Book Sale and Giveaway! by Jennifer Altman

Hello, friends!

First, I’d like to offer my sincerest apologies for being MIA for the better part of the last year. 🙁 To be honest, there’s been a lot going on (some of which I will be sharing in the coming months) but I truly appreciate everyone’s patience as I continue to truck along on my next novel. I know it’s been a long time coming, however, I promise that I am making steady progress, and I look forward to sharing some excerpts very soon!

In the meantime, I really wanted to use today’s post simply to say “thank you” and to give a little something back.  So, the good news is that from now through Labor Day (Monday, September 2nd), both of my ebooks are on sale for only $.99! 🎉🎉🎉 Which means if you’re looking for some end-of-summer reading, this is the perfect time to snap them up! 🙂

In addition to the sale, I’m also going to be giving away several signed paperbacks (more details on that at the bottom of the post). But to kick things off, I thought I’d go ahead and share the blurbs along with the first few pages of each book below. I hope you enjoy!

The course of true love never did run smooth…

When Fitzwilliam Darcy departs Hunsford after his disastrous proposal to Elizabeth Bennet, he does not expect their paths to cross again. Indeed, knowing the lady’s true feelings for him, he makes every effort to see that they do not. But when a chance encounter leaves him stranded in an abandoned cottage with the one woman he can never have, Darcy quickly realizes there is more at risk than just Elizabeth’s reputation.

Elizabeth Bennet knows Mr. Darcy is the last man in the world whom she could ever be prevailed on to marry. Until the morning he hands her a letter, his countenance as dark and forbidding as the windswept sky. Now, trapped in a snowstorm with the one person she was certain she despised, Elizabeth is startled to discover that her feelings are not at all what she expected.

But is one night alone together enough to alter the course of their future?

Can any man as proud as Mr. Darcy be expected to offer for the same woman a second time?

In this tale of serendipity and second chances, literature’s unlikeliest couple must conquer pride, prejudice, and faulty first impressions in the elusive quest for their own happily ever after.

 

To Conquer Pride

Chapter One 

Under different circumstances the rocking of the carriage might have been soothing; however, on this brisk November day, the motion offered little comfort to the compartment’s sole occupant.

Fitzwilliam Darcy stared out the frosted windowpane, but his thoughts were far removed from the passing Kent countryside. From the outset, he had dreaded this journey. Indeed, if it were up to him, he would not have come within fifty miles of Hunsford for as long as he lived. But despite the accusations leveled at him in that very village, Darcy was a man who knew his duty, so when Lady Catherine had requested–nay, demanded–his assistance, he had come. Even so, he kept his visit as brief as possible, arriving yesterday morning and working late into the night. He spoke to no one, save his aunt’s steward, going so far as to take meals in his chambers. And not his usual chambers, either. No, he had made a point of requesting a different apartment. Never again would he step foot in the room where he had dared to dream of a life spent happily with Miss Elizabeth Bennet. The room where he had poured out his soul in that ill-conceived letter…

Releasing a rough sigh, Darcy pressed his forehead to the cold glass. Seven months. It had been seven months since his previous trip to Rosings. Seven months since he had last seen her.

Darcy’s head fell back against the cushions. Just thinking about Elizabeth was like a spill of salt to an open wound–and yet he could do nothing to stop thinking. God knows he had tried.

Oh, it had not been difficult at first. After leaving Rosings, he had gone straight to London to set things right with Bingley, and then there was Wickham to contend with. That endeavor had proven a bit more challenging, but at least it had kept Darcy from dwelling on his disappointed hopes. By mid-summer he was back at Pemberley, and though he made every effort to throw himself into the management of his estate, even the brandy he had taken to consuming on a nightly basis did little to dull his memories. For no matter what he did, Elizabeth Bennet haunted his dreams, both sleeping and awake. Sometimes she would appear to him the way he wished to remember her–her smile radiant, her expression bright with humor. But other times he recalled the way she had looked at him the day of his disastrous proposal–her fine eyes dark with anger.

Had you behaved in a more gentleman like manner…

An icy wind swept into the carriage and Darcy started, realizing they were no longer moving. Turning to face the open door, he regarded the footman silhouetted against the lead-gray sky. When Darcy spoke, his voice was tight.

“Why are we stopping? I thought I made it clear I wished to travel straight through.”

Despite his master’s black expression and clipped speech, the footman’s countenance remained carefully composed. “I beg your pardon, Mr. Darcy. This is the last coaching inn before we reach Town. I believe Mr. Johnson thought it prudent to check the state of the roads.”

Darcy lifted his gaze, cursing under his breath as he took in the fat white flakes rapidly descending to join the thick snow already blanketing the ground. Blast! His mind had been so preoccupied; he had not even noticed the worsening conditions.

