And the winner is!!!
Gloria
Gloria: Watch your email, and/or email me at carolyn AT carolynjewel DOT com with your mailing address.
And the winner is!!!
Gloria
Gloria: Watch your email, and/or email me at carolyn AT carolynjewel DOT com with your mailing address.
I have another set of Jane Austen temporary tattoos…. In honor of Jane, you can win one plus three mystery books. Not Mystery books, but books as in you won’t know what you’ll get until you get them. That kind of mystery.
So, enter to win.
No purchase necessary. Must be 18 to enter. Void where prohibited. International OK. Winner chosen at random from among eligible entries. My relatives are not eligible. To enter, leave a comment by midnight Eastern (because that’s the time zone of this blog) Friday December 20th, 2013. In your comment, complete the following question:
Jane would ____________________ because _________________.
Or make up your own.
Go!
The Governess, from Jane Austen’s World. This is a nice precis.
Here’s a BBC podcast on the subject in the form of a discussion of Ruth Brandon’s book “Other People’s Daughters: The Life and Times of the Governess.” I think the title says it all.
Over at Literary Detectives there’s a nice blog about Governesses in Jane Austen.
This Wikipedia article has a section on Notable governesses one of whom is Marie Curie. Governess and Nobel Prize winner.
About halfway down the page of this V&A article on some paintings is one on The Governess by Richard A Redgrave. The article is a bit High Schoolish in tone, but it’s quite interesting.
The London Life also has some discussion of Governesses.
And then, because this a just a nice resource, here’s a Pinterest board on Regency era gowns
Lastly, I leave you with this exchange which proves the importance of good website navigation because this site The Loiterer — does not have it. But some interesting stuff here!
Lavender and Lady Bugs
This is about as Christmas-y as my part of California gets. I took this picture back in September but those two ladybugs are so cute!
Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and the very happiest New Year.
Love
Risky Carolyn
Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone!!! I hope you all have lots of fun plans for tonight, and a great plan for a fresh new start in 2014. I am actually feeling a bit under the weather, so instead of sequins and champagne I may stick with tea, flannel pajamas, and my new “Downton Abbey” DVDs, which sounds like a party to me!
I like to take a look back at the year and remember some of my favorite reads. Here are a few books that have stayed in my mind. (As usual, most of them end up not being romances! I can’t read a romance novel while I’m writing one, and since i always seem to be on a deadline it doesn’t leave much time for them. But, as you will see, I did find a few…)
I read a lot of good historical fiction! Such as:
Queen’s Gambit by Elizabeth Fremantle–a story of Queen Catherine Parr. Of course we all know how it’s going to end (spoiler: not well), but I love Catherine Parr, and this book was a great, suspenseful page-turner
Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan–a story of Marie Van Goethem, the model for Degas’s famous “Little Dancer” sculpture, a vivid, fascinating look at the real bohemian life of late 19th century Paris. One of my favorites of the year!
Queen’s Vow by CW Gortner (one of the best authors of Tudor-era fiction, IMO)–the story of Isabella of Castile, one that paints her as a real person, not the easily-vilified figure we often think of now
Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton Disclafani–a posh boarding school for young ladies in the early 1930s, with the Depression crowding in on their world, and a headstrong, independent, lonely 15 year old exiled from her family. I loved the “voice” of the narrator and the world she painted for us!
The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett–how could I not love this one?? It centers around bookstores and antiquarian manuscripts! There’s also lost love, new love, and a variety of eccentric characters, moving from 1995, to the Victorians, to Shakespeare. Just read it already!!!
I also read some great non-fiction!
Two books about queens I knew about, but didn’t actually know much about–and they turned out to be much more complex than I thought. Elizabeth of York by Alison Weir and Queen Anne by Anne Somerset…
The Pinecone: The Story of Sarah Losh, Forgotten Romantic Heroine by Jenny Uglow–I love finding stories of historical figures I’ve never “met” before! Sarah Losh was an early Victorian heiress from Cumbria, from a large, fascinating family, and also an amateur antiquarian and architect.
I did find a couple of romance novels to rave about, too!!! (I’ve been reading romance for soooo long, I think it just takes longer for me to lose myself in a story now. So when I do, i know it’s very, very good…)
For the Love of a Soldier by Victoria Morgan–gambling! A heroine disguised as a boy! A hero suffering from PTSD from the Charge of the Light Brigade! I ate it up…
Rumors That Ruined a Lady by Marguerite Kaye–a scandal-ridden heroine, saved by the hero from an opium den! Fab opening, and the story just races on from there.
I haven’t seen many new movies this year (have a lot to catch up on!), but I loved Joss Whedon’s charming Much Ado About Nothing, and I just saw American Hustle last weekend. I may have to see it again…
What was your favorite from 2013??? What are you looking forward to in 2014?