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Friday, April 13, 2012

Regina Jeffers: The First Time Mr. Darcy Spoke To Me

Welcome Regina Jeffers--Post and Give Away!
Hi, Darcyholics!  I am blessed to be able to have Regina Jeffers with us here at Darcyholic Diversions today, and to be a part of her 'Blog Tour' for The Disappearance of Georgiana Darcy. To be honest, I was a bit intimated to ask her to post here originally as I have so many of her books on my shelf.  What a delight it has been to discover that she is a warm and genuine Southerner at heart.  I know that I will continue to be blessed to have her in my life. 

In addition, I am honored to be a part of the 'Authors in Bloom' Blog Tour.  I invite you to read MY post 'Take That Leap of Faith'.  There are 70 other blogs that are a part of the give- aways.  All links are available on the left side of this blog. For instructions on how to win the Grand Prize, see my blog post.
 
Upcoming Guest Posts Are As Follows:
April 10--Bonnie Carlsen
April 13--Regina Jeffers
April 17--Elizabeth Ashton
April 20--Susan Mason-Milks
April 24--Lynn Robson
April 27--Veronica (Dark Jane Austen Book Club)
May 1--Matt Duffy
May 4--Susan Adriani
May 8--Annette W.
May 11--Beth Massey
May 15--Erlynn K.
May 18--Rebecca T.
May 22--Candy M. (So Little Time...)
May 25--Karen Cox
May 29--Jan Ashe
June 1--Kara Louise
June 5--Sharon Lathan
June 8--Gayle Mills
June 12--Shannon Winslow
June 15--Karen Wasylowski
June 19--Krista Bagley
June 22--Stephanie Hamm
And Many more to come!
&*&*&*&*&*&

Comments on Regina’s post will be entered to win a copy of her most recent book, The Disappearance of Georgiana Darcy.  Ms. Jeffers is opening that contest to include International winners.   Entries will be based on comments on blog posts; but additional chances will be given for joining this site, tweeting this post, Joining this site as a member!, sharing this on Facebook or your blog, Friend me on Facebook, clicking 'like’ on Barbara Tiller Cole, Author's Facebook page, Join Darcyholic Diversions Facebook Page or following BarbTCole on Twitter.


The First Time Mr. Darcy Spoke to Me
When I was twelve, I read Pride and Prejudice for the first time. My mother, may she rest in peace, was a great reader, and like the character of Marti in Love Comes Softly, Peggie Jeffers was a firm believer that books held great adventures. Because of her model, I have always read voraciously. Therefore, Pride and Prejudice was just the latest in a long line of classic novels in my reading repertoire. Or so I thought at the time. Little did I know that this novel would speak to me of how personal conduct can be seen as a bridge between private moral order and social order.

As a girl, head and shoulders taller than many of the boys in her junior high, I discovered a time when women were prided on their sense and men on their reasoning abilities. As I devoured each page, Mr. Darcy spoke to me.

He said,

“I cannot comprehend the neglect of a family library in such days as these.” (I totally agreed with this idea. I have on more than one occasion said that I could live in a library or a bookstore and never feel the want of anything more than food and water and the occasional ray of sunshine.)

“Your list of the common extent of accomplishments has too much truth. The word is applied to many a woman who deserves it not otherwise than by netting a purse or covering a screen; but I am very far from agreeing with you in your estimation of ladies in general. I cannot boast of knowing more than half a dozen, in the whole range of my acquaintance, that are really accomplished.” (I admit to having no artistic inclinations. If Mr. Darcy detested those who feign artistic skills when none exist, he and I would do well together.)

“And to all this she must yet add something more substantial in the improvement of her mind by extensive reading.” (Caroline Bingley had described a woman who could sing well, who walked with grace, and who spoke with elegance. I did none of those. I was a gangly seventh grader, but I was a READER. Mr. Darcy recognized my great advantage.)

