Falling for Mr. Thornton...Tales of North & South

This has been such a highly anticipated day for twelve authors and several others of us. The anthology, Falling for Mr. Thornton: Tales of North & South was planned to launch today, November 14th! Guess what! Today is also the day that the miniseries, North & South with Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe first aired on BBC One in 2004. Isn't that neat! I think so! What a perfect day to release the anthology!

To get this launch party started, I will post the blurb for the book first; then we will hear from Trudy Brasure and Nicole Clarkston. They will tell us how the anthology came into being. Next on the queue, the authors will be introduced and each will share how they first discovered John Thornton and Margaret Hale. Have you discovered them yet? If so, in the comments, tell us how you discovered them. I will, if you will! :) 

Thanks for stopping by today. Let's have a great time and show these ladies and all their hard work some love!

Book Blurb:

Amidst the turbulent backdrop of a manufacturing town in the grips of the Industrial Revolution, Elizabeth Gaskell penned the timeless passion of Mr. Thornton and Margaret Hale. A mixing of contemporary and Victorian, this short story anthology by twelve beloved authors considers familiar scenes from new points of view or re-imagined entirely. Capturing all the poignancy, heartbreak, and romance of the original tale, Falling for Mr. Thornton is a collection you will treasure again and again.

Stories by: Trudy Brasure * Nicole Clarkston * Julia Daniels * Rose Fairbanks * Don Jacobson * Evy Journey * Nancy Klein * M. Liza Marte * Elaine Owen * Damaris Osborne * Melanie Stanford ** Foreword by Mimi Matthews **

Trudy and Nicole, I'm turning this over to you! 

Q: How did this project all start?

Trudy Brasure: The initial motive was a bit personal. It had been over five years since my last N&S variation was published and I really wanted to publish something before another year had passed. My current work in progress has been long in coming, so I decided that if I started a short story collection with other authors, I could reach my goal of publishing within a year.

But besides all that, it's one of my great joys to spread and encourage the love North and South in any way. I was particularly eager to entice some Austen writers to join my venture! I knew there were a few of them who were Thornton fans as well. And since I already knew most of the other North and South authors out there, I was fairly confident there would be interest in creating a North and South anthology.

Not wanting to do this all on my own, I asked Nicole if she would be my partner in this project. Nicole has the unique distinction of being the only author to have successfully straddled both the Austen and Gaskell domains—she has published multiple novels in each world.  And I needed someone who had current experience in the ever-changing publishing scene. 

 Q: So what was your response to Trudy’s idea, Nicole?

Nicole Clarkston: I didn’t have to think about it for even a second. I loved the idea! How could I not? I had been toying with the notion of doing a North and South story collection, but the idea was bigger than I wanted to tackle on my own. 

Teaming up with Trudy was a dream! Hers were the first North and South variations I found when I first fell in love with John Thornton, and she has been a dear friend for a few years now. We have had so many fun chats about our favorite top-hat-wearing gentleman! She is truly knowledgeable about the era and the Victorian authors, and she knows these characters like they are her best friends. 

I will be honest: some readers and authors are hesitant to give North and South variations a try. I believe part of that is because it is a more sombre original work, being set in an industrial Victorian city rather than a cheerful countryside of a (slightly) more carefree era. However, that only highlights how rich and admirable the story and the characters truly are. In order to draw out the depth and feeling of the story, an author needs to understand the very Victorian challenges, attitudes, morals, and faith that these characters must wrestle with. Every author in this collection has invested a lot of time and heart to earnestly search out the nuggets of inspiration and breathe life into the characters.

Trudy Brasure: Yes, and we wanted to let each author's unique perspective and talents showcase the varied aspects of Gaskell's story. We had a very open guideline for contributing. We wanted a variety of tales: from Victorian to modern, time mix-ups, humorous and intently serious.

I knew I wanted to ask all the previously published N&S authors if they would like to contribute a story for the project. And I knew a couple of Austen writers who I thought would love to try a short story as their first dabble in Milton. It wasn't hard to find enthusiastic authors, was it, Nicole?

Nicole Clarkston: No, the problem was actually that some had to bow out due to scheduling 

conflicts after joyfully embracing the idea. Everyone we talked to was excited about the project and it was truly a delight to see it come together. Most of us didn’t know each other well, but everyone was such a pleasure to work with! These are some remarkable authors and human beings, and the early stage of writing and taking over plot lines was a blast. 

