According to Marilyn

Sigh. I just love the cover to my pal Marilyn Brant's debut novel According to Jane. Don't you? It looks so soft, so romantic, so wistful. I've been looking forward to reading this book for a long time now, and I'll soon be rewarded for my patience because it comes out Oct 1! Book Junkie recently did a fantastic interview of Marilyn that you can read here. There's also a contest giveaway involving an arc and some fabulous Starbucks coffee so run on over and comment!

Here's the blurb for the book (which by the way, won the 2007 Golden Heart award for Novel with Best Romantic Elements!)

It begins one day in sophomore English class, just as Ellie Barnett's teacher is assigning Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice". From nowhere comes a quiet 'tsk' of displeasure. The target: Sam Blaine, the cute bad boy who's teasing Ellie mercilessly, just as he has since kindergarten. Entirely unbidden, as Jane might say, the author's ghost has taken up residence in Ellie's mind, and seems determined to stay there. Jane's wise and witty advice guides Ellie through the hell of adolescence and beyond, serving as the voice she trusts, usually far more than her own. Years and boyfriends come and go - sometimes a little too quickly, sometimes not nearly fast enough. But Jane's counsel is constant, and on the subject of Sam, quite insistent. Stay away, Jane demands. He is your Mr. Wickham. Still, everyone has something to learn about love - perhaps even Jane herself. And lately, the voice in Ellie's head is being drowned out by another, urging her to look beyond everything she thought she knew and seek out her very own, very unexpected, happy ending.