Valentine Countdown Blitz: A Chaotic Courtship by Bethany Swafford

For as long as she can remember, Bethany Swafford has loved reading books. That love of words extended to writing as she grew older and when it became more difficult to find a 'clean' book, she determined to write her own. Among her favorite authors are Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer.

When she doesn't have pen to paper (or fingertips to laptop keyboard), she can generally be found with a book in hand.

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Twenty-year-old Diana Forester, a country-bred young woman, fears that her inexperience and uncertainties have discouraged the charming Mr. John Richfield. 

On arriving back home from London, she learns that he has already arrived, ready to continue their acquaintance and explore whether they are suited for each other. 

If Diana thought that deciding her future marriage mate was difficult in London, courting takes on a whole new aspect when Diana's younger siblings become involved. She finds herself dealing with her own feelings, her sister, her younger brother, jealous members of a house party, a jilted suitor, and a highwayman as she falls in love with the charming Mr. Richfield.

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Q&A With the Author:

1.     Tell us about things you enjoy — what you do for fun or personal satisfaction besides writing?

a.     I love movies. As with books I read, I have a rather eclectic taste: Star Trek, Jane Austen adaptations, Disney, How to Train Your Dragon, etc. I love going to a theater, having a bucket of popcorn and just ignore everything going on outside the theater.

2.     When did you first realize you were an author?

a.     I just realized I was an author when I had A Chaotic Courtship published. The majority of my writing before this point had been for myself or for my sister. A Chaotic Courtship was a book I knew I wanted to share with others.

3.     Have you done anything writing-related, but besides actually writing your books, that seemed to get a lot of positive response? Something that encouraged you?

a.     Nothing really comes to mind for this question.

4.     What is the thing you struggle with the most while writing? And how do you defeat it?

a.     I struggle with staying focused. It is so easy for me to be distracted by a new idea, or a new release from a favorite author, or even a random article that comes up on my feed. The best way for me to defeat this is to set a timer, write for 10-15 minutes, and then take a break. This trains my brain to recognize that when the timer is going, it’s time to write.

5.     What is the “message” of your writing?

a.     I suppose I would have to say I’d like for my books to show that “old-fashioned values” doesn’t mean a lack of romance. For me, a sweet and clean story makes my heart flutter more than any detailed sex scene ever could.

6.     Are your characters/stories/scenes, etc. based on anything in real life?

a.     When she read the first draft of A Chaotic Courtship, my sister accused me of having written it when I was angry with her. I definitely pulled the family relationship of the Forrester family from my own family.

7.     What are your future projects?

a.     I am in the middle of a Regency Mystery Trilogy. I have all the books written and I am hoping to release the first book of The Lady’s Maid Trilogy, Keeping the Past, late this spring.

To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page Part 1 
and Official Event page Part 2 

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Book Tour & Review: My Hands Hold My Story

For fans of A Knight of Silence and Read My Lips comes a YA historical western full of grit and heart...

In 1874, Ivy Steele's deafness is more than a handicap. It's a disease. Surrounded by a family that doesn't understand her, she's learned to cope and find solace where she can. Then, the unexpected happens. Her aunt dies, and her uncle sends her away to rejoin her father's family in Montana.

Left to fend for herself, after the companion hired to escort her abandons her, sixteen-year-old Ivy faces continual hardship and danger. Several men see an unaccompanied Ivy as a flower ripe for the picking, and things only get worse when masked men hold up their stagecoach.

Barely scraping through, Ivy makes it to Montana with her nerves shaken and what little money she has in her boot. Expecting a peaceful if not affectionate welcome, Ivy finds herself in greater hardship than she's ever known.

Surrounded by a stepfamily that hates her, and flung into a life where hearing is vital, Ivy finds solace in a handsome cowboy named Remy. But things with her new family are not what they seem. And Ivy is about to find out that the danger she faced on the journey west, has followed her to Montana...

Bethany Swafford dazzles with her stunning young adult debut, introducing a strong heroine, the hardships of frontier life, shocking twists, and a slow-burning romance that will leave you wanting more.

