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Author Archives: Amanda McCabe/Laurel McKee

About Amanda McCabe/Laurel McKee

Writer (as Amanda McCabe, Laurel McKee, Amanda Carmack), history geek, yoga enthusiast, pet owner!

She Doesn’t Look A Day Over 230…

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Happy birthday week, Jane Austen!!!  She would be 238, but I think she looks much, much younger–and so do her books. 🙂  All this week we’re going to be celebrating the big day with fun posts and great prizes.  I have a set of Austen notebooks to give away, plus will throw in a copy of either my December Harlequin Historical release, Running From Scandal, or an ebook of my Regency Christmas novella A Partridge in a Pear Tree (or both!!)

December 16 is a big birthday in history.  Not only was Austen born then, but so was Beethoven.  And Katherine of Aragon.  And my own mom!  There were also two other English women authors, from around Austen’s time though not as well known as her.

ElizabethCarterElizabeth Carter, poet, translator, and member of the Bluestocking Circle, was born Dec. 16, 1717.  Like Jane, she was the daughter of a clergyman, from Deal.  Her father encouraged her in her love of study, and she learned Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Arabic and the sciences at a young age.  She made a tidy little fortune on her translations, especially her 1756 Works of Epicetus, which earned her 1000 pounds on subscription.  She was friends with Samuel Johnson, sometimes editing his periodical The Rambler, as well as sister bluestockings like Hannah More and Eliza Montagu.  Emma Hamilton called her “[as] I imagine, the most learned female who ever lived”.  But Francis, Lord Napier, wrote to Emma calling Carter “”a fine old Slut, though bearing not the least resemblance to a Woman. She had more the appearance of a fat Priest of the Church of Rome than an English woman.”  (eek!)  She died in 1806.

 

Mary Russell Mitford was also born December 16, 1787.  Her life could almost have been the subject of a novel as well, since she was a put-upon, long-suffering heroine!  Her father, a doctor, managed to blow through the fortune his parents left me, plus an astonishing 20,000 pounds Mary drew as a lottery prize when she was ten years old.  They had to sell their comfortable properties and move from rental to rental, penniless, until Mary was old enough to make money on her writings.  She worked in many mediums (drama, poetry, novels, translations), and was prolific and popular, but her earnings couldn’t keep up with her father’s spending.

Mary RussellHer most popular works were a series of stories called Our Village, published between 1824 and 1835.  Lucky for her, her friends (among them the Brownings) secured a civil list pension for her in 1837 and her father died soon after, leaving her to retire to a comfortable cottage in Swallowfield.  She died there in 1855.

 

 

 

 

Who are some of your favorite writers, besides Austen???  How would you celebrate her birthday this week??

Posted in Former Riskies, Giveaways | 10 Replies

Best of the Year!

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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

QueensGambitCover

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!

Painted Girls

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

QueensVowCover

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!

YonaRidingCover

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!!!

BookmansTale

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…

ElizOfYork

QueenAnneCover

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.

PineconeCover

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…

MorganCover

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.

RumorsKaye

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…

MuchA

AmricanHustle

What was your favorite from 2013???  What are you looking forward to in 2014?

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Guest Blogger Cara Elliott!

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Andrea1Cara here,

Hi everyone, and thanks to Amanda for asking me to stop by today and talk a little about sisters and sisterhood. As avid readers and lovers of the Regency, we are part of a close-knit sorority—with Lizzie and Jane Bennet as our patron saints! It’s a special bond, for as the great English Romantic poet Christina Rossetti wrote: “For there is no friend like a sister, in calm or stormy weather, to cheer one on the tedious way, to fetch one if one goes astray, to lift one if one totters down, to strengthen whilst one stands.”

I have two brothers and no sisters, so when I first read Pride and Prejudice, one of the things I loved about it was the wonderful closeness and camaraderie between Lizzie and Jane. (Yes, my brothers were great about teaching me lots of important lessons in life, like how to hit a curveball and how to fall out of a tree without bursting into girly tears. But they weren’t exactly interested in sharing tears over first crushes or shopping for pretty party dresses.) The two eldest Bennets have such a strong and special bond despite—or maybe because of—their very different personalities. With her inimical skill at depicting nuances of character, Austen captured to perfection a portrait of two sister-in-spirit as well as in blood. To this day, whenever I reread it, I feel a pang of longing for having missed having a sister with whom to share my secrets. (Though I do temper that wistfulness by reminding myself that I might have gotten Lydia instead of Jane!)

