Today, author Morgan Blake is guesting. She’s talking about her latest release, The Cherry Trees of Rosings, book one in the Lizzy Darcy Chronicles, a historical Regency romance. Be sure to read my review. And don’t forget to enter the King Sumo giveaway.
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Hello Maggie, thank you so much for having me on your blog! I am excited to be here as part of my book tour for The Cherry Trees of Rosings, and I’d love to answer your question: why make Mr. Darcy a ghost?
For those who don’t know me, I write Austenesque fiction that brings back the much-loved characters from Jane Austen’s classics into fresh storylines, romances, and settings for the reading pleasure of a very active and thriving Jane Austen community around the world.
It’s a vast genre with all kinds of intriguing takes and voices. And I am happy to bring The Cherry Trees of Rosings to the table as part of my focus on Pride and Prejudice variations at the moment.
In my book, we find ourselves in Hunsford, where Elizabeth Bennet is visiting her newly married friend, Charlotte Collins, at the parsonage attached to the estate of Rosings Park. But the story does not follow the original Pride and Prejudice beyond this point.
Instead, readers are immediately introduced to a baffling mystery. Elizabeth keeps seeing Mr. Darcy while on her morning walks (she does not approach him outside of one time) but no one at Rosings or the parsonage mentions him.
This is strange to her because Mr. Darcy is the nephew of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, the iron-willed (and widowed) aristocrat who lives with her only daughter at Rosings. Surely they would have mentioned it if he was visiting. Would they not?
It is only when Elizabeth stumbles right through Mr. Darcy one day (I will not spoil anything!) that she realizes that he is not there at all!
Mr. Darcy is an apparition!
And we learn that his carriage met with an accident on the way to Rosings some days prior.
I’ll be honest, this storyline sounds extremely gothic and spooky. But trust me when I say that The Cherry Trees of Rosings is not a scary book at all!
It is comical mostly with a lot of emotional parts as Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy try to solve the mystery of his “ghostliness” and grow closer in the process.
Now, to answer your question as to why I made Mr. Darcy a ghost… well, that goes right back to how I got started with Pride & Prejudice variations so many years ago.
One of the earliest books I read in the Austenesque genre dealt with a ghostly Elizabeth Bennet who was haunting Mr. Darcy. And I absolutely loved how the author led us through the plot. It was a lot like that movie Just Like Heaven but also not. And gosh, I loved the romance in that book! (It’s Haunting Mr. Darcy by KaraLynne Mackrory, by the way.)
Then, fast forward to 2024. I was buddy reading The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston—that book has a similar premise of a ghostly MMC haunting a ghostwriter FMC (lol, the blurb is pure gold for this one)—and I just had the oddest (and most intense) need to write a P&P variation that had a ghostly Mr. Darcy in it.
So I did that.
I scribbled away in a diary for an entire month (literally, by hand!). Then asked my trusty friends if they would like to alpha read the story for me. Then wrote some more and nearly tripled the book from the original scribbles. And here we are: The Cherry Trees of Rosings!
It’s just a romance trope I love a lot because I was an urban/paranormal fantasy girlie long before Austenesque fiction had me obsessed.
I hope readers will give my book a go and discover the joys of Austenesque satire and comedy in this slightly spooky variation of Pride and Prejudice.
Because when Mr. Darcy can walk through walls and pop up at any time… you know much drama will ensue!
Plus, it’s always a slow burn and yearn when neither side can truly touch. (Especially with Elizabeth Bennet starting out the plot with such a poor—albeit mistaken—impression of Mr. Darcy.)
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Title: The Cherry Trees of Rosings
Series: The Lizzy Darcy Chronicles, book one
Author: Morgan Blake
Genre: Historical Regency Romance
Length: 180 pages
Publication Date: October 30, 2025
Publisher: Ria Majumdar
A Pride & Prejudice variation with a slightly paranormal, mainly comic twist!
Blurb: When Elizabeth Bennet visits her newly-married friend, Charlotte Collins, at the Hunsford parsonage, she has no idea that Mr. Darcy (he of the arrogant demeanor and perpetual cause of annoyance!) shall turn up to ruin her blissful, idyllic days.
Only, Mr. Darcy is not himself. And then Elizabeth stumbles straight through him one day… like one would an apparition! Goodness gracious!
“Mr. Darcy, I do not know what you mean, but I would appreciate it if you would desist from haunting me!”
“I apologize, Miss Bennet, for scaring you,” Mr. Darcy said, almost regretfully.
To solve her haunting problem, Elizabeth must team up with Mr. Darcy to find out what happened to him, and along the way discover that maybe he is not all that he seemed at first. And that maybe… she doesn’t hate him after all.
“You wish to write the letter now?” he asked as she moved past him with the candle.
