When Georgiana Darcy overhears some juicy gossip, she sets off to find Mr. Wickham, a choice which places are squarely in the path of the Bennett family. Her brother and cousin hurry after her but not before poor Georgiana is soaked to the bone in a blistering winter rain. Unable to travel due to Georgiana’s health, Mr. Darcy is forced to stay at Longbourn and during that stay a miracle of understanding occurs between him and one Elizabeth Bennett.
I will fully admit this is not my usual cup of tea - I’m not really a fan of Jane Austen. I like the concept and I can watch the movies/miniseries, but trying to read the books gives me a headache. I have the same issue with Tolkien; it’s a thing. However, since Jane Austen variations are popular I wanted to see what the fuss is about. (Note to fanficcers out there… if you like to write fanfic for the various Jane Austen novels, there’s a real market for it on Amazon.) So when a bingo square came up with “Out of your comfort zone” I landed on this. Full disclosure, the author is someone whose other works I read and occasionally edit for, which is why I trust that I’d like what she’d done. And I did. I learned a lot while reading this book. I’ve learned that this is a very sweet gentle slow burn of a story much in the vein of the original Austen. I’ve learned that this is a perfect thing for people who are Jane Austen fans and who want more. I’ve also learned that Jane Austen variations are not my thing.
The writing is solid, but I can tell this is one of the author's earlier works because there isn’t the level of editing that I’ve come to expect from her. And there’s a few dangling threads that aren’t addressed. Additionally there are too many events that require an in-depth understanding of The Book that fans of the Keira Knightley movies or even the BBC miniseries might not get. This is for fans of the novel.
In all this is an enjoyable sweet read for those who are fans of Pride and Prejudice.
Four Stars
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I received an ARC of this novel from the author. All opinions expressed are my own.
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