Hi friends! I’m so excited to welcome back the lovely Mary Smythe to Austenesque Reviews today! And Mary is bringing some exciting news – she has a new book coming out next month!! Mary is here to share the beautiful cover of her upcoming release – Pride Before a Fall! And I know I’m not the only one who is eager to learn more!
Welcome, Mary! I am so glad to have you visit! 🤗
~ From the Author ~
Hello again, Meredith! Wow, I can’t believe it’s already my third visit to your blog, but I’m so thrilled to be invited back again. Thanks so much for having me!
Pride Before a Fall—which some internet readers will recognize as an expanded draft of “A Happy Accident”—begins, as good stories occasionally do, with an arrogant man being conked on the head. Yes, our dear Darcy falls from his horse and, in his addled state, blurts out his feelings to a very surprised Elizabeth. But here’s the question: if a man makes a proposal and there are no witnesses around to hear it, did it really happen?
Elizabeth, of course, assumes that Darcy’s confession of love is a symptom of his head injury and, at this point in the story, one can’t really blame her. When he shows up at Longbourn to offer his hand again, she’s tempted to tell him exactly what he can do with it, but finds herself moved by his tender sentiments. She’ll give him a chance—he has one week to convince her or they go their separate ways. Elizabeth will give Darcy her absolute final answer at the Netherfield Ball.
I suppose my inspiration for this story would be the Forced Marriage Scenario that never happened. I love FMS, but I wanted to explore the idea of a close call, one where it could go either way. A gentleman may feel honor bound, but a lady might not necessarily cooperate, especially if he’s made a poor first impression. Also, I like to make Darcy work for it before Elizabeth agrees to marry him whenever possible. Therein lies all the fun!
Isn’t the cover charmingly adorable? When you read the book—and I hope you enjoy it—you’ll see that it mirrors a scene at the very beginning where Elizabeth and Jane are cheerfully strolling around Netherfield’s garden and watching Darcy ride his stallion in the distance, blissfully unaware of what’s to come. Don’t the ladies look just like you might picture Elizabeth and Jane? They do to me. And I love the overall flower motif of the book graphics, absolutely lovely.
~ Book Description ~
To think that Mr Darcy considers himself in love with me!
ELIZABETH BENNET IS HORRIFIED when, during a walk in Netherfield’s gardens with her sister Jane, she witnesses Mr Darcy take a fall from his horse. Rushing to his aid, she is bewildered when he–seeming quite out of his wits–declares himself to her. Deciding the proposal was the product of a confused mind, she decides to disregard it.
FITZWILLIAM DARCY HAD ALREADY DISMISSED any thoughts of an alliance with the enchanting Miss Elizabeth Bennet. When he learns of his addled declaration, however, he decides that his accident was a most fortunate one, revealing the true desires of his heart over more prudent objections. Alas, the object of his affections is less ready to accede, however, and so he finds he must win her as a proper suitor should.
MOVED BY DARCY’S SINCERITY AND PERSISTENCE, Elizabeth agrees to allow him the chance to court her properly before giving her final answer to his proposal. Darcy sets out to prove his lasting devotion and persuade Elizabeth they will be happy together. With various antagonists standing in the way of their happily ever after, it will prove to be no easy task!
PRIDE BEFORE A FALL is a lighthearted, humor filled Pride and Prejudice variation
And without further ado….here is the big reveal!!!
(expected release date: October 24th)
I love the illustrations of this cover! Like Mary said, it is charmingly adorable! 😍
There is so much catching my eye – the fun colors, the flowers, Jane and Elizabeth, the details, the cute font. 👁
This premise sounds terrific! Force-Marriage-Scenarios are so fun, but this is one with a bit of a twist. 🤕
I can’t wait to see how Mr. Darcy goes about trying to win Elizabeth’s heart….*swoon* 💗
What do you think, friends? 🤔
~~~
~ About Mary ~
Mary Smythe is a homemaker living in South Carolina with a rather useless BA in English collecting
dust in a closet somewhere. Mrs Smythe discovered the works of Jane Austen as a teenager thanks to the 1995 BBC Pride and Prejudice miniseries featuring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle, and has since gone on to read everything written by Miss Austen at least once yearly, always wishing that there were more. She has been writing since 2001, but only discovered Jane Austen fanfiction in the summer of 2018.
~~~
GIVEAWAY TIME!
The lovely people at Quills and Quartos are offering 3️⃣ ebook copies of Pride Before a Fall to 3️⃣ lucky readers who comment on today’s post!
