Persuasion, Captain Wentworth and Cracklin' Cornbread

GIVEAWAY

HATHAWAY, MARY JANE
PERSUASION, CAPTIAN WENTWORTH AND CRACKLIN' CORNBREAD

A lively Southern retelling of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, featuring Lucy Crawford, who is thrown back into the path of her first love while on a quest to save her beloved family home.

Lucy Crawford is part of a wealthy, well-respected Southern family with a long local history. But since Lucy’s mother passed away, the family home, a gorgeous antebellum mansion, has fallen into disrepair and the depth of her father’s debts is only starting to be understood. Selling the family home may be the only option—until her Aunt Olympia floats the idea of using Crawford house to hold the local free medical clinic, which has just lost its space. As if turning the plantation home into a clinic isn’t bad enough, Lucy is shocked and dismayed to see that the doctor who will be manning the clinic is none other than Jeremiah Chevy—her first love.

Lucy and Jeremiah were high school sweethearts, but Jeremiah was from the wrong side of the tracks. His family was redneck and proud, and Lucy was persuaded to dump him. He eventually left town on a scholarship, and now, ten years later, he’s returned as part of the rural physician program. And suddenly, their paths cross once again. While Lucy’s family still sees Jeremiah as trash, she sees something else in him—as do several of the other eligible ladies in town. Will he be able to forgive the past? Can she be persuaded to give love a chance this time around?

My Review:

I can't begin to convey how much I've loved this series. Revisiting Austen in the South with Hathaway's unique spin has been reading nirvana for me. And I do believe that Persuasion, Captain Wentworth and Cracklin' Cornbread is my favourite of the three. I just loved Lucy and Jem's story even though it was angst riddled to the very end...or maybe because it was. Carefully plotted and flawlessly executed, every precious word built up sights and sounds and smells and oh, so many emotions in my mind. A total escape read -- so much so that it was surreal to be jarred out of it when real life got in the way.

If I never get my blood pressure down, I'm blaming Lucy's family. I was foaming at the mouth over some of their antics. Gah! I wanted to shake that girl for capitulating so many times. All that Southern breeding has made her a tad too biddable.

Stalwart Jem, hurt by past rejection but still drawn to the girl who broke his heart. There is something about a sensitive hero who struggles to stay on an even keel. These two have such history -- and it goes way beyond personal. Their past is cluttered with societal expectations, class consciousness and even racial prejudice. The heart of this story is the hero and heroine's willingness to create something enduringly beautiful from the shards of their shattered pasts.

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of Persuasion, Captain Wentworth and Cracklin' Cornbread please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday February 1 2015. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!