“Climb Ev’ry Mountain…Till You Find Your Dream”
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Gift from Mom 🙂
What if, while visiting The Black Rocks on their tour of the Peak District, Elizabeth Bennet and the Gardiners unexpectedly encounter Mr. Darcy paying tribute to one of his mother’s favorite places in Derbsyhire?
Seizing the opportunity to improve Elizabeth’s opinion of him and have some precious private conversation, Mr. Darcy invites Elizabeth to ascend to the peak of The Black Rocks with him (a climb she greatly desires to make!) On the trek uphill, Darcy talks of visiting The Black Rocks as a child with his parents, which leads Elizabeth to ask about his parent’s relationship (a topic she thinks is neutral and safe). The tale Darcy tells of their meeting and engagement is romantic and magical, and mesmerizes Elizabeth as she learns to understand a whole new side of Fitzwilliam Darcy…
Two love stories in one! Instead of focusing primarily on Darcy and Elizabeth, this tale begins by retelling how James Darcy and Anne Fitzwilliam, after a good amount of obstacles, come to an understanding. Their romance was sweet and emotionally stirring. How special it was to learn more about Mr. and Mrs. Darcy and how they fell in love! I loved hearing about their history, learning their personalities, and discovering how it is a tradition for all Darcy men to suffer from the same affliction when it comes to love and marriage!
And then we have Darcy and Elizabeth…unsure what the other is thinking, afraid to say or do the wrong thing, and overcome with feeling. (Just like we love to see them!) And Abigail Reynolds is so wonderfully skilled at portraying our dear couples in such emotionally-charged and intensely-romantic scenes. I especially love how these scenes took place surrounded by the beautiful and natural scenery of rugged rocks and mountains! Very memorable and very moving.
Looking for a quick romantic story to delight and enchant? The Darcys of Derbyshire definitely fits the bill! Imagine climbing to the tallest peak and achieving your happily ever after…Spending an hour or two amongst the rocks with Mr. Darcy is definitely my idea of an afternoon well-spent! Thank you for sharing such a beautiful tale with us, Abigail Reynolds!
Hi Meredith
I read this a while ago and it is a lovely, short, romantic story. Thoroughly enjoyable. Glad you enjoyed it too but I have read all of Abigail Reynolds’ books and loved them all. Looking forward to reading her new book.
I can know finally join you in saying I’ve read all of Abigail Reynolds ‘ books! 🙂 They are definitely a wonderful collection and I love them all!
I have read this story many times. As it is short it fits the bill for a touching romance when time is short. Abigail Reynolds never disappoints. Thanks again for your continuing lovely reviews…when we agree on something it makes me feel I am not too far off the mark.
I know what you mean, Sheila! Glad to hear this one is such a favorite of yours! 🙂
I completely agree with Sheila and with you, Meredith. It is a sweet romance that draws me into the setting of the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie where Elizabeth is standing on the edge of a tall peak. If only Darcy had been there with her. With this story, we see what would have happened. What a delightful conversation to have that resulted in Elizabeth’s overcoming her prejudices. Well done, Abigail!
That image is definitely one that I can understand visualizing when reading this tale! It just goes to show you how different the course could be if they had some true alone time… 🙂 What a beautiful sight they must have seen though!
What a nice “what-if” twist! They could easily have met at the Peaks (say, if Darcy and his party had arrived at Pemberley a week earlier), so it allows the course of the story to change without doing violence to the characters. Thanks for the good review—and for letting us know that it’s a short work! I haven’t read any Abigail Reynolds yet, and have been curious.
Most over her variations are longer, full length novels. This novella and A Pemberley Medley ( a collection of short stories) are the only shorter ones. Hope you get the chance to read some of her works soon!
What an awesome gift your mom gave you! I love this story. It is on my rereadable list.
Thank you! My mom gave it to be Christmas, it was on my amazon wishlist! She loves getting ideas for me from my wishlist! 🙂 I have to agree with you, it is very rereadable! 🙂
I have loved everything I’ve ever read by Abigail Reynolds. But I haven’t read this one yet. I love the idea. Will read soon. To Abigail Bok, I hope you read her and discover a new favorite author.
Hope you get the chance to read it soon! I too love everything I have read by Abigail Reynolds! 🙂 So glad she has written so many books!
I was just thinking of buying this one, Meredith! It sounds so romantic! 🙂 Thank you for your lovely review. Can’t wait to get to it!
I don’t think you will regret this purchase! Happy reading, Maria!
I loved reading this one particularly because it gave the Darcy parents’ story. They’re always gone before the start of most books.
Very true! You don’t hear much about their marriage, and especially their courtship! Very special!
I agree with you absolutely! What a pleasure being with the one you love, surrounded by beautiful landscapes!. And it’s a good premise to tell the story of Darcy’s parents because I think it hasn’t been developed in JAFF as much as we would like it ( or, maybe I’m wrong) but in any case it opens the door to other splendid plots. Thanks for the review, I can hear “The Sound of Music” while the couples declare their love 🙂
I think you are correct, Teresa! I personally love the idea of the Darcys having such a romantic courtship and happy marriage – it makes sense that Darcy would want to emulate that. I especially loved how Anne Fitzwilliam had a bit in common with Elizabeth Bennet. 🙂 LOL! I love The Sound of Music, I couldn’t help but think of it while reading this!
A perfect way to put it, Meredith! ‘Spending an hour or two amongst the rocks with Mr. Darcy is definitely my idea of an afternoon well-spent!’ So true! Thanks for a lovely review to a very moving story!
Thank you, Joana! 🙂 The only way I could top the reading experience would be to be outside with gorgeous blue skies…the afternoon I read it was rainy and grey. Thanks for reading my review!
I once posted some photos on Facebook that I’d taken at a local beauty spot near where we live in North Yorkshire. It’s a series of rock formations shaped by wind and erosion. Abigail actually commented at the time that they reminded her of the Darcys of Derbyshire. Of course, I think about that every time we go there now!
I loved this combination of the two love stories. Teresa is right, there isn’t enough JAFF featuring the tale of Darcy’s parents.
How lovely to have the memories and photos of such beautiful place. That’s great that it is so close! Green with envy! 🙂 Glad that Abigail gave us a tale to fulfill our need of more Mr. and Mrs. Darcy senior.
Because I’m a huge fan of Regency romances and JAFF, this book was just the thing for me. Several of Abigail’s books are on the top of my favourites list, and this is certainly one of them. I’ll have to re-read this soon.
So happy to hear you loved it, Suzan! I feel the same way about some of her books too! 🙂
Thanks for the lovely review, Meredith. I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I’ll even forgive you for making “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” go through my head all day. 😉
I’m hoping to have the chance to see the Black Rocks myself when I’m in the UK in June. I can’t wait!
It came into my head when writing the review, thought it was appropriate. Sorry about it getting stuck in your head… 😉 That’s so awesome – I hope you get to see them and take lots of pictures!!!
I’ve read all Abigail Reynold’s books. She’s one of my favorite writers! I got interested in JAFF due to her books. I thought The Darcys of Derbyrshire was delightful, especially the “courtship” of Mr Darcy’s parents.