Pure of Heart
Author: Auria Jourdain
Genre: Historical Fiction
Book Description:
A ghost child left to die in a French forest, Contesse Blanchefort seeks her long-buried past after her adoptive father dies at the Bastille. Embarking on a quest across England with a pagan woman and a rogue Gypsy, Contesse falls ill in London, and her companions are forced to seek help. With overwhelming compassion, physician’s apprentice Eric McEwan nurses Contesse back to health, but discovers that her exotic accent and pale features set his heart ablaze...her mere touch brands his soul. Passion blooms as the two discover their love for one another—with disastrous consequences.
Upon his expulsion from Cambridge, Eric must battle his domineering grandfather’s wrath. When family tragedy strikes, he must return to his provincial home and confront his abusive past. Carrying on with her quest, Contesse struggles to free herself from her childhood as sinister details are revealed. Without Eric, she’s lost. But love is strong...can they conquer their demons to find one another again?
Author: Auria Jourdain
Genre: Historical Fiction
Book Description:
A ghost child left to die in a French forest, Contesse Blanchefort seeks her long-buried past after her adoptive father dies at the Bastille. Embarking on a quest across England with a pagan woman and a rogue Gypsy, Contesse falls ill in London, and her companions are forced to seek help. With overwhelming compassion, physician’s apprentice Eric McEwan nurses Contesse back to health, but discovers that her exotic accent and pale features set his heart ablaze...her mere touch brands his soul. Passion blooms as the two discover their love for one another—with disastrous consequences.
Upon his expulsion from Cambridge, Eric must battle his domineering grandfather’s wrath. When family tragedy strikes, he must return to his provincial home and confront his abusive past. Carrying on with her quest, Contesse struggles to free herself from her childhood as sinister details are revealed. Without Eric, she’s lost. But love is strong...can they conquer their demons to find one another again?
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EXCERPT
Dumbfounded at this new information, Contesse shook her head. “I had no idea! All these years, and our country doctor couldn’t explain what was wrong with me…a child with skin and hair as pale as a—” A gasp escaped her lips, finally uncovering the epithet the old crone had called her. “She called me a ghost!”
“Who? Your mother?”
Folding her arms across her chest, she glanced away. “No. The old woman that haunts my dreams. She took care of me when I was a child…before Edouard found me. She was right…look at me!”
Eric pulled her close and forked his fingers through her hair from the roots to the ends. Trailing a light finger down her neck, he husked, “She’s daft, Contesse. You certainly feel real to me…pure and innocent, like an angel…”
Contesse inhaled sharply as desire surged through her veins. Waves of desire invaded her body with his mere touch. A flush of warmth crept up her cheeks, her womanly folds moistening in response to his husky voice. What’s he doing to me?
Entwining his fingers with hers, he searched her face. “Have you ever been kissed?”
She lowered her eyes, unable to face him lest she burst into tears. “Oui. Once. But he didn’t want me either.”
With a sympathetic shake of his head, he tipped her chin up and stared at her. “Then he’s a fool. God, but you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen...”
About the AuthorHistory buff, Francophile, and hopeless romantic that demands an HEA—it’s the perfect mixture for writing romance! With fond childhood memories of reading on quiet afternoons, I loved the "happily ever after" sweet teen romances, but I quickly plunged into the world of historical romance—my get-away-from-real-life transporter. Add in a degree in Political Studies with six years of French, and twenty years later, I’m living my dream. With three published novels, 7 finished, and several more in my head, I have years of work ahead of me!
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Thank you for the opportunity!
ReplyDeleteHi Jolanda! Thanks so much for stopping by today and commenting:D Good luck in the contest!
Delete~Auria~
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds great and I would love to read it.
ReplyDeleteHi Bridgett! Thanks so much~I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt and I appreciate you stopping by today:D Good luck in the Rafflecopter.
Delete~Auria~
What is the best book that you have read recently? Thanks for the giveaway. I hope that I win. Bernie W BWallace1980(at)hotmail(d0t)com
ReplyDeleteHi Bernie! Thanks so much for your question:) I'm a versatile reader, and I enjoy all genres. Some of my favorite well-known authors are Pamela Clare, Grace Callaway, Heather Graham, George R.R. Martin, Michael Crichton, Nelson DeMille,and Dan Brown. As you can see, this is a wide variety:D However, I just finished reading a new contemporary romance from my good friend author Kelly Moran called Winter's Path. Kelly is an absolute character development genius! They have a real sense of depth, and from the get-go, I become attached to her hero and heroine. I highly recommend all of her books...she's so versatile! She writes in a variety of different sub-genre's of romance, and she actually got me started on reading ghost romances with her Phantoms Series:D Her absolute favorite of mine, however, is Return to Me. As a reader, it touched me so deeply, I cried for three days after I read it! Here's her website if you're interested in seeing what she has out there:D http://www.authorkellymoran.com/
Delete~Auria~
Good Morning! Thanks to CBY Book Club for hosting me today, and thanks to all for your questions and comments. I absolutely love history, and I do extensive research on every one of my novels. Even though my stories are fictional, my goal is to portray the time period as close to reality as possible. Set during the 18th century in the midst of the French Revolution, Pure of Heart follows the heroine, Contesse Blanchefort, as she travels the English countryside in search of the family that abandoned her as a child. Socially outcast because of her achromatic condition (albinism), she's guided on her quest by a rogue Romani (Gypsy) and a pagan druid woman that don't see eye to eye. Along the way, she meets and falls in love with an Englishman studying to be a surgeon. Isn't that just typical of Lady Fate?
