Through Letters Mr. Darcy Bears His Soul
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Review Copy from Publisher
TYPE OF AUSTENESQUE NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Variation
TIME FRAME: The day after Darcy’s first proposal through several months later
MAIN CHARACTERS: Darcy, Elizabeth, Colonel Fitzwilliam, Mr. Bingley, Jane Bennet, Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Georgiana Darcy, Mr. Wickham
SYNOPSIS: Mr. Darcy has a secret habit of writing Elizabeth Bennet soul-revealing and heart-purging unsent letters. His letters help him sort out his feelings, expel his longing, and cope with his despair and Darcy began writing them the night of the Meryton Assembly. What will happen if Darcy’s secret is found out? How do these letters change the course of Darcy and Elizabeth’s lives?
WHAT I LOVED:
- Thrown Together Again: Within the first hour of departing Rosings the Darcy carriage encounters some trouble and Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam must return to Rosings. I love this twist in the story! Darcy has come to the conclusion that Elizabeth was correct about his selfish propensities and ungentlemanly proposal and is very anxious about encountering her again. I loved seeing the development of Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship over these extra and unexpected days – the changing perceptions, the new understandings, and the forging of a tenuous amicability. I could feel Darcy’s agony and torment through these passages and I greatly admired Elizabeth’s open-mindness and consideration.
- Eloquence, Thy Name is Darcy: Watch out, Wentworth! You aren’t the only Austen hero that can write a swoon-worthy and heart-wrenching letter! 😉 I think it is lovely that Darcy writes letters to Elizabeth, especially after just meeting her! It is adorable how he uses these letters to find the words he wants to say – to explain his actions and vent his frustrations. I love that many of the letters are included in the text (later on in the story) and I thought Darcy, while tongue-tied and foot-in-mouth in person could express himself beautifully on page…
- Elizabeth, Brave and Bold: When the truth becomes clear to Elizabeth and certain revelations are made, Lizzy is determined she should do and say what she must to appease her own conscience. This includes saying something to Mr. Wickham! I greatly enjoyed Lizzy’s actions! She doesn’t act out of character and stays within the bounds of propriety, but at the same time she finds a way to say what she needs to and effect change. I admire you, Elizabeth Bennet!
- “Lizzy is Quite Fond of Mazes”: There are two delightfully beautiful maze scenes in this book. *sigh* What a romantic place to encounter Mr. Darcy! I would say more, but I don’t want to spoil anything! I will admit though, Lizzy isn’t the only one with a fondness for mazes!
WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:
- Some Small Quibbles: I mostly loved all aspects of this book, but there were a couple things holding me back from giving it five stars. Such as wanting to see more scenes of Darcy and Elizabeth together, they spend a lot of time apart and their scenes together at the end left me wanting more! In addition, I noticed that Darcy was introduced to the Gardiners twice and didn’t remember their first meeting earlier in the book.
CONCLUSION:
Beautifully written words and heart-felt emotions are woven together skillfully in this new Pride and Prejudice variation from KaraLynne Mackrory! I found Yours Forevermore, Darcy to be deeply satisfying with its introspective tone, pleasing development, and happy outcome for all characters involved. Ms. Mackrory has a talent for including charming details and engaging motifs in all her tender romances and I greatly admired all the subtle little touches that made this work interesting, unique, and memorable.
Oooooo this sounds very good. Another one to be added to the TBR pile. How clever the JAFF authors are keep coming up with such great ideas for variations. I had a lovely day yesterday as on British TV they showed Pride & Prejudice (Colin Firth version) back to back then Mansfield Park and then Miss Austen Regrets. Did not move from the sofa all day!!!! Excellent review Meredith. Thank you
I’m so thankful that authors are finding so many different and creative stories with these characters! I hope it never ends! That sounds like a fabulous Sunday! Jane Austen movie marathon!!! I packed up all my DVDs two weeks ago and was craving some P&P this week! 😉 I still haven’t seen Miss Austen Regrets!
Thank you for this lovely endorsement! So happy, happy, happy (and relieved!) that you enjoyed it.
I knew I would! I love KaraLynne’s writing! 🙂 Well done!
