Dear Readers,
The wait is over— Sudden Awakenings is finally here! Start reading today on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited.
What could be worse than awakening in the bed of the man you hate?
Elizabeth Bennet, haunted by a family history of sleepwalking, has spent her life navigating the challenges and eccentricities of her condition.
A sudden encounter during a sleepwalking episode forces her and Mr. Darcy into a marriage of convenience. As they navigate their newfound relationship, their initial prejudices give way to unexpected feelings.
However, Darcy's formidable aunt, Lady Catherine, opposes the match and schemes to break them apart. Can Elizabeth and Darcy overcome the obstacles placed before them and awaken to the realization of the love between them?
This clean, heartwarming romance will leave you captivated and yearning for more. A unique Pride and Prejudice variation culminating in a happily ever after for Our Dear Couple.
Stay tuned for an excerpt, a game, and a giveaway. But before that,
I’d like to give a special mention to a fellow JAFF buddy who is sharing this release week with me. Lyndsay Constable’s new book comes out tomorrow, so you’ll have plenty to enjoy this weekend on your reading schedule.
Excerpt
If you missed the previous excerpt from Chapter 1, head over to Sue Barr’s blog and read it on her Friday with Friends feature from October 25.
Here is an excerpt from the second part of Chapter 1 in Sudden Awakenings.
Just as predicted, Elizabeth woke the next morning with no recollection of her nighttime activities. She went about her day as usual, although the uncharacteristic dirt beneath her fingernails and mud on her slippers teased the question of some late-night escapade which her unconscious mind seemed determined to keep from her.
“You were sleepwalking again last night, Lizzy,” Jane remarked casually as the two of them sat in the morning room. Elizabeth was sewing shirts for the parish poor, as she often did, while Jane occupied herself with retrimming a bonnet.
“Was I?” Elizabeth asked. “I had no idea of it. I hope I did not do anything too dreadful.”
“Nothing more dreadful than attempting to fatten up George during the night,” Jane said with a sly smile.
“Oh dear!” Elizabeth laughed. “As he is already a contender for the top prize at this year’s fair, I daresay he needs no further assistance in that!” Her needle flew across the fabric at an increased pace.
Jane astutely changed the subject. “I’ve had a letter from Mary. She writes that she is settling in well at Hunsford Parsonage. The house and parish are to her liking, and Lady Catherine de Bourgh is friendly and obliging. All in all, she appears content, even happy, in her new situation.”
Elizabeth said nothing. She could not imagine anyone feeling happy as the wife of Mr. Collins and she felt it foolish that her sister, only two years younger than herself, had thrown herself away on a marriage of convenience.
The previous spring, Mr. Collins, their cousin and newly minted rector of Hunsford, had paid them a visit. He initially expressed an interest in Jane, but Mrs. Bennet, being certain that Jane was destined for a far superior match, steered him towards Elizabeth. But Elizabeth found him pompous and tedious.
Mary, however, was not so scrupulous. As the middle child yearning for attention, she readily accepted Collins’ proposal mere hours after Elizabeth’s rejection, gaining the distinction of being the first sister to wed.
Mary’s piousness and eagerness to please exactly suited his desire for a compliant wife. Her talents on the pianoforte, unappreciated by her friends and family, were highly acclaimed by Lady Catherine, who boasted to be a great lover of music. Out of all the Bennet sisters, Mary’s temperament was the best suited for tending to a flock in the capacity of a minister’s wife, and in her new life, she found a measure of contentment.
Elizabeth, however, could not see all this, and only imagined her sister’s misery in such a situation. She herself would never marry except for love, she reasoned. Material charms and the distinction of being wed held no draw for her as it did for her sisters. Despite her mother’s insistence she would find herself an old maid if she did not make an effort to be agreeable to gentlemen of their acquaintance, Elizabeth felt content with her present situation and was in no hurry to marry. Until some worthy gentleman came along, there was no need to alter her way of life.
Therefore, she was unmoved that afternoon when her mother rushed home to tell them the news.
Mrs. Bennet, a woman whose primary focus in life was the advantageous establishment of her daughters, entered the drawing room all aflutter after her visit with Mrs. Long. The family were scattered about the room, each engaged in their own pursuits, and unperturbed by the matron’s behavior. Mrs. Bennet did not even bother to remove her bonnet but immediately went to her husband, who was in his favorite chair, attempting to find solace in his newspaper.
“My dear, Mr. Bennet,” she began, in a voice so eager it made her husband sigh. “Have you heard? Netherfield Park is let, at last!”
The park had been unoccupied ever since the owners had been forced to retrench.
Mr. Bennet ignored her and continued reading his paper.
“Do you not want to know who has taken it?” Mrs. Bennet rapped her fingers impatiently on the back of his chair.
Mr. Bennet finally graced her with a glance. “As you wish to tell me, my dear, and I have no objection to hearing it, by all means, let us hear it,” he said dryly.
His invitation led her to communicate that a man from the north by the name of Mr. Bingley, whose income was estimated at four or five thousand a year and who was reportedly single, was to be their new neighbor.
Elizabeth listened with some amusement as her father, who found great enjoyment in vexing her mother, insisted he would not go to visit Mr. Bingley to establish the acquaintance. None of Mrs. Bennet’s cries and pleas for the sake of their daughters could stir him to agree otherwise, though his wink towards Elizabeth told her he fully meant to do so.
