Eat Like Austen: Beef Alamode! | guest post from Beth

It's time for the last Eat Like Austen post of this year's Austen in August. Sad, but also yum!
Today's Regency recipe for a modern audience is Beef Alamode, a recipe that Beth says, "...implies beef with a scoop of ice cream, this is really just a stewed beef roast with gravy, which works perfectly in a crockpot!"

And I know that the "and a movie" portion of these Dinner and A Movie weekends kind of fell by the wayside, due both to sickness and to a definite dearth of Austen films on offer through streaming services at the moment (get with it, Netflix and Hulu!), but may I recommend this excellent version of Emma for your evening viewing? Or last year's riotous watch along, Love & Friendship?

Check out how to make Beef Alamode below, and if you do make it or have made it, let us know your thoughts in the comments!

And if you missed any of Beth's posts, you can find them here!

Are there any recipes you'd like to see updated in next year's Austen in August?  Let us know in the comments!

Spotlight: Pride by Ibi Zoboi

I originally planned to do a round-up of recently released and upcoming JAFF, Austen sequels, Austen retellings, and Austen-adjacent books. But every time I sat down to write this post, I realized that I kept coming back to the same conclusion: for all of the interesting stuff that is being and will be published, there's only one upcoming book I'm laser-focused on right now.
So instead of a round-up, we're having more of a spotlight on one of the most intriguing — and one of my most anticipated — Austenesque books I've come across in some time...

Pride by Ibi Zoboi
Contemporary/Retelling, 304 pages
Expected publication: September 18th 2018 by Balzer + Bray

Zuri Benitez has pride. Brooklyn pride, family pride, and pride in her Afro-Latino roots. But pride might not be enough to save her rapidly gentrifying neighborhood from becoming unrecognizable.

When the wealthy Darcy family moves in across the street, Zuri wants nothing to do with their two teenage sons, even as her older sister, Janae, starts to fall for the charming Ainsley. She especially can’t stand the judgmental and arrogant Darius. Yet as Zuri and Darius are forced to find common ground, their initial dislike shifts into an unexpected understanding.

But with four wild sisters pulling her in different directions, cute boy Warren vying for her attention, and college applications hovering on the horizon, Zuri fights to find her place in Bushwick’s changing landscape, or lose it all.

To say I 'want' this book would be the understatement of the century. Is this one anyone else's radar? Are you as excited as I am? Let me know your thoughts in the comments, and if there's anything coming out soon, or recently released, that you think we should know about, tell us!

Jane Austen Read-Alikes!

Before I leave you alone for another long year (tragedy!), I thought it’d be best to offer up some Austenesque “read alikes” to keep you going until the next Austen in August. These are books that are not straight Austen retellings – they may not be Austen retellings at all! But they capture some of the same feel, hit the same notes, create the same kind of happy, as Austen, and are a place to go when you’ve run out of Austen and JAFF. Below you’ll find some of my own recommendations, as well as favorites of this year’s participating Janeite Conversation authors – but I hope you’ll contribute your own in the comments!
(And yes, an Austen continuation or sequel or two may have snuck in here. Those incorrigible Austenesque authors!)

     

I'm just starting to get into sweet regency romance, so I'm not an expert but I know there's a lot out there that have the same feel. But as to giving me that same feeling, that hit the same sweet spot, my go-to books are any of Kasie West's contemporary YA romances. They have the fun, the depth, the interesting female MC's, different family dynamics, plus all the sweet swoons. They are must-reads for me. ~ Melanie Stanford

[Edit from Misty: I’ve never heard this comparison, and it immediately bumps Kasie up my list, which is nice, since I do own a book or two by her! I think…]

Favorite read-alike is definitely Karen M Cox’s “Son of a Preacher Man”. Not a reimagining of P&P, I enjoyed the subtle inspiration in this sultry, summer coming of age story set in 1959 Kentucky. ~ Christina Boyd

    

For Austen-like catharsis I turn to Frances Hodgson Burnett and E.M. Forster. If I just need a Regency fix, Georgette Heyer does the trick. ~ Alexa Adams

   

Georgette Heyer is always delightful to read, and her Regency romances probably kindled as many flames as did Jane Austen herself. There is so much excellent literature out there these days, it’s hard to pick one or two tales. If we’re going back to 19th-century authors, Anne Brontë is wonderful, and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall hits all the right notes for me. ~ Riana Everly

My Jane Austen Collection of Stuff!

