In celebration of the newest book by Lauren Willig, The Mischief of the Mistletoe, I present, the hero's ultimate foil, the heroine. Arabella Dempsey, friend to Jane Austen, foil to Turnip, and ideally suited for Claire Foy! So stop, and look no further! This is the lady for our root vegetable friend!
Name: Claire Foy
Dream Character Casting for the Lauren Willig Miniseries: Arabella Dempsey
First Impression: Little Dorrit, as the titular character she evoked such sympathy and sweetness.
Why they'd be the perfect actor for the Lauren Willig Miniseries: She has a sweetness and an apparent sense of humor that would be needed in someone to fully appreciate how wonderful Turnip is. Plus, nerves of steel and a no nonsense attitude when needed, and those are needed occasionally against French spies and rogue music teachers, not to mention teenage girls!
Lasting Impression: Going Postal. How that sweet Amy Dorrit could also portray this sassy, street savvy, noir esque lady, Adora, shows the versatility of this up and coming actress that would perfectly suit Arabella.
What else you've seen them in: She has not been in much, but she has quickly made a name for herself starring in an Andrew Davies miniseries followed quickly by her Terry Pratchett miniseries and to be topped off with the remake of Upstairs, Downstairs! She is the next big thing, mark my words!
Can't believe it's them: She was in the Being Human pilot! Granted I haven't seen it in a long long time and it was never showed stateside and has been forever shelved do to the horrifically bad original Mitchell and Annie, but still... she was in that!?! Oh wait... she was George's Ex, wasn't she...
Wish they hadn't: This young'un hasn't made a misstep, and lets hope it stays that way!
Bio: So talented and so young! I can't wait to see what she does next, it's no surprise she was named one of the "55 faces of the future!" Although, in your bizarre and random facts of the day, Claire and our hero, Nicholas, though never starring in anything together (which I would fix, had I the means and ways) have a real life connection. Nicholas' long time partner, Lou Gish, who sadly passed away four years ago, is best known for playing Jeff's girlfriend on Coupling. Jeff, as played by Richard Coyle was Claire Foy's love interest in Going Postal, Mr. Lipwig himself!
In celebration of the newest book by Lauren Willig, The Mischief of the Mistletoe, otherwise known as my favorite root vegetable named hero gets his own book, it's time to cast some characters! As you no doubt remember, I love to cast books in my head with the plethora of BBC actors that reside therein, though they might deny that they live in my brain. Anyways... from day one when Turnip bumbled onto the scene all embroidered waistcoats and good intentions there has only been one man who could play him in the dream miniseries of my mind. I have been in love with this actor since he first foiled Rafe while loosing his love Elizabeth, ok, it doesn't hurt that he says Elizabeth over and over in the film, making it easier to fantasize, but he was a step up from Robin Hood, and I'm talking about the cartoon fox here. Nicholas Rowe who played the dashing Holmes in The Young Sherlock Holmes will always he a favorite actor of mine and also my Turnip!
Name: Nicholas Rowe
Dream Character Casting for the Lauren Willig Miniseries: Turnip Fitzhugh, always a Turnip, never a Reggie
First Impression: Sherlock Holmes, sigh...
Why they'd be the perfect actor for the Lauren Willig Miniseries: He exudes this happiness and goodwill but has the perfect features for a befuddled expression. Also he's a little goofy and I think he could pull off a Carnation themed waistcoat very well indeed, that you very much!
Lasting Impression: The first impression stuck, but I always have a little flutter in my heart when I see he's in something coming up!
What else you've seen them in: Besides treading the boards... Nicholas pops up here and there all over the BBC, from Poldark to Sharpe's, Shackleton to to the French and Saunders comedy, Let Them Eat Cake. Also to be seen in Regency garb in Beau Brummell! But he has not stayed small screen! He's been in movies by Tom Stoppard (Enigma) and starring Anne Hathaway (Nicholas Nickleby).