“There is a meanness in all the arts which ladies sometimes condescend to employ for captivation. Whatever bears affinity to cunning is despicable.” (Woohoo! At last, a man who did not fall for a woman who batted her eyes and spoke in a syrupy tone. At age 12, I had had my heart broken several times because some idiot could not discern my true worth.)

Miss Bingley said, “I can guess the subject of your reverie.” To which, Mr. Darcy says, “I should imagine not.” (My goodness! I do so love the man’s tongue-in-cheek attitude. I often cannot resist delivering a deadpan response to someone who does not see what I do.)

“This is no very striking resemblance of your own character, I am sure. How near it may be to mine, I cannot pretend to say. You think it a faithful portrait, undoubtedly.” (Good! The man is no namby-pamby. He can be a bit testy when someone pushes him. That means he will forgive my sometimes very snarky remarks.)

“I have no such pretension. I have faults enough, but they are not, I hope of understanding. My temper I dare not vouch for. It is, I believe too little yielding; certainly too little for the convenience of the world. I cannot forget the follies and vices of others so soon as I ought, nor their offenses against myself. My feelings are not puffed about with every attempt to move them. My temper would perhaps be called resentful. My good opinion once lost is lost forever.” (I am from West Virginia. Did you ever hear of the Hatfields and the McCoys? Resentful natures are part of the makeup. LOL!!!)

“A man who felt less might.” (Enough said! Mr. Darcy’s passions run deep.)

“What do I not owe you! You taught me a lesson hard indeed at first, but most advantageous. By you I was properly humbled. I came to you without a doubt of my reception. You showed me how insufficient were all my pretensions to please a woman worthy of being pleased.” (Mr. Darcy would not permit his pride to stand in the way of finding true love. *Sighs Deeply*)

“If you will thank me, let it be for yourself alone. That the wish of giving happiness to you might add force to the other inducements, which led me on I shall not attempt to deny. But your family owes me nothing. Much as I respect them, I believe I thought only of you.” (AT LAST!!!! Although it was fiction that I read, I bought into the idea that a man would put the woman he loved first.)

“When I wrote that letter, I believed myself perfectly calm and cool; but I am since convinced that it was written in a dreadful bitterness of spirit.” (I have always been of the persuasion that placing one’s angry thoughts on paper is very therapeutic. I have also written more than one letter that I thought to be reasonable, but later realized they oozed contempt.)

And so my list could go on and on. Pride and Prejudice and Mr. Darcy has been a part of my psyche for over fifty years. I hear the story’s lines in my head when I discuss politics or religion or romance. So, tell me, dear Readers. When has Mr. Darcy spoken to you?
Book Blurb:

Shackled in the dungeon of a macabre castle with no recollection of her past, a young woman finds herself falling in love with her captor – the estate’s master. Yet, placing her trust in him before she regains her memory and unravels the castle’s wicked truths would be a catastrophe.

Far away at Pemberley, the Darcys happily gather to celebrate the marriage of Kitty Bennet. But a dark cloud sweeps through the festivities: Georgiana Darcy has disappeared without a trace. Upon receiving word of his sister’s likely demise, Darcy and wife, Elizabeth, set off across the English countryside, seeking answers in the unfamiliar and menacing Scottish moors.

How can Darcy keep his sister safe from the most sinister threat she has ever faced when he doesn’t even know if she’s alive? True to Austen’s style and rife with malicious villains, dramatic revelations and heroic gestures, this suspense-packed mystery places Darcy and Elizabeth in the most harrowing situation they have ever faced – finding Georgiana before it is too late.

