Yay for a quick enthralling read! We all know I discovered a love for Jane Austen fan-fiction last year and picked up quite a few volumes at the time. Some I was (and still am) not so sure about and this is one of those. I’m not quite so sure about this one, but at least it counts towards my Mount TBR Reading Challenge.
The major plus to this novel is that the story itself was gripping enough to keep me interested and there was just enough of a plot twist to make me constantly second guess what I deduced early on. The downside to the novel itself was Jeffers writing. Although she tells a captivating story, I wasn’t quite convinced that it was regency era enough for me. It definitely brought in the seedier side of things, but the language and revelations of the story just didn’t have the eloquence which Austen’s originals had. And the quoting was sometimes a bit erratic, like ‘Oh I think I’ll throw in a Pride and Prejudice quote here. And the WORST part was that she even through in an entire scene/section that was pulled directly out of Mansfield Park which really bothered me for some reason.
The MAJOR problem with the novel were (mostly) responsibilities of the publisher, I felt. I have to wonder how much effort the publisher actually put into this novel or whether it was released as a quick money-maker for an ever-growing market. There were some major errors that any of the number of editors should have caught including grammatical and spelling errors and whole omissions of words. It was actually a distraction at a couple of points and I had to check to make sure I didn’t accidentally pick up an ARC or something. (I didn’t I bought it at a Borders closing sale.) You also have to wonder, if you’ve seen the 2005 Pride and Prejudice remake, at the choice of the cover art doesn’t it look more like Mary than anyone else from that film?
Opening Line: “‘We should turn back,’ Fitzwilliam Darcy cautioned as they pulled their horses even and walked them side-by-side along the hedgerow.”
Closing Line: “We will be known for the house populated by shadow people—the home of the Phantom of Pemberley.” (Whited out.)
Thanks for the insight! And if you like Austen books you got to see “Lost in Austen.” It is available in Netflix. I personally loved it! Funny and witty. 😀
Thanks for stopping by! I’ve had it on my instant queue on Netflix for ages but haven’t actually watched it. I’ll definitely have to check it out now.