Everything Austen Challenge II Wrap-up

As readers of this blog know, I love everything Jane Austen related. I especially love the Everything Austen Challenge and was glad to be a part of it again this year. I don’t really need an excuse to read, watch, or listen to anything Austen related, but this challenge inspires me to go above and beyond, and I love reading all of the great reviews from others that come with it. It always gives me a lot more ideas for Austen related works to read in the future!

I completed all of the items I had originally intended to for this challenge, and added many more along the way. I read the following eight books:

1. Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway
2. Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell
3. A Darcy Christmas by Amanda Grange, Sharon Lathan, and Carolyn Eberhart
4. Charlotte Collins by Jennifer Becton
5. In the Arms of Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan
6. Mr. Darcy’s Obsession by Abigail Reynolds
7. Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister by C. Allyn Pierson
8. Darcy’s Voyage by Kara Louise

I listened to the following three audiobooks:

1. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Cover to Cover edition read by Irene Sutcliffe
2. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, Tantor Media Edition read by Donada Peters
3. Persuasion by Jane Austen, read by Juliet Stevenson

I watched the following three movies:

1. Sense and Sensibility (BBC - 1981)
2. Persuasion (BBC- 1971)
3. Pride and Prejudice (BBC – 1980)

In all, I read, listened, and watched a total of fourteen items for this challenge.

I learned that I had missed a great Pride and Prejudice mini-series, the BBC-1980 version. While it does not replace the 1995 mini-series as my favorite, it is a great series in its own right. I didn’t really enjoy the BBC versions of S&S or Persuasion. I don’t think I need to watch these versions again.

I also learned that while I love listening to Jane Austen on audiobook, some audiobooks are far better than others. Juliet Stevenson was an excellent reader for Persuasion, but the other two audiobooks I listened to had really dry readers.

I enjoyed all of the books I read, and don’t have one favorite. While I do love Mr. Darcy, I did enjoy reading about other characters from Pride and Prejudice (Charlotte Collins) and books based on other Austen works (Lady Vernon and Her Daughter). I thought Abigail Reynolds and C. Alleyn Pierson did a wonderful job of creating new works based on P&P, and especially creating great new characters while remaining true to the original characters. I also loved Mr. Darcy as a cowboy in Pemberley Ranch.

Thank-you to Stephanie for hosting this great challenge. I hope that it returns again later this year!

Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway

Lady Vernon and Her Daughter was a great way to end the Everything Austen Challenge II for 2010. It was an amazing book and was a very original take on Austen. Although I love Mr. Darcy, it is great to read Austen lit based on different characters and book in the Austen canon.


Lady Susan is a short epistolary novella that was written by Jane Austen in the 1790’s, or around the same time she wrote her first version of Sense and Sensibility. Lady Susan shows that Austen’s wit started while she was young with her first forays into writing. I read Lady Susan last year as part of the Lady Susan Soiree on Austenprose. It was great fun.


Lady Vernon and Her Daughter take the Lady Susan novella and expand it into a novel, in the same manner as Austen took her original Sense and Sensibility story and expanded it.


Lady Vernon and Her Daughter takes the view that the letters that you read in Lady Susan, may show a prejudiced point of view of Lady Susan Vernon and that there may be much more to the story. And the much more to the story is a captivating tale that I enjoyed reading and had a hard time putting down!


Susan Martin is a beautiful young woman with a sparkling wit, but not much in the way of a dowry. She enthralls many men, but falls in love with and marries Sir Frederick Vernon. Her Aunt and Uncle settle a London home on the couple and they have a happy life together that is only troubled by financial woes brought about by Sir Frederick’s brother Charles. Sir Frederick and Lady Susan have one beloved daughter, Frederica. After Sir Frederick passes away, his estate passes to his brother and Lady Susan and Frederica find themselves in trouble in the matters of money and in love. And ill-informed gossip plagues them at every turn. What is a woman to do in a man’s world to survive?


I enjoyed the entire book. It was the next best thing to reading an original Jane Austen novel. I definitely rate Lady Vernon and Her Daughter as among the best of the Austen Lit based on original Austen works. I loved the author’s note at the end that described the reasoning for doing things such as using the name Lady Vernon rather than Lady Susan. It was very interesting. I also enjoyed the original Lady Susan letters at the end and the great family tree at the beginning of the novel. They definitely enhanced the reading experience.


Lady Vernon and Her Daughter is my fourteenth and final item for the Everything Austen Challenge II for 2010. I finished the book on December 30th, but the holidays have me a bit behind on my posts!


Book Source: I won this novel from Laurel Ann on Austenprose.

Pemberley Ranch by Jack Caldwell

Pemberley Ranch is a wonderful new western starring my favorite literary couple, Mr. Darcy (known as Will in this book) and Elizabeth Bennet (referred to as Beth).

The novel starts with William Darcy and Charles Bingley in the thick of action during the American Civil War. After an altercation with crooked Yankee officer George Whitehead, Darcy and Bingley are shipped off to a prison camp for the rest of the war. Afterwards, Darcy goes back to his ranch, Pemberley, near the small town of Rosings, Texas. Bingley moves to town as the town doctor, but unfortunately, George Whitehead shows up after receiving a government appointment. Darcy tries to avoid town and Whitehead in order to forget the past, but he finds it hard to avoid when he meets the lovely Beth Bennet.

Beth Bennet grew up with her family on a farm in Ohio. After her elder brother Samuel’s death in the war, Beth finds herself unable to forgive Southerners. In order to better their situation in life, Mr. Bennet moves his family to a new farm in Rosings, Texas. Beth has prejudice against the townspeople as they were on the side of the South during the Civil War. Although she hates the ex-confederate officer Will Darcy and all he stands for, she can’t help but be attracted to him.

