The Darcys of Pemberley: The Continuing Story of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice

For the first 70% of this book, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with how well the author captured the personalities of the characters and came up with reasonable and interesting extensions of the Pride and Prejudice plot. Yes, there is more intimacy than Jane Austen would have included, more like a modern historical fiction author might write, but no graphic descriptions or anything that broke the story continuity or didn't suit the characters. I enjoyed the first 70% of the book, since like so many others I had always speculated on what happened next and it was satisfying to see what the author did to continue the story. Phrases and sentence constructions from the original book are sprinkled here and there, especially in dialogue, but then people do have their characteristic speech patterns and I felt that though perhaps a bit overdone (certainly Jane Austen would have scrupulously avoided such repeats from an earlier book), it did add to the familiarity of the characters.Alas, the last 30% of the book went off the rails entirely. Suddenly Elizabeth and Darcy start keeping very dangerous secrets from each other, don't trust each other for no apparent reason, and generally become repeatedly Too Stupid To Live. Melodrama ramps up, including a Dream of Premonition. These departures from the more careful plot of the earlier part of the book were more than disappointing, they were infuriating because by that time I had been drawn into the story. Some of the other characters also act against their personality patterns, all to provide "action" and a tidy tying up of all perceived loose ends. To me, some of those tied up ends didn't work.I'm a bit torn on how to handle recommending this book. For those who truly long for a continuation of P & P, I can recommend the first 70% of the book with the expectation that it will probably be enjoyed. After that point, and you will know the fall-off point when you reach it, be prepared to be patient and ready to page through the worst parts. Overall, I thought this book was still better than the several other attempts at this writing challenge that I have read, some of which have been unremittingly awful and/or pornographic. There was a lot of care and affection put into this book, and it is a shame that the last sections of it don't live up to the first 70%. I would think including some consideration of the ideas in this book with study of the original might make for some spirited discussions in high school literature classes: what is consistent, what fits but is a new element, what is clearly off, and what might be a better plot choice?

This story followed the prequel ‘Mr. Collins’s Last Supper,’ which was a small window of time explaining the demise of Mr. Collins. His widow, Charlotte, will be mentioned a lot in this book and in the epilogue, which was most excellent.Winslow opened our story months after the Darcy’s and Bingley’s wedding. The families had gathered at Hunsford following the death of Mr. Collins. Lady Catherine snubbed Darcy and refused to receive them at Rosings. Her anger, at his marrying Elizabeth and not Anne, had not abated.Time went on and Georgiana had her birthday ball. Lydia shamelessly invited herself and arrived with the Bingleys. Wickham tried to crash the ball and was wrestled away to the stables to sober up. Bingley picked him up on their way home the next day.Our author chronicled the life of our dear couples, and their friends and relations over a two-year time period. Georgiana grew from a gangly teenage girl into a lovely young woman struggling with feelings and emotions that go along with growing up.We had Anne de Bourgh improving in health, due to a new physician, and enjoying flexing her wings, to the horror and disapproval of her mother. This little act of rebellion set in motion a domino effect that was wide spread and felt throughout the family. Oh, Anne… you go girl. We rarely get to see a healthy Anne take on her mother. I think she was up to it.Our P&P characters acted and reacted fairly much as they did in canon. Mrs. Bennet seemed a bit more… simple-minded that canon. You couldn’t reason with her if you used a two-by-four. Mr. Bennet was his usual indolent self, letting matters come to their own conclusion. I really resented him when Elizabeth tried to talk to him and he wouldn’t listen.Kitty and Mary were in and out of this story. However, their stories and HEA will unfold in future books. This was but the first book in the Darcys of Pemberley series.“All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today.” Pope Paul VIWickham was horrid. His very presence made the skin crawl and left the reader feeling that they should wash their hands due to handling the page on which his name was written. Or, at least, rinse their mouth out from simply mentioning his name. This time he really went too far. His hatred of Darcy, his feelings of entitlement, his declaring that the Darcy siblings owed him, was insane. How could he be so callous, unfeeling, deranged, demented and vicious as to attack a woman heavy with child? Yeah, the scum-bag rat-bastard went too far when grabbed Elizabeth.The epilogue was delightful and I do love a good epilogue.