Andrea3SistersAs I read Austen’s other books, I found it fascinating to see how she developed a full range of “paired” sisterly relationships. In Sense and Sensibility, Elinor and Marianne are close, but while Elinor, like Jane is sensible and very reserved, she also is much more of the “big” sister, feeling she has to hide her own most intimate feelings because she must be a model of wisdom and guidance to her more impetuous younger sibling. It’s a very different dynamic. And then, in Persuasion, Austen creates a pair of sisters who couldn’t be more ill-matched—Anne and her older sister Elizabeth have nothing in common emotionally, intellectually or morally.

 

All those nuances of sisters and sisterhood obviously stuck with me because when I sat down to and started working on a new series idea, I found myself drawn to the challenge of creating a trilogy around three closeknit sisters. (Hey, since I didn’t have those perfect confidantes in real life, I realized I could create them myself!) The “Hellions of High Street” is all about the three Sloane sisters who share a number of things, including a closeknit friendship, an unconventional sense of humor—and a secret passion for writing. Olivia, the eldest, pens fiery political essays, Anna, the middle sister, writes racy romance novels, and Caro, the youngest is an aspiring poet. As you can imagine, the conversations between them can get rather . . . interesting.

Especially when the talk turn to men.

Andrea4CoverIn Scandalously Yours, the first book in the series, which debuts today (you can read an excerpt here) Olivia has several “men” problems. Which all involve the oh-so proper Earl of Wrexham, a former war hero known in Society as the Perfect Hero. Her fiery political essays, written under a pen name, have attracted his attention, but the problem is, he mustn’t learn that a lady has written them. And then there’s the tongue-in-cheek reply to a newspaper that has been inadvertently sent to the earl’s young son . . .

Her sisters have some clever suggestions on what she should do to put out the flames. But all of a sudden, the sparks seem to be flying out of control! Because as we all know, secret passions can lead a lady into trouble . . .

 

So, do you have sisters? If so, are you like Jane-Lizzie, Elinor-Marianne or Anne-Elizabeth . . .or something in between? Do you have any other favorite pair of sisters in literature? One commentator will be chosen at random to win a copy of Scandalously Yours (w either e-book now or print in several month—your choice!)Cara here,Hi everyone, and thanks to Amanda for asking me to stop by today and talk a little about sisters and sisterhood. As avid readers and lovers of the Regency, we are part of a close-knit sorority—with Lizzie and Jane Bennet as our patron saints! It’s a special bond, for as the great English Romantic poet Christina Rossetti wrote: “For there is no friend like a sister, in calm or stormy weather, to cheer one on the tedious way, to fetch one if one goes astray, to lift one if one totters down, to strengthen whilst one stands.”

Posted in Former Riskies, Giveaways, Guest | 26 Replies

Art on Tuesday

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So, tomorrow is my birthday, and things are crazy around here!  I thought I would do a repeat post from my own blog about one of my favorite artists, Berthe Morisot, who was born January 14, 1841!  When i saw some of her painting in the Musee d’Orsay, I was amazed by their gorgeous luminosity, and had to read more about her life….

Berthe1Morisot was born in Bourges, to a well-to-do and respectable family who nevertheless encouraged their daughters Berthe and Edma in their pursuit of art. (Edma married young and gave up painting, while Berthe was more ambitious). Berthe first studied with Barbizon School artist Camilly Corot, who encouraged her interest in plein-air landscape painting, and later with Edouard Manet, who became one of her greatest friends and colleagues and who used her as his model many times (there are rumors of romance, but no proof has come to light…)

Her first appearance in the prestigious Salon was in 1864, with 2 landscapes. She continued to show at the Salon, to mostly positive reactions, until she joined up with the rebellious Inpressionists in 1873. Her light, free style fit well with their aesthetic, though like the other female Impressionist Mary Cassat she mostly painted images of her own milieu of intimate domestic life, women in their homes, and landscapes.

In 1874 she married Edouard Manet’s brother Eugene and had one daughter, Julie. She died of pneumonia on March 2, 1895 and was buried in the Cimetiere de Passy. Her paintings can still be seen in every major museum in the world and are highly sought-after in art auctions…

Some sources on her life:

Anne Higonnet, Berthe Morisot (1995)
Julie Manet, Growing Up With the Impressionists: The Diary of Julie Manet (1987)

Who are some of your favorite artists???

Posted in Former Riskies, Risky Regencies | 1 Reply