Will’s cousin Cate Burroughs owns the other half of the land around Rosings that Darcy does not own. Together with George Whitehead and Billy Collins, Cate embarks on a scheme to make money in a nefarious way. Will Darcy and Beth Bennet have to work together to stop them and find romance along the way.

I really enjoyed this novel. I loved the Civil War action at the beginning of the novel, but I thought the novel got a bit slow when it moved to Rosings Texas five years after the war. Luckily the action picked up after that point and I had a hard time putting it down. Pemberly Ranch had a great historical fiction background, and I loved the footnotes that explained certain historical items in more detail.

Caldwell did a fantastic job creating wonderfully unique characters. The characters use similar names as our beloved characters in Pride and Prejudice, but Caldwell made them his own by changing each slightly in unique ways. For instance, Charlotte Lucas is the plain outspoken daughter of the Sheriff who has a secret romance with Darcy’s foreman, Richard “Fitz” Fitzwilliam. I loved this change in Charlotte and I also loved how Mrs. Bennet is a good farmer’s wife that talks too much. She and Mr. Bennet have a much deeper love than what is seen in Pride and Prejudice. And of course, Beth and Will are fantastic lead characters. I was a bit annoyed with Beth’s automatic hatred of Will at the beginning, but soon the two characters were sharing a passionate (though chaste) romance that was riveting to watch unfold on the page.

It was also delightful how characters from other Austen novels would make “guest” appearances. Henry Tilney, Edmund Bertram, Mr. Knightly, etc. all make appearances. Each arrival of an old favorite made me smile.

I thought the novel did an excellent job of using the theme of pride and prejudice. There is much exploration of pride and prejudice between the north and south and that war is actually a grey zone with wrongs and rights on both sides. There was also prejudice against religion (a nice twist was that the Darcys were Catholic) and race (the Darcys have Native American and Mexican heritage and an ex-slave family moves to town). It was intriguing.

I was initially drawn to this novel as it says on the cover that it is a mix of Gone with the Wind and Pride and Prejudice. I love both novels so I was excited by that. As I read the novel though, I thought this description is actually a disservice to the novel. Pemberley Ranch is an excellent western and is the perfect blend of Pride and Prejudice with the old west. Caldwell makes the characters his own and has his own unique plot. I loved it.

Jack Caldwell will have a guest post on my blog on Thursday December 16th. Please stop back by and see what he has to say about this novel. I can’t wait!

Pemberley Ranch is my thirteenth item in the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

A Darcy Christmas by Amanda Grange, Sharon Lathan, and Carolyn Eberhart

A Darcy Christmas is a Christmas collection of stories by Amanda Grange, Sharon Lathan, and Carolyn Eberhart involving our favorite Austen hero, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. I will review and summarize each story separately for a deeper look into the book.

The first story is “Mr. Darcy’s Christmas Carol” by Carolyn Eberhart. After helping out Lydia Bennet, Mr. Darcy never proposed to Elizabeth in this take on the tale. Christmas has come and the spirits of Christmas past, present, and future visit Mr. Darcy to show him the error of his proud ways and what life will be like without Elizabeth. I thought this was a great and inventive combination of Pride and Prejudice with the holiday classic A Christmas Carol. I especially liked how Scrooge gets a special guest appearance at the end of the story. Carolyn Eberhart is a debut author and I look forward to reading future works by her!

The second story is “Christmas Present” by Amanda Grange. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are happily married and are expecting their first child. Jane and Mr. Bingley have moved nearby and have just had their first child, a son. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth visit the Bingleys to celebrate Christmas with them and the Bennet family. Much hilarity also ensues when Lady Catherine and Mr. Collins make a guest appearance. Christmas Present was a great story and Amanda Grange did an excellent job of bringing all of my favorite P&P characters back to life in a way true to the original novel.

The final story is “A Darcy Christmas” by Sharon Lathan. “A Darcy Christmas” is a great concept. Each chapter in the story is a different stage in Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship from before their marriage, to newlyweds, to the birth and growth of their children. I liked the concept, but didn’t really like the actual stories. They moved very slowly. Some were great and others were lackluster. While I had read the first two stories in this book quite fast, I seemed to get stuck on this story.

Overall A Darcy Christmas was a very enjoyable holiday book that will get you in the spirit with your favorite Pride and Prejudice characters.

A Darcy Christmas is my twelfth item in the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (audiobook)

As part of the Everything Austen Challenge last year, I listened to Emma, Mansfield Park, and Sense and Sensibility on audiobook. I really enjoyed listening to these classic Austen novels and feel that her books work particularly well as part of the audiobook medium. This year as part of the Everything Austen Challenge II, I have listened to Austen’s remaining works; Persuasion, Northanger Abbey, and now Pride and Prejudice.

For those you that are missing out on one of my all-time favorite books, Pride and Prejudice is the story of Elizabeth Bennet. One of five unmarried sisters during the Regency era in England, Elizabeth is a young woman with great wit and a vivacious personality. Although she will be left in reduced circumstances at the death of her father, Elizabeth would like to marry for love rather than to better her circumstances as her mother would wish. Elizabeth meets the haughty and exasperating Mr. Darcy at a local assembly. After hearing Mr. Darcy make a rather disparaging remark about her, Elizabeth decides to have nothing to do with Mr. Darcy. As fate keeps throwing them together, Elizabeth learns that sometimes pride can mask the true character of a man.

I listened to the Cover to Cover version of Pride and Prejudice as read by Irene Sutcliffe. Sutcliffe did a fair job at reading Pride and Prejudice, but truthfully, it was not the best version I’ve heard of an Austen novel. Sutcliffe’s voice was a little too monotone and she didn’t have a distinct voice for each character as other audiobook readers have done.