To enter this giveaway leave a question, comment, or some love for Mary below.
- This giveaway is open worldwide. Thank you, Quills and Quartos!
- This giveaway ends September 26th.
~~~
You can preorder Pride Before a Fall now!
My sincere gratitude to Mary Smythe and the wonderful people at Quills and Quartos for putting this special post together!
The first thing that caught my eye was the font. I do love the colors and I think this book will be a fun read. I, too, like FMS, so writing it as if it is but in reality isn’t sounds intriguing. Thank you for the giveaway, and congratulations of your new book.
Such a lovely cover, from font to colors. It evokes a “fun” vibe which I think fits the story nicely.
I hope you enjoy my faux FMS!
This book sounds like it will be fun to read. I am looking forward to see how Darcy convinced her he really loves her. The cover is cute and gives a a feeling of happiness. Thank you for the generous give away.
Thank you! In the end, as in the original, I think it’s less about Darcy convincing Elizabeth to marry him and more about Elizabeth belatedly recognizing that he’s her perfect match. (Uh…spoiler alert?)
It really is a happy cover. 🙂
Love the cover. It allows for continued imagination. Much prefer this to pictures of modern model-types. Also intrigued by the premise. Not another amnesia story.
Is Darcy truly sanguine over his sudden confession? How seriously are those around him reacting to theconfession
The premise looks great and the cover is delightful. Congratulations on the new book!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
Looks like so much fun! I am really excited about reading this book!! Congratulations on your newest release.
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Mary, your cover is charming! And your story sounds delightful – poor Darcy, when Bingley is the voice of reason he must really be in trouble! I can’t wait to read it. 🙂
Thank you! Haha, so true. Austen describes Bingley as “not deficient,” but I’m not sure how much of a recommendation that is. XD Either way, I think Darcy needs to reevaluate if the insult in his proposal is THAT obvious. Hope you enjoy it, Susan!
The cover is adorable and I love that all the action will lead up to the Netherfield Ball. I look forward to reading this.
So adorable! And, yes, the Netherfield Ball is pretty much the pinnacle; I thought it a properly romantic setting. I hope you enjoy it.
Love the cover. Darcy has found a way to process his love!
Isn’t that what JAFF is all about? ODC finding new ways to process their love? I’ve never thought about it in those terms, but it’s so true. 🙂 Thank you!
Hi, Nancy! You might not have seen the announcement from Quills & Quartos on Facebook, but you were selected to win one of the free ebooks for this story! Please email me at abigail@quillsandquartospub.com so I can send you a downloadable copy. Congratulations!
Oh, I do so eagerly anticipate reading your new work. Thanks for KU.
Aw, thank you, you’re making me blush! 🙂
Lovely Cover. This is a delightful tale! Best Wishes Mary.
So lovely! And thank you, Jen 🙂
It sounds really cute! I’ve been gravitating towards lighter JAFF recently. Seems like I don’t have the emotional bandwidth for the heavy stuff quite as often. I already preordered this, so don’t enter me in the contest. I loved Dare to Refuse Such a Man, so I’m looking forward to this one! Good luck with the launch!
Thank you! I know what you mean, sometimes I just…can’t…do…angst. No matter how well written or how intriguing the premise, I gotta space it out or I start to feel a bit hopeless. It’s probably why all of my stories have at least a little humor in them, I gotta cut the sad with the fun.
I hope you enjoy Pride Before a Fall as much as Dare to Refuse Such a Man! Thank you again.
Hi, Bats! You might not have seen the announcement from Quills & Quartos on Facebook, but you were selected to win one of the free ebooks for this story! Please email me at abigail@quillsandquartospub.com so I can send you a downloadable copy. Congratulations!
I pre-ordered the book because I rarely win the giveaways! I laughed when I read Bingley’s admonitions to clueless and stupid Darcy. He always thinks that Elizabeth should fall on her knees and be grateful for his proposal!
Thank you for your purchase! I hope you enjoy it when it arrives. 🙂
I’ve always felt that Darcy might have come off better in his original proposal if he’d had some solid advice from a third party, like Colonel Fitzwilliam. I used Bingley here because he was more convenient, but he had the same opinion: “Are you out of your mind?” XD
Wow, Darcy proposing after hitting his head? I love the premise of the book! Can’t wait to read it 🙂
He got some sense knocked into him! XD Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
Hi Mary,
I like very much the story displays good humour and Darcy is put to the test by a clever Elizabeth, bravo Lizzy!