When the stories started rolling in, we knew we had a special collection. Each author truly went for the heart of the story, and each in their own unique style. The blending of voices and imaginations beautifully captures just why North and South resonates with so many readers: because it is a story that transcends circumstances and styles and speaks to the root of human relationships. 

Speaking of what is so special about North and South, we asked each of our authors how they first discovered John Thornton and Margaret Hale. 

Nancy Klein I read "North and South" in graduate school in 1985. It was part of my Victorian Novel class and loved it. Fast forward to 2005 and I'm strolling around Best Buys on Christmas Eve, looking for a DVD to play on the player my brother and sister are buying for me in another part of the store. Bingo--there's "North and South." I watched it in one sitting on December 26, and there was no going back after that. The music, the smouldering, the scene at the train station--wait, that didn't happen in the book. Who cares? I'm in love.

Nicole Clarkston I was already in love with "Pride and Prejudice" and I was looking for something I could love just as much. I happened to turn on the miniseries during a home renovation project, when I needed something to keep me awake while I worked through the night. My expectations were not very high. However, by the time The Kiss happened, I was a drooling, wide-eyed, sleep-deprived John Thornton devotee. I drove all the way across Portland the next day after calling all the local book retailers to see who had it on the shelf (because 2 day shipping was way too long to wait). I loved the book even more! After three years had gone by with no sign of my obsession abating, I decided I had to put pen to paper, and here we are.

Kate Forrester A confession, my love of North and South came from the BBC adaptation staring Danielle Denby Ash and Richard Armitage and not Mrs Gaskells novel, my love of that came later. Christmas 2007 my daughter received North and South as a gift. We didn’t watch it until the new year - the first Sunday in January to be precise. From the opening scene I was hooked. I loved the train, and Margaret’s reflection. I adored the minor characters Mr Hale, Bessie Higgins, Nicholas Higgins, the fabulous Fanny Thornton, and the indomitable Hannah Thornton. Then there was John Thornton, Master of Marlborough Mill – the man who didn’t know how to dabble but had a foolish passion for a woman who didn’t look back but who did eventually come home with him after the most romantic kiss ever seen in a BBC Sunday drama. Richard Armitage’s portrayal of Thornton was perfection. Sunday lunch was forgotten as we binged watched all four episodes – the first of many viewings.

Rose Fairbanks I fell in love with North and South after watching the BBC production with Richard Armitage. I was so good back then and only watched one episode a night even though I was watching on Netflix. By episode two, Mr. Thornton was haunting my dreams. I watched several more times back to back and it reignited my love for Victorian literature. I finally realized it was based on a book and decided to read it. I actually didn’t think the book could be even better than the production (I mean, that kiss!), but I was so pleasantly surprised.

Damaris Osborne My husband was on deployment abroad, and my daughter and I sat down to watch another Sunday evening BBC four parter from 19thC literature. Austen was exhausted, Dickens was getting dreary. North & South sounded potentially a bit ’trouble at t’mill’ grim, but the quality of the production both in front of and behind the camera made it a ‘we must see next episode’ from the first. However, it was the ‘look back at me’ scene that left me speechless. Good looking chaps in their thirties are not rare on screen, but one who could draw one into the anguish of a soul through eyes alone was amazing. By the end (despite shouting at the screen that anyone canoodling on a station platform would have caused public outrage) I was eager to see how much of the tale was dramatic television licence and how much was the brilliance of Gaskell. It turned out that the book was different, but had its own glittering high points, and showed just how underrated Mrs Gaskell has been for far too long. My parody is of the television series, since parodying Mrs Gaskell would be an insult.

Don Jacobson The honest truth is that I went backwards into "North and South" after reading Nicole Clarkston's variations. Up to the point, I had been exclusively reading Pride and Prejudice variations. When Nicole asked me to beta-read "Northern Rain" (we had been sharing each other's work for a year by that point) I was hooked. Then I resolved to go back and read the original source story. WOW again. Buried inside of the traditional romance was a potent social commentary about rising by the dint of one's talents while also being held back by those who rose before you were able to escape your station.

Elaine Owen I got into North and South around 2015, after seeing so many people who were usually calm and sensible completely gush about something that happened on a train platform! I finally gave into curiosity and watched the movie, and just that fast, I was one of those people whimpering over a solitary yellow rose. Then I read the book and fell in love once more.

Evy Journey I actually didn’t know about Gaskell’s novel until I saw the miniseries which I found surfing Netflix for something to watch. Like many viewers, I loved it. When that happens I very often read the book it’s based on. As it also sometimes happens when a book or film touches me, I continue the story in my mind.