Website – www.rjeffers.com
Twitter - @reginajeffers
Publisher – Ulysses Press http://ulyssespress.com/

Bio

Regina Jeffers, an English teacher for thirty-nine years, considers herself a Jane Austen enthusiast. She is the author of 13 novels, including Darcy’s Passions, Darcy’s Temptation, The Phantom of Pemberley, Christmas at Pemberley, The Scandal of Lady Eleanor, A Touch of Velvet, and A Touch of Cashémere. A Time Warner Star Teacher and Martha Holden Jennings Scholar, as well as a Smithsonian presenter, Jeffers often serves as a media literacy consultant. She resides outside of Charlotte, NC, where she spends time teaching her new grandson the joys of being a child.


31 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. It is an honor Regina! Thanks for doing so. I loved your post.

      And as for your question:

      I read 'about' Mr. Darcy many times before I REALLY heard his voice. But I truly heard him in my soul for the first time in 2001. I had just had surgery. I was stuck with the inability to get up on my own. All I had was the VHS version of P&P that a girl friend loaned to me and a remote. I watched it over and over and over. I heard each and every phrase Mr. Darcy said repeatedly. I would hit the reverse button and listen to each phrase again and again and move into the scene (probably didn't hurt that I was on pain medication at the time--LOL). And of course, I watched Colin, AS Mr. Darcy dive into the lake over and over and over again as well.

      By the time I could get up off the bed, I was totally and utterly smitten.

      Thanks again! Barbara

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    2. "Rewind" is a great savior of those most precious moments in film.
      I am certain the pain meds had nothing to do with your response to Mr. Firth. LOL!!!!

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  2. My love of P&P is fairly recent, and now I don't know what I was doing all those years I could've been being a Janeite and a Darcyholic! But I know I will be one forever :) Darcy and Company speaks to me all the time now in random, seemingly unrelated situations. It's fun when I say a line out loud and someone actually knows what I'm talking about!

    I love all those sigh-worthy moments you mentioned (the "woman worthy of being pleased..." line is one of my faves! Also the "God Bless You" of his letter.) And I love that Darcy came out of his reticence to spar with her because he knew she was smart enough to hold her own. He didn't want to tame her or smother her intelligence. He was vulnerable to her but didn't let her walk all over him.

    TDoGD is next up on my reading list and I'm so excited about reading it! Enjoy your blog tour!

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    1. Thank you, Monica. I always found it endearing when my students would reach the point in the book when they no longer HATED Mr. Darcy, as well as when they got to the point of thinking of him as the perfect mate for Elizabeth. Darcy speaks to each of us when we need him most.

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  3. Regina!!!
    Teehee, I can't wait to get your new book!
    Love the cover and I know I'm going to love the story!!!!
    Wonderful blurb! :)

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    1. Trez, thank you for stopping by. Darcy is a complicated individual, but one worth knowing. Let me know your opinion of "The Disappearance of Georgiana Darcy" when you finish it.

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    2. I absolutely will!
      I happen to be in Cincinnati this week and thought of you ;)

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    3. I'm at the Southern KY Book Fest next Saturday and am in Huntington, WV, for the Ohio River Book Festival a week from tomorrow.

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  4. Regina,
    I would have to say that Darcy speaks to me every single day, whether it be picking up a fanfic novel, opening a Kindle book or just checking out the latest story on a fanfic sight. The man is a complete conundrum as he often leaves me exasperated one moment and then in the next, in a dreamy state of euphoria. Well, such is the life of a Darcyholic. Thanks for all of your wonderful books. ~Jen Red~

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    Replies
    1. Jen,
      Is it not wonderful to be able to share our Darcy obsessions with others of a like mind.

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  5. Regina; This is a master piece of a conversation with Darcy! My love for P&P has already lasted a few years and I have tried to write but Darcy is always very critic, so your post today is a great help!
    The man always speaks to me though, always trying to help with a comment, or a put-down or a compliment. He can get me mad in an instance and the next get me to fly around on a pink cloud of happiness! But I expect that is the life of Darcy-fan and lover! The latest example of Darcy's famous arrogant remarks in my head came last night, he used a comment made by Benjamin Franklin; "Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain and most fools do.” and he was right for once but of course then I felt bad right after it!
    Well... great blog! It was a true and wonderful pleasure to read it!

