Hello Seekers - greetings from Australia!
It’s a real honor to be with you today, so thank you for taking the time to read about this Aussie historical romance writer’s love affair with England and Jane Austen. 🙂
Anyone who knows me knows I’m a big fan of Jane Austen. I love her novels, I enjoy (most of) the film and TV adaptations of her books, I even appreciate the prayers said to be written by her. I like how the daughter of a country church reverend could be so irreverent in her social skewering of polite society, that she understood the inner foibles and fears of people, that her words contain such wit and wisdom. I like how her books have a core of romance that is so very different to what is deemed romance today. There’s barely any touching, let alone kissing, which means the entwining of hearts must come from other means—no, not just smouldering looks from Mr. Darcy-type characters, but the growing notice of and
appreciation for such qualities as kindness and concern for others, lively spirits, good temper, good humor, etc. I endeavour to emulate some of these qualities in my own Regency-era novels, including The Elusive Miss Ellison, and The Captivating Lady Charlotte, who makes her entrance into the world tomorrow!I’ve always enjoyed Jane Austen’s work, and that of Georgette Heyer, which is why I felt extremely blessed to travel to England in 2015 on a ‘research trip’ (but also to visit my sister, who was living in London at the time). Now, Australia is a LONG way from England, and by the time I arrived I’d spent over a day in the air or waiting in airports. But did I care? No! I was finally in England, the land of so many dreams nurtured by the words of everyone from Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie to Shakespeare, the land depicted onscreen in shows like To The Manor Born and Midsomer Murders—and of course, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.
Anyone who has ever experienced a dream come true would understand the sense of wonder at sitting in the (recreated) Globe Theatre in London, watching a production of As You Like It, just as a theatregoer might have 400 years ago. Would understand the awe of seeing Roman-era baths in Bath (especially true for an Aussie when the earliest European contact with Australia happened in 1606, only a millennia and a half after Bath was founded by those Romans!). Anyone who has ever travelled to places only virtually explored via Google-Earth would know the thrill of walking the same Bath streets that Catherine Morland and Anne Elliot explored, or seeing…(drumroll, please) Pemberley.
Yes, Pemberley, the home of Mr. Darcy, hero of Pride and Prejudice, the hero responsible for countless women’s unrealistic expectations since 1813 (according to one popular meme).
Now I consider the 1995 BBC five-hour production with Colin Firth to be the definitive
Lyme Park, a magnificent estate that dates back to the 14th century (my Aussie mind can’t process such antiquity—heaven help me if I should one day visit Israel!), was used in the 1995 version of P&P, its grand Baroque-inspired features perfect for the home of the ultimate Austen hero. The day I visited the house was closed, but my sister and I could wander the grounds, which suited me as only the exterior was used in the 1995 version. (Interesting side note: my husband actually worked at Lyme Park! – last century, and on the grounds staff, but I’m pretty sure that gives him bonus Mr. Darcy points. 🙂)
As mentioned above, Chatsworth has also been used as a film location for Pemberley, in both the 2005 version, and the 2013 adaptation of PD James’s P&P sequel Death Comes to Pemberley. I was fortunate enough to see inside the house, as well as the amazing gardens, and can fully attest to the grandeur and splendour depicted in the films. To think this was a home—still is a home!—for one family, the Cavendish family, who just happen to be known as the Dukes of Devonshire…
Chatsworth is considered by some to be Jane Austen’s model when creating Pemberley. Consider these lines from Chapter 43 of P&P:
They gradually ascended for half a mile, and then found themselves at the top of a considerable eminence, where the wood ceased, and the eye was instantly caught by Pemberley House, situated on the opposite side of a valley, into which the road with some abruptness wound. It was a large, handsome, stone building, standing well on rising ground, and backed by a ridge of high woody hills;—and in front, a stream of some natural importance was swelled into greater, but without any artificial appearance. Its banks were neither formal, nor falsely adorned. Elizabeth was delighted.Compare that description with images of Chatsworth and there may be some basis for such belief.
Regardless of which Pemberley you prefer, I think it cannot be argued that Jane Austen was a master craftswoman of words, someone whose writing ushered in the advent of realism in novels (unlike the Gothic and sentimental of the 18th century), whose significance is such that this year, 200 years after her death, the Bank of England is commemorating her life with the release of her image on the ten-pound note. (Ironic, because she sold her first manuscript for ten pounds.) Jane Austen’s legacy of realistic yet romantic novels—and creation of such characters as Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy—is definitely worth celebrating.
Visiting England (and side trips to Ireland and Scotland, but that’s another story and a half!) was a dream come true for me. Seeing gentle rolling hills and muted skies so different to the brash landscapes and bold blue skies of Australia, experiencing a tiny taste of life as I imagine might have been lived by some of my literary heroes, was something I shall always cherish, and something I shall always be grateful to my husband, as much for his encouragement to go see the places I’d researched and written about, as his willingness to look after our four children – God bless him!
Now over to you. Have you taken a ‘dream come true’ vacation? Have you ever travelled to England (or Australia!), and if so, what did you enjoy seeing? What would you like to see? Which is your favourite Jane Austen film, and which location would you like to visit?
Leave a comment today for chance to win an e-copy of either The Elusive Miss Ellison or The Captivating Lady Charlotte. Winner announced in the Weekend Edition.
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| The Captivating Lady Charlotte |
Lady Charlotte Featherington is destined for great things on the marriage market. After all, as the beautiful daughter of a marquess, she should have her pick of the eligible nobility when she debuts. She, however, has love at the top of her list of marriageable attributes. And her romantic heart falls hard for one particularly dashing, attentive suitor. Sadly for Charlotte, her noble father intends her betrothed to be someone far more dull.
William Hartwell may be a duke, but he knows he was Charlotte's father's pick, not the young lady's own choice. And the captivating Lady Charlotte does not strike him as a woman who will be wooed by his wealth or title. While she has captured his heart, he has no idea how to win hers in return--and the betrayal and scandal his first wife put him through makes it difficult for him to believe that love can ever be trusted. His only hope is that Charlotte's sense of responsibility will win out over her romantic notions.
Can a widowed duke and a romantically inclined lady negotiate a future and discover love beyond duty? Will they be able to find healing and hope from the legacy of grace?
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