Trudy Brasure I stumbled upon the BBC’s adaptation of North and South in October 2009 when my friend and I searched for something to watch on Netflix. I didn’t know it then, but it was a pivotal event for me. I’d never heard of Elizabeth Gaskell before. Richard’s performance of the lonely and misunderstood John Thornton was utterly riveting. I don’t think I’d ever seen a romantic hero as vulnerable as Thornton was during that profoundly moving scene with his mother the night before he proposed. I immediately searched for information on Richard Armitage and Gaskell’s story afterward and found a community of fans at C19 that encouraged and nourished my fascination with North and South. I ordered the book and flew through it—it’s now one of my prized possessions, with all my markings over the years on its pages. Consumed with re-imagining that painful good-bye scene from the mini-series, I began writing the opening scenes of A Heart for Milton early in 2010.

Melanie Stanford My mom has always loved classic literature and the movies and mini-series that go along with it. One day when I was visiting, she begged me to watch one of her favourites- Cranford. I enjoyed the movie and decided that next time I visited, I'd watch another Gaskell with her. My choice- Wives & Daughters, because the third movie in the boxed set, North & South, looked blah to me. I wanted to watch a movie about families and flirtations, not one about a mill owner during the industrial revolution. Well. I did eventually give North & South a try and WOW. After just one watch, North & South became one of my all-time favourite movies and Richard Armitage a beloved actor. It didn't take long (or too many re-watches) for me to read the book and then write my own modern retelling. Two years later and I still love North & South and I'm so happy I got this chance to dive into the world Gaskell created and write another retelling. 

M. Liza Marte In all honesty, I found Elizabeth Gaskell and her story, North & South by way of John Jakes. I was a huge fan of the TV mini-series, North and South based on John Jakes novels. When I heard there was a BBC adaptation I thought, “How can they remake a British version of the Civil War story?” It made no sense to me. A friend, who was a great admirer of the lead actor in the BBC version told me it was a different story, with many similarities to “Pride & Prejudice,” my favorite book. With that inducement I watched and fell in love with the story, the characters, Milton, everything!

Blog Tour Schedule:

14/11/2019 More Agreeably Engaged; Blog Tour Launch & Giveaway

19/11/2019 My Jane Austen Book Club ; Author Interview & Giveaway

21/11/2019 From Pemberley to Milton; Review & Giveaway

25/11/2019 So Little Time…; Guest Post & Giveaway

05/12/2019 My Vices and Weaknesses; Review & Giveaway

10/12/2019 Diary of an Eccentric; Guest Post & Giveaway

16/12/2019 Babblings of a Bookworm; Review & Giveaway

20/12/2019 Austenesque Reviews; Guest Post & Giveaway

Buy Link:

Amazon US eBook

Amazon US Paperback

Amazon UK eBook

Amazon UK Paperback

It is so exciting to have this many authors together and writing about John Thornton and Margaret Hale. I've been anxious to have this in my hands and read it anytime I have a few minutes. I will be able to get my North & South fix and enjoy a story or two. I know I will be reading Falling for Mr. Thornton over and over. 

For those of you that love Pride & Prejudice with Darcy and Elizabeth, I hope you will give this anthology about the beloved characters of North & South a chance. You may just fall in love with them too. Who knows, you may then move on to the original book by Elizabeth Gaskell. You may even want to watch the miniseries with Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe, if you have not already done so. 

Congratulations to each of the twelve authors. You have an awesome anthology that will introduce new readers to the wonderful world of Milton, John Thornton, Margaret Hale, and even Nicholas Higgins! 

If you would like to read the full blurb for each of the twelve stories and see what type of story it is, please click here. It will pull up a pdf document for you to read. It also includes the author bio and contact information for each author. 

Thank you, Rita Deodato, for organizing the blog tour and allowing me to launch it!

Giveaway:

Take a look at all those books above which are the main giveaway for this blog tour. That is amazing! Good luck to everyone!

The authors will offer one big prize to one reader following the entire blog tour. This prize will contain 13 different ebooks, once copy of Falling For Mr. Thornton and one other ebook from each author.

Additionally, the authors would also like to offer 2 bookmarks of Falling for Mr. Thornton at each blog. Both giveaways are international. 

Leave a comment below to be entered for the bookmarks. Use the Rafflecopter to enter the grand prize of thirteen eBooks. Good luck to all of you.

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