Great review! Congrats Karalynne!
Thank you, Beau! 🙂
Another great review Meredith! I have this book on my wishlist and hopefully with Christmas coming an Amazon gift card will be under the tree so I can move it to my Kindle!
Thanks, Carole! I hope you get loads of amazon gift cards!!! This would be a great one to enjoy buying with it!
Another great review Meredith. I bought this a while ago and loved it. I agree that more Darcy and Elizabeth together would have been nice but then I could read about them all day.
Thank you, Glynis! I appreciate you reading it and sharing your thoughts! LOL! Same here! They were very adorable together in this one, I loved what Lizzy did in the end!
Oh my goodness! How did I not see this earlier? Thank you Meredith for your charming review and I am so so pleased it was an enjoyable read for you. Very satisfying to hear that from you!
Thank YOU, KaraLynne! Your fantastic story was just what I needed to distract and delight me while busy packing up house and being super busy with getting ready to move! 😉 What lovely gifts your books are!
I loved this one and KaraLynne MacKrory hasn’t written anything I have not liked so far. I hope she keeps bringing us delightful reads. I have to reread Haunting Mr. Darcy at least twice a year. 🙂
Nice review Meredith.
Okay so I feel like I should like hug you right now. Thanks!!
Hug accepted and returned, in honor of many great reading moments and hopes for many more. (pathetic begging to commence post haste)
I completely agree with you, Michelle! I love her stories, especially Haunting Mr. Darcy – that one is my favorite! 🙂
Thanks for the suggestion! I love the epistolary novels and just thinking about Mr Darcy writing such a beautiful letters melts my heart! “Sigh” 🙂
Oh yes! Just wait to you read the letters themselves. I like letter writing much more over diary entries! 😉
This sounds like a great story. If I hadn’t read your review Meredith I would probably skip over it as there are an awful lot of ‘Darcy’ books out there. But now I have to add it to my TBR pile.And that ain’t gettin’ any smaller:). Thanks again for review.
Don’t skip this one! 😉 There are so many books out there and sometimes it is hard to keep them all straight, but KaraLynne’s books are definitely some of the best P&P variations I’ve read. If you haven’t read any by her I’d definitely recommend you give her a try! Don’t worry about the TBR pile, I’ve learned that they never do get smaller! 😉
Look out Wentworth! LOL! I really enjoyed this one, too.
😉 Glad to hear that! The letters were so well-done!
Yes, the maze! *swoon!* loved that part. Whenever I think of this book, I hear Darcy’s voice in my head saying “That is quite enough, madam!” [Makes it seem like Darcy doesn’t want me thinking about KaraLynne’s book, which is not the case- he definitely does! Lol that line just stuck in my head.]
LOL! Those scenes just replay and replay in my head! I didn’t realize until I finished that there is a maze on the front cover – I love little touches like that! Well done, KaraLynne and MP!
I read the sample and loved it. I’m so glad you reviewed it. I want to read the whole thing.
You will love it my friend! Happy to review it! 😉
Ah, I knew this one would be another winner! Ms. Mackrory is such a talented author! I have recently read Haunting Mr. Darcy and am still thinking about it! 😛 Look forward to reading this new fantastic story!
Absolutely! 🙂 I can easily understand that, Haunting Mr. Darcy was phenomenal! Hope you enjoy Yours Forevermore, Darcy just as much!
Loved this book and loved your review, Meredith 🙂
Such a sweet story! [happy sigh]
Thank you, Joana! I greatly appreciate you sharing my review! 🙂 Hugs!
Great review Meredith! I totally agree, I read this book with so much pleasure and was swooning all the way through! The maze, the letters, the thing Elizabeth does in the end.. amazing! Please do keep delighting us with your beautifully crafted stories ms. Mackrory!
Thank you, Debbie! Yes, I felt a lot os swoons too! 😉 I love what Elizabeth does at the end too! KaraLynne is amazing – I’m so grateful for all the wonderful stories she has given us! Can’t wait to see more!
I, too, enjoyed this book when I read it and it is one I am sure I will re-read in the future. I have enjoyed all her books. What is it about letters that make stirs the heart? Always: Capt. Wentworth’s!