood my point of view. Best of wishes with the giveaway and thank you, again, for commenting.

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    2. Thank you, Sophia Rose. I'm glad to hear it and I hope you get to read it soon. It is excellent!

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  6. I enjoyed your review Janet, and I've added this to my wishlist! Thank you for the giveaway opportunity, I'm at frawli1978 at gmail dot com

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    1. Thank you, Ceri, for adding my book to your wish list. That's such a nice thought - a "wish" list. Very positive, isn't it? Thank you for commenting and I hope you are successful for the giveaway.

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    2. I'm glad that you enjoyed the review, Ceri. You will love the book! Good luck with the giveaway.

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  7. Sounds like a wonderful variation! I love stories that start without the "not handsome enough...." I'm excited to see what she has done with the characters. Looks like I'll have another book to read when I finish writing the book I'm currently on. I have a large TBR pile forming and I'd love to win this one, either paperback or ebook is fine. Jeannputznutz at msn.com

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    1. Jeanna, isn't anticipation a wonderful thing? The Meryton assembly just wouldn't fit into my story. I did try, but... artistic license. I hope you are successful with the giveaway. Thanks to Janet for providing this opportunity. Enjoy reading down your pile.

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    2. You are entered, Jeanna. Thanks for stopping by and reading my review. Maybe you can read this one when your list getting smaller! I think you will like it.

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  8. I'm reading this right now, so you don't have to enter me in the giveaway. Just wanted to let you know that I love it so far!

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    1. Thank you, Wendi. Please enjoy and thank you for commenting. Found your newest book to be extremely pleasant. Made me smile at the happily ever after.

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    2. I'm so glad to hear that you love it so far! One of the things I loved about it was how good I felt at the end. I know I mentioned that briefly in the review but it was such a gratifying feeling for me. Thanks for taking the time to visit and comment, Wendi!

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  9. I am so curiosity with this story. There are very good comments that I will be glad read it, soon.
    Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy.

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    1. I do hope you get the opportunity. Thank you for commenting. My book is translated into Spanish through chapter three and my son-in-law and daughter are working hard to get it right. Old English into proper Spanish. It is a challenge but they are doing a wonderful job. I shall keep you posted through your blog or Facebook page as to how they are doing. Best wishes for the giveaway.

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  10. Janet Taylor, I look forward to finding out who the winners of the giveaway are. I have an idea that might be a first in the Jane Austen variation world. Hmmmm.... I have to think on this. The final time to enter is just before midnight tomorrow night, right? Yes.... I'll have to think about this.

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    1. I can hardly wait myself! :) I believe your idea is probably correct! Yes, midnight tomorrow night is the cut off for the giveaway! You have had good response and I'm thrilled! (I'm wishing I had left it ending at midnight tonight!)

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  11. I think I would like a different Mr. Bennet, whether I win or not, this book is now added to my wishlist. Thank you!! mysticpixels at aol dot com

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    1. Angie, thank you for commenting on the blog. Mr. Bennet certainly is different in my story. It has been amazing to me how strong opinions are about such a secondary character. Truly, I love it. I wish you success with the giveaway and hope you enjoy reading A Father's Sins if you get the opportunity. Please let me know what you think if you do.

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  12. I am always eager to read the work of a new author; your review has encouraged me to put this on my "TBR" list for the summer!

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    1. Thank you so much, RS. I wish you success in the giveaway. The reviewers have been kind and I hope you let me know what you think if you get a copy.

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  13. This is a very good review and I would dearly love to know what are Mr Bennet and Mr Darcy's sins that will affect Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth. I would love to participate in this giveaway and hope I'm not too late to enter. Cheers!

    evangelineace2020(at)yahoo(dot)com

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    1. Thanks, Sylvia, and you are not too late! Thanks for commenting and good luck.

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  14. Joy, I'm posting this for Cassandra Grafton. She was unable to comment here on the blog for some reason. She wrote this on my facebook page and left a short comment on the facebook post about the review. I knew you want to read it.

    Cassandra Grafton posted to‎ Janet B Taylor
    about an hour ago near Rafz, Switzerland

    Loved the post, Janet! This story sounds really intriguing and I love the sound of the 'back-up' cast! I really enjoy stories where the Colonel is a fun read, Anne comes out of her shell and we can continue to love to hate Caroline Bingley!

    Congrats on the new release, Dawn, and lots of luck with it!

    (Tried to comment on More Agreeably Engaged a few hours ago but having Gmail issues and it wouldn't let me log in!)

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    1. Cassandra, I'm so sorry that you were unable to comment here, but I posted it for you. Thanks for taking the time to let me know that you were having trouble.

      I'm glad you like the review. I hope you get a chance to read the book.

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  15. Thanks for this, Janet! It's a fab giveaway!

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    1. Isn't she awesome? Thanks Cassandra for commenting.

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