Monday, February 3, 2020

Mr. Darcy's Perfect Match...Kelly Miller

Happy February to everyone. I can't believe that January is already gone for 2020! It was a busy month for me. How about you?

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I guess everything is going too fast for me. I'm a day behind this week. I had it in my mind that tomorrow was the 3rd of February and was getting my post ready to go. Then I got an email from Kelly asking me if all is okay and when might my post go live? UGH! I organized the blog tour and missed my own stop! That's pretty bad! I apologize to you, Kelly Miller, and to all of you readers! 

Now on with the post below!

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I'm taking part in Kelly Miller's blog tour for her newest release, Mr. Darcy's Perfect Match. Sophia Rose is giving us her "First Impressions" of Kelly's book, with a full review to follow at another time. Before posting her thoughts on what she has read to date, I'll give you the book description.

Book Description:

When secrets are revealed and a family agenda works against him, can Fitzwilliam Darcy recover his damaged spirits and find happiness?

Following his disastrous proposal to Elizabeth Bennet, Fitzwilliam Darcy returns to London from Kent broken-hearted and dejected. One bright spot penetrates his sea of despair: his sister, Georgiana, has finally recovered her spirits from the grievous events at Ramsgate the previous summer. She has forged a new friendship with Miss Hester Drake, a lady who appears to be an ideal friend. In fact, Lady Matlock believes Miss Drake is Darcy’s perfect match.

Upon Elizabeth Bennet’s arrival at the Gardiners’ home from Kent, she finds that her sister Jane remains despondent over her abandonment by Mr. Bingley. But Elizabeth has information that might bring them together. She convinces her Uncle Gardiner to write a letter to Mr. Bingley providing key facts supplied to her by Mr. Darcy.


When Mr. Bingley discovers that his friend and sisters colluded to keep Jane’s presence in London from him, how will he respond? Given the chance, will Darcy and Elizabeth overcome their past misunderstandings? What will Darcy do when his beloved sister becomes a hindrance towards winning the lady he loves?


Early Impressions Post by Sophia Rose:

Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match by Kelly Miller

Without glimpse of cover or blurb, I eagerly accepted Janet’s invitation to share my impressions at the start of Kelly Miller’s latest, a Pride and Prejudice variation story.  This will be one that depends on the reader to already be familiar with Austen’s Pride and Prejudice to some extent because it assumes the reader knows what has come before the point when Mr. Darcy approaches a hostile Miss Lizzy in Rosings’ grounds to deliver his fateful letter.

The title told me to anticipate a luscious amount of time with Mr. Darcy and, from the first sentence, I saw this to be true.  Darcy is narrating and the reader feels his sorrow and bit of anger at being rejected and the shame for his own previous conduct.  He must win back the good opinion of his lady even if he can never hold her heart.  So he is prepared to deliver his defense in a letter.

And, this is where the story blazes a new trail. 

Right when I anticipated Darcy getting comfort from his cousin, his friend, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Darcy have a falling out over Darcy’s unilateral decision to share Georgiana’s secret with a woman who is the barest of acquaintances to the Colonel. 

Next, Georgiana takes the narration in their London home as she excitedly tells her brother about a new friend, Miss Drake, and at the same time notices her brother’s melancholic state. 

Miss Drake’s name comes up again when Darcy wisely checks out her credentials with Georgiana’s companion and his aunt, Lady Matlock, who introduced the girls.  He does not notice the gleam in Lady Matlock’s eye over his interest quite like the reader does.  Look out Darcy, she’s matchmaking.

But, just as the reader believes Georgiana has made a lovely new friend who isn’t cozying up to get to her brother, Miss Drake gets to narrate and we learn that this fresh-faced, pretty mannered lady is no better than Caroline Bingley- merely more cunning and clever.  What will she get up to in order to bag her prey?  Stay tuned, gentle reader!

Meanwhile, the readers rejoice when Lizzy arrives in London and lands upon a fantastic scheme to bring about her sister, Jane, and Bingley’s happiness.  Darcy gave her the intel for what action was needed in his letter.  Ouch!  Every time she recalls the letter and the letter writer, she feels shame and remorse for her behavior and words.  She doesn’t love him and can’t because he was arrogant, but she is well aware that she was no better and possibly worse.

Charles might have come across as wishy-washy in the original, but when he gets all the facts, boy howdy, did the man leap into action to gain his lady love.  And, wasn’t that a brazen encounter when he crossed swords with his sisters and came out the winner of that skirmish.

What is this?  Oh no, Georgie… spilling secrets and trusting the wrong party!!!!

