Promised to the Crown (Daughters of New France, Book One) by Aimie K. Runyan
Publication Date: April 26, 2016
Kensington
Paperback & eBook; 352 Pages
Series: Daughters of New France
Genre: Historical Fiction
Bound for a new continent, and a new beginning.
In her illuminating debut novel, Aimie K. Runyan masterfully blends fact and fiction to explore the founding of New France through the experiences of three young women who, in 1667, answer Louis XIV’s call and journey to the Canadian colony.
They are known as the filles du roi, or “King’s Daughters”—young women who leave prosperous France for an uncertain future across the Atlantic. Their duty is to marry and bring forth a new generation of loyal citizens. Each prospective bride has her reason for leaving—poverty, family rejection, a broken engagement. Despite their different backgrounds, Rose, Nicole, and Elisabeth all believe that marriage to a stranger is their best, perhaps only, chance of happiness.
Once in Quebec, Elisabeth quickly accepts baker Gilbert Beaumont, who wants a business partner as well as a wife. Nicole, a farmer’s daughter from Rouen, marries a charming officer who promises comfort and security. Scarred by her traumatic past, Rose decides to take holy vows rather than marry. Yet no matter how carefully she chooses, each will be tested by hardship and heartbreaking loss—and sustained by the strength found in their uncommon friendship, and the precarious freedom offered by their new home.
“An engaging, engrossing debut.”—Greer Macallister, USA Today bestselling author of The Magician’s Lie
“An absorbing adventure with heart.”—Jennifer Laam, author of The Secret Daughter of the Tsar
About the Author
Aimie K. Runyan, member of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and Women's Fiction Writers Association, has been an avid student of French and Francophone Studies for more than fifteen years. While working on her Master's thesis on the brave women who helped found French Canada, she was fortunate enough to win a generous grant from the Quebec government to study onsite for three months which enabled the detailed research necessary for her work. Aimie lives in Colorado with her husband and two children.
For more information please visit Aimie's
website. You can also find her on
Facebook,
Twitter,
Pinterest, and
Goodreads.
Blog Tour Schedule
Tuesday, April 26
Review at
Historical Fiction Addicts
Wednesday, April 27
Review at
Let Them Read Books
Thursday, April 28
Interview at
Book Nerd
Interview at
Books and Benches
Friday, April 29
Review at
A Chick Who Reads
Saturday, April 30
Review at
With Her Nose Stuck in a Book
Monday, May 2
Review at
A Book Drunkard
Tuesday, May 3
Review at
Seize the Words: Books in Review
Wednesday, May 4
Review at
Ageless Pages Reviews
Interview at
A Literary Vacation
Thursday, May 5
Review at
Reading Is My SuperPower
Friday, May 6
Review at
Puddletown Reviews
Monday, May 9
Review at
Cynthia Robertson, writer
Tuesday, May 10
Review at
A Bookish Affair
Wednesday, May 11
Review at
Creating Herstory
Thursday, May 12
Interview at
Creating Herstory
Interview at
Author Dianne Ascroft's Blog
Monday, May 16
Review at
Beth's Book Nook Blog
Tuesday, May 17
Spotlight at
Passages to the Past
Thursday, May 19
Interview at
The Book Connection
Monday, May 23
Review at
CelticLady's Reviews
Tuesday, May 24
Review at
A Holland Reads
Wednesday, May 25
Review at
Curling up by the Fire
Thursday, May 26
Review at
Just One More Chapter
Friday, May 27
Review at
Bookramblings
Monday, May 30
Review at
Broken Teepee
Tuesday, May 31
Review at
So Many Books, So Little Time
Giveaway
Two copies of Promised to the Crown by Aimie K. Runyan are up for grabs! To enter, please use the GLEAM form below.
Rules
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on May 31st. You must be 18 or older to enter.
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Promised to the Crown
Interview
Aimie, welcome to my
humble little blog. It’s a pleasure to have you here!
It’s my pleasure, Diana! I’ve been a fan for a long time!
1)
How does it feel to hear
the words “author” and “published” as descriptions about you?
·
Amazing! It all felt surreal for a very long
time. I started using the term “author” when I landed my agent, the amazing
Melissa Jeglinski, and it felt okay… but “published” didn’t become a reality
for me until I held my first ARC in my hand. It was an ink and paper dream come
true. I cried. Not dignified, calm movie tears. I ugly cried in my kitchen over
the box (sorry to anyone who got a soggy copy!) I have to say it feels very
comfortable, and the writing world won’t be getting rid of me for a long while
yet!
2)
Can you tell us a little
bit about how you came up with this idea?
·
I was in grad school, taking a class in Canadian
Civilization and another course in Creative Writing, among other things. Taking
a writing class has the wonderful effect of putting you into story hunting
mode, and when the Canadian Civ professor mentioned the brave women who went to
help found the French Canadian colony now known as Quebec, I knew I had a
story. I wrote a short story, shelved it, and then ten years later, decided the
rest of the story needed to be told!
