Elizabeth truly stands out in this one

From the beginning when Elizabeth listens and tries to comfort and advise Darcy to the laughing way she puts Lord Matlock and Lady Catherine de Bourgh their place during the confrontation at the inn her personality and integrity shines in this variation. Those two and Carolyn Bingley are more vile and conniving in this story than the original. Anne de Bourgh and Jane both have more backbone. Even though it’s only 5-1/2 hours long it felt like a bigger story. The plot is different and fast paced the characters personalities are vibrant. This was a fun story. There were several places I added a bookmark just so I could listen to that section again. I rarely do that.
Stevie Zimmerman was excellent. She captured Elizabeth’s vibrant personality perfectly. I listened to this @ 1.25x speed.

8 people found this helpful

Compromised! by J Dawn King

To say that I'm in love is an understatement! this book is so amazing! I can't express how much I enjoyed this book and fell in love with the characters. I'm a deep fan of Pride and Prejudice and lately I've been reading a lot of great variations and this is beyond great. It's definitely one of the best!

Stevie Zimmerman will never disappoint you with her narrations. She's clearly a queen of narration.

8 people found this helpful

Good guys win - bad guys lose

Fresh and creative Pride and Prejudice variation expertly narrated by Stevie Zimmerman. Lots of cliff hanger moments, fun and funny stuff, romantic intrigue with Caroline Bingley getting her comeuppance. She's (Caroline) my fav "Snidely Whiplash" character in the many P&P variations I've read. Pearl Hewitt (my fav narrator) does the best Caroline voice in all the audibles ... Stevie Zimmerman makes a creditable voice characterization. Enjoy!

5 people found this helpful

FINALLY! P&P FF with Integrity.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Compromised!?

I really enjoyed the characters in this story retaining the basic instincts that Jane Austen intended. Their circumstances were far different than I'd imagined and far different than the same rehashing of these characters done over and over again in other fan fiction that was a waste of time before. This story was imagined well and the flow of characters made great sense. This author knew exactly what made them tick originally and thrust them into situations that allowed those personality traits to react naturally.

Which character – as performed by Stevie Zimmerman – was your favorite?

Her accent is excellent.

Any additional comments?

If you are tired and disgusted by all of the P&P fan fiction out there that is silly, give it one more try. This one has a brain and is still romantic and hopeful.

9 people found this helpful

Fun and Different...but a Teensy Bit Belabored

I've read and listened to so many P&P variations over quarantine, and this one is delightful. It is one of the "forced to marry" variations, and these tend to be my favorites if the angst and cruelty isn't overdone. King's variation is sweet and endearing rather than tortured, and that's what I like more than anything. Nobody is being tortured into despondence and unnecessary pain in this story. The scenario is very well set up, and I enjoyed listening to the entire thing.

The only complaint I have is that, as you go through the plot, the constant recycling of "compromised" situations becomes tired, belabored, and ridiculous.

If you can overlook that bit, however, this is one of the "good ones" among the pile of variations. I'm very happy to have spent five and a half hours listening to it, and I'd happily get another written by the same author. The characters retain their original Austen flavor instead of being made unrecognizable. Jane finds a spine. Charlotte is given an interesting story that lands her somewhere very different. Lydia, thank Heaven, takes up very little real estate in this one. It's just charming. Give it a go.

3 people found this helpful

Nonsensical but Fun

I have read/listened to so many Pride and Prejudice variations that I have developed kind of an array of tastes for them. Some are brilliant and so similar to Austen, some are angsty and more serious than Austen, some are strictly bodice rippers, and some are just kind of fluffy nonsense that isn't offensive but isn't really exciting either. You can really pick your flavor depending on your mood, and I think that's wonder! This kind of fits in the last category. If you read it as funny and farcical I think you will enjoy it more. The plot is ludicrous and Elizabeth changes her mind about Darcy for no reason, he changes his personality without any prompting, and what is considered a "compromise" in this is little to nothing and I don't believe is really in keeping with the social mores of the time. None of it makes sense. But it's just kind of a funny romp and I laughed while listening to it and doing my chores today. If you listen to a lot of these you know Stevie Zimmerman is a great narrator. I don't like how she does all of her voices but her recordings are clear, her elocution is easy to understand, and I like her Darcy voice a lot.

TLDR: If you just want something mindless and silly then look no further. If you want character development and plots that make sense, keep looking.

3 people found this helpful

Good story

Really nice story of our two favorites falling in love while everyone else creates difficulties. Not a ton of angst but not boring either.

2 people found this helpful

Insulting Drivel

When you have to make the main hero a blundering idiot in order to show off your main heroines independence, you have failed.

This story was okay until the moment Darcy stupidly began to plan the wedding with Mr Bennett. Not only would that never happen, but Mr Bennet would have kicked out any man or woman from his room who chose to talk of lace and finery. But what’s worse is that Darcy is confused as to why his betrothed is angry. Then he actually believes that Elizabeth might want the things she lists off as if he is as dim witted and I comprehensive as Mr Collins.

It was already a stretch that he’d tell Elizabeth about his sister after knowing her during Janes illness but I could get over that. Plot devices much happen, but this was egregious, third wave feminist lip service.

1 person found this helpful

an unfunny comedy of errors

It's supposed to be funny how often the idea of compromising situations arise, but there's so much exposition to set it up and characters are so 1 dimensional that all I felt was awkward cringing.

1 person found this helpful

Sweet and Simple

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Yes, something to play in the background with not much really focus on.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

I love to hear variations from different authors on how the classic Pride and Prejudice really happened, so King's editions was simple and clean. For listeners whom prefer a more innocent story, this was defiantly a plus. However, though I understand the title is called "Compromise," the characters were constantly crying the word and demanding retribution in too little too obviously planned ways. Halfway through the book, it was just grating and annoying.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Zimmerman did a well enough job, her voice is calm and fits well with the narrative. At times the audio sounds like it is a tad muffled, but nothing too distracting.

Could you see Compromised! being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

It could be cute, quirky short film.

1 person found this helpful