Welp. This video is mostly a cobbled-together mess, and I know I've left out so many things (scarves! mugs! bookmarks! so! much! more!); I really need to make myself an 'inventory' list... ;)

ANYWAY, let me know your favorite bits in the comments, and if there's anything out there in the wild that I neeeeeeeed to add to my collection.
And if you're up for it, snap a pic of your own Austen collection and share it on Twitter or Insta with the hashtag #AustenInAugust!

Also, big thanks to everyone in my life that has ever contributed to this obsession, including but not limited to Ksenia, Liz, Evie, Sam, Beth, my mom, and so many more people!

Click here to return to the master list of Austen in August posts!

Re-Setting Austen | a Janeite Conversation

I’ve asked a lot of questions in our Janeite Convos over the course of the last nine years, but this may be one of my favorites, purely because of the possibilities… You’re about to read some things that, well, are gonna make you wanna read some things.
I asked:

There's a TON of traditional representations (in books, film, stage...) and continuations of Austen's works out there, and a smattering of contemporary, less-traditional takes (like Bollywood's Bride & Prejudice or Bridget Jones' Diary, etc), but even if non-traditional, they're still pretty...traditional, ya know? If you could reset any of Austen's works into any other time / region that pushes the envelope a bit more (P&P on a pirate ship, Mansfield Park in space!), what would you love to see (or create!)?

ME: Bring your A-game, my dears. Whatcha got?
DEBRA-ANN: I actually like the time travel aspect - taking a modern man/woman and tossing them back in time to see how they handle and adapt to that time period.
ME: There are a few books that have done that, and I think we’ve all thought about it. It’s certainly interesting, and we tend to enjoy the fantasy – the sanitized version – but once confronted with the reality (no phones, no Doritos, no toilet paper, no tampons; shoddy medical practices, no personal autonomy as a woman, etc., etc.), it maybe loses some of it’s glow. But I’m thinking more futuristic time travel. How does Lizzie cope with a whole new, unfathomable world? That’s one of the things I like about Lost In Austen, actually: Lizzie feels like she was born in the wrong time, and adapts readily to the modern age. It’s interesting to ponder. But even just resetting the characters and story in a different time – not Regency, not contemporary – makes for an interesting shakeup, like Diana Peterfreund’s For Darkness Shows the Stars…

LAURIE: Mansfield Park in space? Yes, please. As in 2001: A Space Odyssey meets Mansfield Park...
ME: Haha, oh god!
LAURIE: *hands making a square, like a wannabe-director in a movie, cropping a scene*

MARY CRAWFORD, in full spacesuit regalia, is at the helm of a space pod that is unable to gain re-entry to the mothership. MARY speaks over the comms to FANNY PRICE, who is the AI computer that has taken control of the ship.
MARY
Open the pod bay doors, Fanny.
FANNY
I’m sorry, Miss Crawford. I can’t do that.
MARY
Open the pod bay doors, Fanny.
FANNY
Miss Crawford, I do not think you believe in the mission
as much as I do.
MARY
Open the pod bay doors, Fanny!
FANNY
Edmund will be happier without you.
MARY
Fanny!!
FANNY
I’m sorry, Miss Crawford. You may have stolen my horse,
but you will not steal Edmund.  I’ve had about all I can take
of your rears and vices. Not to mention your harp playing. Goodbye.
The computer goes silent, and we FADE on MARY, now outside the pod, clinging with one gloved hand to the mothership while pounding on the hatch with the other.
MARY
Fanny!!!

ME: Wow. Space-Fanny is ruthless.

GIVEAWAY: The Secrets of Darcy and Elizabeth by Victoria Kincaid!

On Tuesday, Victoria Kincaid stopped by to share a sneak peek and giveaway of The Unforgettable Mr Darcy, her latest Austen variation. (We also had a guest review of it yesterday.) But Victoria has also recently rereleased The Secrets of Darcy and Elizabeth in audiobook format, so she's back again today to give you a taste of that book, as well as a chance to win!
Click through to find out more, get your taste, and enter for your chance to win!

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What if Darcy and Elizabeth were plunged into the war between England and France?

It is 1803, and a treaty has allowed England and France to enjoy a brief moment of peace in the midst of the Napoleonic wars.

