On May 8, Saturday, the Central Valley chapter of the Jane Austen Society of Northern America (JASNA) is hosting an entire day of entertainments designed to highlight this remarkable author and the Era she wrote in: Jane Fest - A Day to Celebrate Jane Austen. Speakers include famed Austen scholar and novelist Juliet McMaster and Regency costume expert Jennifer Rosbrugh of Cloak and Corset. There will be a traditional English tea hosted by Hollyhock's Cottage and Catering and a country-style Grand Regency Ball. In between these special engagements is the all-day Craft Fair. I will be one of a dozen vendors sharing their artistry in something Austen related.

Yours truly, obviously, will be selling and signing my novels! I am very excited about the festival and honored to be a part of it and the wonderful ladies of JASNA. This is the first festival planned by our director, the incomparable Carrie Flores, and the board members who assist her. Our hope is to make it an annual event, so please consider participating. I sure would like to meet any readers in the area!

More information can be found on my Calendar of Events page or at this link:

2010 Jane Fest

While there you can check out the group and all the events planned for this year. We have lots of fun and if you love Jane then this is the group to be a part of!

The list of authors includes:

Marilyn Meredith

Monty Sands

Chris Brewer

Ron Hughart

Ed Kesterson

Louise Jackson

Larry Lewis

John Bergman

Janet Nichols Lynch

Sylvia Rose

The event is open and free (except for purchasing the books), and we will be waiting to chat and sign. I will have all three novels available. So mark your calendars for April 23, Saturday, from 7 to 9pm at the Visalia Public Library on 200 W. Oak Avenue. Hopefully I will meet a few of the fine people who make this dream a reality for me! See you there.

So, this month our theme is "Traveling" and today I am chatting about my family's first excursion across the wild west in our travel trailer. Fun times were had! Well, except by the cat. Come over to see what I mean!

Journey of American West by Sharon Lathan at Casablanca

This is the third installment to Lathans Darcy Trilogy. And don't worry if you haven't read up to this point (although I recommend you do) because Dr. George Darcy gives a full summary of whats happened thus far at the beginning of the novel. Once again we find our lovers in the throws of what else but love. However; I think this novel may be my favorite so far because it shows so much more than their love.

My Dearest Mr. Darcy is packed with love, histories behind beloved characters and even some scandals to boot. I couldn't help but once again fall right back into Pemberly and become part of the family once more. I believe its the authors writing style but you feel a sense of belonging to the Darcy's world that I haven't experienced in other Pride & Prejudice sequels. And once again I give a great deal of credit to the strong characters who by themselves could stand alone and are furthermore enhanced through Lathans third book. I truly relished the emergence of George as a main character he adds life and knowledge to the novel. Not to mention he's a little bit of a comedian and I couldn't help but smile if he were on the page I was reading. Confession time: I think although I love Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam; George is my new favorite and I wish he were my uncle!

I've enjoyed my time with the Darcy's through the authors eyes immensely. It seems sad to know I have to wait for the next book to be released. This trilogy made me remember the first time I read Pride and Prejudice and renewed my love for all things Darcy. And I really enjoyed the way the author keeps the books authentic and realistic. She truly does a magnificent job capturing Austen's beloved characters and I can't wait to read what's next for my favorite couple!

Remember that Rheanna has named me her "Author of the Month" so please stop over and thank her for this honor!

Sharon Lathan, Author of the Month at Try Reading My Mind

Excerpts: I have added a page of excerpts for each novel. I may change them from time to time, but probably not. These snippets were chosen to offer a nice variety of glimpses into each book for those who are newly discovering me. As I have said a multitude of times, I do not wish for anyone to be unsatisfied. Be informed of what my vision and style are before purchasing so that time and money are not wasted!

Synopsis & Purchasing: With the same concept of keeping it simple and being informative in mind, I have revamped these pages for each novel. Links to online retailers are there with a brief synopsis of each novel. The review pages are unchanged, but remain a great way to hear what other readers have felt about my books.

Portrait Gallery: I moved the link up to the Darcy Saga section so it is more visible. I am very proud of the Gallery and the collection of images I have acquired and organized for each novel. I do encourage readers to flip through the albums to enhance your reading enjoyment and comprehension.

Calendar of Events: I am still working on this page, but wanted to have one place where I can list my appearances and other events I think may be of interest. About the time I think I have received my last invitation to speak or sign books, something else comes up! Plus I wanted to alert folks to meetings, festivals, or other occasions that pertain to writing, Austen, reading, etc.

Moving on to great news - Rheanna wrote a stellar "A" review for Loving Mr. Darcy at Try Reading My Mind. Yippee!! What can I say? I never tire of hearing from satisfied readers. And the priase is nice too!

So cute, fun and heartwarming to see the Darcy's love for each other grow exponentially! In Lathans second book the Darcy's journey away from Pemberly to Darcy House their London Home where love, conflict, and chaos ensues. I love getting to know the Darcy's through the authors writings. It seems with each book they become a more cherished old friend.


I was happy to see the original and some of the old characters resurface. (As we all know and love Lady Caroline De Bourgh haha). But the real gems were getting to know Lady Anne (Catherine's ill daughter), Mary, Georgiana and Lydia's ex-right hand Kitty a little better. And of course meeting Raja and Fitzwilliams Uncle George was a delightful humorous episode in itself. You can't help but to fall in love with these characters all over again.


