A Glorious Return to Purley Hall!
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Review Copy from Author
After transporting readers to: a picturesque Georgian manor house in the historic and “homey” county of Hampshire to attend a Jane Austen conference (A Weekend with Mr. Darcy), the seaside village of Lyme Regis and the set of a big screen film adaptation of Persuasion (Dreaming of Mr.Darcy), and the busy streets of Bath for the annual Jane Austen Festival (Mr. Darcy Forever), Austenesque author, Victoria Connelly brings her audience back to the splendor and beauty of Purley Hall for a special and snowy holiday visit!
How fun it was to see Ms. Connelly’s delightful and engaging characters assembled all together! It kind of felt like a reunion of old friends! Since this novella is a sequel to all three books, readers are able to catch a glimpse of what all these “Austen Addicts” have been up to since we last encountered them. It was wonderfully satisfying to see how each couple was doing, how each relationship was developing, and how their love of Jane Austen continued to grow and impact their lives. I especially enjoyed revisiting many of Ms. Connelly’s colorful and endearing minor characters as well. I loved seeing dear Rose, Roberta, Doris, and the ever-gracious Dame Pamela Harcourt again…I even enjoyed encountering Mrs. Soames again – who we all know is quite a fussy curmudgeon!
I deeply enjoyed all that took place during this Jane Austen Christmas Conference. As with all the other novels in the Austen Addict Trilogy, I loved witnessing the characters discuss and debate Jane Austen novels, observing their conversations during the film viewings, and living vicariously through them during the exhibits, trivia quiz, and ball. How I wish I could attend this conference myself!
In addition to being a sequel novella and lovely reunion of “Austen Addicts,” Christmas with Mr. Darcy has a little bit of a mystery mixed in as well! Did Warwick forget to pack his Christmas present for Katherine? Did Dan misplace his gold watch? Did one of the guests accidentally take Dame Pamela’s newly acquired first-edition of Pride and Prejudice back to their room by mistake? Or…is there a thief in their midst!
Written with rich detail and descriptive prose, Christmas with Mr. Darcy is a charming and absorbing sequel novella to Victoria Connelly’s brilliant Austen Addict Trilogy! A perfect read to enjoy while you sit in front of a fire, by a Christmas tree, or under a warm blanket! I hope these lovable “Austen Addicts” get together again soon! I can’t get enough! Highly recommend!
Warning: This novella does contain some spoilers for the other novels in Austen Addict Trilogy. Even though Christmas with Mr. Darcy is a stand alone work, I’d recommend reading the three novels in Victoria Connelly’s trilogy before reading Christmas with Mr. Darcy.
Austen Addicts Trilogy
A Weekend with Mr. Darcy – travel to Jane Austen’s home county, Purley Hall, and Chawton Cottage!
Dreaming of Mr. Darcy – travel to Lyme Regis, the Cobb, and a charming bed and breakfast!
Mr. Darcy Forever – travel to Barton Cottage, Bath, and the Jane Austen Festival!
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Do you have a favorite novel by Victoria Connelly?
Who’s your favorite Austen Addict?
This sounds really good and I wish I could push through the pages of the book and join them because I would love to go on that kind of Christmas retreat.
Thanks for the review!
Oh same here! I just want to implant myself in the book so I could attend one of these Jane Austen conferences in a historic home! 🙂
My favorite is still A Weekend with Mr. Darcy! Love me some Katherine and Warwick! 🙂 Yes, it would be wonderful to attend one of these Austen conferences! And Purley Hall sounds like a place I would want to go back and visit time and again!
A Weekend with Mr. Darcy is my favorite too, Jakki! But I think my favorite characters are Robyn and Dan! I hear ya, Jakki! I wish I could visit Purley Hall in person!
Same here! Robyn and Dan! Closely followed by Adam and Kay and Katherine and Warwick!
While I enjoy all the novels, I favor Dreaming of Mr Darcy…how I spend alot of my time…would love to attend one the Austn conferences…wonderful way to spend a day…
Stephanie
Hi Stephanie! Each novel has something to love about it. In Dreaming of Mr. Darcy I love the scenery and backdrop of Lyme. The bed and breakfast named Wentworth House sounded so charming! Yes, I definitely agree with you!
I have these on my TBR pile, so don’t know which is my favorite, yet.
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