Due to unforeseen circumstances, Cheryl of The Book Connection was unable to do her post for Suzan Lauder’s An Accomplished Woman. We will be posting in her place.
Suzan has an excerpt that I’m sure you are going to like, but before we have the excerpt, let’s take a look at the blurb and author bio.
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Blurb
Audra Hales is a lady of many perfect accomplishments—at least she believes so. It is no wonder: she has mirrored her great friend Cecilia, the newly minted Lady Hoxley, so how could her talents not be worthy of the highest praise? A self-described matchmaker, Cecilia has brought Audra to Bath—where balls and excursions abound—with the intention of matching her with the gregarious Lord Garner Tremaine. Though he seems an affable and talented gentleman, his brother, the marquess, is quite the opposite.
As head of his family, Everett Tremaine, the Marquess of Vernon acts on behalf of his father, the duke, who remains secluded from Lady Hoxley’s guests. With his obligations, Everett has no time for foolish temptations such as Miss Hales…so why does he constantly find her thrown into his path?
Meanwhile, Audra has conjured all sorts of wild imaginings concerning the frustrating marquess, and every time she encounters him, he leaves her breathless rather than answering her questions! After all, what is ailing the mysterious duke? Could the marquess be a villain masquerading as the savior of his family? And most importantly: should she marry Lord Garner, the safe suitor, or follow her heart?
Book One of the Cecilia’s Mismatches series is a stand-alone novel.
Cecilia’s Mismatches Series Blurb
Who is Cecilia? She’s Lady Hoxley, a recently married young lady whose husband is old enough to be her father. Theirs is a love match. She loves his money and title, and he loves her youth and vivacity. Cecilia is so gratified with her own match that she is determined to match her friends with worthy gentlemen—but what happens when all her grand schemes seem to go awry?
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If you are not familiar with author, Suzan Lauder, let’s share a little bit about her.
Author Bio
A lover of Jane Austen, Regency period research and costuming, yoga, fitness, home renovation, design, sustainability, and independent travel, cat mom Suzan Lauder keeps busy even when she’s not writing novels based on Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, all of which are published by Meryton Press.
She and Mr. Suze and their rescue tabby split their time between a loft condo overlooking the Salish Sea and a 150-year-old Spanish colonial casita in Mexico. Suzan’s lively prose can be found on her Facebook author page, www.facebook.com/SuzanLauder; on Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest as @SuzanLauder; and on her Meryton Press blog, road trips with the redhead www.suzanlauder.merytonpress.com. Her Amazon author page is https://www.amazon.com/author/suzanlauder.
Prior to publishing An Accomplished Woman of the Cecilia’s Mismatches series, Lauder had four novels, a novella, and a novelette published by Meryton Press and has short stories in two Austenesque anthologies. All are popular, most earning four-plus star ratings on Amazon and Goodreads. Accolades include Amazon bestseller for Letter from Ramsgate and The Barrister’s Bride, a Finalist for Sexy Scribbles for an excerpt from Alias Thomas Bennet, and several of her books were placed on top ten of the year lists by influential bloggers.
She even finds time to bake muffins!
*****
Wow, Suzan. You are one busy lady.
Excerpt
This excerpt #2 comes from Chapter 4 Page 26-27.
For once, Cecilia had not droned on concerning herself and Hoxley for longer or mentioned them first. Ever so impressed with her own importance since she’d married a viscount, Cecilia tended to mention her and her husband often and with great enthusiasm. But as kind as Hoxley was, and as dedicated to Cecilia’s happiness, those favourable aspects did not overcome the fact that he was old enough to be her father. Thank goodness Cecilia had matched Audra to a man closer her own age. Her sister Lexie had her curtsey to the Queen last year and had found herself an object of interest to younger gentlemen in London. In any case, Lexie had not found any that suited her well enough to entertain a courtship. Audra would also have a Season in town next year. It would be fun to dance and flirt the evening away with young men. That is, if this scheme of Cecilia’s did not work.
Her thoughts returned to the drawing room when Her Grace joined them. She grinned inside when the wives and daughters of peers did not speak on a higher level as expected: the ladies spoke of typical banal topics as they drank their tea, asked after family members not present, and spoke of the weather and the latest fashions. Audra could join them in regard to these areas of discussion, as she had already mentioned her family to the gentlemen nearby at dinner, and the other two topics were easy enough to engage in. It was best to demonstrate that she possessed good breeding and kept up with the fashion periodicals.