I like the naive cover and it shows really well the tone of the book 🙂
Thank you so much for the giveaway and I wish you the very best with the release.
Thanks Meredith for bringing us Mary.
Hi Teresa!
As we all know, Elizabeth will NOT marry any man unless she wants to, so Darcy will have to earn her good opinion instead of resting upon his fortune and connexions. A woman worthy of being pleased, indeed. 🙂
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy it.
This sounds like a fun read! I read “A Faithful Narrative,” and I really enjoyed it. I’d love a chance to win this one! I’ve been seeing more of these cartoon covers, and I don’t understand their appeal, but with P&P variations, I’m less likely to be influenced by the cover. I rely more on the story description and past works of the author.
Aw, thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed A Faithful Narrative and hope you like Pride Before a Fall just as much.
I generally prefer cartoon-y covers on modern fiction, but this one was just so perfect for this particular story that I couldn’t say no. It’s just so much like an early scene, right before Darcy takes his fall, that it belonged with PBF.
Like the other commenters, I love this charming cover. I also noticed and really like the title font. The imagery simply says “fun” and makes me very much forward to reading this book. I anticipate enjoying it as I have the others written by Mary Smythe.
I agree, it’s such a fun, inviting cover, from the font to the color scheme. I just adore it!
Aw, thank you! I hope you like this book as much as my others.
Live the colours on the cover – and the sisters!! Indeed as I imagine them…. I would have liked to see Darcy on the horse as well ..
As for the premise… Almost FMS? Bring it on!
Happy by accident? Of course, I know it possible
Mary Smythe? Always a pleasure to read!
Can’t wait to have my hands on it!
I saw this cover and was like “that’s definitely Lizzy and Jane!” So perfect. You’re right, the only thing missing is Darcy and his horse, but then the ladies are watching him so he shouldn’t be in view anyway.
Aw, thank you, you’re making me blush! I hope you enjoy it.
The cover is delightful! I can’t wait to read how Darcy uses his powers of persuasion to convince Elizabeth of his sincerity. Congratulations on your newest book baby!
Isn’t it? So pretty!
Poor Darcy, persuasion is not his forte and he’s going to have his work cut out for him. I think we all know, however, that he’ll bumble his way into an HEA. 🙂
Thank you!
I love the colors in this cover. Thank you for the cover reveal and giveaway. Congrats and best wishes on the new release!
So lovely, I just adore pink. It’s so warm and soft. Thanks so much!
Love the cover. Sounds like a great read!
Isn’t it pretty? I hope you enjoy it!
I love this kind of twist!!
Aw, thank you! I like to play around with what’s expected. I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Hi, Pascale! You might not have seen the announcement from Quills & Quartos on Facebook, but you were selected to win one of the free ebooks for this story! Please email me at abigail@quillsandquartospub.com so I can send you a downloadable copy. Congratulations!
This sounds like a lovely story! Looking forward to reading it!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Such a cute cover! I’m a big fan of that type of font, and I love the colours.
I read the excerpt on the Q&Q site and am so glad that Bingley spoke to Darcy before his visit to Longbourn, great advice! Now he just has to convince Elizabeth that they belong together. Love it!
Isn’t it just adorable? And I’m with you, I love the colors and style.
I’ve always felt that Darcy should have spoken to someone before issuing his proposal. Anyone with sense would have told him “You can’t say THAT!” I got my chance here and I took it, lolz. At least now he’s starting from a point of neutrality. Think it’ll help much?
Hope you enjoy it!
This book sounds so good and I love the cover!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
What a beautiful illustrated cover!
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Isn’t it lovely?
I love a Forced Marriage premise. The cover art is just beautiful. I look forward to reading more. –Leslie
I love the FMS, too! One of my favorite tropes because it seems like many of the best JAFFs feature it. Pride Before a Fall isn’t exactly FMS because Elizabeth won’t cooperate, but all the more fun! I hope you enjoy it.
You will love this delightful tale as much as the delightful cover!
Aw, thank you Brenda! 🙂
The cover has a “feel good” story air to it. Love the FMS trope and like everyone, I’m looking forward to reading it too!
Aw, thank you. I enjoy FMS too, though my favorite thing ever in writing is playing around with tropes. What’s a man to do when his beloved won’t respect the compromise? Lolz. I hope you enjoy it!
What a bright and cheerful cover that catches the eye and will encourage people to pick up the book and read it.