Third place winner of the 2018 Rosemary Award

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For as long as she can remember, Bethany Swafford has loved reading books. That love of words extended to writing as she grew older and when it became more difficult to find a ‘clean’ book, she determined to write her own. Among her favorite authors is Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer.

When she doesn’t have pen to paper (or fingertips to laptop keyboard), she can generally be found with a book in hand. In her spare time, Bethany reviews books for a book site called More Than A Review.

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This was one of the most engaging and thoughtful stories I’ve read in a long time. Told in first person and set in the decade following the Civil War, this young adult story about a sixteen year-old deaf girl revealed the uncertainties, misconceptions and trials those with limited or no hearing face, especially during that time.

Forced from a school for the deaf after her aunt’s death, Ivy makes the treacherous trip to Montana. To join her father and brother, all her family left after a fever that took her hearing along with the lives of her mother and younger sibling. She arrives to find her father remarried to a difficult woman who knew nothing about her existence. At first, no one wants her there, she does not want to be there, but she is helpless to do anything other than make her way in a dysfunctional family that resents her. Even though her education is evident and she demonstrates her many skills, she is perceived to be less-valuable. The attitude towards her is such that because she is not wanted, she should be grateful to be treated like a slave and take what she can get.

Communication is a problem. Although she can speak, because she cannot hear, Ivy cannot gauge her volume or pitch. She had come from a school that taught her signing to communicate, but the family makes no effort to learn signing. She can read lips, but the family tends to turn their backs or hide their faces behind their hands to hide what they say. She can read and write, but it is a slow means of communicating. Much of the time she must deduce what is said through body language, snatches of lip-read words, and facial expressions—challenges the hearing-impaired no doubt struggle with today.

I loved how the author portrayed her characters as Ivy gradually learned how to deal with her family. She eventually won several of them over, including her natural brother who, as a child, was her confidant and playmate. She also learned to stand up for herself. There is also a sweet, budding romance in the works, even as Ivy’s step-mother does her best to foist Ivy off in marriage to a man Ivy easily identified as unsavory.

The story ended too soon for me. I can highly recommend it to adult readers as well as youth.

To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 

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Book Tour: NOT MY IDEA by Bethany Swafford

"Lucas, you must return home."

Twenty two year old Lucas Bywood abandons his Grand Tour in response to those words from his father. Everything is not well at home and he finds himself in a bit of a fix. A little warning that his father had made tentative arrangements for his marriage would have been nice but Luke really wishes it had been anyone other than the young lady chosen. After all, Phoebe Ramsey had always been an annoyance and any time they had spent together had resulted in physical injuries for one of them. 

Just when Luke thinks he's escaped that particular future, he finds himself courting a young woman he doesn’t want, a furious best friend who wants a duel to satisfy honor, and the responsibility of finding who and why someone had caused an accident for his mother. 

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I loved poor Lucas. This book was written in first person. This second son was ordered home, and once he arrived it seemed like everyone was against him. No matter what he did, it was never right in the eyes of most of his family. Notice I said most. There was some family dynamics that got me to wondering if there was a conspiracy not only against Lucas, or Luke, but also against his strongest ally, his mother. There was his fiance he abhorred, his friend that left me wondering about him and his sister-in-law I would have loved to strangle--right along with her husband, Luke's brother. 

The characters were well-written, and I felt as if I was Lucas. I empathized with him from beginning to end. The story moved at a fast pace with Lucas being hit with something new to deal with every time he turned around. There was a sweet romantic interest that was not really resolved, which left me wondering if there is a sequel in the works, another romance that was (thankfully!), but the story was almost more of a who-done-it than a suspenseful romance.

This was an enjoyable book to read, one I didn’t want to put down until I reached the end. I recommend it to anyone who loves a good regency story, especially one that is full of action and character-driven.

For as long as she can remember, Bethany Swafford has loved reading books. That love of words extended to writing as she grew older and when it became more difficult to find a ‘clean’ book, she determined to write her own. Among her favorite authors is Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer.

When she doesn’t have pen to paper (or fingertips to laptop keyboard), she can generally be found with a book in hand. In her spare time, Bethany reviews books for a book site called More Than A Review.

Connect with the Author here: 

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To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 

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