UPDATE: Congrats to Edie Ramer who won the copy of Karen's book, Undressing Mr. Darcy!!
Today, it's my pleasure to have my friend and Austen Author pal Karen Doornebos as my special blog guest and to get to celebrate the launch of her latest release: UNDRESSING MR. DARCY, a new Austen-inspired story!! Just check out the very fun premise below:
Taking it off in the name of history…
Thirty-five-year-old American social media master Vanessa Roberts lives her thoroughly modern life with aplomb. So when her elderly Jane Austen–centric aunt needs her to take on the public relations for Julian Chancellor, a very private man from England who’s written a book called My Year as Mr. Darcy, Vanessa agrees. But she’s not “excessively diverted,” as Jane Austen would say.
Hardbound books, teacups, and quill pens fly in the face of her e-reader, coffee, and smartphone…
…Until she sees Julian take his tight breeches off for his Undressing Mr. Darcy show, an educational “striptease” down to his drawers to promote his book and help save his crumbling estate. The public relations expert suddenly realizes things have gotten…personal. But can this old-fashioned man claim her heart without so much as a GPS? It will take three festivals filled with Austen fans, a trip to England, an old frenemy, and a flirtatious pirate re-enactor to find out…
Karen is here to take us on an excursion to Twinings in London and to share with us some of her inspiration behind the writing of her second novel... Welcome, Karen!!
~*~
Hello
from Twinings Tea in London!
As an ice-breaker to each leg of my Blog Tour for UNDRESSING
MR. DARCY, I’m taking you along for a ride to England, where I traveled during
the summer of 2012 to do some research for the book.
Where am I on this stop? The fragrant tea shop on the Strand
in London where Jane Austen herself shopped: Twinings. I set a scene in
UNDRESSING MR. DARCY in this very shop! They have a tea bar in the back of the
store where you can sample various teas and a “museum” set in among the shelves
that brings to life not only the history of Twinings, but the history of tea
itself. If you are ever in London it’s worth a visit!
Thank
you, Marilyn, for hosting me…
I’d like to thank my fellow Austen Author, Marilyn, for
having me visit today! You are one of my favorite authors and so inspiring! Not
too long ago you revealed that your husband proposed to you on London
Bridge—how romantic! How great that you and your family just went on a whim
back to London and had a fabulous time. I’m sure that with your books ACCORDING
TO JANE and PRIDE, PREJUDICE AND THE PERFECT MATCH, your readers need no
introduction to Jane Austen and Mr. Darcy…
So,
what’s up with this Undressing thing?
Imagine a history lesson where you watch a very handsome
Regency gentleman lecture about his clothing as he proceeds to take it off—down
to his drawers. This is the premise of UNDRESSING MR. DARCY!
As I was researching male clothing for my first novel,
DEFINITELY NOT MR. DARCY, I stumbled across an English website called The History Wardrobe and they had a show
called Undressing Mr. Darcy in which a man disrobed while a woman lectured
about his clothing. The show is no longer staged, unfortunately, but I have
learned that there is a Dressing Mr.
Darcy show in Louisville at the Jane Austen Society of North America’s Jane
Austen Festival in the summer.
It wasn’t long after learning about the show Undressing Mr. Darcy that I came up
with:
He’s
an old-fashioned, hardcover book reader who writes in quill pen and hails from
England. She’s an American social media addict. Can he find his way to her
heart without so much as a GPS?
The rest is…history! Well, fun history. I also tossed a
pirate into the mix. Not a real pirate, but a modern guy who, in his spare
time, does some pirate reenacting. Did I mention he looks a lot like Johnny
Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean?
You can read the first chapter here!
WIN!
Brant Flakes readers, comment below for
your chance to win a copy of UNDRESSING MR. DARCY… If you’re stumped for what
to say, you can tell me what appeals to you about UNDRESSING MR. DARCY! To
increase your chances of winning you can share this post on your Facebook page
or Twitter—let us know you’ve done that! You can also increase your odds by
following me on Twitter or Facebook,
or, if you’re not already, following Marilyn on her social media—don’t forget
to let us know about it in your comment, thanks! Contest limited to US entrants
only.
Mr.
Darcy’s Stripping Off…
One of his stockings. Look at those shapely calves! At each blog
stop Mr. Darcy will strip off another piece of clothing. Keep track of each
item in chronological order and at then end of the tour you can enter to win a
GRAND PRIZE of the book, “DO NOT DISTURB I’m Undressing Mr. Darcy” door hangers
for you and your friends, tea, and a bottle of wine (assuming I can legally
ship it to your state). US entries only, please.
Karen Doornebos is the author of UNDRESSING MR. DARCY
published by Berkley, Penguin and available here
or at your favorite bookstore. Her first novel, DEFINITELY NOT MR. DARCY, has
been published in three countries and was granted a starred review by Publisher’s Weekly. Karen lived and
worked in London for a short time, but is now happy just being a lifelong
member of the Jane Austen Society of North America and living in the
Chicagoland area with her husband, two teenagers and various pets—including a
bird. Speaking of birds, follow her on Twitter and Facebook!
She hopes to see you there, on her website www.karendoornebos.com and her group
blog with Marilyn: Austen Authors.
JOIN THE BLOG TOUR:
12/27 All Grown Up -
Review
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Karen, thank you again for visiting us, for the great giveaway opportunity, and for letting us know about all of the cool stops on your tour. HUGE CONGRATS on this new book!! You know I can't wait to read it ;). xox
