Welcome Guest Author Linda Francis Lee (who knows something about ex-debutantes, evidently)

Today we’re happy to have Linda Francis Lee visit. Linda’s got the inside skinny on Debs Gone Wrong, with her latest novel, The Ex-Debutante.

Now strangely, her protagonist is dismayed to have to return to Texas and take over the Debutante Ball. Ummmm…What exactly is wrong with that?! We here at the Ball find no fault in that situation…

Linda has kindly offered not only a signed copy of her book for one lucky Deb reader today, but also a fine linen handkerchief, just in case pictures of Linda’s own debut actually show up in public and you’re brought to tears…And now, we invite you to slip on your best pearls, tug on those long satin gloves, and plant that tiara firmly on your well-coiffed head and enjoy the talented Linda Francis Lee:

Best Vacations . . . For the Inner Debutante in You

When it comes to Vacationing Debs, the word du jour is not always Extravagant. It depends on what kind of deb you are—or at least what kind of Inner Deb you have inside of you. Debutantes love to stay everywhere from the George V in Paris to a Bed & Breakfast in Montana that specializes in fly fishing. In THE EX-DEBUTANTE Carlisle Cushing is a debutante who has always been a fish out of water, the odd duck in a world of swans. So she hardly fits into any category. In fact, she left her Texas high society world to become a determined lawyer far away in Boston . . . then committed the unforgivable sin of becoming engaged to a Yankee. Then all of the sudden, she can’t believe she has been dragged back to Texas to take over the debutante ball, when all the while all she would like to do is take a serious vacation in some place quiet and off the grid like The Bitter End Yacht Club on Virgin Gorda.

Take the quiz below to find your own inner deb!

What Kind of a Debutante Are You?

1. When you are in line ready to make your official bow, you:
a. hope the deb in front of you face plants into the floor cracking her porcelain veneers
b. have warned the photographer to capture your best side
c. are certain you will be voted Deb of the Year
d. pray you aren’t the deb who face plants into the floor

2. Under your debutante gown, you wear:
a. nothing
b. a rhinestone thong
c. La Perla bikini briefs
d. granny panties

3. Your favorite accessory is your:
a. personal life-philosophy tattooed on your back
b. pink diamond navel piercing
c. Harry Winston diamond earrings
d. grandmother’s clip on pearls

4. On your guest list you have included your:
a. probation officer
b. plastic surgeon
c. childhood nanny and clique you’ve reigned supreme over since kindergarten
d. psychiatrist

5. At your debutante party the guests are:
a. afraid for their lives
b. gossiping about your infamous, old, ex-rocker dad who still pretends he’s 18
c. vying for a scrap of your attention—or so you assume
d. bored out of their minds

6. You are a deb because:
a. your mother threatened to tell all your friends your real name is Winifred
b. you do anything that involves paparazzi
c. of course you’d be a deb, hello, your grandmother, mother, and sister were debs
d. your parents bribed you with a new set of leather-bound encyclopedias if you participated

7. Your “look” of choice is:
a. Look? What #$*@ look?
b. whatever just hit the runways in Milan
c. whatever your personal shopper picks out for you
d. argyle sweaters and penny loafers

TOTAL:
A’s: ____
B’s: ____
C’s: ____
D’s: ____

If you answered mostly with:
A’s: you are a REBEL DEB
B’s: you are a CELEB DEB
C’s: you are a POSH DEB
D’s: you are a DUD DEB

To find out more about more THE EX-DEBUTANTE, hop over to www.lindafrancislee.com for debutante fun facts, photos, and an excerpt.

Bon Voyage!

Linda

Linda Francis Lee is a former Texas Junior Leaguer, who once served on a very real JL New Project committee. A graduate of Texas Tech University with a B.A. in advertising, she is also a former Texas Debutante, who once competed for the Maid of Cotton crown. (It seemed like a good idea at the time). Linda is the daughter of a former two-term Texas mayor. She now lives with her husband in New York City, where she has learned it’s not such a good idea to say things like “Aren’t you sweet” to people on the subway.