And once again I was flabbergasted as Sharon continually mixes the classic P&P, the 2005 movie, and historical significance into a novel that the reader can relate to today. Its seems to me I'm addicted to this series and the only prescription is ......more Darcys.

Please pop over and thank Rheanna for a lovely review AND for making me her "Author of the Month"

Try Reading My Mind

Furthermore, I had an absolutely amazing time with this incredible group of gals. Let me tell you about these women because they are fantastic. They all attended Hanford High School and were friends. In 1959 they graduated together (excepting 2 ladies who graduated later) and have maintained contact and friendship down through these past 50 years! That is utterly incredible and a beautiful testimony to the power of faithfulness and caring. I was touched by their camaraderie and devotion. On top of that, they were spunky, humorous, and fun, fun, fun! I truly had one of the best afternoons spent with a group of women in ages.

L->R: Karen, Wilma, Bettye, Norma, Reon, Janet, Helen, Me!, Carol, and Linda

Aren't they a gorgeous group of ladies? My daughter joined us and we met at a Mexican restaurant for a delicious lunch. The comments were universally positive with everyone enjoying my novel. They were so gracious, asking me numerous questions about the story and my journey to getting published. But most of the time we just chatted and laughed! I could not believe how active and vital they all were! Carol joked that I was expecting a bunch of old women shuffling in with walkers, and to be frank I kind of was! LOL! I hope I am half as zippy when their age.

After lunch we retired to Janet's house for yummy Better Than Sex cake - eminently apropos! I signed a bunch of books and talked more about the series. But mostly we talked about Hanford and life. I had a blast looking through yearbooks from the late 50s with the ladies and their handsome boyfriends (some who became husbands) posing on the lawns and steps of the same high school my son attends in their classy dresses and bobby socks. Everyone looked so clean cut with perfectly styled hair. It was fabulous! I was sad to leave and really hope I can keep in touch with these women who inspired me and touched my heart.

Sharon Lathan, Author of the Month at Try Reading My Blog

I have also received a second terrifically worded, all positive review from Lori H., guest hosting on Patricia's Read My Book Blog. Lori is a recent discoverer of my series. She powered through Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy and wrote a glowing review: Mr. & Mrs. FD review at Read My Book  Now she has done it again, most eleoquently writing of her enjoyment of Loving Mr. Darcy.

Review of Loving Mr. Darcy of Read my Book Blog

I have said it a million times in the past and will keep on saying it in hope that more people comprehend and act: positive reviews and sharing feedback with others is VITAL for me to keep on reaching new readers and for my inspiration. Thanks SO much for those who take that step! I owe an enormous debt of gratitude and love you all!

Lastly for now, I want to point to the Casablanca Blog where we are celebrating 3 launches this month! It began yesterday with Mary Margret Daughtridge's SEALed with a Ring. Today we party for Joanne Kennedy's Cowboy Trouble. Yooray! Tomorrow, March 3, we blow the horns for Amanda Forester's The Highlander's Sword. Stop in to support my fellow Sourecbooks authors and to learn about some Top A Prime reading material!

I knew it was odd that both Romancing Mr. Darcy and A Darcy Christmas were listed on Amazon for pre-order this far in advance. I honestly can't recall when the other three were first listed, and I know it was several months prior to release, but 9 to 10 months did seem strange. I should have gone with my gut and waited a bit, at least until they showed up on B&N and other online retailers. Oh well, live and learn! This actually isn't the first time listings and cover images and pricing information has gone wacky over there, so I am not too surprised. LOL!

To those of you fretting over the sudden disappearance on Amazon and the cancellation of your pre-orders, I assure you it means nothing serious! It probably simply means that they jumped the gun. And then I jumped the gun in my enthusiasm! Or there is some technical difficulty on their end. Who knows? I promise nothing has changed on my end. All is well!! Both manuscripts are with the copyeditor and I should receive them soon for the final step in that process. Romancing Mr. Darcy WILL be released in October and A Darcy Christmas WILL follow in November. I will probably just get this post published only to have them show back up on Amazon tomorrow!

I do apologize for the inconvenience of ordering and re-ordering. And I also apologize for making formal announcements too hastily. In the future I will do my best to avoid causing panic amongst my readers! Sincerely humbled, Sharon

This review comes from Rheanna at Try Reading My Mind. Rheanna and her nice blog came to my attention two days ago when her Tuesday Teaser was a line from Loving Mr. Darcy. I thought that was so cool! That fun, intriguing post can be read here:

Loving Mr. Darcy Tuesday Teaser at Try Reading My Mind

Rheanna's review was posted today. She gave the novel an A and had lovely words of praise for her reading experience. Thanks Rheanna! I am so happy you enjoyed my novel and deeply appreciate you sharing your thoughts with others.

Review of Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy at Try Reading My Mind

I love waking up to Google alerts that impart excellent news! Today was such a day when I was directed to Patricia's blog - Read My Book - and read this fabulous review for Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One written by Lori Hitz. *dancing* How many times have I expressed the importance of positive reviews? Dozens, I know, but I fear I haven't gotten the point across as to how vital it is for my continued success. So, thank you Lori for taking the time to share your honest thoughts with others who will be informed of this series. This type of sincere feedback inspires me, and most importantly is essential for potential readers to decide if my vision of happily ever after for the Darcys might delight them.

Review of Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy at Read My Book