I can be counted on to pick up just about any Jane Austen prequel, sequel, or continuation that I can get my hands on and this book fell prey to my fascination for all things Austen and Austen-related. Unfortunately, it not only didn't live up to the marvelous book Austen created. Other than sharing character names, there was no resemblance at all to the Lizzy and Darcy that we all know and love.
The premise of the story is that Lizzy and Will are modern day characters but they still have internal obstacles to their love. Lizzy is a PhD candidate who is living in England while finishing her degree. Will runs his father's company and is a favorite of the tabloid papers. They've known each other since they were younger, when Lizzy had a huge crush on the older Will, but they haven't met at all in the time Lizzy's been in England. When they do finally cross paths, they step into the family relationship they once had before progressing to a full blown affair. But it's not happily ever after for them as their pigheadedness with each other causes a misunderstanding and jeopardizes their happily ever after even though modern Lizzy has seen psychic visions that seem to ensure their eventual togetherness.
The psychic bits of the novel are a little odd but would be fine if they weren't coupled with a ridiculously silly and stupid Lizzy. She has none of the sparkling wit and intelligence found in Austen. Both she and Will are very thinly defined as characters and the plot in which they hang is also merely an outline, underdeveloped and anemic. The dialogue between characters is incredibly stilted and the amount of exposition contained in the awkward dialogue is much greater than it should be. None of the secondary characters is recognizable, so changed and watered down they are. Also, in the interest of full disclosure, it is a little disturbing that the adult Will admits to highly prurient imaginings about the child Elizabeth, excusing himself by saying (as he reflects on the last time they met years ago) that her 12 year old body was really the body of a 20 year old. I had a lot of trouble getting past that ick factor. Darcy as Humbert Humbert is just not right. And the sexual scenes between the adult Lizzy and Will are a bit much given the very short length of the book. Really, they are about the only detailed thing in the book. Sad to say, but I was definitely disappointed in this one.
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ReplyDeleteI usually don't read non-food blogs although I do LOVE books! And reading them, of course.
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