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    1. Sophia-Elizabeth,
      The thing with Darcy is that you love to hate the man. We would all have totally despised him if he had not put Caroline Bingley in her place with his snarky, tongue-in-cheek remarks in Elizabeth's defense.
      I love the Ben Franklin quote. I may steal it (oops, I mean "borrow" it).

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    2. Regina,
      You are more than welcome to borrow it but I think I am the wrong person to ask! I think you should ask Benjamin Frankling but I think that will be hard!

      And you are right about Darcy, we love to hate him because he is great...actually fantastic when he sets Caroline in her proper place with his tongue-lashing remarks! I think that is where I begin to like him because you feel that he doesn't like Caroline and neither can people who reads the book or watch the movie!

      Now it is 100 years ago that Titanic went to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, for never to see the light of day again! Great tragic!

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  6. Just like you, Regina, I read P&P when I was twelve years old when my mom brought home an abridged copy of the novel. I didn't give Mr Darcy any more thoughts until I saw the 1995 BBC mini-series and 2005 film. It made me believe that good men do exist and they are willing to change themselves to capture the love of the women they love. That's what Mr Darcy has taught me.

    Barbara, I'm a GFC follower, I friend you on FB, join DD FB page and like your author page.


    evangelineace2020(at)yahoo(dot)com

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    1. Men must learn to be true Alpha males, they must let strong females into their lives. LOL!!!

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  7. Those were the best quotes that you shared. I had read the book a few times as a young girl before Mr. Darcy spoke to me personally. It took a teenage disappointed in love moment to realize that I just might need to be patient and I thought of Mr. Darcy (but true confession- it was Capn Wentworth's letter that moved me more). :D

    Your book sounds great and I look forward to reading it.

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    1. Sophia,
      There is nothing wrong with loving Wentworth's letter. When I taught "Persuasion" to my Advanced Placement class, I purposely arranged it so we would finish the letter just as the bell rang for lunch. I read the letter aloud, and then there was a collective sigh from all the females in the room. No matter the age, the female heart craves love.

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  8. I love all of the passages you picked out. "a man who felt less," (my hert melts)!
    While I read P&P in college, it (or Mr. Darcy) really didn't grasp me until years later. Now, I find something new to take away from each character with each additional read!
    Thanks so much for the giveaway!

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    1. It would be a poor guess for me to estimate how often I have read P&P, but I always find a new line or phrase, which speaks to me for the first time. One would think after reading a novel at least once per year for the past half century that there would be no new surprises. One would be in error.

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  9. I absolutely loved this post...so enjoyable! I have only been a fan of Pride and Prejudice for a few years and I am not sure what I did or read before I discovered our beloved Jane! I am so excited to read this book and I am more than willing to listen to anything Mr Darcy wants to say to me!! Thanks for the giveway!!

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    1. WE LOVE CONVERTS, KELLI. YOU MUST PRACTICE THIS PHRASE, "HELLO, MY NAME IS KELLI, AND I AM AN AUSTEN ADDICT." LOL!!!

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  10. I have always had an interest in Georgiana's character and this story sounds quite adventurous. Sounds good to me!

    Shared on fb,google+,twitter and did all the extras above.

    Thanks for the giveaway!

    Margaret
    singitm(at)hotmail(dot)com

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    1. Margaret, we keep meeting on this blog tour. Thank you for stopping by.

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  11. Very nice post. The book sounds very good.

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

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    1. I appreciate your joining us on Darcyholic Diversions. Thank you for your kind words.

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  12. What a delightful post! Of course, you did the cleverest thing ever: citing Darcy.
    Nothing compares to the true man. Thank you for the cozy time you gave us with it.

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  13. This book looks delightful! Congrats on its relese!

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    1. Thanks, Molly. I hope things are going well in Dublin.

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  14. China, quoting Darcy is an obsession.

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