TRUE BLUE
by @dlcroisette
*see comments for story link

Billed as a reimagination of Jane Austen's "Persuasion", True Blue is at its heart a romance about second chances.

Eight years prior, Emily and Finn experienced a summer of fate, of love at first sight. Both believed themselves committed to the other and planned for a future together. That is, until each disappeared from the other's life without warning, leaving only heartbreak and feelings of abandonment behind.

Jump ahead to the present where a legal case brings now Master-At-Arms Finn Wainwright back into lawyer Emily Montgomery's life...and readers are shown that perhaps there can be such a thing as a second love at first sight.

Emily and Finn's reunion is fraught with unresolved feelings however, each internally questioning the original motives of the other as to why they left. Readers will delight in the delicious frustration that builds throughout the story as thwarted conversation and misunderstanding abound, compounded by circles of friends and family.

Writer D.L. Croisette does a splendid job shuttling readers back and forth between past and present without compromising plot. Through the story's duo POVs we learn that as much as Emily and Finn have moved on in their lives, they'd never forgotten the other.

Romantic trope fans will love the rich girl/poor boy, love at first sight, fated soulmates vibes. There's some action-adventure thrown in as well that adds an edge of thrill to the tale. And readers should brace for a past betrayal twist they'll not have seen coming until the end.

(Review by ELong)

Interview with the Author: D.L. Croisette

In your dedication to Jane Austen, you mention re-reading "Persuasion" almost every year. Why is her story such a favourite of yours?

To be fair, I adore many of Jane Austen's books, but Persuasion holds a special place in my heart in the quiet fortitude of the story. Some may not find it as heated or witty as her other works, but the second chance theme works on so many levels, First with the core romance which is doled out like raindrops in a gentle storm after weeks of draught, but also with the protagonist Anne, who has a second chance at coming into her own. The concept of finally finding yourself, a little later in life, struck home with me.

What fundamental similarities and differences are there between Austen's OG couple Anne and Wentworth versus your Emily and Finn?

Originally I tried to keep Emily and Finn as similar to Anne and Wentworth as possible. Emily was kind and compassionate towards others despite the circumstances whereas Finn was amiable with those he's comfortable with and reserved in unfamiliar situations and especially around Emily. But over the course of writing the book, my characters began to take on a life of their own. Unlike the original story, I chose to write from Finn's perspective so the reader gets a deeper understanding and his version of things. We see his struggles with articulating his thoughts and feelings and how he has isolated himself from his family. Emily in turn, is more confident in certain aspects of her life, like her job and has made a life for herself that the original Anne didn't manage to attain.

What constraints and/or freedoms did you have reimagining Austen's story in a modern day setting?

I had to take some liberties (sorry Ms. Austen) with the story to fit it into a contemporary timeline. Given the family money had all but disappeared, Emily couldn't be living at home without a job or purpose in life. Therefore I took the essence of Anne's goodness and gave Emily a noble purpose, that of a lawyer championing those in need. Finn is still in the Navy and that helped force the couple apart for the eight years and break down the lines of communication. Fortunately, or unfortunately, despite the lack of dukes and duchesses, lords and ladies in American modern society, there is still class divides and I was able to use that class structure to my advantage in a similar way as Ms. Austen..

What would you hope Austen would have to say about True Blue?

I think I'd be too busy fangirling that she even noticed me to be cognizant of anything she commented. But seriously, I'd hope she appreciated that I attempted to bring this story into my current timeline as a homage to her beautiful story to inspire readers to go and read the original source.

There's an underlying theme of duty calling in your tale... Finn in the military, Emily and her family obligations. When does–should?–love supersede duty, in your opinion?

Duty has its place in our lives, it can be a guiding light and in the case of both Finn and Emily it provides a source of comfort and inclusion that they both need. But when that duty becomes a shield to hide behind, an excuse to use to not take a risk, not to make a change, then I believe duty can turn into something that weighs like an anchor (excuse the pun) on people. Duty should be fulfilling and rewarding. Much like love.

As a female writer, what challenges did you face writing Finn's emotional portrayal: his anger and abandonment issues, his practising scenarios in his mind when he'd imagined confronting Emily about why she'd left, his being a virgin before his relationship with her?

To write from Finn's perspective was a huge risk for me and a way to push myself and my writing. Yet from the beginning I knew I wanted to tell his side of the story. It was what was missing from the original works and I wanted to hear it. The challenge was I'm not a man, I've never been in the military, nor abandoned as a child. However, Finn is a human being (at least to me) and as such he has the same vulnerable emotions and feelings as we all do. Keeping him "real" and not a two dimensional man with issues was a challenge but I kept his heart in mind and wrote the man, complete with flaws, I hoped he'd be.

Let's touch upon Mary and the Montgomery patriarch for a moment. They certainly evoke a lot of strong reaction from readers given the comments. Was the same true for you when you were writing their characters?

This is terrible to say, but I can not tell you how much fun I had writing Mary. She is... outspoken, brash, rude but laced with honesty and fierceness. She is the type of character you love to hate (and maybe even learn to love later). That passion made her a delight to write. Does that make me evil? Mary and her father are very similar in many ways so I got to riff off both of them.

Is there a character in True Blue you particularly related to? If yes, why?

As writers, I believe we put bits of ourselves into all our characters. But I related the most to Finn and his struggles. Not with the events of his life, we couldn't be more different, but more with his emotional journey and character development. We are both introverts trying to make our way in a world built for extroverts and trying to carve out a life where we find that comfortable spot where we belong.

Which moment in your story resonated most with you emotionally? Why?

I have this test for myself. If I don't cry, then the scene is just not good enough. One of the first scenes I wrote is where Emily rushes to the military base to find Finn and that had my lower lip trembling. What I love about that scene, aside from the explosive emotions and the angsty tension, is that these two souls defy the odds that are against them and in a literal storm find each other. The scene is surrounded by a sense of hope and then hope realised and it's hope that pulls at my heartstrings.

If True Blue were made into a movie (Passionflix, anyone?), who would you like to see cast as the lead characters?

After watching Richard Armitage in the BBC production of North and South, I had him in my mind while writing Finn, but he might be too old for the role now. However, I'd have absolutely no worries about Adam Driver taking on the role. Finn would be in very good hands. Sigh. Where was I? I'd love to see Florence Pugh or Emilia Clark take on the role of Emily. They both have that sparkling, you've-got-this quality that embodies Emily.

What are you up to these days writing-wise?

I've jumped into the writing world with two feet and am publishing under my name and writing with a co-author and publishing under the pen name Willa Drew. I'm working on a story that will be part of an anthology of books by multiple authors where our stories all take place in the same town of Destiny, Florida. It's fun world-building with a group of authors. With Willa Drew we are writing our tenth book together and plan to have it published in the fall of 2024.