Turning to his footman, Darcy immediately relaxed his tone. “Of course. Forgive me, Thomas. I had not perceived the change in the weather. Johnson was correct to stop.”

His man offered a deferential nod and Darcy moved to the door, exiting the carriage. In the near distance, he could see the retreating form of his driver, heading for the mews. Addressing the footman, Darcy issued instructions to have the horses watered and rested before stalking off in the direction of the inn. Despite his protestations, he was glad to escape the confines of the coach. His legs needed stretching, but more than that, he required a distraction. Anything to keep from continuously reliving those horrible moments at the parsonage.

No, he did not welcome the delay, but perhaps a change of scene would help banish Elizabeth Bennet from his thoughts, even if only for an hour.

***

Elizabeth Bennet pressed through the thickening crowd, the note clutched tightly in her hand. She should have known something was amiss when her uncle was not waiting to meet her. Moving to the nearest window, she stared out at the blowing snow and her shoulders slumped. What had she been thinking, releasing the carriage without being certain someone had arrived to collect her? But before the thought was fully formed, she already knew the answer. She had simply been grateful to get away. Away from Hunsford. Away from Charlotte’s happiness. And most of all, away from the parsonage, where she could still see Mr. Darcy standing before the empty hearth, professing his admiration and his love.

Of course, he had said other things, too. Hateful, horrible things. About her sister. About the inferiority of her connections.

And she had replied in kind.

Elizabeth shook her head and a soft sigh escaped her lips. More than half a year had come and gone since that awful day, and Mr.Darcy clearly had no intention of being in her company ever again. So much so that he had not even bothered to attend the wedding of one of his closest friends.

Not that this had come as a surprise to Elizabeth, given his feelings about the match.

Well, there was nothing to be done for it. Mr. Darcy was out of her life, and despite her desire to leave the area as soon as may be, she would have to remain at the Bell until tomorrow, along with what appeared to be half of Kent.

Elizabeth’s gaze swept the cramped parlor, but every seat was taken. Circling back the way she’d come, she threaded her way towards the outer corridor. Perhaps she would have better luck in the dining room.

***

Entering the Bell, Darcy paused, allowing his eyes to become accustomed to the dim light. The air around him felt overly warm after the outside chill, and a steady clamor of voices reverberated off the low ceilings. Darcy frowned, already regretting his decision to come inside. Although the inn was no worse than most, and quite a bit better than many, this type of public room filled with strangers never failed to make him uncomfortable.

Shouldering his way through the crowded vestibule, he headed for the saloon, pacing to the front window and staring out at the falling snow. He could only hope the road to London was still passable. He did not wish to be stuck in Kent one moment longer than necessary.

A chorus of restrained titters at a nearby table drew his attention and Darcy turned away from the glass. A congregation of women stared back at him with obvious interest. Darcy’s skin prickled, and he pivoted on his heel, hastily retreating to the relative quiet of the corridor. He would find the proprietor and hope that in spite of the weather there was still a private chamber where he could rest and take tea, or possibly something stronger, while he waited for news.

Crossing into the dining parlor, Darcy scanned the tightly clustered tables. As if by instinct, his gaze shifted to the corner of the room and an odd buzzing filled his ears. Darcy blinked. Were his eyes deceiving him? Could merely thinking about Elizabeth Bennet have conjured her into existence? His gaze settled on the delicate curve of the woman’s neck and a bitter laugh rumbled in his throat. No. If he had such a power, surely Elizabeth would have been thrown into his path long before now.

The woman turned, and Darcy’s heart lurched inside his chest. He stepped forward, and before he could think better of it, her name was on his lips.

If you’d like to continue reading, you can purchase the full ebook for just $.99 HERE! 

When Fitzwilliam Darcy makes an impetuous offer of marriage to Miss Elizabeth Bennet, he is convinced they have as good a chance as anyone for a harmonious life together. That is, until an overheard conversation changes everything, and Darcy realizes he is now joined in perpetuity to a woman who loathes the very sight of him.

Elizabeth Bennet’s expectations for matrimonial accord were never very high, having accepted Mr. Darcy’s proposal in a fit of pique, not love. Still, she is determined to make the best of her situation, despite having tied herself to such an arrogant, disagreeable man.

But life at Pemberley is not at all what she imagined, and Elizabeth soon finds herself with more questions than answers about the enigmatic gentleman she agreed to wed.

Trapped in a marriage founded on misunderstandings, Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth Darcy struggle with deepening attraction while confronting self-doubt and old betrayals. But is love enough to heal the wounds of the past? What will it take for two people bound by duty to find their way home to one another?

 

Faults of Understanding

Prologue