And, that was where I left it off.  Twenty five percent in and I was captivated.  My mind is racing over where this story will take me.  Such fantastic foreshadowing of the conflict that is to come.  Such engaging characters!  And, I love getting all those perspectives and changes of scenes so I could get inside the heads of so many.

My early impression leads me to predict that Ms. Miller’s latest will be a ‘perfect match’ for many readers who adore Austenesque historical romance.  And, with that last bit, I’m off to finish the rest of Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match.

Thanks for letting me stop by today, Janet!

Author Bio:
Kelly Miller is a native Californian and Anglophile, who made her first visit to England in 2019. When not pondering a plot point or a turn of phrase, she can be found playing the piano (although like Elizabeth Bennet, she is errant when it comes to practicing), singing, and walking her dogs. Kelly Miller resides in Silicon Valley with her husband, daughter, and their many pets.
Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match is her second novel published by Meryton Press. Her first was the Regency novel Death Takes a Holiday at Pemberley, a Pride and Prejudice romantic sequel with a touch of fantasy. Her third novel, Accusing Mr. Darcy, will be released later in 2020.
Contact Info:

Buy Info:




Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match Blog Schedule             

January 27 Austenesque Reviews
January 29 Austenprose
January 30 So Little Time…
February 4 Savvy Verse & Wit
February 6 Donadee’s Corner


Giveaway:
Meryton Press is giving away 8 eBooks of Mr. Darcy’s Perfect Match. Use the Rafflecopter below to enter the giveaway. Good luck to all.

Thank you for sharing your first impressions with us, Sophia Rose. I'm glad to read your thoughts. I felt the same way about the entire book. It grabbed my attention and wouldn't let go until I finished it. I hope everyone gets a chance to read it soon. 

If you have missed any of the stops, be sure to go back and read the excerpts, interesting guest posts, and vignette that Kelly has written for us.

Best wishes to you, Kelly, with this new release. I look forward to your next book! I'll try to keep my days straight next time around! :)

Rafflecopter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

50 comments:

  1. Thank you very much, Janet. You have done an outstanding job organizing a varied and interesting blog tour. Having Sophia Rose as your guest today was a brilliant move. Thanks to you as well, Sophia Rose, for giving my story such an enticing introduction! If I had not written it, I would be anxious to find out what happens next!

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    1. You're welcome, Kelly! I appreciate your kind words, and your patience with my tardiness! Sophia Rose definitely gave your story an enticing intro. I enjoyed reading her thoughts and look forward to her review at a later time.

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    2. A pleasure, Kelly! You wrote a gem, I think. :)

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  2. Sophia, that was a nice summary of the start of the story, but you're just at the warm and fuzzy part. Wait for the angst to come. It's a big surprise and involves old and new characters! No spoilers, though. Happy blog tour, Janet and Kelly!

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    1. Thank you, Suzan. As you say, there are surprises ahead and some familiar faces will turn up too. I appreciate you for your well wishes!

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    2. Didn't Sophia do a great job with her first impressions! I found her thoughts intriguing, and she made me want to read it again. :) Thanks for stopping by Suzan.

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  3. Sophia your summary has me hooked. Looking forward to reading this story.

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    1. Thank you, Deborah Ann. It certainly was a wonderful summary! I appreciate your comment!

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    2. Sophia gave us a good summary, didn't she! It makes me want to read it again.

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    3. Woohoo, glad to tempt you, Deborah Ann!

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  4. Thanks Janet, Sophia and Kelly for your post here. Loved the first impressions and can't wait to read this book. Best wishes on your new publication!

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    1. You're welcome, Jen. We're glad you stopped by. I hope you get to read the book soon. Good luck!

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    2. Thank you for stopping by, Jen! I love what Sophia wrote! I appreciate your kind words!

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    3. Glad you enjoyed it, Jen! A pleasure!

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  5. I was not concerned whether Darcy falls for Miss Drake or not, I don't need E&D to have a HEA, but I do like to have characters like Caroline and Lady Catherine to make it interesting

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    1. I appreciate hearing your opinion, Vesper. Readers do differ in the things they value in a story. Lady C does not have much to do with this story, but Miss Bingley has her say, and other familiar characters might add interest for you. Thank you so much for your comment!

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    2. Oh man, both of those had a good showing so far, Vesper. I think will get mighty interesting for us. :)

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    3. You should like some of the new characters, Vesper!

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    1. Thank you, Christina! It is kind of you to say; I appreciate that!

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    2. Oh yeah, it's going to bust wide open with all sorts of interesting conflict based on the set up. :)

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    3. Thanks for stopping by, Christina!

