Welcome to C. P. Odom’s seventh blog tour stop of Pride, Prejudice & Secrets. Today I’m delighted to present to you a tantalising excerpt from his third Pride and Prejudice-themed novel. There is a giveaway linked to this blog tour so read the details at the bottom of the post. Take it away, Mr Odom.
First of all, I would like to thank Lúthien84 for hosting this stop on the Pride, Prejudice & Secrets Blog Tour, in which she is scheduled for an excerpt and a giveaway. When I emailed her, I asked if she had any criteria for what kind of excerpt I should have to provide. She responded that, since she had not yet had an opportunity to read my book, she wasn’t in a position to decide but did wish for something that is suspenseful and would leave the readers wanting to know what would happen next. Accordingly, I include an excerpt from Chapter 11 that introduce a subplot in the book (not the whole chapter, just that portion of it pertaining to those subplots). Let me set the stage so that the reader will have an idea of how to fit these excerpt into the plot.
A new character is introduced, an older brother of Colonel Fitzwilliam (but not the heir to the earldom) who is a naval captain just back from the Caribbean with a small fortune in prize money from captured French ships and a newfound decision to search for a wife appropriate to his position in the world (the accepted wisdom in the Royal Navy was that Lieutenants should not marry, commanders might marry and captains must marry). Having met Miss Jane Bennet at a dinner he attended at Darcy’s house in London, he has formed a favourable opinion of her. And, since Elizabeth Bennet was ill at Hunsford, there was no fiery confrontation and Darcy still believes, with complete honesty and sincerity, that Jane Bennet was indifferent to his friend Bingley. So I think the excerpt will leave the reader wondering where I took the story. I hope you enjoy this teaser and the book!
Excerpt
Chapter 11
“Courtship consists in a number of quiet attentions, not so pointed as to alarm, nor so vague as not to be understood.”
— Laurence Sterne, English novelist, clergyman, and humourist
Saturday, April 18, 1812: Hertfordshire
Darcy sat drinking coffee and reading a day-old copy of The Times when a motion caught his eye out the breakfast parlour window and he saw a carriage turn into the drive. The carriage looked familiar, and a slow smile grew as it stopped in front and a tall, blue-uniformed figure appeared.
Well, well, well, he thought cheerfully. Captain George Fitzwilliam has come to call, and he has not driven to Netherfield just to call on me.
“It appears I have a visitor,” he said to the maid by the door. “Please bring him here and ask if he has breakfasted. Oh, and order hot water prepared for a bath.”
The young girl curtseyed and scampered off, and it was only a minute before George strode briskly into the room.
Darcy rose to offer his hand. “I see you wasted little time, George. Welcome to Netherfield. Would you care for breakfast?”
Continue to read the rest of the excerpt at My Love for Jane Austen: Pride, Prejudice & Secrets Blog Tour: Excerpt and Giveaway.