Can't believe it's them: Midsomer Murders! Yes, I know every British actor MUST do Midsomer Murders... but his role! In "The Fisher King" he made a mad driven insane with his lust for his wife who turns out to be his sister completely believable and compelling, in a plot point that might have devolved into pure soap opera!
Wish they hadn't: Doctor Who animated, just because it wasn't "real" Doctor Who... now if this leads to real Doctor Who, then I'm fine with it. I just don't want a repeat of let's forget that Richard E. Grant was the 9th Doctor because it was just a cartoon!
Bio: Is a talented man who has stayed a great actor now for many decades and straddles film, television and indie cult status (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) very well and I hope to see him in things for years to come. And not just in our wedding announcement.
Though it's not quite Christmas, there is that nip in the air which indicates that it's right around the corner. I can think of nothing better than a new book from Lauren Willig on the lead up to bleak winter. Usually we have to wait for the post Christmas blahs to get a hit of a new Willig book, but not this year! We're getting a pre and post Christmas bounty! To celebrate this glorious publication week and month of Willig on my blog I bring to you a wondrous giveaway. Supplemented by Dutton there is now not one, not two, but 8 WINNERS! Think of that! You have a very high chance of winning. So enter and enjoy what I think is Lauren's best book yet, though it might just be a soft spot I have for a certain man named after a root vegetable.
The Prizes:
1st Prize (2 winners): A Signed 1st Edition of The Mischief of the Mistletoe Signed by Lauren Willig plus a lovely Mischievous Christmas Ornament
2nd Prize (2 winners): A 1st Edition of The Mischief of the Mistletoe plus a lovely Mischievous Christmas Ornament
3rd Prize (4 winners): A lovely Mischievous Christmas Ornament
The Rules:
1. Open to EVERYONE (for clarification, this means international, but no shipping to space stations or TARDI), just because you haven't been following me all along doesn't mean you don't matter, you just get more entries if you prove you love me by following.
2. Please make sure I have a way to contact you if your name is drawn, either your blogger profile or a link to your website/blog or you could even include your email address with your comment(s) or email me.
3. Contest ends Tuesday, November 30th at 11:59PM CST
4. How to enter: Just comment in the space below!
5. And for those addicted to getting extra entries:
+1 for answering the question: If you had a vegetable nick name, what would it be? An extra +1 if it's a root vegetable.
+2 for becoming a follower
+10 if you are already a follower
+10 for each time you advertise this contest - blog post, sidebar, twitter (please @MzLizard), etc. (but you only get credit for the first post, so tweet all you like, and I thank you for it, but you'll only get the +10 once). Also please leave a link!
Good luck!
The Mischief of the Mistletoe by Lauren Willig
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: October 26th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"'Tis the season to get Pink! Lauren Willig's beloved Pink Carnation series gets into the holiday spirit with this irresistible Regency Christmas caper.
Arabella Dempsey's dear friend Jane Austen warned her against teaching. But Miss Climpson's Select Seminary for Young Ladies seems the perfect place for Arabella to claim her independence while keeping an eye on her younger sisters nearby. Just before Christmas, she accepts a position at the quiet girls' school in Bath, expecting to face nothing more exciting than conducting the annual Christmas recital. She hardly imagines coming face to face with French aristocrats and international spies...
Reginald "Turnip"Fitzhugh-often mistaken for the elusive spy known as the Pink Carnation- has blundered into danger before. But when he blunders into Miss Arabella Dempsey, it never occurs to him that she might be trouble. When Turnip and Arabella stumble upon a beautifully wrapped Christmas pudding with a cryptic message written in French, "Meet me at Farley Castle," the unlikely vehicle for intrigue launches the pair on a Yuletide adventure that ranges from the Austens'modest drawing room to the awe-inspiring estate of the Dukes of Dovedale, where the Dowager Duchess is hosting the most anticipated event of the year: an elaborate twelve-day Christmas celebration. Will they find poinsettias or peril, dancing or danger? Is it possible that the fate of the British Empire rests in Arabella's and Turnip's hands, in the form of a festive Christmas pudding?"
Could possibly be the best book Lauren has written yet, and that's saying a lot!
