Greetings, dear friends! I’m very happy to begin this week by welcoming author Carole Penfield to Austenesque Reviews! Carole has published a fascinating historical series that might be of interest to Jane Austen fans because it includes some connections to Jane Austen’s ancestors. 

Carole is here to share an excerpt from her newly released (on Jane Austen’s birthday!) novel – Austens of Broadford! We hope you enjoy! 🤗

~ DISCOVERING JANE’S ROOTS ~

• Author Carole Penfield, avid fan of all things Jane Austen, enjoys writing historical fiction intermingling her characters’ everyday lives with 17^th and 18^thcentury events.
• While performing genealogical research into Jane’s family tree, she discovered paternal ancestors who lived and flourished in the Weald of Kent, dating back to the Tudor period.
• In her newly released novel Austens of Broadford, set during the beginning of Queen Anne’s reign, Carole fictionalizes the life story of Jane’s remarkable great-grandmother Eliza Austen and her family. For fourteen years, they lived at Broadford, a former cloth-master hall
• Broadford still stands today; although modernized, the original half-timbered Tudor structure can be seen at the rear.

Broadford, Horsmonden Kent. Former home of Jane’s Great-grandparents

~ Excerpt from Chapter 3 ~

Austens of Broadford opens in 1702, as preparations are in progress for the Coronation of Queen Anne. Eliza Austen’s husband is taking their timid daughter Betty to a London house party; a birthday celebration for the elderly dowager Lady Hester, hosted by her son Sir Edward. As their carriage travels through Kent towards London, seven-year-old Betty is amazed to learn something unexpected about Broadford (based on a true historical fact).

Betty

The morning of our departure is cloudy and cool. Maman stands out on the drive, wrapped in a warm shawl. She hugs and kisses Papa, wistfully telling him how much he will be missed. He promises to write. Goodness, such lovebirds, I think, displaying their affection in public, not that there are many people passing our country home at this early hour.

Turning to me, Maman holds her hand under my chin. “Betty, have a wonderful time in London. Mind your manners and try not to be too bashful.”

“Yes, Maman,” I say softly, before the carriage rolls away.

Leaving the safety of home, we drive through the familiar rich rolling farmland, woods, and hop-gardens of Horsmonden. Turning onto the Tunbridge Road toward London, I begin to tremble with anxiety. By the end of the day, I will be facing Sir Edward. I have never met a baronet before. Will he look down on me, daughter of a man without a title?

Papa tries to reassure me by telling me our Austen family once had a connection with royalty.

Really and truly?” I ask, crossing my arms across my chest and wondering if he is jesting. “When?”

“Many generations before you were born.” he says. “Broadford has been in the Austen family since the sixteenth century. It began as a Cloth-master’s Hall.”

“What is that, Papa?”

“A large building where Kentish broadcloth was woven for Queen Elizabeth. She made a royal visit to Broadford in 1573 and gold tokens were issued to commemorate her visit. I believe my father still has one.”

I try to visualize Broadford, now my comfortable home, as a former house/warehouse with weavers working furiously at looms to make fabric for the Queen. I shall look upon her portraits with renewed interest in the future, imagining how she looked when she spent the night in our house during her royal visit. Did she sleep in her voluminous skirts and high, wired lace collar? I giggle at the silly thought.

“See, Betty. You need not be intimidated by Sir Edward,” utters Papa. “A baronet is lower in rank than true aristocrats—dukes, earls, viscounts, and barons. In fact, I believe the only reason Sir Edward is a baronet is because his father purchased the title from King James I.”

I still cannot believe the Tudor Queen slept in my house!

Thank you so much for sharing, Carole! This series sounds like an adventure through time! I like hearing about the three narrative voices – including little Betty’s – in this tale. And I’m sure many of who love historical tales will be intrigued to explore more of this earlier time period and learn more about the Austen family before Jane Austen’s parents were born. 😊

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~ Book Description ~

1702. England. Eliza Weller is not the wife John Austen III would have chosen for his only son and heir. Fly-on-the wall Betty overhears her mother complain about the overbearing tyrant’s interference in their family life. He plants a spy in the Broadford nursery, criticizes Eliza constantly, reneges on promises of financial assistance and turns her eldest son against her.

Eliza also worries that her timid, plain daughter Betty will never attract a husband because there are no girls of proper social status in their small country village to provide companionship and decides to send her to a baronet’s London house-party and then to boarding school.

Enter Bart, handsome son of a doxy who comes to Kent as a footman whilst he searches for his landowner father. Three alternating narrators portray a fascinating, entertaining story of typical daily life among 18^th century gentry class and provide a peek into Jane Austen’s roots.

~ About the Series ~

Austens of Broadford is Book Three in a continuing series, The Midwife Chronicles. It was released on Dec. 16, 2021 to commemorate Jane Austen’s birthday. Although it can be enjoyed as a standalone, the author recommends reading the three books in order. Midwife of Normandy (Book One) and Lucina’s Destiny (Book Two) relate the adventures of an unusual midwife and her daughter who flee turbulent France and are befriended by the Austens when they come to live in Kent.

The books are available as trade paperbacks and ebooks on Amazon. The box-set, including the entire three-ebook series, is a perfect gift idea.

~ Connect with Carole ~

Website

~ About Carole ~

Carole Penfield, a retired attorney, lives in Northern Arizona with her husband Perry Krowne and two overly friendly cats.

During a tour of Kent in 2010, before journeying to Bath for the Jane Austen festival and promenade, Carole was excited to discover that Tonbridge and Horsmonden boasted several homes once inhabited by Jane Austen’s relatives, including her great-grandmother Elizabeth Weller Austen (“Eliza”). Inspired by Jane’s writing advice in a letter to her niece Anna, that “three or four families in a small village is the very thing” for a novel, Carole realized she had found the perfect setting for her books. She also decided to incorporate some of Jane’s famous quotes within all three books in the series, which has been described as “an easter egg hunt for Janeites.”

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GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

Carole has generously agreed to offer two ebook box-sets of The Midwife Chronicles series to 2️⃣ lucky readers of this blog.

To enter this giveaway leave a question, comment, or some love for Carole below!

• This giveaway is open worldwide.   Thank you, Carole!
• This giveaway ends December 27th.