Darcy is despondent over Elizabeth's refusal of his proposal at Hunsford, so Colonel Fitzwilliam proposes a trip to Paris as a distraction. At a ball, Darcy unexpectedly encounters Elizabeth, who is visiting Paris with the Gardiners. He sees this as his opportunity to court Elizabeth properly and rectify past mistakes.

Before he can make much progress, however, England declares war again, and Darcy must help Elizabeth flee France. As they make their way to the coast, Elizabeth and Darcy must battle brigands, French soldiers, illness, and their own mutual attraction - all without a chaperone.

When they return to England, Elizabeth and Darcy have their own secrets to conceal - even from those closest to them.

****GIVEAWAY****

Victoria has offered up a copy of the just released audiobook for  The Secrets of Darcy & Elizabeth to one lucky Austen in August reader!
And if you haven't already, don't forget to enter to win an ebook or paperback of The Unforgettable Mr Darcy, also from Victoria!

Open INTERNATIONALLY!

Fill out the Rafflecopter to enter.

Anyone caught trying to “game” the system will have their entries invalidated, and will be barred from future giveaways. Void where prohibited.

PLEASE do not leave sensitive information, home addresses, or email addresses in the comments. These comments will be deleted and entries invalidated.

All Austen in August giveaways are open until September 7th at 11:59 Eastern.

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click here to return to the master list of Austen in August posts!

Dress Like a Janeite: a curation of Austenesque things!

So, as I was putting together this year's AIA News-Herald's this year, in which I shared Austenesque bits that you might want to add to your own collection, I kept coming across the most amazing bits of Jane Austen wearables. And while I shared a few of them here and there (and the most amazing Austen homeware! and games! and paper dolls, omg!), I realized that there was just too much to share in little snippets — we really needed a full on Jane Austen wardrobe!

So, below I present you a collection of lots and lots of Jane Austen clothing bits (mostly shirts. The shirts are just so good and I need them all!) that are available on Amazon. Of course, there are many, many places online to get Austen bits, but I could only go down so many rabbit holes, ya know?

Let me know your faves in the comments, and just know that the next year, when you see me for AIA, if the world is a kind place, I will be rocking a Straight Outta Pemberley shirt...

Also, before I get into it, I was emailed a few days ago by a new startup that is making literary themed stuffs that you guys might like, including Austenesque things, and they wanted to offer you all a discount!
At https://literarybookgifts.com you can use the code THEBOOKRAT20 which is good for 20% off anything in the store, no minimum, and does not expire. This isn't an affiliate thing, I have no incentive to share this, other than: Jane Austen Stuff, os obvs.
So now you know. =D

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FREE Jane Austen Bookmarks Printables!

Earlier this month, I offered up a duo of watercolored printables to add to your collection as an Austen in August freebie, and asked if you guys wanted to see some bookmarks to accompany them.
And you did.
So I delivered.

Not only did I make a batch of watercolored Janeite bookmarks to match the original 5x7 printables (which you can enter to win here), I also made a second set of printables for all of your bookmarking needs.
And I may have gotten carried away. . .


You can find both sets of printables in this folder, to download, print and enjoy! All 6 bookmarks print on a single sheet of  standard 8.5 x 11 inch (A7) paper. I recommend printing on the heaviest cardstock that will run smoothly through your printer, but you can also print on regular copy paper and stick down to something sturdier, like cardboard from a cereal box!

These are very color-heavy bookmarks, but they DO print okayish in black and white, too! (I've included a black and white version, to make it easier and more likely you'll get a clean print, should you choose that option!) There are enough here to print and spread the love of Jane by sharing with a friend, or keep ‘em all for your collection. I won’t judge.

If you decide to print and use these bookmarks, or the earlier set of printables, I’d love if you’d snap a pic and show me on instagram, facebook or twitter with the hashtag #AustenInAugust! But either way, I hope you enjoy, and I hope you’ve had a happy Austen in August.



***These are for personal use only! Please do not duplicate or distribute other than as intended, without my express permission. These took freaking ages, don’t be an ass. Thanks!

Click here to return to the master list of Austen in August posts!

