The Private Diary of Mr. Darcy by Maya Slater

Mr. Darcy is my ultimate book boyfriend. No one holds a candle to him in my heart, but his inner thoughts have always proven illusive, as Jane Austen never made us privy to them in Pride and Prejudice. When I came across this novel, I jumped at the chance to step inside my literary crush's head. My expectations might have been too high, however. I was left rather disappointed by this one.

The Darcy in my head far out paced the Darcy of this book. I found Slater's Darcy rather dull, with the many of his entries consisting of detailed descriptions of what he ate that day. There was an attempt to add some spice with mentions of Darcy's trysts with chambermaids and his attempt to help Bingley get over Jane by setting him up with a kept woman. While not unfathomable, I didn't like the idea of some of my most beloved characters acting in such a manner. It is hardly consistent with the idealized version (complete with pedestal) that I have in my head.

After Darcy's first failed proposal, the novel did pick up a little steam for me, but not enough to make this a worthwhile read. While not the worst I've ever read, I cannot say that you will be missing anything if you don't pick this one up. 

Darcy Goes to War by Mary Lydon Simonsen

I should begin by saying that Pride & Prejudice is my favorite book of all time and because of this I have been hesitant to get into the world of Austen inspired fan fiction. Because I love it so much, any change or deviation feels almost sacrilegious to me. It's hard to imagine that anything could live up to the original. My first voyage into Austen fan fiction did not go well, as Death Comes to Pemberley (click here for my review) left a lot to be desired.

When I saw Darcy Goes to War was free on Amazon, I decided to give it a chance after reading the synopsis and getting a thumbs up from my friend over at Books Hug Back, who is an Austen fan fiction connoisseur. I thought perhaps this book would help me get over my own pride and prejudice and general Austen purist snobbery. After all, imitation is supposed to be the highest form of flattery. I was pleasantly surprise by how much I loved this book and Mary Lydon Simonsen has definitely jumped to the top of my new favorite author's list.

In this re-imagining, Elizabeth Bennet and William Darcy are living in England during the Spring of 1944. Britain is in the fourth year of fighting World War II. Elizabeth does her part by driving a lorry and Flight Lieutenant Darcy is a pilot in the Royal Air Force. Their paths cross one night at a local pub and Elizabeth takes an instant disliking to Darcy when he snubs her. Through a series of subsequent meetings, Elizabeth finds her initial impression of Darcy changing, but her guard is up. Falling in love during a war can only lead to one thing - heartbreak. However, Elizabeth and Darcy cannot ignore or fight the feelings they have for one another.

I was instantly sucked into this story and loved every minute of it. There are enough parallels to the original that the characters and story are respected, but this story also managed to be unique in and of itself. Elizabeth retained all of the characteristics that I love about the original - she's witty, independent, and strong-willed. Darcy, who is forever my ultimate literary crush, is just as swoon worthy (albeit less surly) as ever. I loved Simonsen's writing style and it was intriguing to see a modern twist on the story, where forces bigger than just class threaten to pull Lizzy and Darcy apart. The modern setting also allowed for the exploration of new facets of Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship and characters that were not possible before (whole lot of sexual tension!), which added a whole new dimension to their relationship. I didn't think it was possible for Darcy to be any sexier, but I was wrong and I totally dug the whole "fly boy" thing.

Darcy Goes to War is well worth the read, both for Austen enthusiasts and those who are not familiar with the original Pride & Prejudice (which if you are not - shame on you! Get thee to a book store stat!!). This book earns a 5 star rating from me and will probably become one of my favorites to re-read.

Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James

Pride and Prejudice is one of my all-time favorite books, but I must admit that I am late to join the fan fiction party. This was my first foray into this world, and I was sorely disappointed.

Death Comes of Pemberley picks up 6 years after Elizabeth and Darcy's marriage. The book opens with the author recounting the events over the past 6 years leading to the blissful life enjoyed by the occupants of Pemberley as they prepare for their annual ball to honor the late Lady Anne.

I do not feel that the author did my favorite characters any justice. Elizabeth Bennet is one of my favorite female characters - she is strong willed, witty, and I have a feeling that she and I would have gotten along splendidly if she had been more than one of Jane Austen's imaginings - however, in this book she is largely reduced to an insipid, worrier lacking all of the characteristics that has made her one of the most well-known and respected literary female characters. Darcy - who I have always harbored a secret literary crush on - does not fare much better. P.D. James does a better job with other characters such as Wickham, Jane, and Mr. Bingley.

Death Comes to Pemberley is billed as a murder mystery, as the peaceful life of Pemberley is thrown into disarray with the unexpected arrival of Lydia, in hysterics, shouting that her husband is dead. A search party is mounted only to find Wickham, covered in blood, hovering over the dead body of his friend. Wickham is quickly arrested for murder and a trial ensues. There is little in the way of mystery in the story, but rather a general revealing of facts, with little in the way of intrigue. The "mystery" wraps itself up neatly with little surprise. I will say that it P.D. James manages to wrap up the mystery surrounding Wickham very much in line with his character.