Please join me in welcoming fellow Loveswept author Elisabeth Barrett! Her sizzling debut novel DEEP AUTUMN HEAT will be out Monday!
I’d like to thank fellow Loveswept author Jessica Scott for hosting me. I’m thrilled to be here! Today, I’d like to talk about several of my favorite topics: Jane Austen, first impressions, and romance novels.
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was the first romance novel I read, and to this day, it remains my favorite. The original title of Pride and Prejudice was First Impressions, and if you know the story, you can understand why. I won’t insult people’s intelligence by summarizing the plot here (as a card-carrying member of the Jane Austen Society of North America, I simply assume that everyone has read the book), but I will provide a little set-up. Elizabeth Bennet (the heroine) is at an assembly in Meryton. When Mr. Bingley asks Mr. Darcy (the hero) to dance with Elizabeth, he refuses. Believing he cannot be overheard, Mr. Darcy says:
“I certainly shall not [dance]. You know how I detest it, unless I am particularly acquainted with my partner. At such an assembly as this, it would be insupportable. Your sisters are engaged, and there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment to me to stand up with.”
Then he specifically insults Elizabeth:
“She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men.”
Add in Mr. Darcy’s thwarting of Mr. Bingley’s marriage to Elizabeth’s sister, Jane, and it is no wonder that Elizabeth spends a good portion of the book furious with him.
Happily, Mr. Darcy redeems himself, encouraging Elizabeth to befriend his sister, aiding Elizabeth’s family when scandal threatens to ruin them, and encouraging Mr. Bingley to once again pursue Jane. Why? Because he falls in love with Elizabeth. At the end of the novel, Mr. Darcy apologizes for his prideful behavior, Elizabeth apologizes for her prejudicial behavior, and of course they get their happily ever after.
It was with first impressions in mind that I wrote my debut novel, Deep Autumn Heat, which releases on July 9th. Sebastian Grayson, chef-owner of New 
York City hotspot Helena, is back in his Cape Cod hometown of Star Harbor to recharge. The last thing he expects is to find inspiration, but when he steps foot into the Lexie Meyers Kitchen and takes one bite of Lexie’s delectable coconut cake, he immediately gets hooked—on her. But Lexie isn’t sold on him. She’s got her own issues to worry about, namely starting a catering business out of her already-successful restaurant, but she also isn’t interested in dealing with Seb, despite his looks and fame.
Why?
Because on first impression, Seb comes across as presumptuous, arrogant, and overbearing. When he first meets Lexie, he blatantly scopes her out. He swaggers around town, challenges her to a cook-off when she’d really rather be steering clear of him, and generally makes a nuisance of himself by hanging around her restaurant.
In short, he starts out as kind of a jerk.
Thing is, even though Lexie is attracted to him, she’s no pushover, and she gives as good as she gets. When he tries to use his greatest assets—his celebrity and his looks—to get in with her, she shuts him down cold, refusing to acknowledge either. And then he goes about everything the wrong way. Once he realizes that she truly loves cooking, he challenges her to a cook-off, but Lexie views this as an invasion, not a collaboration, and it doesn’t really get him closer to her.
He’s forced to step back, reassess his approach, and actually change his behavior in order to get what he wants. When he gives her enough room to invite him into her kitchen to help instead of demanding she let him in, the two are able to move their relationship forward.
In Deep Autumn Heat, it was a huge challenge to write a story in which everyone might not like the hero at the outset. I hoped that by the end of the book, readers would see Seb has changed and grown as a person and would be rooting for him. (Whether or not I was successful is something you’ll have to judge for yourself).
Throughout the book, Seb continues to evolve, thanks to Lexie’s spunkiness, warmth, and vulnerability. He’s able to apply much of what he’s learned from her to both his personal and professional lives. By the end of the book, Seb is redeemed, but he isn’t completely tamed. Yet thanks to Lexie, he is definitely a better person—one who is finally worthy of her.
About Deep Autumn Heat:
In this sexy new Star Harbor romance series, featuring the too-tempting Grayson brothers, a celebrity chef turns up the heat for a local café owner—and things start to sizzle.
Lexie Meyers decides there’s nothing sweeter than watching Sebastian Grayson’s perfect, wicked mouth devour her coconut cake. He’s hot, he’s hungry, and he’s sizing her up like she’s the best thing on the menu. But she’s been burned in the past and flings just aren’t her thing. Too bad Sebastian can’t resist a challenge.
Worldly, famous, and notorious with the ladies, Seb had planned a weekend of fishing and relaxation with his brothers. Until Lexie, with her kissable lips and frosty “get lost” attitude, makes him want to forget his culinary empire and create some magic with her. After he fires up his charm—including challenging her to a televised cook-off to break through her resistance—it’s now hotter in the bedroom than it is in the kitchen and Lexie isn’t sure whether she’s lost her mind . . . or just her heart.
View an excerpt of Deep Autumn Heat on Scribd: Click here.
Pre-order Deep Autumn Heat: Kindle | Nook | ITunes |
About Elisabeth:
Raised in a sleepy little Connecticut town, Elisabeth draws on her upbringing to write small-town romances. Her summers spent living and working on Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard were the inspiration for the Star Harbor series, which kicks off with Deep Autumn Heat and continues with Blaze of Winter (coming September 2012). Currently, Elisabeth lives in Northern California with her husband and three children. She loves Mr. Darcy. Find her online: Website | Blog | Facebook
How about a Giveaway?
One commenter will be randomly selected to win a NetGalley preview of Deep Autumn Heat. Contest ends July 12th at midnight (EDT).You’ll need a NetGalley account, and to answer the questions below:
Have you ever had an instance where your first impression of someone wasn’t the correct impression? Did they change or did you?