I loved listening to the story of Pride and Prejudice again, especially in a format that I can imagine Austen and her family reading the novel aloud to one another at night. Having read the novel numerous times, it is always a pleasure to hear favorite passages and lines.

My favorite aspect of Pride and Prejudice (as with any Austen novel) is Austen’s great characters. As I listened to Pride and Prejudice, I realized that most of Elizabeth and Darcy’s problems stem from annoying family members. This is a problem I’m sure that most people can relate with. Elizabeth has a father that loves to laugh at his neighbors, and a mother that embarrasses her in public by talking too much. Darcy has an overbearing busy buddy aunt who likes to boss people around. The foibles of the characters are fantastic and Austen is the wittiest writer I have ever read.

I could wax on about Pride and Prejudice all day, but the moral of this blog entry is that listening to Pride and Prejudice as an audiobook was a very enjoyable experience and a great new way to enjoy the novel.

This is my eleventh item in the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Audiobook Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Charlotte Collins by Jennifer Becton

Charlotte (Lucas) Collins is one of my favorite characters from the novel Pride and Prejudice. Charlotte is a plain woman that is considered an “old maid” at age 27. Realizing that she has few options in life, she decides to put reason over love and marries the odious Mr. Collins for financial security.

In the novel Charlotte Collins, Mr. Collins has met with an unfortunate accident and Charlotte finds herself a widow at age 35. She settles down in a small cottage that she rents at a reduced rate from Lady Catherine and enjoys her simple life. Her sister Maria comes to live with her and Charlotte agrees to be her chaperone and to help her find a suitable spouse. Along the way, Charlotte examines her own philosophy about love and marriage and may have a second chance of her own.

I really enjoyed this novel. I have always loved Charlotte and I was glad to see that she finally got to be the star and have a chance to shine in a novel of her own. I obviously love Austen related novels, but the vast majority only deal with Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth from Pride and Prejudice. I love that Charlotte Collins looks at a different character than Mr. Darcy. In fact, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are mentioned, but only make a slight appearance in this novel.

I love Becton’s style of writing in Charlotte Collins. It suits the period and the story, and often showed the type of lively wit that originally drew me towards Jane Austen’s novels.

Some of my favorite quotes (I must admit, I laughed out loud at both of these quotes.):

“’My independence was hard won.’ Charlotte said, recalling the tediousness of her daily interactions with her husband that had resulted in her current situation. How many ponderous sermons had she been subjected to? How many simpering compliments had she endured? And worse, how many fireplace mantels had she heard him describe in painful detail.”

“Charlotte considered reprimanding her for not showing respect for those higher in society, but she refrained. Lady Catherine was an old bat.”

Overall Charlotte Collins was a unique Austenesque story with great characters and romance.

This is my tenth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Jennifer Becton will be on my blog soon for an author interview and I will give away my gently used copy of this novel. Stay tuned for more details!

Book Source: Review copy from author Jennifer Becton. Thank-you!

Sense and Sensibility (1981)

Sense and Sensibility was made into a seven-part TV serial by the BBC in 1981. Each part is roughly twenty-five minutes long. As part of the Everything Austen Challenge II, I decided to watch this version of Sense and Sensibility as it is the only version I haven’t seen. As a disclaimer, the 1995 movie is not only one of my favorite Austen adaptations, but also one of my favorite movies of all time.

First of all, I didn’t like the short segments the serial was broken up into. The way the segments worked out, the writers tweaked the storyline to have one segment be about Willoughby, one about Edward, etc. These segments did not give the appropriate build-up to understand why Elinor had feelings for Edward or why Marianne was attracted to Willoughby. Everything seemed abbreviated to fit it into a short segment.

Although this version is longer than the 1995 movie (but shorter than the 2008 mini-series), poor Margaret, the third Dashwood sister, is completely deleted. Most other characters appear. I particularly liked Diana Fairfax who played Mrs. Dashwood, I thought she did an excellent job and it was my favorite portrayal Mrs. Dashwood.

I know this sounds mean, but Irene Richard who played Elinor had some truly terrible teeth. It reminded me of Austen Powers and the joke about bad British teeth. Irene looked like she was continually trying to hide her teeth throughout the series and whenever she did smile, it made me almost fall out of my chair. Tracey Childs did a fair job as Marianne.

Bosco Hogan as Edward Ferrars was unattractive and there was no chemistry with Richard’s Elinor. Robert Swann was a pretty good Colonel Brandon, but Peter Woodward as John Willoughby could not hold a candle to Greg Wise as Willoughby in the 1995 version. Julia Chambers was actually a pretty good Lucy Steele. Instead of always realizing something was amiss with her as in the 1995 version, she actually seemed like a nice girl. If I didn’t know the storyline, her betrayal of Edward would have been a complete surprise. It brought a different aspect to the story.

I think overall this adaptation was poorly written, especially in comparison to Emma Thompson’s excellent adaptation in the shorter 1995 movie. The beginning of the movie in the carriage has very awkward dialogue and camera angles. Other scenes were also very awkward, the one that comes to mind is Fanny’s screaming at Anne’s telling her about Lucy and Edward’s engagement. It was such bad acting that it was actually quite funny. Another awkward scene is when Edward comes to the cottage at the end, Elinor runs off while Marianne and Mrs. Dashwood just laugh at Edward. The scene pales in comparison to the quiet power of the same scene in the 1995 version. The ending was very odd with Colonel Brandon giving Marianne some books and calling her “my child.” It did not seem romantic at all and was rather abrupt.