3)
You present three
different lead characters, and you give us insight into each one’s life.
It seems like quite a challenge, how were you able to stay “in character” for
Elizabeth, Rose and Nicole?
·
It wasn’t always easy, but I tried to do myself
some favors. I made them very different women with different backgrounds,
interests and desires. They were so distinct from each other in my mind it
helped keep them distinct on the page. That’s not to say it didn’t take a lot
of work to make it come together. Elisabeth really was the character that came
about in revision, while Rose was fairly strong early on.
4)
Without giving too much
away, Elizabeth, Rose and Nicole need a new start. Ultimately, I thought
that this was a book about triumphant, what was your intention in creating
these three very different women?
·
What I didn’t
want to do was dive into the archives, find letters and journals, and tell one woman’s story. I wanted to show the
experience of being a ‘King’s Daughter’ with a wider lens. The women were
usually poor, but not always. They were usually orphaned, or at least
fatherless. Two-thirds of them came from Paris, but the women from the
countryside who had experience running farms were the most coveted brides.
Ultimately, I wanted to show a cross-section of the women who decided to make
the journey and the various options that awaited them in the colony.
5)
Through the
circumstances they encounter, Elizabeth, Rose and Nicole, are bonded us a
family. Did you find that those sent by the crown had a difficult time
adjusting to life in Canada?
·
I can only imagine it was dreadful for the women
from Paris, young and unfamiliar with farm life, to adjust to the isolation of
life on a homestead. It was a hard life under the best of circumstances. If a
woman chose her husband poorly, it could mean her very life was at risk.
Surviving a Canadian winter in a cabin with no neighbors for miles was not an
endeavor a woman would want to undertake without a hard working and industrious
husband!
6)
There
is a theme of duty in your story. Duty to the crown and even their own
religion, how did you find that this was both stifling and liberating for not
only your characters but also other filles du roi?
·
Funny you mention that, since my next book is
entitled Duty to the Crown (more on
that later). I think it was absolutely a challenge for these women. In the 21st
century, we have the luxury of considering our own needs first (if not always,
at least often). In the 17th century, family, Church, and Crown came
before everything. The decision to marry or bear children wasn’t a question of
ensuring personal happiness (unless a person were exceedingly lucky—and even
then, love matches were mocked). At the same time, I expect a lot of women
jumped at the chance to go to Canada because there were a lot more freedoms.
Women had a huge selection of suitors and could choose without their family’s
interference. The nuns certainly advised the ladies on their choice, but it was
their choice in the end. Social ranks, while still preserved, became fuzzier
than in France, and a woman could ascend ranks with more ease than in her
mother country.
7)
Manon was such a great
addition to the three women the book centers around, did you have her character
planned from the beginning?
·
No! She was a happy surprise! She began as a
vessel to convey some information (I won’t tell you what—spoiler!) and to
introduce the Native American population who lived very near the Quebec colony.
I loved her from the get-go and Nicole did too, so we both adopted her J
) What do your readers have to look forward
to after “ Promised to the Crown”?
· The second book in the Daughters of New
France series is called Duty to the Crown
and will be coming out from Kensington Publishing on October 25th of
this year. It takes place about five years after the conclusion of Promised to the Crown it follows the
lives of my dear, dear Manon and two other friends you will meet in
Promised—Claudine Deschamps and Gabrielle Giroux as they grow into young
womanhood and continue on Rose, Elisabeth, and Nicole’s path in establishing
the fledgling colony.
My Review:
Five Stars
Copy received from author and publisher for an honest review
"Promised to the Crown" by Aimie K. Runyan was a refreshing historical read. Runyan takes us to Quebec during the 17the Century. First, I loved learning about this time period that I knew so little about! Second, I had no idea that french women, mostly women who were either orphans or in nunneries were called on by the king of France to settle into the new colony in Quebec. Runyan takes us on this intense journey from France to Quebec with Rose, Nicole and Elizabeth. Through the eyes of these three women, we experience their personal struggles and catch a glimpse of what life was like during these very extreme times! Runyan is able to master three very distinct voices. I never felt like the characters were the same and each one had her own very personal story. I can't help but say that Roses story was so heartbreaking for me. I don't want to give too much away, but she had many obstacles to overcome. Despite all the hardship that these three women encounter prior to traveling to Canada and even after, the story felt like a story about survival and hope. I hope that this is a time period that gets more attention because there were so many issues touched about: loyalty to the crown, a woman's place in french society and then in the colonies, the obstacles of establishing life in a new frontier. Finally, and definitely not least, I want to credit Runyan for introducing Manon. She gives us insight into the indigenous of this area and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for her! Next book is out in October 2016, "Duty to the Crown."
About the Author