I like Shannon Winslow's writing for this variation of Pride and Prejudice P&P. I would have given it 5 Stars, however, I took great exception to her idea that Elizabeth fell in love with Pemberly before she fell in love with Mr. Darcy. Yes, very great exception!1) I personally do not feel that she would not have been so upset with the man if she had not been attracted to or felt something for him.2) Inaddition, I also believe that because of her attraction for Darcy and due to the hurtful things he said, she without being consciously be aware of it, became comrades with Wickham in speaking the worst about Darcy.3) I most ardently recognize that it was at Pemberly that she, via the Housekeeper Mrs. Reynold's, began to realize some of the positive true character of this man she was attracted to and it was pleasing to her minds thoughts. It was this "first seeing Pemberly" that she started to allow her mind and heart to begin to meld regarding her true attraction/feelings for him. After which and aside from seeing Pemberly, her heart continued to grow towards him even struggling with her feelings about his part in separating Mr. Bingkey from her sister. At Pemberly was a pivotal point!4) And finally, regarding her comment to her Sister Jane, it could have well been a facetious comment made in humor, in response to the question regarding her feeling for Mr. Darcy. A comment made in a safe place to someone who knows her character and loves her!

I loved this book! I don’t think it would have read any different had Jane Austen written it herself. The author had a difficult path to tread but I think she managed it admirably. I have read other sequels to P & P but I found them to go off on a different tack altogether; a mistake this author did not make.It is often harder to follow a previous path than to make your own. In my opinion Shannon did a marvellous job and I feel that I was able to revisit with the characters again in a delightful way.

I read the Kindle version of this book yesterday. Yes, all in one day, very easily. It was enjoyable. I have read most of Austen's work, and certainly am a fan of the BBC (Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle) version of the story. So nothing here needed to be explained.Like others, I found the climactic kidnapping scene a bit hard to believe, but it didn't ruin the good read. I enjoyed spending more time with these characters, and was not overly bothered by the rather coy sexual references (I think the author did a good job of letting us know that, hey, these are married couples and they DO have sex, without going overboard to either revel in or disguise the fact.)I guess what is missing for me is something no modern author can actually reproduce. That is the sense of time, place AND the knowledge that comes from exactly how these people would behave, and what social pressures they would have been under. I don't think it's possible for a writer in our day to capture that delicious sense of satire that Austen delivered so well.However, all that being said, I think this book stayed true to most of the characters (Wickham excepted) that we've become fond of. And it certainly kept me entertained for an afternoon and evening. So, if you like Austen, I'd recommend it. But it's NOT Austen, so just look at it as somebody's vision of 'what happened next.' Somebody who attempted to stay true to Austen's tone as well as character, and to a large extent succeeded. As such, it works very well.

Having reached 2\3 through this story, I asked myself why I was not enjoying it and came to the conclusion that I was bored. The book has no life but is more like a report than a work of fiction to be enjoyed, So I gave up!

There is something about the style of Winslow’s writing that immerses you immediately back into the much loved and admired world of the Darcys. As with Austen the Characters are so beautiful that they are unquestionably lovable, the imaginative mind of the reader can soar with this stunningly crafted beginning to this series. I cannot wait to explore what else and also whom else becomes the focus of what is to come in the following instalments! Bravo Shannon Bravo !

I liked the story but found it a little odd at times until I realized the author is American, Jane Eyre would not have referred to 'Autumn' as 'Fall'. On one occasion there was a line like this eg. 'do not you?' I would have thought is should have been .... 'Do you not?' This is just an example on little things that just did not flow as I think they should have done. It is my opinion a large task to add to a Jane Eyre novel and Shannan Winslow has done a reasonable job.