Overall, I think the 1981 mini-series was a poor adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. It was interesting to watch, but both the 2008 mini-series and 1995 movie were much better. The 1995 movie is still my favorite adaptation.

This was my ninth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Persuasion (1971)

I’m continuing my look at BBC versions of Austen’s novels in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Persuasion is tied with Pride and Prejudice as my favorite Austen novel. I had never seen the 1971 version of this beloved novel and decided now was the time!

The 1971 version is close to four hours long and therefore is able to provide a lot more detail than either the 1995 or 2007 versions. It followed pretty closely to the novel, but did change some scenes around and add some extra items. The production was low budget, but does change locations and have great inside décor. The outside scenes could use some improvement and appeared blurry at times.

Anne Firbank starred as Anne Elliot and Bryan Marshall was Captain Wentworth. I thought

Anne Firbank did an excellent job as Anne Elliot and I also loved her hair. I would rate her above Sally Hawkins from the 2007 version, but below Amanda Root in the 1995 version. Bryan Marshall however I thought was only an okay Captain Wentworth and rates below both Ciaran Hinds from the 1995 version and Rupert Perry-Jones from the 2007 version.

I never really felt the chemistry between the two leads in this version of Persuasion. I also think the length was just too long. There were several rather pointless scenes that were boring and didn’t add to the plot. I previously thought the 2007 version was too long and really hated the sprint at the end. I think the length needs to be somewhere between the 1971 and 2007 versions, perhaps more like the 1995 version.

Overall, this was an okay production of Persuasion and I’m glad I watched it. I still consider the 1995 version the definitive version as to me it had the right amount of time for the story, great chemistry between the leads, and two fantastic actors in those leads.

The 1971 version of Persuasion is my eighth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

I obtained this movie from the Kewaunee Public Library system.

Pride and Prejudice (1980)

I have suffered for years knowing that a version of Pride and Prejudice exists that I had never seen. Luckily the Kewaunee Public library system had a copy of the 1980 Pride and Prejudice BBC production and I finally found the time (while nursing an infant in the middle of the night) to watch it.

The 1980 BBC version is a mini-series and as such, tells a lot more of the story than either movie version. The 1980 P&P largely sticks to the novel, although there are a few slight changes in dialogue, places of action, etc. The most noticeable change for me is that Elizabeth spends much of her time at the beginning of the mini-series talking with Charlotte and doesn’t seem to spend any time at all with Jane. Also the ending left out a lot and seemed actually rather abrupt. Otherwise, I loved how the mini-series had the time to tell the entire story.

While the 1980 P&P obviously lacked the budget of the 1995 P&P, it still did a great job at telling the story. It does not have the “made for TV on one sad set look” that many BBC productions of the 1970s and 1980s are prone too, although it does lack the lushness of the 1995 version.

I was pleasantly surprised by the two leads of the 1980 version. I thought David Rintoul was an excellent Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Garvie was also an excellent Elizabeth Bennet. I still prefer Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy, but I think Garvie is definitely among the best for Elizabeth Bennet. I give her a tie as my favorite Elizabeth with Jennifer Ehle.

Overall I thought the 1980 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice was quite good and I highly recommend it to anyone who has not seen it. I rank it behind the 1995 mini-series as one of my favorite productions of the book. I enjoyed the 2005 movie, but I think both mini-series are much more enjoyable as they are able to tell so much more of the story.

The 1980 Pride and Prejudice was my seventh item in the Everything Austen Challenge II.

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan

I have read great reviews about Sharon Lathan’s Darcy Saga, a series of books that continues the story of Elizabeth and Darcy directly after their marriage. In the Arms of Mr. Darcy is the fourth novel in the series and the first novel in the series that I have read. My review therefore is on this novel as a standalone novel and not in comparison to the rest of the series.

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy encompasses approximately a year of the Darcy’s marriage, in particular the second year of their marriage. The novel starts with a gathering of Darcy and Elizabeth’s families for a Christmas celebration at Pemberly. Darcy and Elizabeth rejoice in the love of their infant son William and in their passion for each other. William’s christening is soon after the Christmas celebration. The year passes by slowly with Colonel Fitzwilliam, Kitty, Caroline Bingley, and Georgiana each experiencing a romance of their own.

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy moves at a leisurely place and each chapter seems to almost be a short story of its own. I didn’t think there was too much of an overall plot holding the novel together besides it just being a year in the life of the Darcys. Truthfully, the leisurely plot moved a little too slow for me and I longed for some more action. Colonel Fitzwilliam has a great romance and action scenes toward the end of the novel, but it seemed like more of an afterthought.

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy has a lot of hot and steamy love scenes between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. Truthfully, after just giving birth to an infant of my own, some of the love scenes after William’s birth seemed a little over the top and not quite what I would find romantic. But I don’t want to get into the details!

I love how Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth have a passionate and true love for each other in the novel. I thought the characterization of both of them as parents seemed a bit off. Their parenting techniques fit with our modern sensibilities of being a parent, but don’t really seem to fit into the regency equivalent of being a parent. I can’t imagine Mr. Darcy waking up for midnight feedings and whatnot.

Overall, In the Arms of Mr. Darcy was a leisurely look at life after marriage and a child for Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, but moved at too slow of a pace for me.

In the Arms of Mr. Darcy is my sixth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen (Audiobook)

Northanger Abbey is Jane Austen’s often overlooked first novel accepted for publication in 1803. Sadly the publisher decided not to publish it at that time, but it was ultimately published after her death. It is most often referred to as Austen’s “gothic novel parody.” While it is a humorous parody of the gothic novels of the day, I find Northanger Abbey much more than just a parody. Northanger Abbey is also a comedy of manners and matches Austen’s other novels great characters and romance.