That’s certainly what I’m hoping for! Thank you so much 🙂
This is the CUTEST COVER EVER!!! I am looking forward to reading the story as well!! Good luck with book sales. 🙂
Isn’t it adorable? And it really does look just like one of the opening scenes. You’ll see what I mean when you read it. I hope you enjoy!
Love the candy like cover with the sweetness and fun. I had read the excerpt in Q&Q email, and it is going to be very lovely and like a cupcake with all the goodness! Thank you for sharing your cover here.
A cupcake with plenty of sprinkles! A teensy smidge of angst, too, but then we can’t have it too sweet, amirite? I hope you enjoy it!
A delightful story and a sweet little cover. So happy for your newest addition!
Thank you! I love the cover, it’s so…pink! And just adorable.
I love the style of this illustration, it’s lovely. All the best with this book, Mary, and thanks for bringing us the post, Meredith.
Isn’t it just so sweet and fun? Thanks so much!
I’m looking forward to reading this work.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
I’m excited to read this one! I enjoy variations where a third party points out Darcy’s pretensions and Darcy corrects without Elizabeth being directly involved.
Aw, thank you! I’ve always felt that, had Darcy asked for advice before issuing his terrible proposal to Elizabeth, that person (unless it was Lady Catherine) would have been appalled and told him to come up with something better. He probably still wouldn’t have gotten a YES, but maybe he would have gotten a softer NO, lolz.
Congratulations on the new book & it sounds like it could be a fun story. I can’t wait to read it.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
Sounds just like my kind of P&P-book! I think I will like to read about this Darcy very much! Would have liked to have him on the cover also.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it. It’s always nice when Darcy can be on the cover, too, but try to imagine him riding in the fields, just out of sight…the ladies are his audience.
I love the premise. Congratulatulations on the upcoming release!
Thank you!
Congratulations on your new book, Mary! The cover is charming. 🙂
Thanks Lucy!!
Wow! Thank you so much everyone for your encouragement and well wishes. You’re going to make me blush!! I hope you enjoy Pride Before a Fall when it comes out. In the meantime, good luck to anyone in the drawing!
How wonderful–another Mary Smythe book. I adore her writing and stories and am looking forward to the publication of her latest book baby; it is already on my wish list. Congratulations Ms. Smythe!
Aw, thank you so much! I’m so glad that you enjoy my books and I hope that this new one meets your expectations.
I like the cover, it gives a feeling that the story is not heavy on angst. And I love when D&E start their relationship earlier than in canon. Congratulations on the release.
I agree, the cover is very cheerful and light, much like the story itself. There’s a bit of angst here or there, but overall it fits the image on the front. 🙂
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
Congratulations on your new book! Oh goodie goodie (picture me making gleeful little clapping motions,) a new Mary Smythe book. Such a cute cover! Thank you to Q&Q for the generous giveaway, and yes! KU. Best of all luck on this launch.
Thank you, Michelle! Aw, you’re making me blush. I hope you like this book as much as my others.
His book really sounds intriguing. Sounds like the perfect beginning. I look forward to seeing how darcy woos Miss Elizabeth. Beautiful colors on the cover.
Thank you! I like to start off with a bang whenever possible 🙂 I hope you enjoy it!
Truly a charming cover. Love the story line esp with Mr. darcy working hard to win the heart of his Elizabeth. Thank you for sharing and the chance to win a copy
I agree, so charming! And it fits the story so well. Speaking of the story, I hope you enjoy it.
The story sounds amazing and the cover is lovely. Congrats on the release!
Thank you so much!!
Beautiful cover. I can’t wait to read this book.
Absolutely lovely, I concur. Thank you! I hope you enjoy it.
I loved your excerpt of Charles teaching Darcy how to offer a gentlemanly proposal! I can just picture Darcy trying to carry his opinion when he realizes he’s no leg to stand on. Way to go Bingly!
Haha, someone had to tell him! He desperately needed that advice. Bingley might not be as overtly clever as Darcy, but he certainly understands societal interaction better. Does that mean he has more street smarts? Hilarious concept. I hope you equally enjoy the rest of the story!
Pretty Cover!
Isn’t it? I love all the flowers. 🙂
Love the cover, and I am looking forward to reading it!
Thank you! I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
I always love a story with a sensible Bingley and haughty Darcy who needs to be cut down a size or 2. Can’t wait to read!
I love compromise scenarios in P& P variations. The cover is adorable too!