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  7. Whew! Poor Darcy. He is hemmed in from all directions. Bless his heart. So, we have someone even more cunning that Caroline Bingley. Egads! Is it possible. Who clonned that b-witch? Kelly, did you share her DNA. Man... Caroline was bad enough but to add another... that's just wrong. I can't wait to read it. I suppose I should say poor Georgiana too as she is being used to get to her brother. Thanks for hosting Janet. Thanks also to Kelly and her publisher for the giveaway. Good luck to everyone in the drawing.

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    1. Hello J.W., I am certain that Miss Drake would be aghast at being compared in any way to Miss Bingley! I am glad you enjoyed Sophia's post! Thank you for your comment!

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    2. Hi Jeanne. Glad you stopped by. I think you are right...poor Georgiana. I believe there is someone that might even top Caroline Bingley for cunning! Good luck!

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    3. I know, isn't it awful that Caroline got eclipsed?

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    1. Hello darcybennett, thank you for stopping by to read Sophia's first impressions. I appreciate your comment!

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    2. Glad you stopped by. Good luck in the giveaway!

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    3. You bet! Appreciate your visit, DarcyBennett!

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  9. Thanks for your first impressions of Kelly’s book, Sophia Rose. Sounds more than intriguing, and Suzan says you just covered the ‘warm and fuzzy’ part. LOL I can’t wait for the action to begin!

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    1. Glad you stopped by, Jan. Suzan is right! I hope you get to read it soon.

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    2. Thank you, Jan! I am glad you found Sophia's first impressions intriguing! I appreciate your comment!

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    3. Yeah, she said that and made me perk right up with interest. :)

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  10. I knew it! I knew Miss Drake was more interested in Darcy than Georgiana! I really hope Darcy isn’t taken in by her manipulations? I’m not an angst lover and I’m already suffering from an extreme attack of nerves from the thought! Where’s my handkerchief? I need to wave it while calling for my salts!
    It looks like Elizabeth has success with reuniting Jane and Bingley so let’s hope they return the favour by reuniting Elizabeth with Darcy?
    Phew! I must calm down and look forward to more hints.

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    1. Hello Glynis, I can safely promise you that the angst level here is lower than in "Death Takes a Holiday at Pemberley." I hope Suzan did not scare you too much! LOL. Some of this story's surprises are pleasant in nature. Thank you so much for your comment!

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  11. HaHa! I love your comment, Glynis! I'm just about as bad as you when it comes to some new lady trying to gain Darcy's attention, compromise him, or whatever her tactics may be. I start feeling that angst as soon as I am aware of the scheme or actions. UGH! Did you find your salts and your hankderchief? I think you will like this story even if you are already having an attack of nerves. :) Thanks for stopping by and good luck in the giveaway.

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  12. Channeling your inner Mrs. B, Glynis, buahaha! I had serious qualms about the woman, too. We'll hold hands through the dark scary tunnel until Lizzy and Darcy are in their HEA. ;)

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  13. Hi all,

    Thank you,Sophia,for sharing your initial thoughts on this intriguing storyline.

    Miss Drake certainly sounds like a force to be reckoned with,following in the steps of the estimable Ms Bingley.

    I wish you the next of luck worn your book,Kelly.

    Thank you for hosting,Janet.

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    1. Thank you, Mary! I am glad you found Sophia's summary intriguing, and I greatly appreciate your kind words!

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    2. It was fun working on the post and it was agony stopping right at that point. Miss Drake is definitely a worthy foe, I think!

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    3. Hi Mary! I'm so happy you stopped by. I like Sophia's initial thoughts too. She paints a good picture and makes me want to read it again! :) Good luck with the giveaway.

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  14. Wonder what secrets Georgie is spilling, about her or her brother? Will that be used against them? Thank you for the excerpt. Eager to read the book and know more

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    1. Good questions, Buturot! I am glad Sophie's post made you eager for more. Thank you so much for your comment!

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    2. I had to be awful and stop at a cliffhanger. LOL I'm glad it made you want to read the book even more, Buturot!

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    3. That is such a scary thought, isn't it Buturot. Glad you stopped by and I hope you get to read the book soon.

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  15. Janet, you are not alone. January was a blur! As for Mr. Darcy's Perfect Match - Loved your thoughts Sophia! Definitely intrigued and look forward to reading it. Thank you for a chance at the giveaway!

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    1. Thank you for your comment, Carole in Canada! I'm glad Sophia's post increased your interest in the book!

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    2. I'm thinking that February is going to be the same way, Carole! :) Thanks for taking time to stop by and comment.

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