Catherine Morland travels with family friends, the Allens, to Bath. At first life in Bath is anything but exciting, but then she meets the engaging Henry Tilney. Afterwards Mrs. Allen’s friends, the Thorpes, come to town and Catherine soon befriends Isabella Thorpe. Life is great fun in society now that Catherine has the Tilneys and Thorpes to spend time with. Soon she is invited by General Tilney (Henry’s father) to visit the family at Northanger Abbey. Catherine hopes that the Abbey will include all of the mystery that her favorite gothic novels detail.

As I listened to this audiobook, I realized that my favorite thing about the novel was Austen’s fantastic characters. I love Henry Tilney and his quick wit. I also love how he is a great reader and is proud to talk about it. I thought about it and decided that of all of the Austen heroes, my husband most resembles Henry Tilney. I told him my observation and I think he has decided I may have read one too many Austen novels!

Isabella Thorpe and her brother John are also great characters. I love how Isabella is a “fake friend” who pretends to care about Catherine, but is really all about number one. Her brother John is also very full of himself. As with all of Austen’s novels, these characters are timeless and are people that you would meet and befriend today. I have known many Isabella and John Thorpes in my life.

One of my other favorite aspects of the novel is how clueless or naive Catherine is at points, especially when John Thorpe is trying to express his admiration for her and she totally doesn’t get it. It made me laugh out loud.

I have read Northanger Abbey a few times in my life (see a review here), but this is my first time listening to it via audiobook. I really think Austen’s novels transfer well to audiobook. They contain a lot of great dialogue that is a joy to listen too. I started my Northanger Abbey audiobook adventure by listening to a Blackstone Audiobook, but disc 2 was too scratched to listen further so I returned it to the library and switched to a Tantor Media edition read by Donada Peters. Truthfully Ms. Peters was an uninspired audiobook reader and the quality of the recording was not that great.

Overall Northanger Abbey is often overlooked, but it is not an underperforming Austen novel. If you love Austen’s other novels, you will be sure to love Northanger Abbey.

Northanger Abbey is my fifth item for both The Classics Challenge and The Everything Austen Challenge II.

Audiobook Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Mr. Darcy’s Obsession by Abigail Reynolds

Mr. Darcy’s Obsession is a fascinating look at “what-if” scenario in which Mr. Bennet has passed away before Mr. Darcy ever had a chance to propose to Elizabeth Bennet at Rosings. As Mrs. Bennet had always feared, with the death of Mr. Bennet, the Bennet family is cast out of Longbourn by Mr. Collins and his wife Charlotte. Jane is forced to marry a tradesman to ensure her family’s welfare, and Elizabeth moves to London to live with Aunt and Uncle Gardiner as a governess to their children.

After a chance meeting at a park, Mr. Darcy finds himself obsessed with Elizabeth Bennet. He finds himself returning to the park each morning just for a chance to spend time with her. She is doubly unsuitable for him now with her father’s death, but what is suitable? Mr. Darcy finds himself in a crisis where he starts to question the social order of the day. What makes a rich man that is part of the “ton” any better than a storekeeper? What makes a rich society lady any better than a pretty girl with a lively wit that has fallen on hard times?

Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth have a misunderstanding, but they both find themselves falling in love. Will they challenge the social order of the day to have a happy ending?

I loved Mr. Darcy’s Obsession. I thought the premise was very unique and I thought it was a great look at what could have happened had Mr. Bennet met an untimely end. I loved the romance between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. I love how Elizabeth was able to challenge Darcy’s rigid social beliefs, and I love how she also seemed to light a fire within Darcy.

Ms. Reynolds was able to write a great Pride and Prejudice variation story that stayed very true to the original characters, yet introduced some great new characters. It turns out that Mr. Darcy’s family, although wealthy, has plenty of eccentrics of its own to compete with Mrs. Bennet, Lydia, and Mr. Collins. My favorite new relation was Darcy’s outspoken Aunt Augusta. There is nothing that Aunt Augusta wouldn’t do to torment Darcy’s Uncle, Lord Derby, a jilted suitor from her past and Colonel Fitzwilliam’s father. Lord Derby is all about family honor by marrying a great lady and keeping a mistress or two on the side. He is definitely not pleased by the prospect of Darcy or anyone in the family marrying for love.

I also enjoyed the discussion of sex in the regency era. While the novel does not have any steamy scenes, only sweet love scenes, it does discuss the inequality of men and women of the era. Women who found themselves in a certain delicate condition were either completely cast off or were able to hide it, adopt their child out, and pretend that nothing happened. Men on the other hand were expected to have a mistress or two or to dally with the servants, and this was not considered improper. While Jane Austen hinted at this in her novels, Ms. Reynolds is able to focus on it further in Mr. Darcy’s Obsession.

Overall, Mr. Darcy’s Obsession is an exciting, well developed, and romantic novel that stays true to Austen’s characters, while being a fantastic unique story of its own. I found myself wanting more to the story when I finished the novel and was excited to read that Ms. Reynolds is working on a follow up novel.

Please join me on Monday October 4th for an author interview with Abigail Reynolds. I am excited to learn more about Mr. Darcy’s Obsession from the author herself!

Mr. Darcy’s Obsession is my fourth item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

This novel will be released on October 1, 2010.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

Persuasion by Jane Austen (audiobook)

Persuasion is tied with Pride and Prejudice as my favorite Jane Austen novel. I love Persuasion. I’ve read the novel many times in my life and it touches me each and every time. I also love the 1995 movie starring Ciaran Hinds and Amanda Root (Not so much the 2007 version). I’m due for a rewatch of the movie; hopefully I will do it as part of this year’s Everything Austen Challenge.

