UPDATE - Fandango

There is a tentative publication date of next summer for Fandango. With any luck, The Ruling Passion will soon follow.


Thank you for the birthday wishes - and (v. belatedly) I send one back to taintedtears2.

To Lou: Although foreign rights have been sold for Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife in several languages, the only one I know of in print is in Korean. I have a copy of that one. I ought to scan it and put it up because the cover is very different. It is of a dancing couple and a hot pink flap around the bottom with some writing on it. I would love to know what it says - and whether the text is abridged;) If I hear of others, I'll let you know.

Note to Mallard:
I have often stated that when it comes to Regency England, I am hardly an expert. No doubt my accuracy leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to the use of titles, etc. However, I do take exception to several other of your points.

As to your assertion that the draft did not come about in England until early in the 20th century, I quote J. Christopher Herold, The Age of Napoleon, P. 252: "PM Addington's government called the entire nation to arms. The result was ludicrous. In the first place, the government defeated its own purpose by exempting all volunteers from the levee en masse. Before the end of 1803, 342,000 volunteers had enrolled. Now to be a volunteer, all a man had to do was to put on a uniform, join his local volunteer association, and do a bit of drilling; in every other way his life continued as usual." P. 253: "Men fit for service who did not volunteer were subject to universal conscription, which operated by lot;..."

On any number of occasions I took license with distances and the time it took to get there to forward the story. But when Darcy took Elizabeth to London after their wedding, it had nothing whatsoever, to do with an expeditious journey.

If, as you say, there were no wild turtles then or now in England, turtle soup must have been made from turtles harvested from the sea, or, dare we think it, raised on turtle farms. Let us, for argument's sake, presume that the turtle Mr. Darcy teased Elizabeth about was an escapee from either the farm or the cooking pot.

In vain I have searched for a book (pamphlet, memoir, magazine article) that details the flora and fauna of Regency England. You must know of one. Could you be so kind as to direct me?

Thanks for you input,
Linda Berdoll

The Ruling Passion

It is really encouraging to hear from readers who want to read more of my personal take on Darcy & Elizabeth's story. We hope to have my third continuation, The Ruling Passion, out next year. Sometimes, however, the publishing business moves with all the grace and speed of a pregnant elephant. I'll certainly keep you abreast of any movement towards a publication date.

Note to Rebecca Francois: I thank you for your kind corrections. They should have been caught by my editors. (They probably should have been caught by me as well, but when one has the opportunity to blame others for something, it is a comfort to do so.) If my story ventures into France (it doesn't at this time, but truth is once I get started there's no telling where it'll go), I'll certainly know who to ask for any particulars.

Fandango is now in the hands of my publisher. Perhaps some readers might enjoy that in the interim. As soon as I know anything about publication dates, I'll post them.

It is a pleasure to hear from you all.

Linda Berdoll

A Big Thank You!

I want to thank so many of you who have taken the time to write and let me know how much you enjoyed my books. I am now working on the third in the Darcy series. As I have the story laid out, it will carry them into the next generation.

It begins with a death.