“Your father is so stubborn, Lizzy!” Mrs. Bennet complained to her. “He will not take us to town so you may meet interesting and eligible gentlemen, whom you might marry, and here is a wealthy young gentleman who comes into our very neighborhood, and all your father has to do is cross three miles to meet him, but still, he will not stir! How am I ever to find husbands for you all, with such a father as yours?”
“I do not know, Mamma. Perhaps we shall all have to join a convent,” Elizabeth quipped.
Her remark did not satisfy her mother, who soon left the house to complain about the situation to her sister, Mrs. Phillips, who resided in nearby Meryton.
***
It would be interesting, Elizabeth supposed, to make a new acquaintance. Their circle of acquaintances, circumscribed by geography and limited means, comprised only four and twenty families with whom they had any degree of familiarity, and fewer still with whom they enjoyed the intimacy of regular calls and shared dinners.
A newcomer promised to be a delightful novelty for conversation, and by paying a visit to her particular friend Charlotte Lucas the following day, Elizabeth was able to learn more about their new neighbor.
“My father has already lost no time in calling on Mr. Bingley,” Charlotte told her, with levity, “and he reported him to be a handsome and agreeable fellow. I have not seen him myself,” she clarified, “but I have never known my father to exaggerate. Mr. Bingley has two sisters, one married, who are to join him at the end of the month. I hope they shall be as agreeable as their brother.”
“Their amiability is of no consequence to us, surely,” said Elizabeth. “For we are not dependent on their company, after all. If their brother is as agreeable as has been told, then I daresay he will bring sufficient life to our dull gatherings.”
Charlotte heartily agreed.
Game
As part of the continued celebration for the release of Sudden Awakenings, I thought it would be fun to add a game or puzzle to each day of my blog release.
Today’s game is a Pride and Prejudice trivia crossword that is (in my opinion) diabolically hard. Feel free to break out your copy of Pride and Prejudice or Google the answers if you get stumped, and have fun!
Blog Tour
I have a sensational blog tour lined up for Sudden Awakenings, with unique games and excerpts at every stop. Don’t miss out! You might even discover some new favorite blogs along the way.
Oct 25- Sue Barr, Friday with Friends
Nov 1- Release Day! My newsletter and blog
Nov 4- Every Woman Dreams
Nov 5- Always Austen
Nov 7- From Pemberley to Milton
Nov 11- Darcyholic Diversions
Nov 13- My Jane Austen Book Club
Nov 22- Austenesque reviews
Behind the scenes of Sudden Awakenings
It is amazing to me how sometimes a final book can look drastically different than the original concept. In the case of Sudden Awakenings, I knew from the beginning I wanted to do a forced marriage scenario, but my first vision was a compromise situation inspired by the scene at the ending of the 2005 Pride & Prejudice movie, where Elizabeth wanders into the field in her nightgown and Mr. Darcy meets her there with his shirt unbuttoned and his coat loosely thrown on top.
In the movie, they get engaged right then, so there’s never any questions raised about their honor. However, a reader pointed out on Facebook that, had they not gotten engaged, meeting in such a state of dress would have likely caused Elizabeth to be compromised and put her reputation at risk.
Originally, I conceived that their encounter would take place early on in the timeline, while Elizabeth still hated Darcy, and that the prying eyes of a gossiping neighbor would lead to their forced marriage.
However, as I worked on the outline for this book, I realized I couldn’t come up with a realistic reason why either of them would be out of doors in such a state (even in the movie, it’s a stretch, but I forgive it, because I love it so darn much!).
I came up with numerous reasons why Elizabeth might be wandering around in her nightgown, but none seemed to fit, until I thought “what if she was sleepwalking at the time"? This notion finally fit and gave a sensible explanation for why an otherwise prudent woman might find herself in such a compromising situation.
While a scene of Elizabeth sleepwalking out of doors did make its way into the book later on, I also decided that it worked much better if the initial compromise were to take place while Elizabeth and Darcy were both guests at Netherfield Park. It made the situation far more plausible— and far more disastrous— for Elizabeth to sleepwalk into Mr. Darcy’s room in the middle of the night and get caught there.
Sleepwalking remains a theme throughout the book, but the heartbeat of the story is the forced marriage turned to love trope for Darcy and Elizabeth as the book explores their gradual shift from prejudice and dislike, to amicable partnership, and finally admiration and love.
The book also explores the dichotomy between marrying for wealth and marrying for love, as various characters exhibit opposing goals and views on the subject.
The book is not without a few villainous characters either, who either seek to destroy our main characters’ happiness, or pursue their own ends at the expense of whoever or whatever stands in their way. But rest assured, dear readers, a happy ending awaits all the good characters in the story, while the villains get their just desserts in one fashion or another.
I hope you will enjoy reading this heartwarming variation as much as I did while writing it.
Happy Reading,
Amanda Kai
Giveaway
And now for the part you’ve been waiting for! To celebrate the release of Sudden Awakenings I am giving away some fabulous prizes, including a prize package containing all 3 main novels in The Other Paths Collection, a Pride and Prejudice inspired candle, and a tin of Pride and Prejudice inspired tea.
The giveaway runs all month through November 30th, so be sure to sign up and share it with all your friends!
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