I had never listened to the audiobook version of Persuasion before, but I did enjoy the audiobooks of several other Austen novels as part of last year’s Everything Austen Challenge. I listened to Persuasion last week mostly while I was working and found it to be a very enjoyable experience. The version I listened to was read by Juliet Stevenson (Mrs. Elton in the 1996 Emma movie starting Gwyneth Paltrow). Ms. Stevenson had a nice British accent and was able to put a unique voice to the different characters.

What is Persuasion about? Persuasion is the story of Anne Eliot. Anne is the middle of three daughters of Sir Walter Eliot. Always overlooked in her family, Anne is a quiet woman, with great sensibility. Eight years previous to the start of the novel, Anne met and fell in love with a young naval officer, Frederick Wentworth. She became engaged to him, but was persuaded to break off the engagement by her friend Lady Russell who felt that the penniless Wentworth was not good enough for Anne. Now eight years later, Captain Wentworth is back in the neighborhood, rich and looking for a bride. To add insult to injury, his sister and her husband, Admiral Croft, are renting Anne’s family estate, Kellynch Hall. Anne’s father, Sir Walter had been forced to “retrench” and rent out his family estate and move to Bath because of his inability to live within his means.

Anne’s sister Mary is married to a young local gentlemen, Charles Musgrove. Anne is forced to witness Captain Wentworth’s flirtation with Mary’s young sister-in-laws Louisa and Henrietta, while she helps Mary with her young sons and “illness.” As the novel progresses, Anne comes into her own and men such as a Captain Benwick and her cousin Mr. William Elliot find her attractive and love her lively mind. Anne only has eyes for Captain Wentworth, and begins to hope that love could bloom between them again.

Listening to Persuasion, I was once again reminded that I love Austen’s characters. They are hilarious and people you could see today on the street or within your own family. It is amazing how people have not really changed in two hundred years. Hearing about the pride of Sir Elliot and Elizabeth, the “illnesses” of Mary, and the general annoyances of every day family living, it made me realize that life as we know it has not really changed. We may now blog about books or text message our friends, but we are still annoyed by a person who thinks they are better than everyone else or another person that constantly talks about their illnesses that don’t seem to exist. I think that one of the reasons that Austen is so beloved is that she was able to capture the essence of personalities that does not change over time. She also had a great wit that makes these characterizations extremely funny, even after two-hundred years.

I think the major reason that I love Persuasion so much is that I LOVE Captain Wentworth’s letter to Anne and the ending of the novel. To read about poor Anne and being thought of as “on the shelf” at 27 to have a second chance at a relationship with her one great love is so romantic and uplifting. Who cannot read the following letter and not think it is romantic?

“I can listen no longer in silence. I must speak to you by such means as are within my reach. You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone forever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you. Unjust I may have been, weak and resentful I have been, but never inconstant. You alone have brought me to Bath. For you alone, I think and plan. Have you not seen this? Can you fail to have understood my wishes? I had not waited even these ten days, could I have read your feelings, as I think you must have penetrated mine. I can hardly write. I am every instant hearing something which overpowers me. You sink your voice, but I can distinguish the tones of that voice when they would be lost on others. Too good, too excellent creature! You do us justice, indeed. You do believe that there is true attachment and constancy among men. Believe it to be most fervent, most undeviating, in

F.W.

I must go, uncertain of my fate; but I shall return hither, or follow your party, as soon as possible. A word, a look, will be enough to decide whether I enter your father’s house this evening or never.”

To have a deep and what you think is unreciprocated love for someone, and then to receive a letter like that . . . wow!! I love the ending of this novel. I like how unlike the 1995 and 2007 movies, it goes into details about how they get together and how all of the main characters fates are tied up.

Persuasion is my fourth item for The Classics Challenge and my third item for the Everything Austen Challenge II. I’m next going to listen to Northanger Abbey!

Audiobook Source: The Kewaunee Public Library

Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister by C. Allyn Pierson

Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister is an enjoyable look at the life of Georgiana Darcy immediately after her brother’s engagement to Elizabeth Bennet. Georgiana is very excited about having a new “sister,” but also is very nervous about meeting her and first impressions. Her teen angst also extends to her upcoming first season in London and her presentation to the royal family.

Georgiana has the independence of a fine income to be able to marry for love rather than wealth. There is a downside to this independence as it also makes her a magnet for fortune hunters. Georgiana survives meeting Elizabeth and the Bennet family and is able to enjoy her brother’s wedding. Afterwards, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy bring her to London and prepare to launch Georgiana in society.

Georgiana is uncomfortable with how her new sister-in-law is treated by the ton and tries her best to help out. She also has a few unforeseen adventures with fortune hunters, while Mr. Darcy helps the Prince Regent out on a dangerous mission. Will Georgiana be able to find true love and happiness?

I loved Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister. The characters were wonderfully developed, and the historical fiction element was also spectacular. I loved seeing Georgiana’s transformation from a teen filled with angst to a confident young woman who goes after what she wants. Her feelings of nervousness seemed very real to me and true to life as a teen (at least as I remember it!). I also loved that Colonel Fitzwilliam’s character is fully developed and brought to the center stage. He is a wonderful character and I loved learning more about his family, and his work with the Prince Regent. As I read Mr. Darcy's Little Sister, I felt like I was having a wonderful visit with old friends.

I highly recommend Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister for all lovers of Jane Austen and/or regency literature. You will not be disappointed.

I am fortunate that C. Allyn Pierson will be having a guest blog on Laura’s Reviews tomorrow. Please stop back by and check it out!

Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister is my second item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!

