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Excerpt & Giveaway: Letters of the Heart by Kay Bea

Today’s guest is Kay Bea, a debut author in the Jane Austen Fan Fiction universe. She’s eager to share her first book, Letters of the Heart, and I’m eager for you to read this excerpt that will leave you wanting more.

Don’t forget to enter the generous giveaway from Quill & Quartos, her publisher.

Book Synopsis:

The Bennet sisters of Longbourn lack both decorum and connections and do not possess a decent dowry between them. Even the best of the them is in every way unsuitable for a man whose income is as a good as a lord. But love is not so easily set aside and in January 1812, Mr Darcy persuades Mr Bingley to reopen Netherfield Park, the country estate from which they both fled only two months before. On returning to Hertfordshire, they discover a near tragedy took place three days after the Netherfield Ball and has changed the lives of the Bennet family forever. Mrs Bennet’s relentless fear of losing her place in society has led her to condemn her least favourite daughter to a life of isolation and pain that will greatly complicate Darcy and Elizabeth’s journey to happiness. Old bonds are strengthened, family ties are severed, and unlikely allies emerge as each of them struggles to make sense of the changes they face.

Please give Kay a warm welcome and enjoy the excerpt below:

It was several minutes later that a question from Lydia shattered the fragile peace of his mind. “Did my sister and her odious husband travel with you?” There was a half-hearted admonishment of “Lydia! That was unkind,” from one of the sisters. Miss Bennet, he thought, but was not certain. Lydia simply ignored the reprimand and continued, “We were expecting Lizzy two days ago, but she has not come, and we thought perhaps they delayed their travel.”

Mrs Bennet chose that moment to join in, “Of course, it is just like that ungrateful girl to break her poor sister’s heart when my Jane has been so looking forward to seeing her after all this time. And not even a note to explain her absence. She has no consideration for my nerves, but I shall not complain.”

He ignored Mrs Bennet in favour of replying to her youngest daughter. “No, Miss Lydia, they did not. Your sister and her husband were in Kent when I returned to London. Like you, I believed they were to arrive here yesterday. I said as much in my letter to Bingley.” Darcy struggled to keep his composure. Unlike his first return to Hertfordshire, he could not hide his distress behind a display of taciturn incivility. These ladies were no longer strangers to him; they were his dear sister’s intimate friends, and ignoring them would be disgraceful.

He was drawn from his introspection with the announcement that Mr. Bennet, in fact, had recovered enough to escort his eldest daughter to her wedding. The news was bittersweet. For though he was glad to know the master of Longbourn was returning to health, he could not help but think how pleased Elizabeth would be at hearing the change. That thought took him directly back to considering all the reasons she might have for a late arrival, and none of them were pleasant.

Two days after the wedding, Darcy and Georgiana made a final call at Longbourn before beginning the journey to Pemberley. While his sister made her farewells to Lydia, Catherine, and Mary, Darcy requested an audience with Mr Bennet. He congratulated himself when he did not scoff at Mrs Bennet’s raptures over which of her younger daughters he had chosen to marry. He was admitted to Mr Bennet’s book room and found the older man sitting quietly, staring at a miniature of a young girl who could only be Elizabeth.

The silence had just begun to grow uncomfortable when Mr Bennet carefully placed the portrait on his desk and raised his eyes to meet those of his guest. “I am told my family and I owe you a great debt, Mr Darcy. Before she married, Jane informed me that the change in my care and, therefore, the improvement in my condition were due solely to your intervention. I would offer my thanks if only I understood your motivation.”

Darcy shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I can assure you, sir, that my only motive was to see you restored to health for the comfort and well-being of your daughters.”

Mr Bennet gave the younger man a piercing look. “Nonsense. You made your opinion of my daughters quite clear when you first visited the neighbourhood.”

Darcy could not deny it. “I was wrong. Your daughters are very lively and their manners not fashionable, but they are good girls, all of them, and I had no right to judge otherwise.”

Mr Bennet nodded his acceptance and returned his gaze to the miniature on his desk. “Lizzy was always my favourite. Did you know? No, I suppose you would not. When I learnt of your insult at the assembly, I called for my horse and was ready to ride out before she stopped me. She said you were not worth her tears or my anger. I am her father, and I know she was not being entirely truthful. Your words wounded her, no matter that she tried to laugh them away.” His eyes never lifted from the image of Elizabeth.

“I should not have spoken them. I did not behave as I should have when I was first in Hertfordshire. I have since tried to be a better man, the man I ought always to have been,” Darcy confessed.

Mr Bennet inclined his head in acknowledgement and said, “Then I wish you success. Perhaps you will not wait, as I did. Perhaps you will not fail your sister as I failed my Lizzy. They told me she was visiting friends of her Aunt Gardiner’s in London. I knew, of course, it was a lie. But not in my wildest imaginings did I conceive of the truth, and now my Lizzy is bound to a man I know was raised without an ounce of kindness by my illiterate and miserly cousin.”

He finally raised his eyes to meet Darcy’s. “Still, you owe us nothing. You were under no obligation to return or to offer your assistance. So why are you come, Mr Darcy?”

“I made her a promise, Mr Bennet, and I mean to keep it,” Darcy answered solemnly.

I hope that leaves you ready to read more. I know I’m eager to read it.

About the Author:

Kay Bea is an administrative assistant and Jane Austen lover living in Kansas City with her husband of twenty-five years, her mother-in-law, and her fur kids. She has written several short stories and drabbles on fanfiction.net as “I Found My Mr. Darcy” and on A Happy Assembly as
MrsDarcy2032.

Kay grew up in Wyoming, enjoyed a two-year adventure in Maryland, and now calls Missouri home. When she isn’t writing, Kay enjoys photography, cooking, and spending time with her adult children and three granddaughters. Visit her on Facebook and GoodReads.

Giveaway:

  • Up for grabs is a $50 Amazon gift card
  • To enter comment on any of the blog tour stops to earn one point per stop.
  • Giveaway ends on Sept 19.