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoyed a small excerpt of Pure of Heart. The first edition was released in 2015 with a small vanity press, and I received my rights back last spring. It needed a fresh revamp with new material and a brand new cover, and I'm so pleased with this second edition!
Pure of Heart is the first book in the Pure Escapades series (6 books total will be released), and the story continues with Pure Temptation--the hero, Romani Talon Barberry, is one the secondary characters from Pure of Heart. Both of these novels hold a special place in my heart, and I'd love to answer any questions you might have about the stories, the time period, my writing, or any other whimsy you might have! I'll check back in periodically today. Don't forget to comment to be entered to win my Rafflecopter!
~Auria~
~Auria~
The book description and excerpt sounds intriguing. Thanks for sharing. Love the cover too.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Solange! When I found that model, I knew she made the perfect Contesse ;) Thanks so much for stopping by and supporting me on my blog tour today:D
Delete~Auria~
what inspires you?
ReplyDeleteHi LilDevil:) Thanks so much for stopping by and for the question. Love your name...that's inspiring right there :D There are a lot of things that inspire me, especially when I'm writing. Places seem to have a big impact on me. I wrote this novel because I loved studying the French Revolution. The dynamics between the different classes made for a wonderful story, and a lot of their themes meshed with my core values. My next release has an interesting story as well. Silence the Northwoods is my first contemporary Romantic Suspense. It's a murder/mystery set at a local ski hill, and I got the idea for this story while sitting at the chalet while my son took lessons and listening to the workers tell their tales of absurd things that had happened over the years. I started asking questions, and I had a fantastic time writing it! (That one releases January 21, 2017). I live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and I knew I wanted to write a series set up here. It's such a beautiful area! I would say that's my number one inspiration.:) ~Auria~
DeleteThe book sounds amazing and I can't wait to read it.
ReplyDeleteHi Deborah! Thanks so much for stopping by :) I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt. :D
Delete~Auria~
this book sounds amazing thanks for your hard work
ReplyDeleteHi Kelley! Thank YOU:D I love doing blog tours and talking with readers. I become so attached to my characters while writing my books, and these tours allow me to talk about them and relive the story all over while sharing them with others. I'm glad you liked the excerpt. Thanks for stopping by :D ~Auria~
DeleteQuestion for the author: Where do you draw inspiration to write?
ReplyDeleteHi Natalie:D I've had a lot of people ask about my inspiration for stories. Overall, I've decided that the ideas for most of my stories have come from the places I've visited, or better yet, from my hometown. While Pure of Heart takes place in France and England (I have yet to see either country), the rest of the Pure Escapades historical romance series travels to the U.S.--most specifically, the West Indies and New Orleans. I've kept the French theme in most of them because I love the language, and if I could, I'd move to New Orleans in a second. I've been there 5 times, and there's an enchantment about the city that certainly piques my muse.
DeleteMy next release is a contemporary Romantic Suspense set at a ski hill in the Northwoods. I live 15 miles from Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I hike almost every day -- the forest is my happy place. And, I knew I wanted to write a series of books set up here. I released a YA suspense novel last April(Spirit of the Northwoods) for my autistic son that addresses teen bullying, and I used a local ghost legend based around the Ojibwa people as my muse.
Thanks so much for your question! I'm glad you could stop by today.
~Auria~
who inspired your characters?
ReplyDeleteHi Wigget! Thanks for coming by:D This is a very interesting question. I began writing Pure of Heart nearly 10 years ago. Between kids and life, it took me a long time to finally finish it, but the story is sort of a fantastical version of my husband and me. We've been together for 25 years. He's an ER physician, and we met in college. We went through the whole process together...college, medical school, residency...it's such a long road. I was the girl from the wrong side of the tracks that needed saving, and he was my knight in shining armor that helped me overcome a lot of childhood pain. I'm not an overly superstitious person, but to this day, I still believe fate brought us together. I wanted to personify our everyday story in the most romantic way I could, and what better way to tell our story than through my second love, history? Of course, it's fictional, and as the story went along, it took on a life of its own. But Pure of Heart will always be dear to me. I'm a hopeful romantic that came from a difficult emotional place, and I've been so blessed with a wonderfully supportive soul mate. He was my inspiration to write romance because everyone deserves to have an HEA. :D Thanks so much for the question :D ~Auria~
Delete~Auria~
Sounds great,thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Karla! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by today:D
Delete~Auria~
Sounds like an interesting book--you sound like a really good writer.
ReplyDelete