Darcy’s Voyage by Kara Louise

What if Darcy and Elizabeth had a far different first meeting than what took place in Pride and Prejudice? How would it have changed the events that occurred in that classic novel? This is the premise for Darcy’s Voyage by Kara Louise.

Elizabeth and Darcy first meet in a post carriage ride. Both are smitten with each other and have a witty exchange about books and other things. Neither manages to get the name of the other and they go their separate ways. Two years later, Elizabeth is taking a voyage to America to visit with her beloved Uncle and Aunt Gardiner. Uncle and Aunt Gardiner are in America for a business trip. Unfortunately Jane gets seasick, so Elizabeth is forced to make the journey alone. Darcy’s sister Georgiana has traveled to America with her companion, Mrs. Annesley, to visit Mrs. Annesley’s family. Mrs. Annesley has fallen ill and is going to stay with her family; therefore Darcy is making the trip to America to escort Georgiana home. Darcy and Elizabeth meet again on the ship and sparks fly, although at first they have mutual misunderstandings about one another.

The voyage to America becomes a very romantic voyage for Darcy and Elizabeth. I don’t want to reveal the plot of the novel, but suffice it to say that it changes the course of the original novel. After they lose touch with each other in America, they meet back up in England and the course of the original Pride and Prejudice novel is forever changed by their prior connections. Through misunderstandings and pride, the two are apart at first, but eventually true love triumphs overall.

I enjoyed this novel and especially loved the romance of Elizabeth and Darcy throughout the novel. The book was very romantic. Mr. Darcy was enough to make any woman swoon over. It was also interesting to see how the course of the original novel could be changed by a far different meeting between the two characters.

The only problem I had with the novel was that I thought it was very highly improbable that Elizabeth would be either in the carriage or on the ship unchaperoned. Daughters of gentleman did not go out in public unchaperoned at that time and I just can’t imagine Mr. Bennet letting Elizabeth out alone. I also thought it was a little strange that Elizabeth traveled in steerage on the way to America.

Overall, Darcy’s Voyage was a delight to read and imagine a “what if” scenario where Darcy and Elizabeth have a wonderful romance on the sea. Darcy's Voyage will be released by Sourcebooks on September 7th.

This is my first item for the Everything Austen Challenge II.

Kara Louise will be on Laura’s Reviews for an interview and Darcy’s Voyage book giveaway this Friday September 3rd. Please come back and check it out!

Book Source: Advance Review Copy from Sourcebooks. Thank-you!!

The Everything Austen Challenge II

I loved the Everything Austen Challenge last year and participated quite enthusiastically. I’m going to scale it back a bit this year as Baby Gerold #3 is due in October and I’m still trying to catch up on book reviews from my morning sickness period. I do love Austen though, so please forgive me if I do get carried away in the heat of the moment!

Everything Austen II is once again hosted by Stephanie’s Written Word and involves one readings/listening/watching/etc. six Austen inspired items from July 1, 2010 to January 1, 2011.

I am lucky enough that I have four Austen inspired advanced review copy books from Sourcebooks waiting on my shelf for this fall. I also have one novel left from last year that I won from a book giveaway. The books I plan to read are as follows:

1. Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway
2. Mr. Darcy’s Little Sister by C. Allyn Pierson
3. Darcy’s Voyage by Kara Louise
4. Mr. Darcy’s Obsession by Abigail Reynolds
5. In the Arms of Mr. Darcy by Sharon Lathan

I also loved listening to Austen’s original classics via audiobook last year. It gave me a new perspective than when I read them the old-fashioned way in the past. The three novels I have yet to listen too are:

1. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
2. Persuasion by Jane Austen
3. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

I hope to listen to all three, but I’ll at least listen to one to get to my magical six items for this challenge.

I look forward to participating again and to reading everyone’s reviews!

Everything Austen Challenge Wrap-Up

I have loved being a part of Stephanie's Written Word's Everything Austen Challenge. I already had a great love for everything Austen and this challenge was really a good excuse to immerse myself in all things Austen over the last six months. It was also a fantastic opportunity to share opinions around the blogosphere and to learn about new and exciting Austen spin-off novels. I have a lot more Austen books on my TBR list.

I also joined Laurel Ann at Austenprose's Everything Austen Challenge X 2, which required one to read/watch/listen to twelve Austen related items. At the end of the day, I managed to read/watch/listen to (drumroll please) seventeen Austen related items.

My items were as follows:

Read:

1. Pride and Prejudice, and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

2. Mr. Knightley's Diary by Amanda Grange

3. Edmund Bertram's Diary by Amanda Grange

4. The Matters at Mansfield (Or the Crawford Affair) by Carrie Bebris

5. Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange

6. Lady Susan by Jane Austen

7. The Other Mr. Darcy by Monica Fairview

8. Willoughby's Return by Jane Odiwe

9. The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini

10. Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

Listened (audiobooks):

1. Emma by Jane Austen

2. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

3. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Watched:

1. Clueless (1995)

2. Emma (1996 - Paltrow)

3. Mansfield Park (1999)

4. Sense and Sensibility (1995)

I did pretty good with sticking to my lists on this challenge and did everything on them, except for I didn't read Jane and the Wandering Eye by Stephanie Barron. I have read the first and last books of the fabulous Jane Austen mystery series by Barron, but I really need to read a couple of the middle books that missed. I also have Lady Vernon and Her Daughter by Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway that I won from Austenprose during the Lady Susan Soiree. I meant to read it as part of this challenge, but ran out of time. Look for my review on this book sometime in the next month or two.

Overall I LOVED this challenge. I have enough things left to do that I would be read for a second Everything Austen Challenge. My only hope is that Stephanie will host this fantastic challenge again next year!

