Monday, January 11, 2010

Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy by Abigail Reynolds


Genre: Romance, Austen fan-fiction
Published: Jan. 2010, 288 pgs
Source: ARC from Sourcebooks
Review: 4/5 stars
Description on Goodreads:
In this sexy Jane Austen sequel, Elizabeth Bennet accepts Mr. Darcy's first marriage proposal, answering the "What if...?" question fans everywhere have pondered
" I had not known you a month before I felt that you were the last man in the world whom I could ever be prevailed on to marry."
Famous last words indeed! Elizabeth Bennet's furious response to Mr. Darcy's marriage proposal has resonated for generations of readers. But what if she had never said it? Would she have learned to recognize Mr. Darcy's admirable qualities on her own?
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy follows Elizabeth and Darcy as they struggle to find their way through the maze of their prejudices after Elizabeth, against her better judgment, agrees to marry Darcy instead of refusing his proposal.
I should have paid attention to the "sexy" adjective used to describe this Pride and Prejudice sequel before I read it. That is a very apt description for the detailed sex scenes towards the end of this book. Having said that... I really liked this book. I am embarrassed at how quickly I devoured it soon after receiving it in the mail from Sourcebooks a couple of months ago. By the time I got to the objectionable scenes, there was no way that I could set this book aside (they are in the last quarter of the book). While I don't think Reynolds always captured Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth's true characters, her story of their marriage and struggles to find happiness with each other is compelling and quite a page-turner. Reading this book reminded me again of what a hopeless romantic I am. I am ashamed but I've decided to just be open and honest about it. :)
Rating: 5.1.1 Two detailed sex scenes; it is within a married relationship but it is detailed.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's a pity about the sex scenes, but I think I may read this anyway. I like the premise of the book; what would have happened if Elizabeth had said yes without a fight? Of course, then she might have married the first person to ask her, ugh!

melissa @ 1lbr said...

That is one reason I've avoided a lot of the Austen sequels. I need to start finding out which ones are great, which are ok, and which are full of smut :)

Becky said...

Thanks for your review. I actually just got this book in the mail last week. I love sequels, but I'm getting more and more nervous about the variety out there, and what their basis is. Thanks for sharing! You gave me some extra idea of what it's all about.