Elizabeth the First Wife

BOOK: Elizabeth the First Wife
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PRAISE FOR ELIZABETH THE FIRST WIFE

“Lian Dolan has created the perfect blend of vulnerability, complication, and wit in this outstanding second novel. Our main character Elizabeth is definitely the kind of friend you'd be lucky to have! With timeless storylines that play out on the stage and in the real world, this is a purely enchanting read.”

—R
OBIN
K
ALL, HOST
, R
EADING WITH
R
OBIN

“I loved
Elizabeth the First Wife
. Lian Dolan's Elizabeth is smart, sassy and just As You Like It. This is a love story about moving on from young love and finding the right spot for yourself, in work and in relationships, interspersed with fun insights about the Bard. You'll laugh out loud at the pop culture comparisons between Shakespearean couples and today's notorious duos. Romance, celebrity, and Shakespeare—there's nothing better than that.”

—K
AIRA
R
OUDA, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF
H
ERE
, H
OME
, H
OPE
AND
A
LL THE
D
IFFERENCE

“Elizabeth is a smart and lighthearted yet complicated woman whose journey will enthrall you. And with the references to Shakespeare, it will have book clubs talking for hours.”

—M
ARI
P
ARTYKA
, M
ANIC
M
OMMIES
B
OOK
C
LUB

PRAISE FOR HELEN OF PASADENA

* A full year on the
Los Angeles Times
Bestseller List

* #1 Mover & Shaker on
Amazon.com

* Finalist for Best Fiction, Southern California Independent Bookseller Awards

“A compelling narrative and a memorable cast.”

—P
UBLISHERS
W
EEKLY

“A send-up of a 40something mom who finds herself suddenly widowed, broke, and forced to reinvent herself…opinionated, energetic, and sassy.”

—M
ANDALIT DEL
B
ARCO
, NPR

“A knockout debut…it mixes up the classics and class structure in a deliciously witty romp.”

—C
AROLINE
L
EAVITT
, N
EW
Y
ORK
T
IMES
B
ESTSELLING AUTHOR OF
P
ICTURES OF
Y
OU

“Every reader will see something of herself in Dolan's likable heroine, Helen of Pasadena. Offering up every woman's worst fear, Dolan pulls the rug out from under Helen, and we get to watch as she recovers and reinvents herself with wit, charm, and smarts.”

—S
ALLY
B
JORNSEN, AUTHOR OF
A S
INGLE
G
IRL'S
G
UIDE TO
M
ARRYING A
M
AN
, H
IS
K
IDS AND
H
IS
E
X
-W
IFE

LEARN MORE ABOUT LIAN DOLAN AT
WWW.LIANDOLAN.COM

PROSPECT PARK BOOKS

Copyright © 2013 by Lian Dolan

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner.

Published by Prospect Park Books
969 S. Raymond Avenue
Pasadena, California 91105
www.prospectparkbooks.com

Distributed by Consortium Book Sales & Distribution
www.cbsd.com

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data is on file
with the Library of Congress

For reference only:
Dolan, Lian
Elizabeth the First Wife / Lian Dolan.
ISBN 978-1-938849-06-0
1. Novelists—Fiction. 2. Shakespeare—Fiction.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

DESIGNED BY KATHY KIKKERT

IN MEMORY OF MY PARENTS

EDNA KLARMAN DOLAN
JAMES JOSEPH DOLAN

Contents

Boy Meets Girl, Shakespeare-style

Chapter 1

Kate & Petruchio

Chapter 2

Portia

Chapter 3

6 Great Lines Guys Should Steal

Chapter 4

Oberon & Titania

Chapter 5

Elizabethean Fashion Dos & Don'ts for the Modern Woman

Chapter 6

Juliet Capulet

Chapter 7

Which Shakespearean Bad Boy Is for You?

Chapter 8

The Macbeths

Chapter 9

6 Classy Ways to Throw Down an Insult

Chapter 10

Love vs. Lust

Chapter 11

Henry & Katherine

Chapter 12

3 Guys Your Mom Will Love

Chapter 13

Relationship Red Flags

Chapter 14

Regan & Goneril

Chapter 15

Rosalind & Orlando

Chapter 16

TEAM ROMEO
VS
. TEAM

Chapter 17

Othello & Desdemona

Chapter 18

3 Surefire Lines to Get What You Want

Chapter 19

Why William Shakespeare Would Be a Bad Boyfriend

Chapter 20

Friends vs. As You Like It

Chapter 21

3 Simple Steps to Be a Cleopatra in the Bedroom

Chapter 22

Beatrice & Benedick

Chapter 23

Elizabeth I

Chapter 24

Epilogue

Q & A With Author Lian Dolan

Book Club Discussion Topics

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Boy Meets Girl,
Shakespeare-style

MIX & MATCH YOUR ROMANTIC PLOTLINE

BOY  

GIRL

Troubled Prince  

Young Maiden

Exiled Duke  

Fairy Queen

Banished Black Sheep  

Frosty Countess

Handsome Rogue  

Shipwrecked Cross-dresser

Alleged Pirate  

Sharp-tongued Shrew

FALL IN LOVE

At a Ball

On an Island

Against All Odds

With an Ass

COMPLICATIONS ENSUE

Mistaken Identity  

Prolonged War

Murdered Relative  

Fatal Miscommunication

Vengeful Mother  

Filial Ingratitude

Bad Fairy Dust  

Jealous Rage

Unfortunate Duel  

Political Ambition

Forged Letter  

Crazy Sister

AND IN THE END…

They marry

They die

They rule

CHAPTER 1

“So, is this a relationship built on manipulation or intellectual attraction?”

Please God, someone have an answer.
Anybody
. Nobody. I looked out at my class of twenty-four students, only about sixteen of whom were feigning interest in the material. Not a single hand was raised, not even Lydia's, which was a bad sign. Lydia was my prize student in Shakespeare 401, my upper-level English class at Pasadena City College. A bright young Korean second-gen with UC Berkeley dreams, she was my go-to responder on days when even I didn't feel like discussing the Bard. Lydia would pull some question out of thin air and keep the discussion going until the bell rang or Antonio's cell phone went off
(Party Rockers in the House Tonight!)
, whichever came first.

BOOK: Elizabeth the First Wife
8.28Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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