Lona Manning

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About Lona Manning

Lona Manning loves reading, choral singing, gardening and travel. Over the years, she has been a home care aide, legal secretary, political speech writer, office manager, vocational instructor, non-profit administrator and ESL Teacher. She has also written true crime articles for www.CrimeMagazine.com. She began writing A Contrary Wind, her award-winning debut novel, while she was teaching English in China. Manning and her husband raised their family in the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, Canada. You can follow her on Twitter or Goodreads or at her Facebook page, "A Contrary Wind" where she posts on all things Jane Austen. Her website is www.lonamanning.ca.

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A Different Kind of Woman: The Third Volume of the Mansfield Trilogy Feb 3, 2020

by Lona Manning

( 17 )

$2.99

In the exciting conclusion of the Mansfield Trilogy, the lives and destinies of Jane Austen’s well-known characters are deftly blended with dramatic historical events. Fanny Price is torn between her love for William Gibson and her duty to her family. In London, Fanny’s brother John meets his match in a feisty bookseller’s daughter. And Edmund Bertram’s wife Mary meets the charismatic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and risks everything to gain the power and influence she craves.Regency England comes alive in this tale of love, loss and second chances set against the real-life backdrop of political turmoil in England.

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A Marriage of Attachment: a sequel to A Contrary Wind (Mansfield Trilogy Book 2) Jul 20, 2018

by Lona Manning

( 16 )

$2.99

A Marriage of Attachment continues the story of Fanny Price as she struggles to build her own life after leaving her rich uncle’s home. Fanny teaches sewing to poor working-class girls in London, while trying to forget her first love, Edmund Bertram, who is trapped in a disastrous marriage with Mary Crawford. Together with her brother John and her friend, the writer William Gibson, she discovers a plot that threatens someone at the highest levels of government. Meanwhile, Fanny’s brother William fights slavery on the high seas while longing for the girl he loves.
Filled with romance, suspense and even danger, A Marriage of Attachment takes the familiar characters from Mansfield Park on a new journey.
A Marriage of Attachment is the sequel to A Contrary Wind.

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A Contrary Wind: a variation on Mansfield Park (Mansfield Trilogy Book 1) Jan 12, 2017

by Lona Manning

( 48 )

$2.99

"Manning.... emulates Austen's writing style so well that she often seamlessly incorporates exact passages from the original into her narrative..... Many try to emulate Austen; not all succeed. Here, Manning triumphs." -- blueink reviews Starred Review [see full review below}

"Brava to Lona Manning for her thoughtful twists and skillful execution in this variation. This story was in no way predictable and it kept me guessing almost until the end!.... One aspect of this story that I enjoyed is Ms. Manning’s respectful renderings of Jane Austen’s characters. Her thoughtful and perceptive portrayals of these characters illustrate her keen understanding.... Through her prose and premise Lona Manning displays a comprehensive knowledge of the time period and an admirable devotion to Jane Austen and her world." Meredith Esparza, Austenesque Reviews

Book Synopsis: Fanny Price, an intelligent but timid girl from a poor family, lives at Mansfield Park with her wealthy cousins. But the cruelty of her Aunt Norris, together with a broken heart, compel Fanny to run away and take a job as a governess. Far away from everything she ever knew and the man she secretly loves, will Fanny grow in strength and confidence? Will a new suitor help her to forget her past? Or will a reckless decision ruin her life and the lives of those she holds most dear?
This variation of Jane Austen’s novel includes all the familiar characters from Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, and some new acquaintances as well. There are some mature scenes and situations not suitable for all readers.

Blueink Starred Review: "More contemporary writers select the works of Jane Austen to adapt than any other author. In this latest Austen Variation, crime writer Lona Manning selects Mansfield Park as her subject.

"Like many others, Manning considers Austen's Fanny to be too "insipid" a heroine to inspire reader interest.Thus, she alters the story beginning with Austen's play scene in Chapter XV. (The book offers a brief synopsis of earlier scenes for those unfamiliar with the original.) Manning retains Austen's characters, namely: Henry and Mary, the visiting, unscrupulous Crawford siblings; and Edmund and Tom Bertram and their sisters, who live at Mansfield Park with their mother and irascible aunt.

"When Manning's Fanny finally decides to seek her independence by becoming a governess, she leaves Mansfield Park without disclosing her destination. This causes some to worry and others to berate her ingratitude. As Fanny slowly embraces her new life and becomes a fully fleshed and sympathetic character, Henry Crawford's dissolute life intensifies, and his sister plots to attract Edmund's attention while also disparaging Fanny's character after intercepting fond letters between Edmund and Fanny.

"Manning incorporates into her narrative growing public opposition to the slave trade which maintains Mansfield Park and expands the role of the navy and Fanny's seagoing brother.

"A Contrary Wind is an impressive feat. Manning not only emulates Austen's writing style so well that she often seamlessly incorporates exact passages from the original into her narrative, she also retains the claustrophobic pettiness of the upper class while setting the novel securely in its political and social context. The author creates engrossing tension through the escalating misdeeds of the Crawfords, whose just punishments will meet with modern approval.

Many try to emulate Austen; not all succeed. Here, Manning triumphs." -- blueink reviews

Other Formats: Paperback

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

Shelley and the Unknown Lady: A novella excerpted from The Mansfield Trilogy Oct 5, 2020

by Lona Manning

( 15 )

$1.99

Percy Bysshe Shelley’s brief and turbulent life was as passionate as his poetry.
Romantic, idealistic and impulsive, Shelley had several intense love affairs. When Shelley drowned at sea in 1822, he took his secrets with him.
Did a beautiful, lovelorn lady really follow him throughout Europe, as he claimed? Did Mary Shelley ever learn about this rival for her affections?
Shelley and the Unknown Lady is a carefully researched imagining of the true-life tragedy behind the mystery.
This novella is a stand-alone story excerpted from Lona Manning’s Mansfield Trilogy.
The novella comprises 73% of this e-book; the remainder is bonus material including historical background, and an excerpt from A Contrary Wind, the first book in the Mansfield Trilogy.

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

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