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

I read Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict two years ago and enjoyed it. Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict is the story of Courtney Stone a modern day woman who wakes up one day as Jane Mansfield in Regency England. The ending definitely left me wanting more and I was very excited to learn that the parallel story of what happened to Jane Mansfield in LA was coming out this year.

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict starts with the rather rude awakening of Jane Mansfield in Courtney Stone’s life and body in L.A. Jane is startled awake by the sound of an alarm and can not believe all of the changes that have occurred in the past two hundred years. Besides the technological changes, the changes in how relationships are conducted, and the freedom that women now have, confound Jane. She learns how to live in the modern world and also how to straighten out Courtney’s muddled life. I loved the details of how Jane experienced the 21st century.

I enjoyed the novel, but I wish I would have read it directly after I read Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict and not two years later. I had many questions as I read Rude Awakenings as I couldn’t quite remember the fine details of the first one and unfortunately I read a library copy of Confessions so I couldn’t flip it open and take a look. I did like how we got to see the other side of the story from Confessions and it had a good ending.

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict is my seventeenth and final item for the Everything Austen Challenge.

Book Source: I won an autographed copy from Austenprose. Thanks Laurel Ann and author Laurie Viera Rigler!

The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini

If I had one word to describe The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy, it would be “Hot!” This novel is a fun, fast, and highly enjoyable read. A modern day Pride and Prejudice, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy is the story of Will Darcy, a young judge in California, and the impossible new attorney in his courtroom, Elizabeth Bennet.

Misunderstandings separate the two at first, but over time they discover that their two passionate natures are ultimately drawn together. Will they find a way to work out their careers and differences to end up together forever?

I really enjoyed this novel, mostly because I loved the two main characters, Will and Elizabeth. Author Sara Angelini was able to take two beloved Regency characters and create two realistic modern creatures that are able to battle wits and share passions that their Regency counterparts only wish would have been possible.

I really enjoyed reading of the modern incarnations of the characters of P&P. They all made sense and a few were laugh out loud funny. My favorite was Bill Collins, habitual offender for solicitation of prostitutes. I also enjoyed that the plot didn’t stick too closely to P&P. The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy was its own novel that left me reading far into the night to find out what would happen next. I also loved how it was implied that the current Darcy was a descendent of the original Darcy.

The courtroom setting of the novel was fantastic. I also loved how the story switched between Darcy’s point of view and Elizabeth’s. It was great to see what they were both thinking . . . as I’ve always wondered when I read the original Pride and Prejudice what exactly was going on in Mr. Darcy’s mind.

Overall, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy is a sexy, smart modern story of pride and prejudice. It is an entertaining love story that is not to be missed!

The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy is my sixteenth item in the Everything Austen Challenge.

Book Source: Author Sara Angelini and Source Books Review Copy. Thank-you!!

Willoughby’s Return by Jane Odiwe

Willoughby is the Austen bad boy that I can’t quite find it within myself to hate. He does more despicable deeds than most Austen bad boys (he impregnated and left Eliza and then ditched Marianne for a lady with more money!), yet he comes clean with Elinor and tells her that he did indeed love Marianne, but had to marry for the money. This leaves me with sympathy in my heart no matter how heard I try to hate him, I think about how he has been punished for his misdeeds by never being able to be with the one woman that he truly loves. It also doesn’t help that Greg Wise is such a very handsome and wonderful Willoughby in the 1995 version of Sense and Sensibility.

I couldn’t wait to read more about Willoughby, Marianne, and the rest of my favorite Sense and Sensibility characters in Jane Odiwe’s sequel, Willoughby’s Return. Just the title excited me with the thought of Greg Wise, I mean Willoughby, striding back into the scene.

The novel did not disappoint and was quite simply, a superb sequel to Sense and Sensibility. Marianne Dashwood found love and romance of another sort with Colonel Brandon at the end of Sense and Sensibility. At the beginning of Willoughby’s Return, they are still happily wedded with a young son, James. The only wrench in their happiness is that Colonel Brandon still finds himself drawn away quite often to help Eliza and her small daughter Lizzy. Marianne finds herself jealous of the unknown Eliza, who no only had Willoughby’s love, but also is the spitting image of her mother, Colonel Brandon’s first love. I love how the first Eliza’s portrait with Colonel Brandon’s brother still hangs at the top of the stair. It gave me an almost Rebecca like quality to the specter of Eliza, Brandon’s lost love.

Colonel Brandon and Marianne are distressed by the news that Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby have inherited Allenham after all and will soon be moving to the neighborhood. Sad at the constant absences of her husband, Marianne soon finds herself feeling the old feelings again and being tempted by Willoughby. Will she succumb to temptation or find her way back to Colonel Brandon?

This story is also the romance of Margaret. Margaret has now grown up and has the same temperament as Marianne. She is searching for her one true love. Colonel Brandon’s nephew, the dashing Henry Lawrence, has moved back to England and Marianne is determined to set Henry Lawrence and her sister up. Henry is friends with Mr. Willoughby. Will he live to make the same mistakes as Henry or will he find true love?

My favorite character in Sense and Sensibility is Elinor. She is now a happy wife and mother of two, but this is not her story. She is only seen briefly. I wish there would have been more of her, but I realize that would be a different story.

Overall this book was a terrific read that I really enjoyed. I highly recommend it to all lovers of Sense and Sensibility, Austen, or just a wonderful romance. This is the best sequel to Sense and Sensibility that I have ever read! The characters are captured perfectly and the story is wonderful.

Willoughby’s Return in my fifteenth item in the Everything Austen Challenge. We’ll see if I can get a couple more in before the end of the month!

Book Source: I won this autographed copy of the book during a great giveaway on author Jane Odiwe’s fantastic blog.