“Well, to be honest,” she glanced at him. “I would prefer to sleep. But since you are here, I do not see why not.”
From the antics of Lady Catherine de Bourgh to the hilarity of Mr. Collins’ advice on staying fit, The Cherry Trees of Rosings shall make you laugh and cry in equal measure. And wonder: Will our favourite couple find their happy ever after?
Spoiler: Yes, they will!
This Pride and Prejudice variation features our favourite Regency romance couple from Jane Austen’s original classic in a somewhat spooky setup. ✨ But fear not, dear readers! ✨ This story is not scary in the least. Prepare for a chuckle fest and abundant cups of tea!
5-Star Reviews!
“When an author marries two of your all-time favourite stories, this is it! Morgan keeps some Austen language but makes it palatable for modern audiences. It was witty and beautifully descriptive.” —Nicole Curls Up to Read
“This variation mixes the absurdity of Mr Collins, the entitlement of Lady Catherine, the skepticism of Colonel Fitzwilliam, with the awkwardness and humour of Darcy and Elizabeth’s interactions. A good combination of humour, romance and angst.” —My JAFF Obsession
“The story was really captivating, especially as Elizabeth tries to figure out why Darcy is an apparition and how to help him back to his normal state. At some points, the story was also a bit sad because it seemed that there can be no future for Darcy and Elizabeth. Fortunately, that is not the case, and in the end (*spoiler*) they find their happily ever after.” —Melanie Reads JAFF,
“That was fast reading in one day, but I just couldn’t stop reading!” —Eileen Smith, Goodreads
Elizabeth finished arranging her hair in a simple fashion before stepping out of her room. The rest of the inhabitants of the parsonage were already at the foyer of the cottage.
“Hurry along! Hurry along! Charlotte, Sister Maria, Cousin Elizabeth!” Mr. Collins called. “We must not keep her ladyship waiting!”
He was sweating profusely. Perhaps at the thought of arriving a few minutes late and having to prostrate at his patroness’ feet. Elizabeth coughed into her hand to cover her smirk as she joined them.
“Oh! What was that?” Mr. Collins asked, turning towards her. “Cousin Elizabeth, are you unwell?” He looked comically red in the face. “Perhaps you should stay behind. Her ladyship has strict rules about bringing disease into the great house!”
Elizabeth barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes. Though she did arch her eyebrows in amusement.
“I think I swallowed some dust. Nothing to worry about surely.”
“Dust? Did you say dust?” Mr. Collins’ eyes widened. He turned to his wife. “Charlotte! You must tell Mrs. Bishop to be more meticulous! I cannot have her humiliating me if her ladyship visits one day and sees such deplorable state of affairs. You know how…”
Elizabeth tuned out her hapless cousin’s words. It was surely an irony that the man had a housekeeper named Bishop—one who had arrived at the recommendation of Lady Catherine herself—while he worshipped nobody higher than his patroness. She only hoped that Charlotte would not be too vexed at her for stirring up Mr. Collins’ humors.
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Historical is my fave sub-genre in romance to read. Historical is what drew me into romance in the first place. Now, I will admit I’m one of those rare readers who never read any of Jane Austen’s novels, although I keep meaning to, so when the author’s novel came up to host and review, I was in. I wanted to see her take on characters from a world that Ms. Austen had created.
The novel is tagged as a “Pride & Prejudice Variation.” I must say I really enjoyed hearing from Elizabeth Bennet, the heroine of the novel. This is solely told from her POV in third person.
First off, I enjoyed the author’s portrayal of Elizabeth, along with her first meeting with Mr. Darcy, a rather proper but stuffy gentleman. Then the unthinkable happens: Mr. Darcy is in a carriage accident and taken somewhere to recover. Of course, Elizabeth is worried. So imagine her shock when Mr. Darcy shows up as a ghost.
I enjoyed their meetings as she tries to help Mr. Darcy, and the way the author gradually shifted Elizabeth’s attitude about a man she thought to be on the arrogant side. He’s so polite, concerned, and sweet. How could anyone not want to be in the company of such a gentlemanly ghost?
It’s a fun, quick read, and a great way to be introduced to Ms. Austen’s novels. Do yourself a favour and get a copy.
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Morgan Blake writes regency romance novels and Austenesque variations of Pride & Prejudice that are sometimes steamy, sometimes not. Satire is the name of the game and happy ever afters the goal!
Morgan loves exploring themes of personal identity, inner strength, social discourse and hope alongside enduring love in her stories. She also believes that strong heroes and heroines are not enough to make a tale worth telling. They need a supporting cast of good and not-so-good characters that add more punch and vibrancy… and some dramatic ridiculousness!
Morgan is a cat friend, tropical girl who prefers winter clothes, perennial fantasy/historical fiction nerd, and a night owl.
Follow Morgan: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads
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Maggie Blackbird 