Suddenly Mrs. Darcy Paperback – April 16, 2015

Any book that brings me close to tears or even actually has me crying is going to be a first class book in my opinion.I was anxiously awaiting this book as I had read about this new author and this first release on a blog. Of further interest to me, personally, was the fact that the author is a practicing barrister. I know of and read books by two other such authors, although of the male gender, Terry Brooks and John Grisham. Furthermore my husband is an attorney. Thus when I learned that this book was released this morning, I immediately bought and began to read it. I was, from the beginning, drawn in.This book has a great deal of angst. You can read in the Book Description and by reading the Sample that Elizabeth is forced to marry Darcy due to her mother's demanding such when she “witnesses” Mr. Darcy compromising her daughter. This tale is written from Elizabeth's POV and, due to such, one suffers along with Elizabeth all the misgivings, all the feeling of isolation from friend and family as the couple departs for Pemberley upon the event of their wedding and their sojourn there afterwards.Readers, you must remember this is the Darcy long before Elizabeth stuns him with not only her rejection of his marriage proposal but also before she throws in his face all her opinions as to his character and his ungentlemanly behavior towards Meryton society, towards Wickham, and in parting Bingley from her sister, Jane. Elizabeth, in this situation of being accused of allowing herself to become compromised (supposedly) and then to have Mr. Darcy forced to marry her, is mortified. She does not have the support of her father. So is she going to at this point rant and rave about Darcy's actions at present or in the past? No, at this point she can only view that in not scorning Mrs. Bennet and her "observation of their actions" and by arranging to meet with her father and to further set into action the wedding, Mr. Darcy has acted with more grace and fortitude than could ever be expected. So Lizzy is walking on eggshells and she has no one with whom to discuss the matter. She does not even have Aunt Gardiner to counter Lizzy’s mother lesson about what to expect in the marriage bed.And all this time Darcy remains the man of disdain and brooding looks and silent stances...the man seen at the Assembly Ball.Subsequently a new acquaintance and observed actions at a neighbor’s ball in Derbyshire, a visit with Lady Catherine and an overheard conversation with his steward cause Elizabeth such qualms, such misgivings, such regrets, even suspicions about Darcy’s morals and his character as to make one ache for Elizabeth. I don't want to speak of the exact causes, of what exactly she heard or witnessed as it would be a SPOILER but, I was having some of the same thoughts about Darcy. Other authors have ventured into this area, giving us a different Darcy but one who could be seen as a reflection of his times and the society. Some thoughts were: "Is this to be like Jane Eyre in discovering that Mr. Rochester has a life changing secret?"Elizabeth has no one to whom to turn, they live in isolation at Pemberley for much of the time at the beginning of their marriage. She does make great efforts to take on her role as the mistress of Pemberley and even here she is not sure of Darcy's reactions to her taking an initiative in addressing certain needs or events with the tenants. A trip to London and time spent there bring many changes.There is an epilogue. I am always happy to have that in the stories I read. I do recommend you read this book…and good luck trying to put it down! I look forward to more from this new author.

This was well written and organized. Though some complain about the single perspectives narration, I think it made the book. This was a nice example of how we each only have our own thoughts and insecurities as we move throughout life. There was one plot piece that I felt was unnecessary or at least poorly timed for its explanation.I liked Darcy's progression for the most part but found his lack of communication extreme. I'm glad Lizzy eventually found her voice. I also enjoyed that the majority of the book involved E&D interacting with each other.

I greatly enjoyed reading this delightful story about the marriage of Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy. To begin with, it was a "forced" marriage, instigated by Mrs. Bennet claiming a compromise.The characters and the storyline were well developed. It was such a candid look at the couple's married life that it was a real pleasure to read.7

Although I have read numerous "sequels, "prequels," and alternative versions of the Pride and Prejudice story, I am nearly always ready for another, provided that I have reason to think it will be reasonably well-written. In this case, I downloaded the sample first, and based on that, I bought the whole e-book for my Kindle. In this alternative telling of the relationship between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy, the narrative deviates from P & P just before the ball at Netherfield. (Spoiler alert) When Mrs. Bennett makes clear to Lizzy that Lizzy is expected to encourage a marriage offer from Mr. Collins, Lizzy makes very clear to her mother that she will not under any circumstances accept her cousin's offer. Mrs. Bennett, dismayed by Lizzy's intransigence, then seizes on a chance occurrence during the ball at Netherfield to claim that Mr. Darcy has compromised Lizzy's reputation. To Lizzy's horror, Darcy doesn't hesitate to offer her marriage, and thus they are married by special license within a few days. The rest of the novel details the developing relationship between Lizzy and Fitzwilliam, and the changes in their respective views of one another as they become acquainted and fall in love. The events that occurred in P & P to change Lizzy's prejudicial view of Darcy and to humble his pride don't happen in Suddenly Mrs. Darcy because of their "forced" marriage, so different events must occur for each to understand and come to love the other. For the most part, Ms. James's version makes sense and is consistent with the characters of Elizabeth and Darcy as revealed in P & P. I agree with another reviewer that the book contains too much narration and not enough dialogue, but I am sure it is hard to write dialogue that sounds like Ms. Austen's dialogue. I enjoyed Suddenly Mrs. Darcy, and I recommend it to P & P fans. Those not familiar with P & P probably wouldn't enjoy Suddenly Mrs. Darcy as much.

Beautifully written as Elizabeth narrates her story of her forced marriage to Darcy. Mysteries and secrets he doesn't share become known as she uses her internal strength to make the best of a bad situation. Definitely one I will read again.

This is a great variation of Pride & Prejudice and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Elizabeth, Darcy and the other characters are true to the original, with the story having a new twist while still being in keeping with Regency etiquette. It is also one of the few sequels/ variations that I have read that are free from spelling mistakes or Americanisms, while successfully using the language of Jane Austens's time. The story is also very believable and although invariably different from the original, it is conceivable that something similar did indeed happen. I can wholeheartedly recommend it - if you are looking for some Elizabeth and Darcy escapism, go ahead and buy it! Well done to the author!

This quite slow paced and for almost two thirds of the book Elizabeth is extremely passive. All of which made for a very uneventful read. Its not a long read either; my kindle estimated two hours when I started and that was about right. It's not a bad book, but it felt a bit bland. Darcy and Elizabeth are passionate people, but in this story they are strangely subdued.

This is the first ' interpretation' novel I have read. I think I was anticipating a sequel. Therefore after a slight mind shift I embraced this wonderfully written book. The author has captured the spirit and language of the original whilst giving us an insight into the relationship of the protagonists that Austen fails/ the period did not allow us to have. The reworking of other key relationships is interesting particularly that of Elizabeth and her father. I cannot recommend this book highly enough and look forward to reading more from this fantastic writer.

A great book that did not ignore ‘marital relations’ but was not explicit and focused on the emotional ramifications in the context of a changing relationship.

I am a huge fan of Pride and Prejudice and wasn't sure what to expect with Suddenly Mrs Darcy, however as soon as I began reading I was thrilled with the direction the author took with an alternate insight into the relationship between Lizzie and Mr Darcy. It is beautifully written, clearly thoroughly researched with displays sensitive use of the language of the time whilst still being eminently readable. I'm excited to see what else Mrs James has up her sleeve