Trio of Sorcery by Mercedes Lackey
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: October 26th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Mercedes Lackey presents three exciting short urban fantasy novels featuring three resourceful heroines and three different takes on the modern world and on magics both modern and ancient.
Arcanum 101: Diana Tregarde, practicing witch, romance novelist, Guardian of the Earth. Studying at Harvard, Diana is approached by Joe O’Brian, a young cop who has already seen more than one unusual thing during his budding career. The distraught mother of a kidnap victim is taking advice from a “psychic” and interfering in the police investigation. Will Diana prove that the psychic is a fake? Unfortunately, the psychic is not a fake, but a very wicked witch—and the child’s kidnapper.
Drums: Jennifer Talldeer, shaman, private investigator, member of the Osage tribe. Most of Jennie’s work is regular PI stuff, but Nathan Begay brings her a problem she’s never seen before. His girlfriend, Caroline, is Chickasaw to his Navaho, but that’s not the problem. Somehow, Caroline has attracted the attention of an angry Osage ghost. Thwarted in love while alive, the ghost has chosen Caroline to be his bride in death.
Ghost in the Machine: Ellen McBridge: computer programmer extraordinaire, techno-shaman. The programmers and players of a new MMORPG find that the game’s “boss,” a wendigo, is “killing” everyone—even the programmers’ characters with their god-like powers. A brilliant debugger, Ellen discoveres that the massive computing power of the game’s servers have created a breach between the supernatural world and our own. This wendigo isn’t a bit of code, it’s the real thing . . . and it’s on the brink of breaking out of the computers and into the real world. "
Short urban fantasy bu Mercedes!?! I'm in!
Side Jobs by Jim Butcher
Published by: Roc
Publication Date: October 26th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Here, together for the first time, are the shorter works of #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher-a compendium of cases that Harry and his cadre of allies managed to close in record time. The tales range from the deadly serious to the absurdly hilarious. Also included is a new, never-before-published novella that takes place after the cliff-hanger ending of the new April 2010 hardcover, Changes. This is a must-have collection for every devoted Harry Dresden fan as well as a perfect introduction for readers ready to meet Chicago's only professional wizard. "
I can think of no better way to wait for the new Dresden Files book than a compilation of short stories set in that world!
The Track of Sand by Andrea Camilleri
Published by: Penguin
Publication Date: October 26th, 2010
Format: Paperback, 272 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Inspector Salvatore Montalbano wakes from strange dreams to find a gruesomely bludgeoned horse carcass in front of his seaside home. When his men came to investigate, the carcass has disappeared, leaving only a trail in the sand. Then his home is ransacked and the inspector is certain that the crimes are linked. As he negotiates both the glittering underworld of horseracing and the Mafia's connection to it, Montalbano is aided by his illiterate housekeeper, Adelina, and a Proustian memory of linguate fritte. Longtime fans and new readers alike will be charmed by Montalbano's blend of unorthodox methods, melancholy self-reflection, and love of good food."
If, like my mom, you can't get enough of Italian murder mysteries, check out this latest by Andrea Camilleri!
Oh Dutton, you do spoil me and my blog readers. Look at all the lovely Spy Swag I have which I'm going to share with you, my loyal readers when I announce my Pretty in Pink Giveaway next week! Until then, I think I will praise the greatness of Lauren Willig and Dutton in a warped but traditional Christmas sing-song.
Ivy and Intrigue: A Very Selwick Christmas by Lauren Willig
Publication Date: December 29th, 2008 - January 21st, 2009
Format: ebook
Challenge: Historical Fiction, E Book
Rating: ★★★
To Read
It's been nine months since Richard Selwick was unmasked as the Purple Gentian and he fled France in the arms of his lady love Amy Balcourt. Nine months away from the action and rusticating with the new missus. Nine months in which the newlywed sheen has dulled just a little under the stress of family and the holidays. Amy and Richard are celebrating their first Christmas together at Uppington Hall with both their families and surprisingly Richard's ex Dierdre. The Dierdre who had sonnets written to her and who was Richard's first love. The Dierdre that resulted in Tony's death due to her unscrupulous lady's maid. Of course her presence is more for Lady Uppington's benefit, to knock Dierdre's nose out of joint and show of her new daughter-in-law Amy, but still, she is one more stress. Dierdre is the embodiment of all that Richard left behind, all that he was forced to give up because of Amy. If it wasn't for her Richard would still be a hero. While standing nearby Richard's thoughts are veering along the same lines, that it was he who cut short Amy's potential as a super spy, the potential that Jane took and made a reputation of. Can these two sort through their holiday misunderstanding and do what they do best, work as a couple? Or will French spies once more try to thwart them?
