Courting the Sun: Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour.
“A rich journey through 17th century France in all its aspects—its bucolic countryside, the still-unmatched splendor of the court of Louis XIV, and the struggling French colony in Canada.”~ Margaret George, New York Times bestselling author of Elizabeth I, The Autobiography of Henry VIII & The Memoirs of Cleopatra
France, 1670. On her sixteenth birthday, Sylvienne d’Aubert thinks her dream has come true. She holds in her hands an invitation from King Louis XIV to attend his royal court. However, her mother harbors a longtime secret she’s kept from both her daughter and the monarch, a secret that could upend Sylvienne’s life.
In Paris, Sylvienne is quickly swept up in the romance, opulence, and excitement of royal life. Assigned to serve King Louis’s favorite mistress, she is absorbed into the monarch’s most intimate circle. But the naïve country girl soon finds herself ill-prepared for the world of intrigue, illicit affairs, and power-mongering that takes place behind the shiny façade of Versailles.
This debut historical novel from Peggy Joque Williams captures the vibrancy and quandaries of 17th century life for a village girl seeking love and excitement during the dangerous reign of the Sun King.
Excerpt from Chapter 5 of Courting the Sun: A Novel of Versailles
The aroma of peppercorns and fennel seeds competed with the pungency of malt vinegar as I walked into the kitchen. Tatie was preparing beets, cabbages, and onions for pickling. I hovered over her shoulder for a moment; then, still disquieted, I went back into the sitting room. There I gazed out the front window past the riot of flowers Blondeau had planted to bring color back into our lives the summer after Papa’s funeral. I could see the corner of the manor house across the hedgerow. I skulked back to where Tatie was lopping a cabbage.
“Why are you haunting my kitchen?” she asked. “If you must be here, make yourself useful. Get a knife and start chopping.” She thrust a clump of beets at me.
I grabbed a knife and sliced off the roots and then the bright red stems, Claudette’s voice taunting me …nothing but a foundling. I chopped furiously, leaves flying across the table. A foundling. My knife swung up and down.
“Arrête!” Tatie stopped my hand with hers. “You’ll chop your fingers off!” She took the knife from me. “I’ll finish the beets.” She handed me a small cloth-lined basket. “Go find some blueberries so I can make a compote.”
Basket in arm, I rushed outside. Despite the rising heat, I welcomed the bright sunshine, But when I looked up, there was the manor house on the other side of the hedge, taunting me with its dark windows. I fled in the opposite direction, bounding down the lane until I found the well-worn path that would take me to the berry patch.
The sweet, musty scent of the blueberries lured me. My mind somewhat eased, I set to work filling my basket and my stomach with the tangy fruit. The basket was nearly full when I heard a sound. It came from the pond on the other side of the rise. A splash?
My blueberry basket held tight against my hip, I crept over the berm. There it was again. Splash!
Sheltered by a cluster of birch trees, I scanned the length of the pond. The only sound now the chattering of birds in the trees. Suddenly, a body rose out of the water, a young man drawing in deep breaths of air before diving back down again. A whinny from the pond’s edge caused me to pivot. Jolie! I turned as Etienne rose out of the water once more, his back to me.
Oh, that I could plunge in and join him, I did so love swimming. But he was naked. A heat beyond that of the afternoon sun rose into my cheeks. I glanced along the shore to where his shirt, breeches, and leggings lay in a pile. An impishness overwhelmed me. When he dove under the water again, I crept out from behind the trees and scurried to a large boulder just the right size for sitting. I waited until he rose again, shaking a spray of water from his hair.
“Have you turned into a fish?” I called out.
He spun around, then sank again until the water lapped at his chin. “What are you doing here?”
“Tatie sent me to pick blueberries.” I plucked one from my basket and tossed it at him. It landed with a tiny plop in the water directly in front of him.
“I’d like to come out and get dressed.”
“Would you now?” I threw another berry. Plop!
“If you insist on staying, would you at least turn around?”
The next berry hit him on the head. “I think I’ll sit right here for a while.”
He glared at me. I smirked, taking delight in my torment of him.
“Sylvienne, I—”
Plop!
“I’m coming out whether you turn away or not.” He began sloshing through the water. A moment more and I would see everything that made him a man.
I shrieked and spun around on my rock, but I could not help laughing all the while he sloshed nearer. After a moment, I heard him grunt as he pulled on his clothes. Then, without warning he was behind me, putting his wet hands on my shoulders. I shrieked again, and in my effort to push him away we tangled and fell, Etienne on top of me.
He put his hand over my mouth. “Quiet down, you crazy goose.”
I looked into his blue eyes. He removed his hand from my mouth, both of us breathing heavily.
“You’re wet,” I said, my voice low and husky.
“I am.” He gazed at me, then leaned down and brushed my lips with his. They were soft and warm, and I could taste the pond water. Then I felt something grow hard against me. At once he pushed away and jumped up, turning his back. “I am late for home.”
He grabbed his hose and strode over to Jolie. His back to me, he asked, “Would you like me to take you home?”
Damp hair clung to my face. My heart yearned to say, yes. I shook my head, no. “I need to pick more blueberries.” My basket had tipped and spilled its contents.
With a smile of regret, he mounted Jolie and urged her onto the trail.
Exhaling all at once, I closed my eyes, Claudette’s earlier taunts banished by the lingering taste of Etienne’s lips.
Buy Links:
Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/mqk0r9
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/courting-the-sun-peggy-joque-williams/1144842024?ean=9781685134129
Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/a/96858/9781685134129
Black Rose Writing: https://www.blackrosewriting.com/historicaladventure/courtingthesun
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Peggy Joque Williams is the author of Courting the Sun: A Novel of Versailles and co-author of two mystery novels, On the Road to Death’s Door and On the Road to Where the Bells Toll, written under the penname M. J. Williams. She is an alumnus of Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
A retired elementary school teacher and avid researcher, Peggy’s fascination with genealogy and her French-Canadian, European, and Native American ancestry inspires her historical fiction. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin.
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