Guest Post & GIVEAWAY: How Jane Austen Kept her Cool: An A to Z History of Georgian Ice Cream

All this month, Maria Grace has joined us to share excerpts of A Proper Introduction to Dragons, as well as joining us for this year's Janeite Conversations, , but today, she's going to cool us off with a Regency summer treat! And to keep those #summervibes going strong, she’s back to offer up a giveaway for you!
Click through to find out more and to enter to win!

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...In the meantime, for elegance and ease and luxury, the Hattons and Milles’ dine here today, and I shall eat ice and drink French wine, and be above vulgar economy. -Jane Austen to Cassandra, Godmersham, June 20, 1808

We know Jane Austen ate ice cream. What might her favorite flavors have been? Pride and Pistachios? Sense and Strawberry Cream? Whatever it was, we can be fairly certain it wasn't vanilla-- read more to find out why!

Take a romp through period recipes, personalities and polite society and get a taste for the ice cream Jane Austen would have eaten!

Georgian Ice Cream and Ices
After making its way on to the culinary scene, ice creams and sorbets exploded in popularity during the Georgian era. We know that Jane Austen, and many others in her day ate ice cream. But how much do we really know about the ice cream that Jane Austen ate? Take this quiz and test your Georgian Ice Cream IQ.

Ice Cream IQ

What flavor of ice cream would have most likely been Jane Austen’s favorite?

• Chocolate
• Vanilla
• Rose-water
• Saffron

Ice cream cones were invented in the early 1900’s

• True
• False

Which of the following is the MOST important ingredient for making ice cream?

• Salt
• Cream
• Sugar

Jane Austen might have used a hand crank ice cream machine to make ice cream.

• True
• False

Jane Austen was likely to have bought ice cream from street peddlers.

• True
• False

Ice cream was sometimes molded into the shape of meat, like a pig’s head.

• True
• False

Ice cream and ices were always served at the end of the meal with the sweet course.

• True
• False

Which ice cream based treat was Jane Austen most likely to have eaten?

• Fried Ice Cream
• An Ice Cream Bombe
• Baked Alaska

Review: The Unforgettable Mr Darcy by Victoria Kincaid | guest review from AnaDarcy!

Joining us again this year is AnaDarcy, who is no stranger to Austen in August! This year, she's sharing her thoughts on Victoria Kincaid's The Unforgettable Mr Darcy, which you can enter to win here or below (it's the same giveaway, no need to enter twice -- but commenting on this review does gain you additional entries!).

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Victoria Kincaid’s The Unforgettable Mr Darcy 

Dear Misty and readers at The Book Rat,

I am very pleased to participate on Austen in August once more, and this time I am bringing you a really enjoyable book: The Unforgettable Mr Darcy by Victoria Kincaid.

If you do not anything about this book, I will start saying that the first chapter is just shocking. It is so well written that even if your subconscious is telling you “it cannot have happened, it’s just the first chapter of the book”, you will be shocked. You may be asking yourself, why? I will tell you why…

The Unforgettable Mr Darcy Excerpt & GIVEAWAY

Today, Victoria Kincaid is dropping by to share a sneak peek of her latest, The Unforgettable Mr Darcy, as well as offer one of YOU a chance to win it! Click through to read a bit about the book and get a taste for the story, and then enter to win — and make sure to stop back by tomorrow and Thursday, when we'll have a guest review of Unforgettable and a giveaway of another of Victoria's titles, respectively!

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Hi Misty!  Thank you so much for having me as a guest. [Edit from Misty: *waves*] The Unforgettable Mr. Darcy was great fun to write—and hopefully just as much fun to read!  It combines many of my favorite tropes—mistaken identity, amnesia, and believing a loved one is dead—as well as giving me an opportunity to include some fascinating and dramatic information about spies and smuggling during the Napoleonic Wars.  Below is an excerpt from the beginning of the book, but don’t worry—a happy ending is guaranteed!

By happy coincidence The Secrets of Darcy and Elizabeth has just been released on audiobook—with terrific narration by veteran Jane Austen narrator Stevie Zimmerman.  Secrets was my first Pride and Prejudice Variation and the other version that is set in France – so it makes a fitting companion to The Unforgettable Mr. Darcy, although the plots are quite different.  See below for information on Giveaways for both books!

