Monday, September 4, 2017

Announcement: Dangerous to Know Edited by Christina Boyd ~ Giveaway!

Hello, my friends! I have some exciting news to bring you! 
But I'll just let Christina tell you all about it! :)



Oops, I’m at it again. 

I’m Christina Boyd, the editor of The Darcy Monologues, and I am thrilled to finally announce that my next anthology project, Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes and Gentlemen Rogues, is well underway. My team and I thank you for helping us launch the news to the Jane Austen community.

Jane Austen’s masterpieces are littered with any number of unsuitable gentlemen—Willoughby, Wickham, Churchill, Crawford, Tilney, Elliot—adding color and depth to her plots but often barely sketched out to the reader. Have you never wondered about the back story of her rakes and gentlemen rogues? Surely, there's more than one side to their stories. 

I have always been drawn to characters that are not simply one dimensional. Through first person point-of-view, Philippa Gregory masterfully created empathy in her Plantagenet and Tudor novels: one novel I would find myself championing a queen and in the very next, she had become the villain! Author Laura Hile skillfully penned nobody’s favorite, Elizabeth Elliot from Persuasion in her Mercy’s Embrace series, and turned her into a true heroine we all might sympathize, all the while remaining faithful to the seemingly superficial and vain snob Jane Austen created. Even my own anthology The Darcy Monologues gave voice to the previously concealed wit and charm of the proud, brooding, and officious Mr. Darcy, allowing us some quality time in his handsome head. 


After publishing The Darcy Monologues in May 2017, murmurings began about another project. Maybe from Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s point-of-view? With a surfeit of quality Jane Austen fanfiction recounting Lizzy’s story, I thought it might be a more titillating challenge to expose the histories of Jane Austen’s anti-heroes. It is a universal truth, despite our wisdom, we are captivated by smoldering looks, dangerous charms ... a happy-go-lucky, cool confidence. Alas, some of us fall for the one that needs to be mended. All the while, our BFFs are shouting to deaf ears, “He is a cad! He is a brute! He is all wrong!” But isn’t that how tender hearts are broken...by giving credit to the undeserving? How did they become the men Jane Austen wrote? The challenge was just too delicious to not undertake.

Once again, a Dream Team of authors were approached to join this project. Titles were bandied about: everything from “Consequently a Rogue” taken from the Jonathon Swift quote “He was a fiddler and consequently a rogue” to “Rakes and Rogues” to “Jane Austen’s Gentlemen Rogues”. “Mad, bad, and dangerous to know,” the very phrase used by Lady Caroline Lamb to describe Lord Byron, married the previous suggestions and—voila! A title was born.

As an editor, I have been extremely fortunate to work with some incomparable authors in the past. This project is a testament to my providence. It has been a pleasure to have several authors from The Darcy Monologues anthology including Karen M Cox, J. Marie Croft, Jenetta James, Beau North, Sophia Rose, and Joana Starnes join Amy D’Orazio, Lona Manning, Christina Morland, Katie Oliver, and Brooke West on creating this current collection of stories. The intent: create short stories, each told from one of Austen’s male antagonists’ eyes—a backstory and, or parallel story from off-stage of canon—all the while remaining steadfast to the characters we recognize in Austen’s masterpieces. As in The Darcy Monologues, these authors certainly can turn up the heat with but the turn of a phrase!

Here are a few quick lines from a sampling of the authors to whet your appetite:


We arranged to fight our duel at that place where all the most elegant duels were fought: the secluded gardens near the Circus, accessed by the Gravel Walk; naturally, the occasion was to be held at dawn. I had been in my chair, subject to the shavings and combings and clippings of old Morley until at last, I cried out, “’Tis enough man! I am not gone to my wedding day!”
 Morley frowned at me, his dark eyes sharp with disapproval. “Your wedding day? That is not a day I shall likely live to see so I must keep at my art on these, more common, events.”—Captain Frederick Tilney, For Mischief’s Sake, Amy D’Orazio

I smiled drowsily as she caressed my chest. “I love you, Clémence.”
 Her fingers stilled as I closed my eyes in pleasurable exhaustion and drifted towards sleep.
 She did not reply. —Mr. George Wickham, A Wicked Game, Katie Oliver

