Monica Fairview's Blog, page 83

Sonnets and Bonnets

I have to admit that I have never been much of a poetry reader, and asking me to write a poem is liable to send me into a panic. But I decided to jump right into the Sonnets and Bonnets theme and see what I could come up with. One type of poetry I  enjoyed when I was younger was that related to nature. My mother had a volume of Robert Frost’s works that I really liked. So, I decided to start my exploration of poetry in Jane Austen’s time by looking at the Lake Poets. After all, this was the Roma...

Launch Day for Dragons Beyond the Pale

Dragons Beyond the Pale is now available on Amazon!Buy NowJanuary 10, 1815, London

Darcy led the way to his study at the front of the house. That Uncle stalked behind him, not speaking, spoke volumes: the matter was serious, not frivolous; and the information not to be casually trusted to the servants, human and dragon alike.

Simply put, this was bad.

Darcy paused at the study door to savor the image, just for a moment. His father’s large mahogany desk, flanked by matching...

A Fool in Love: a Sonnets & Bonnets post

I don’t know a whole lot about poetry, and I definitely didn’t want to subject anyone to my attempt to write a poem (I had something rhyming harridan and Meryton and then I stopped) so I am giving you a scene from A Wilful Misunderstanding (Chapter 34) for this months theme of Sonnets and Bonnets. In this scene, Elizabeth is burning up all the letters she and Darcy during the time they were estranged… but one particular ‘letter’ she wants to keep. Hope you enjoy!

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Elizabeth t...

Sonnets and Bonnets

 

 

When ‘Sonnets and Bonnets’ was chosen as this month’s theme, the first one I could think of was the sonnet that seems to say it all about the guiding thread in Pride and Prejudice:

 

 

 

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove.

O no! it is an ever-fixed mark

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

(Wm. Shakespeare – Sonnet 116)

 

We saw it featured in the adaptation of anoth...

Dangerous Magic Tour: Deleted Chapter

This is the last stop on my blog tour for Dangerous Magic. I’ve enjoyed chatting with so many of you so much, I don’t really want it to end. Instead, I’m going to give you something to read that you won’t find anywhere else because it isn’t part of the book!

So today I’m posting a complete chapter of Dangerous Magic that I ended it cutting because it didn’t really fit. I like it too much to put it into a drawer and forget about it, so I thought it would be nice to share it with you. It takes pla...

Dragons Beyond the Pale Excerpt 2

January 10, 1815, London

A quarter of an hour later, the housekeeper brought the tea service into the morning room, a lovely snug room with dark furniture, a round table that could seat six, and bright white walls hung with drawings done by Lady Anne Darcy.

Five minutes later, before the tea was even poured, the butler announced the Matlocks’ arrival. The earl and his wife swept into the room, wearing their rank like court robes.

He was tall and looked like nothing so much as an old...

Exciting Cover Reveal for “Fitzwilliam Darcy in His Own Words”

The day is finally here: the cover reveal for Fitzwilliam Darcy in His Own Words! Next to the actual launch, the cover reveal is the most exciting part of bringing a new book out into the world… at least for me.

My mom was an artist, and so I very naturally developed an interest in art from an early age. I enjoyed dabbling in lots of arts and crafts. But I didn’t discover my true art – what I was meant to do – until I started writing novels. Now the writing has entirely taken over. But when each...

Tale of A Bonnet: Darcy in Hyde Park

For this month, the theme at Austen Variations is Sonnets and Bonnets. I intended to write a poem, but that is easier said than done. I have a ghost of a poem written, but I think it will require more work before I can allow anyone to look at it.

So this is a choice like trick or treat. I must either give you a poem, or give you a bonnet story. The choice is clear. The piece needs no introduction, since it is a sketch I wrote specifically for the occasion, but which might very well be the start ...

Cover Reveal: Dragons Beyond the Pale

Dragons are hardly ordinary, so how about an out of the ordinary cover reveal!

(If you don’t want to do the puzzle, tap the landscape icon on the top bar of the puzzle to see the image!)

Jigsaw Puzzle

Here’s the back cover copy:

Smugglers. A kidnapping. A fire-breathing fairy dragon? The Blue Order is falling apart at the seams. 

After months in Bath mentoring Dragon Keepers and Friends, Dragon Sage Elizabeth Darcy actually anticipates traveling to London for the Keep...

The Recovery of Fitzwilliam Darcy now available!

It’s publication day! For this celebratory post, I thought I would do something a little different and share some insights into the characters from The Recovery of Fitzwilliam Darcy. One of the things I love about writing Austen variations is imagining how a change in circumstances results in changes to our beloved characters. I can’t talk about all of them, of course (that would be too long), but let’s take a look at some of the key people.

William Lucas/Fitzwilliam Darcy

The Recovery of Fitzwi...