Читать книгу The Runaway Countess - Amanda McCabe - Страница 5

I was so excited to find out this year is the 200th anniversary of the publication of Pride and Prejudice! It was discovering the world of Jane Austen that introduced me to the wonders of the Regency period. I found a battered paperback copy of Emma tucked away on a shelf in my grandmother’s house when I was about ten and, after reading it, immediately ran to the library to see what else this mysterious Jane Austen had written. The librarian gave me all the other novels, as well as two Austen biographies and a book called Life in Regency England. I was hooked.

I’ve always loved the settings and themes of Austen’s timeless stories—family, community, characters struggling to find ways to stay true to themselves and still meet the expectations of the society around them. And heroines determined to marry for love and find happiness in the face of overwhelming pressure to find stability at all costs. It’s been so much fun to explore the same ideas with the Bancroft sisters, Jane and Emma, and their handsome heroes! That’s the best part of writing historical romance—exploring a world so different from my own, but also so very similar in our emotions and dreams (just with better clothes!).

And I have Jane Austen—and the wonderful librarian who recognised a new Austen mania and helped me make it grow—to thank for all those hours of delight and joy. Happy anniversary, Lizzie and Darcy!