Release date: August 27, 2019
Subgenre: Steampunk, Gaslamp Fantasy
About Peavley Manor (Or, Introducing Macalley):
Alice Peavley was a sales clerk in a book shop, until her rich uncle
left her his estate in his will. She moves to the manor, meets her new
tenants and neighbors, and adjusts to life in the eccentric town of
Darbyfield with the help of her valet, a sardonic gnome named Macalley.
Alice gets mixed up in misadventures involving a concert gone askew, a
chaotic baking competition, and a mischievous squatter, but there is a
more sinister plot afoot to steal her land and her fortune. Can Alice
get to the bottom of the conspiracy and save Peavley Manor? Find out in
this comedy of manners, mayhem and magic!
Excerpt:
I stepped inside the small room. There were ten glass cases set along the walls, resting on carved wood stands. Inside each casewas a book, except for one that held three. I walked over to one and read the plaque on the stand. I gasped. “Oliver Twist?” I said.
“Yes.” Clarinda beamed. “These are what books we’ve been able to find and salvage from before the Great Relocation.”
“My heavens.” I tried to appear calm, but the library studies major in me was starting to cry. “I’ve never seen a book from those times.”
“We only have these twelve. We need to keep them in these cases, as we’re worried about the pages decaying.” Clarinda paused. “There were five more, but they were in excellent shape, so we sent those to a publisher in Velessa. They were able to get them printed for wide distribution.”
My eyes widened. “Is that where The Three Musketeers came from?”
“It was!”
“Oh! I loved that book!” I smiled gleefully. “I must have read it four times!”
“Same here!” Clarinda smiled again. “It’s ironic that a town with British roots played a part in making a French book so popular!”
“My friends and I dressed up as Musketeers for a costume ball!” My smile turned wistful. “Priscilla made a wonderful Porthos.”
Clarinda chuckled, but her smile faded. “I hate to keep Darbyfield’s heritage locked away like this. We’ve been asking the university to look into how we can preserve and protect these for future publishing.”
“That would be amazing. But wouldn’t there be more of these books?”
“There were many more, at one point.”
“What happened?”
“The Oakton clan.” Clarinda scowled. “It goes back to the days following the Relocation, when the agreement between Darbyfield and Elfking Barkbirch was being negotiated. An objection was made by Lord Dalewood Oakton. He had been closing a deal with Barkbirch to purchase some of the land for a housing development—the land where Peavley Manor now sits.”
“Is that so?” I tried, and mostly succeeded, to hide my surprise.
“The owners of the manor, old Clarence’s parents, disliked Oakton on sight and refused to sell. He then set one condition before he would approve the deal: He wanted our books.”
“Yes.” Clarinda beamed. “These are what books we’ve been able to find and salvage from before the Great Relocation.”
“My heavens.” I tried to appear calm, but the library studies major in me was starting to cry. “I’ve never seen a book from those times.”
“We only have these twelve. We need to keep them in these cases, as we’re worried about the pages decaying.” Clarinda paused. “There were five more, but they were in excellent shape, so we sent those to a publisher in Velessa. They were able to get them printed for wide distribution.”
My eyes widened. “Is that where The Three Musketeers came from?”
“It was!”
“Oh! I loved that book!” I smiled gleefully. “I must have read it four times!”
“Same here!” Clarinda smiled again. “It’s ironic that a town with British roots played a part in making a French book so popular!”
“My friends and I dressed up as Musketeers for a costume ball!” My smile turned wistful. “Priscilla made a wonderful Porthos.”
Clarinda chuckled, but her smile faded. “I hate to keep Darbyfield’s heritage locked away like this. We’ve been asking the university to look into how we can preserve and protect these for future publishing.”
“That would be amazing. But wouldn’t there be more of these books?”
“There were many more, at one point.”
“What happened?”
“The Oakton clan.” Clarinda scowled. “It goes back to the days following the Relocation, when the agreement between Darbyfield and Elfking Barkbirch was being negotiated. An objection was made by Lord Dalewood Oakton. He had been closing a deal with Barkbirch to purchase some of the land for a housing development—the land where Peavley Manor now sits.”
“Is that so?” I tried, and mostly succeeded, to hide my surprise.
“The owners of the manor, old Clarence’s parents, disliked Oakton on sight and refused to sell. He then set one condition before he would approve the deal: He wanted our books.”
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About Robert Dahlen:
Author bio: Fantasy novelist, all-around wisecracker and penguin
aficionado, Robert Dahlen lives in Northern California with
lots of penguins, a tablet stuffed with e-books and works in progress, a
collection of Disney Infinity figures that is growing exponentially, and a very
nice hat.. He is hopefully working on more Monkey Queen stories (and other
projects) as you read this.
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