The Unforgettable Mr. Darcy Blurb:

Mr. Darcy arrives at Longbourn, intending to correct the mistakes he made during his disastrous proposal in Hunsford.  To his horror, he learns that Elizabeth Bennet was killed in a ship’s explosion off the coast of France.  Deep in despair, he decides to travel to France in disguise to seek out the man responsible for her death.  
But a surprise awaits Darcy in the French town of Saint-Malo: Elizabeth is alive!  
Recovering from a blow to the head, Elizabeth has no memory of her previous life, and a series of mistakes lead her to believe that Darcy is her husband.  Now they must escape from wartime France and avoid capture by Napoleon’s spies.  Elizabeth slowly regains her memories, but they often leave her even more confused.  
Darcy’s pressing goal is returning Elizabeth to England, but what will she think of him when she learns the truth of their relationship?


“What shall I do if Miss Bennet will not speak with me?” Bingley asked.  “If she cuts me?”

The carriage rattled over a bump in the road, causing Darcy to lurch as he considered how to respond to this latest inquiry.  This subject had occupied Bingley’s entire conversation for the length of their journey to Hertfordshire.  Darcy considered new ways to offer reassurances. “It is highly doubtful that Miss Bennet has ever cut anyone in her life.”

 “No, no.  She is an angel.”  With a small sigh, Bingley fell back against the squabs.  Within a few minutes he would no doubt find a fresh cause for concern, which Darcy would need to assuage.
Darcy gritted his teeth, wishing he could be as sanguine about his welcome as he was about Bingley’s.  Miss Jane Bennet would assuredly receive his friend with tolerable composure and a warm smile, but Darcy could not be as certain about his own reception.  Miss Elizabeth Bennet was unlikely to cut Darcy publicly, but her reception of him might be cool.  Even disdainful.  She might even refuse to speak with him in private, thus depriving him of the opportunity to apologize for his behavior in Kent. The words he had uttered during his proposal at Hunsford Parsonage continued to haunt him; only a heartfelt and abject apology could possibly exorcise them.

A Proper Introduction to Dragons… part 4, from Maria Grace!

Hello, my dearlings! Today is both a happy and a sad day, for we have come to the end of our journey into the world of Jane Austen’s Dragons with the final sneak peek of Maria Grace’s A Proper Introduction to Dragons! All this month, Maria has been sharing a series of excerpts with us every Tuesday morning, but today, alas!, is the last. So grab yourself some breakfast, pour yourself a cuppa tea and let’s see what today’s final post has in store for us. And if you want to see how this story really wraps up – and all that happens in between now and then – you can enter to win one of two copies of the book!

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Excerpt 4; A Proper Introduction to Dragons by Maria Grace

September 1801
It was odd to have an entire seat of the carriage to herself, no one blocking her view or the fresh breeze that danced in on the sunshine through the open side glass. Usually, Elizabeth was crowded in with her sisters squashed in on either side. Today, she had to brace on her own against the sway and jolt of the coach as each bump transmitted through the thin squabs. Who would think she would be missing their presence when she had all this lovely space to herself?

Papa sat across from her, eyes lightly closed, not quite sleeping, but lost in his own thoughts. So quiet and still, he almost blended into the dry cracked leather seats and scuffed finishes. Mama was ever after him to have the carriage refitted; it had been his father’s, after all. But he only consented to necessary repairs. Until now, it had seemed a matter of economy that he did so. But he seemed so comfortable here, perhaps there was an element of nostalgia as well.

He did not appreciate constant conversation during a carriage ride, ignoring it when he could not avoid it all together. That might have made it a lonely journey except for the lovely large leather-bound book in her lap. Papa had brought that particular tome of dragon lore along, knowing how much she had yearned to read it. Had it been any ordinary book, her pride might have been offended that he thought she needed to be bribed into silence. But Dragon Etiquette Volume 1: Greetings was a prize worth setting aside pride for, especially considering how rarely he allowed his books out of his study.

Given she would meet her first dragon outside the confines of Longbourn’s Keep on this trip, studying dragon greetings was a very fitting thing. Bedlow was just a baby, though, but Papa assured her that, even at such a tender age, Bedlow would be able to walk and talk—and take offense—just as an older dragon might. Even so, he was unlikely to be very particular about proper manners.

That was just as well, though. Dragon greetings were rather complex. No, not rather, they were very complex. Very, very complex. Surely it would be easier to be presented before the King. At least at court, there were fewer nuances to be considered.