Chance and Circumstance...Kara Louise

Available on Amazon

I am so thrilled to have Kara Louise as my guest today. She is one of my all-time favorite writers and it has been way too long since she has been my guest! Today she is giving us the description for her newest release, Chance and Circumstance, and she is telling us a little about it. Sounds exciting, doesn't it! Wait until you read about Darcy's rival! I will stop chatting and let you start reading. Thanks, Kara Louise, and welcome back! Oh, she has an awesome giveaway too! :)

Darcy’s Rivals… by Kara Louise

Thanks, Janet, for letting me come by today and talk about my new book, Chance and Circumstance. You may wonder about the title of the blog post. Rest assured, I am talking about Darcy’s rivals (in general) and not “Mr. Darcy’sRival,” (the book which I published in 2015).

I think it’s fun to give Mr. Darcy a rival in a story, as it humbles him and makes him examine himself more deeply. I think I have given him a rival in every one of my books where he and Elizabeth are not married, except “Darcy’s Voyage,” (or “Pemberley’s Promise” if you read the original self-published version with that title).

In “Mr. Darcy’s Rival,” his rival was a cousin of Anne’s on the de Bough side of the family. In “Pirates and Prejudice,” it was a cousin of Elizabeth’s on her father’s side of the family, and in many books (including Pride and Prejudice) there is always Mr. Wickham.  For the record, in Chance and Circumstance, Elizabeth finds Wickham interesting and engaging, but he is never truly a rival for her affections. His lies about Darcy, of course, and encourages her to dislike Mr. Darcy more.

Mr. Darcy’s rival in Chance and Circumstance, however, is none other than his good friend, Mr. Bingley! Here is the book description:

Chance brings about an early encounter between Charles Bingley and Elizabeth Bennet soon after his move into Netherfield. He soon begins to favour this pretty and lively young lady. Circumstances have kept Jane Bennet and Mr. Darcy from the neighbourhood, thereby changing the events that Jane Austen penned in "Pride and Prejudice."

When Mr. Darcy finally arrives, will he be able to keep from interfering when he meets this young lady his friend so greatly admires? When Jane returns from touring the Lake District with her aunt and uncle, will the young gentleman who returns with her prove to be better suited for her than Mr. Bingley ever was?

In this "Pride and Prejudice" variation, chance and circumstance greatly affect the way several of Jane Austen's characters arrive at their happily ever after, but not necessarily in the way you think.

Because Mr. Bingley meets Elizabeth first, as both Jane and Mr. Darcy are away, he begins to show her particular attention. When Mr. Darcy does arrive, Mr. Bingley is well on his way to being in love with her. Oh dear!

This changes things for Mr. Darcy and makes things difficult. First, when he meets Elizabeth, he finds himself fighting the attraction as he realizes she is very much the kind of woman he could love. His integrity will not allow him to even consider trying to steal her from his good friend. (Well, perhaps not in a way Bingley would notice.) Secondly, he feels she and Bingley are not well-suited at all and does not think his friend should have begun to show such favoritism to a young lady so early, despite his own heart’s inclination to do the same.

So our Mr. Darcy is faced with having to stand back and watch the interaction between the two. Elizabeth seems to return Mr. Bingley’s admiration, despite what Darcy sees as some great differences between the two in intellect, interests, and personality.

And what does Mr. Bingley think of Miss Jane Bennet? She does not return to Longbourn until just before the Netherfield Ball, because she has been in the Lake District with her aunt and uncle. While up there, she meets some previous acquaintances of the Gardiners who have a son she has come to admire. When Jane and her aunt and uncle return to Hertfordshire, he joins them. Will these mixed-up couples be able to get things straightened out? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

If you would like to read the chapters I posted online, (about half of the book), you can find Chapter 1 here: Austen Variations

Links to the book:

Amazon Paperback

Amazon Kindle

Amazon Author Page

Facebook Author Page

Website

Austen Variations

I am offering a copy of a paperback (US) and also an ebook (US or International) to 2 commenters whose name will be drawn at random.

Thank you, Janet, for allowing me to visit!

You are welcome, Kara Louise. It has been so good having you stop by and I hope it won't be too long before you visit again. You are always welcome. As you know, I love your writing and am always excited when I hear you are working on a new book. I can't wait to read this one. 

I  loved the title of this post and the implication, almost, of your previous book, which I enjoyed tremendously. When you mentioned Darcy's Voyage, I swooned. Oh, how I love that book! It is such an awesome read. I may have to read it again soon. In most of your books, you do give Darcy some serious rivals, even a dog named Reggie once. (Master Under Good Regulation) Well, I guess he really wasn't a rival though, was he? He was adorable, I must say!

Thank you again for sharing a little about your new book with my readers and for offering them such a generous giveaway. Dear Readers, to enter please share some love with Kara Louise. Tell us what you think of Darcy's rival. Can you believe it is Bingley? I know, I know! Fascinating, isn't it! The giveaway will end at 11:59 PM Central Time on the 13th of November. Remember there are two books up for grabs. One paperback, US only, and one eBook, US or international are being given away. Good luck to all of you.