When the doors to the withdrawing room opened, it was not difficult to become distracted by the entrance of the gentlemen, and it seemed her conversation mates thought so too by their lack of attendance to anyone other than the newcomers. The men entered in pairs as she supposed they must have situated themselves whilst enjoying their port and cigars. Lord Garner enjoyed merry chatter with Hoxley, but what struck Audra was the way Lord Vernon leaned in to listen to his awkward cousin with a furrow on his brow. Both stopped just within the doors and stepped aside from the others to continue what seemed a private discourse. Lord Vernon leaned up against the wall, chin in hand, while Mr. Tremaine gesticulated in a wild manner to him. What could keep them so wrapped up in conversation? They eschewed the others’ company rather than wait and discuss it after the social gathering, so whatever the topic, it must be important. Yet why was Mr. Tremaine’s brow drawn low?
“How are you faring with my family, Miss Hales?” asked a deep voice. Lord Garner! Somehow during her disapproval of his eldest brother, he had sidled up to the group who stood with her and taken his place behind her. Her head whirled.
“I find them to be as amiable as you, my lord.” Did her compliment resemble Cecilia’s manners? She hoped so. Her dearest friend had been an excellent teacher in that regard.
“I am pleased to hear you say so. You have not met everyone yet, and since there are a great many of us, you may be overwhelmed even hearing of us.”
“You do have one large and happy family,” Audra replied.
“Do you look forward to our trip tomorrow?”
“Indeed, I do. I do enjoy painting, so that will be my distraction whilst the others are riding.”
“Do you not favour riding?” asked Lord Garner.
Her heart almost stopped. Cecilia had mentioned his fondness of painting and her suspicion that he would not ride, which is why she had chosen this specific pastime. She had been agitated for a while regarding the other activity planned for the day: what if he preferred riding and expected her alongside him? With no idea what to say, she settled for honesty. “Yes, I do. Why do you ask? Would you prefer me to ride?”
“We shall have other opportunities for riding, but I anticipate great pleasure from capturing the vista of the surrounding countryside.”
“Then we think alike since I have made painting my choice too.” She glanced towards Lord Vernon. Mr. Tremaine’s hands flew up once again, and he stalked off. The marquess wiped his face with his hand, and his shoulders heaved as if he had released an enormous exhalation of frustration. His eyes flitted around the room until they rested upon her, and he gave her another of those stares that discomfited her so. Instead of allowing herself to become flustered, she returned her attention to her group. They were far more accepting than Lord High-and-Mighty.
*****
Hmm, wouldn’t you love to be a fly on the wall and hear the conversation between Lord Vernon and Mr. Tremaine? What might that discussion have been?
Contact Info
Meryton Press Blog, road trips with the redhead
Email: suzanlauder@gmail.com
Buy Link
Blog Tour Schedule
Blog Tour Schedule
April 10 Musings from an Addicted Reader
April 11 The Book Connection (Meryton Press Blog)
April 12 Elza Reads
April 13 From Pemberley to Milton
April 14 My Vices & Weaknesses
April 17 So little time…
Giveaway
Meryton Press will be giving away one eBook of An Accomplished Woman. We would love to have your share in the conversation so please let us know what you think about the excerpt, the blurb, or send love to the author. 🙂 We want to hear from you. The giveaway is worldwide and will end at midnight, Saturday, April 15th, 2023. Good luck to everyone and thank you for stopping by.
DarcyBennett
Enjoyed the excerpt!
Suzan Lauder
We’re just getting started. Thanks, DarcyBennett!
Kelly Miller
This is a charming except from a book that I thoroughly enjoyed! I was drawn in from the opening paragraphs; a sign of excellent writing! 🙂
Suzan Lauder
You are a great supporter, Kelly. I really appreciate it. Thanks for dropping by!
bn100
looks interesting
Suzan Lauder
We always choose a taster for an excerpt. Just enough to tease the readers. Good luck on the drawing!
Jan Hahn
Hmm, a “discomfiting stare” sounds like he’s been taking lessons from Darcy. I like the premise of this novel and predict it’s going to be well loved like the rest of your books. Glad to see you branching out, Suzan.
Meryton Press
I think so too, Jan! 🙂 Suzan’s hero just “might” give Darcy a “run for him money.” Notice I said “might” before lambasting me for having the audacity to say such a thing. lol This book is such a good novel. I hope you get to read it soon.
Michelle H
I love Suzan’s writing and this excerpt is just further proof of why I’m a devoted reader. I’m really looking forward to reading this.
Meryton Press
You are so right, Michelle. We’re happy to know you are a devoted reader of Suzan’s. Wonderful news! Good look.