Yes, fellows, since you press me so hard, yes, I confess it: Cupid's darts have winged me. If you must have the story, pass me that bottle first. I can lift it with my left hand without paining my collarbone excessively. Now, you may not like what you are about to hear. You think lightning will never strike you. But let me tell you, last year on Basingstoke Down, I was neither looking to fall in love, nor looking for someone to fall in love with me, when all unawares—but stay, I must go further back… —Mr. Tom Bertram, The Address of Frenchwoman, Lona Manning

What say you? Are you in? Everyone may be attracted to a bad boy…even temporarily...but heaven help us if we marry one. Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes and Gentlemen Rogues will be released mid-November and is listed at Goodreads so you might add to your “Want to Read” list. 


* * * GIVEAWAY * * *

To help us celebrate this project, we have prizes! One international Grand Prize via Rafflecopter:




One print copy or ebook of Dangerous to Know: Jane Austen’s Rakes & Gentlemen Rogues (when published), a print or ebook of The Darcy Monologues, one set of Jane Austen Playing Cards, one 16 oz. PEMBERLEY drinking glass, and Accoutrements Jane Austen novelty tattoos.  

Got to play to win! If you “lose the game, it shall not be for not striving for it.”


—Christina Boyd, @xtnaboyd of The Quill Ink


a Rafflecopter giveaway


This is a group giveaway. So little time... is not responsible for books lost or damaged in shipping or any prizes shipped by publishers or authors.

Many thanks to Christina Boyd for including me in this announcement! 

Wow! Dangerous to Know sounds fantastic! Sometimes you just love a bad boy, don't you?! ;) And the prize package is amazing too! I love the Pemberley glasses!! Best of luck to all who enter! 

Please, show Christina and the authors of Dangerous to Know some love by leaving a comment! 

19 comments:

  1. Woohoo! Doing the Snoopy Dance with excitement to see Dangerous to Know launched today. Thanks so much for being part of it all with your blog posting, Candy!

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    1. Woot! Woot! So exciting, Sophia Rose! Congrats on another story being published! :) So cool!
      And you are very welcome! :)

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  2. Thanks for sharing Christina Boyd's news, Candy, and for supporting the bad boys!
    Who's your favourite of Jane Austen’s rakes and gentlemen rogues?

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    1. It was my pleasure, Joanne!

      That is a good question. I read your comment earlier today and have been contemplating it off and on throughout the day. I really don't like any of them, but if I had to pick one, I think it would be Willoughby. I don't think he set off to hurt Marianne - it just went too far, and he had to marry money. It was careless of both Willoughby and Marianne to act the way they did.

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  3. Thank you, Candy! It should be great fun to hear what everyone thinks of this new collection and who they like/dislike the most! Who has the best chance for transformation?

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    1. You're welcome, Christina! Yes, that will be fun to hear! Congratulations on putting this group of writers together for this fantastic project!

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  4. Thanks for joining in Candy, I'm looking forward to reading all of the stories:-)

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    1. So happy to be working with you again!

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    2. Hi, Jenetta! It was my pleasure! Congratulations on your story also!!

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  5. I have enjoyed all of the books I have read that were edited by you. The stories are awesome. I will definitely be ready for a new collection come November.

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    1. That's good to hear, Patty! I hope you enjoy this one as well!

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    2. That is really a kind and generous statement. Super motivating to get this work out soon! Thank you.

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  6. Hmm, If I had to pick a favorite Rake/Rogue, I think it would be Henry Crawford.

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    1. That's a good one too, Karen! I believe he really wanted to change for Fanny. Whether or not he could have was a another question. Hah! Maybe he's the one with the best chance of reforming!

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  7. We have a winner. Congratulations! "DarcyBennett" WON the "Dangerous to Know" anthology announcement grand prize that includes a paperback or ebook of the new anthology when released in November, a paperback or ebook of "The Darcy Monologues", a Pemberley glass, Jane Austen playing cards, and novelty Jane Austen tattoos! Thank you all for your interest and support of our upcoming anthology🎩💗

    FYI: her winning tweet originated from this site! Thank you.

    #RakesAndGentlemenRogues

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    1. Woot!! I'm so excited for you DarcyBennett! That's a fantastic prize package! Congratulations!

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