Heart-wrenchingly delightful!

I'm in the midst of a Pride and Prejudice variation spree, and there are certain things I'm always looking for: the characters seem true to the originals and haven't been poorly "modernized," the language passes as fitting with the original mood and time period, and the new plot is believable. This book passes on all three accounts. The narration was also excellent! Stevie Zimmerman does a great job with both male and female voices and various accents.

While we don't get to see much into Elizabeth's perspective, or Colonel Fitzwilliam's for that matter, about how their courtship and his proposal unfolded at the very beginning of the book, what we do see, largely from Darcy's perspective, is believable. And it is, as another reviewer wrote, exquisite torture! Poor Darcy is stuck between a rock and a hard place-- or rather, between his inextinguishable and too-late acted upon love for Elizabeth and his loyalty to Fitzwilliam and respect for his and Elizabeth's obviously sincere attachment. Later on we do see more things from Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam's sides, to round out the whole story a bit more. For the longest time you'll be wondering how in the world this whole thing could possibly be resolved! I enjoyed it all with a smile on my face.

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wonderfully entangled plot

Lovely story with great lines and twists in the plot. Fantastic narration with accents in English (many), French, Spanish and Scottish. Very enjoyable. Superb author.

1 person found this helpful

Heart wrenching

Darcy is forced to bemoan his poor decisions and timing repeatedly and watch as Lizzie shows her affection for Richard. It’s a very angst ridden version, for all and sundry, at one time or another.

It is well written and, of course, Stevie Zimmerman makes it well worth the listen.

Not 5 star worthy, except for Ms. Zimmerman, but worth the credit for sure.

Agree it is exquisite torture but very satisfying

Agree it is exquisite torture but very satisfying. A love triangle, but one where you feel compassion for all parties. Although I wish there had been more insight to Elizabeth’s initial acceptance of the Colonel. The story will not disappoint! The first half is mostly from Darcy’s viewpoint and it is endearing and tortuous.
I recommend to anyone enjoying strong believable characters on a P&P variation.
This is the 3rd Joana Starnes I have enjoyed and Stevie Zimmerman is of course amazing!

I did like this!

I'm not crazy about love triangles, but I have been itching for a good P&P variation, so why not?



The story follows Darcy, Elizabeth, and Colonel Fitzwilliam. Darcy is about to propose, but the Colonel beats him to it and Elizabeth accepts. What is Darcy to do? He loves Elizabeth, but how could he break his cousin's heart?



I do love how this "triangle" was played out. It really wasn't a true triangle, so that made me happy. Elizabeth had no idea Darcy loved her and honestly...she didn't realize her feelings for him either so she accepted a good match.



It was so sad seeing Darcy being in so much pain!!!!! I like the cousin too, but Darcy was a true gentleman the entire time. I wanted him to shove his cousin out of the way and take Elizabeth away. LOL. But Elizabeth needed time to realize her true feelings even though it took forever and a day. For a girl being so smart, she was super dumb here.



I do like how the author dealt with the Colonel in the end. It wasn't easy but I feel that was the best way. And I was happy he did what he did. It redeemed him for his selfish attitude at one point.



Now...I did struggle a little bit with this at the beginning. Not sure why. Maybe it was because it was dragging on a touch? I'm not sure, but after a certain scene, I could not stop listening.



The narrator was good. I liked her voices. I would love to listen to more with her.



Overall, I did like this. I was pleasantly surprised the love triangle didn't annoy me like it normally does. The author did an excellent job of avoiding the a-typical triangle pitfalls. I did struggle to get connected at the beginning, but it turned around after a certain scene. I will stamp this with 3 stars.

Loved this book

I always wanted a love triangle story between these three. Got what I wanted and more. Many P&P variations hint at Colonel Fitzwilliams feelings for Elizabeth but nothing ever happeneds between them because he needs to marry well. Alot of the book is through a heartbroken Mr.Darcys POV. If your looking for a Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam love story this is not it. You see most of their relationship through Darcy. Even though I felt bad for Fitzwilliam. Darcy is just too passionate and so sweet throughout the book so of course she falls in love with him

Good Story - Kept My Interest

The storyline was good, not great. However I enjoy Stevie Zimmerman's narration! Not sure if I'll purchase other books by this author.

Excellent narration, interesting variation

The plot of this story is straightforward and as the blurb suggests - Col. Fitzwilliam proposes to Elizabeth (and is accepted) before Darcy can. Oh no! The result is an interesting ‘what if’ - how would the colonel’s family react? What about his military duties? How will he and Elizabeth cope with the situation and what, oh what, does this mean for Darcy? Time passes and we find out the answers to all of these questions, as well as learn what happens to other characters, such as Jane, Bingley, Anne de Bourgh and the consequences of the engagement to the Bennet family.

It is a very engaging, well-written story, which is what I would expect from this author. It would have been nice to see Col. Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth together a little more to understand what made him overlook sense and offer for Elizabeth (given his lack of money and his family’s disapproval, which he had to know to expect) and I never got a strong sense of why this Elizabeth would accept him (and some other parts of their relationship). Having said that, it is always questionable how much Austen fans want to know about one of their favourites loving someone else.

Stevie Zimmerman’s narration was excellent, as always.

Loooooong drawn out in the beginning

The first half of the book was depressingly long and painful to say the least. The 2nd half of the book was way better than the first half.

Very well written

Ms. Starnes did an excellent job in writing this variation of Pride and Prejudice. The plot is interesting. The characters were true to those created originally by Jane Austen and the dialog between the characters was entertaining and well done. Mrs. Bennett is particularly irritating, which is true to character. The story is bittersweet because only one of the two men can ultimately win Elizabeth's heart. Both Darcy and the Colonel are wonderful men and it is sad to know that one of them will be hurt. The author handles this situation very well and the story wraps up nicely at the end.

The narrator is quite talented. She does not try to create overly distinctive characters, which to me is a good thing for this book. The story sells itself. The narrator only has to read with a pleasant voice, use correct pronunciation, maintain good pacing, and differentiate between male and female voices. She does a excellent job at these tasks.