In this cute little Christmas novella full of Yuletide charm we get to catch up with those Selwicks we know and love. My problem though is the same as Amy's, Dierdre. It's not so much her existence, but that she's not over in France. Correct me if I'm wrong, or back me up if you felt the same way, but when reading The Secret History of the Pink Carnation I had the distinct feeling that Dierdre was Richard's kept woman in France, not the girl next door with an amoral maid. This just kept on nagging and nagging at me the entire time I was reading it trying to replay her previous role. I had the feeling that Tony's death occurred quite quickly after Richard told Dierdre and that couldn't be the case if there was all this cross channel communications that had to take place. Other than this rather annoying fly in the ointment, I loved that Richard and Miles are slowly bridging the gap back to how they were before Miles and Hen's precipitous marriage. Also seeing Uppington Hall, first through the eyes of Eloise, and then through her Regency heroes made for a lovely Christmas treat, not to mention, Richard swinging from the chandelier in his best Errol Flynn, oh yeah!
All Clear by Connie Willis
Published by: Spectra
Publication Date: October 19th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 656 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"In Blackout, award-winning author Connie Willis returned to the time-traveling future of 2060—the setting for several of her most celebrated works—and sent three Oxford historians to World War II England: Michael Davies, intent on observing heroism during the Miracle of Dunkirk; Merope Ward, studying children evacuated from London; and Polly Churchill, posing as a shopgirl in the middle of the Blitz. But when the three become unexpectedly trapped in 1940, they struggle not only to find their way home but to survive as Hitler’s bombers attempt to pummel London into submission.
Now the situation has grown even more dire. Small discrepancies in the historical record seem to indicate that one or all of them have somehow affected the past, changing the outcome of the war. The belief that the past can be observed but never altered has always been a core belief of time-travel theory—but suddenly it seems that the theory is horribly, tragically wrong.
Meanwhile, in 2060 Oxford, the historians’ supervisor, Mr. Dunworthy, and seventeen-year-old Colin Templer, who nurses a powerful crush on Polly, are engaged in a frantic and seemingly impossible struggle of their own—to find three missing needles in the haystack of history.
Told with compassion, humor, and an artistry both uplifting and devastating, All Clear is more than just the triumphant culmination of the adventure that began with Blackout. It’s Connie Willis’s most humane, heartfelt novel yet—a clear-eyed celebration of faith, love, and the quiet, ordinary acts of heroism and sacrifice too often overlooked by history."
Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick
Published by: Simon and Schuster
Publication Date: October 19th, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 432Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The sequel to the New York Times Best selling phenomenon, Hush, Hush!
Nora should have know her life was far from perfect. Despite starting a relationship with her guardian angel, Patch (who, title aside, can be described anything but angelic), and surviving an attempt on her life, things are not looking up. Patch is starting to pull away and Nora can't figure out if it's for her best interest or if his interest has shifted to her arch-enemy Marcie Millar. Not to mention that Nora is haunted by images of her father and she becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him that night he left for Portland and never came home.
The farther Nora delves into the mystery of her father's death, the more she comes to question if her Nephilim blood line has something to do with it as well as why she seems to be in danger more than the average girl. Since Patch isn't answering her questions and seems to be standing in her way, she has to start finding the answers on her own. Relying too heavily on the fact that she has a guardian angel puts Nora at risk again and again. But can she really count on Patch or is he hiding secrets darker than she can even imagine?"
