Love and Law
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Source: Review Copy from Author
TYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Modern-day Adaptation
SETTING: Present Day, West Coast, USA
SYNOPSIS: In between studying for the bar exam and starting at her father’s law firm, Liza Bennett has herself a busy summer! Not to mention: her sister Jane falling for a professional tennis player, her mother trying to set her up with the quirky nephew of her father’s law firm partner, and new acquaintances in town keeping her distracted. Can Liza be there for her sister, help her father save his firm, and prepare for the most important exam of her life all at the same time? Or will the insufferable yet gorgeous Will Darcy, who keeps challenging her and turning up wherever she goes, mess with all her goals?
WHAT I LOVED:
- Lawyered!: I love the legal/lawyer theme with this story! And I really admired all the clever ways Danica Dawn utilized this environment to translate characters and situations from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice in a modern way that made sense, such as Bennett & Collins being a law firm partnership and old Mr. Collins having an outdated stipulation that firm partners can only be male. I also thought the lawyer atmosphere worked well in regards to the Liza-Darcy-Wickham relationship/interactions and the developments we see later on in the story.
- Playful Tone: This book is full of funny incidents, flirty banter, and fun with friends. I enjoyed the warm, sincere, and unabashed/tell-it-like-it-is tone Ms. Dawn employs. It felt very much like a conversation between friends. It reminded a little of the The Lizzie Bennet Diaries with its humor and accessibility – full of characters readers can relate to and situations they understand.
- Sassy and Smart: What a delightful mixture – I loved seeing the sassy side of Liza, who is quick to make a joke, wield her sharp tongue, and make sport of herself and others. But I also enjoyed the hardworking and enterprising Liza, who is studiously studying for her exam and has compiled strategic marketing ideas to implement at her father’s law firm. Liza was an admirable character and it was easy to fall in love with her and be on her side! #TeamEliza
- Musical Theatre Fun: I saw it mentioned in Danica Dawn’s bio that she loves the theatre, and I appreciated how she inserted some fun song choices and musical theatre nods for readers to spot. I love that Liza (Lizzy) and Cher (Charlotte) are named after their mother’s favorite performers, and I absolutely adored the place Will brought Liza after she took her bar exam – it was indeed “greatness” (and I love that he knew of a place like that!)
WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:
- Some More, Please: I think the pacing felt a little uneven, with a lot of important events occurring in quick succession at the end. I wouldn’t have minded a couple chapters more to draw out these eventful and pivotal scenes, and you know…more Will and Liza scenes wouldn’t have been too bad either… 😉
- Feeling Green: It is weird to comment on this, but there were a lot of vomit incidents in this story. All three Bennett sisters, at different times, and for different reasons – maybe one incident less would have been better?
CONCLUSION:
Light, lively, and full of lawyers – Pride and Prejudicial is an entertaining and engaging modern-day adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Austenesque fans will find this book to be the delightful diversion they need at stressful times! I look forward to reading more from Danica Dawn!
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GIVEAWAY TIME!!!
Danica Dawn has so kindly sent me a second paperback copy of Pride and Prejudicial that I can give away to ONE lucky reader on this blog!
To enter this giveaway leave a comment about my review!
- This giveaway is open to US residents.
- This giveaway ends March 28th.
I also read and enjoyed this modern day story. Great review…as usual, Meredith. The snow that we had falling over night melted with no accumulation.
So glad to hear you read and enjoyed this one, Sheila!
It is crazy to hear that you had snow, we had 80s these last two days!
This sounds like the potential for a lot of adorableness. I look forward to reading Pride & Prejudicial, what a great title.
Lovely review Meredith. I’ll bow out of the giveaway, though. You know…old eyes…kindle reader…large font…yadda yadda. Best of luck to Danica Dawn.
I thought so too! It was a lot of fun!
Thank you for reading my review, friend!
Oh, this sounds delightful and I love that the author used music! ♫ Will check it out. Thanks for the review!
You will love this one I think, Jennifer!
It sounds like a lot of fun (vomit notwithstanding-lol). Thanks for the review, as always.
Yes, definitely a lot of fun – I was sad when I got to the end!
Thanks, as always, for the review, I’ll have to check it out!
My pleasure! I appreciate you stopping by and checking it out!
Thanks for this excellent review! I’ve been curious about this modern rendition. And thanks for the giveaway!
My pleasure! Hope you get the chance to read this one soon!
Thank you for your “sassy” review. I like the use of prejudicial in the title since law firms are involved. Leave it to Old Mr. Collins to have only male partners. I’m sure Liz had a lot to say about that. Well, if Mr. Collins is in the law firm, I can easily see why vomit would be involved. Thank you for the giveaway.
LOL! I had some fun with it! Yes, it is a clever and catchy title! Oh wait until you see this Mr. Collins…he has something new! Poor Liza!
thanks for the reply
I’ve not heard of this one as far as I know so really enjoyed your review Meredith.
This sounds enjoyable so I will add it to my list.
Thanks for the chance to win a copy!
Happy to introduce it to you, Glynis! I hope you like it as much as I do!
Great review. Will have to check this one out.
Thank you, Anita! Hope you have the chance to read it soon!
This modern version of Pride and Prejudice sounds very interesting. I always love your reviews Meredith and thanks for the giveaway! –Leslie
Thank you, Leslie! So lovely of you to say!
Enjoyed reading your review. More Darcy and Elizabeth (in this case Will and Liza) scenes is almost always a good thing.
Lol – yes almost always! These two definitely had some good chemistry!
Hi Meredith, I don’t live at US so I can’t participate in the giveaway but, never mind!, thank you so much for your review, I was looking forward to it and I’ m happy you enjoyed it, so I’ll put it in my wishlist 😉
These readings are perfect for this stressful time as you say. How are you, Mr Bingley and your family? I hope all of you are safe and sound. I and my family are also well, thank God, but as you may know, Spain (and special , Madrid, where I live) is one of the most injured countries by the pandemia. We are hoping this week achieves the highest level so that it starts to reduce the curve (at least, this is what experts say). Anyway, we all are being brave and, you know, we are learning wise lessons like living day by day without losing time worrying about the future (great lesson!).
And, everyday at 8 p.m all people open their windows (as we are in confination) and start applauding as a homage to doctors and all the people who still work outside to provide the essential services in the cities. These applauses give us strenght and joy and are creating a new relationship among the neighbourhood.
Anyway, as I am a “friend” of your blog, I appreciate a lot your recommendations and I’m taking advantage of all my spare time (after finishing my work from my house) to read and read and read and…this is one of the few good things of this situation 😉
A big hug my friend and to all of the readers and authors!!!
Teresa, you are a dear to leave such a sweet and friendly comment. I am so happy to hear from you.
You are so sweet to ask. How are you, dear friend? I am glad to hear you and your family are well and I love your outlook. We are managing fine here…this is a bit different from a hurricane, but we are adjusting. Still trying to enjoy the nice weather, but the beach is off-limits at the moment.
It is lovely to see all the positive and heart-warming things communities do in such hard times.
I am glad you are enjoying the extra reading time…I’ve been very busy adjusting to everything these last few weeks, but I’m hoping I will get to read a bunch more soon!!
Hugs to you, Teresa! Stay brave and positive!
When I read the part that some of the elements in this story are like those in The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, that intrigued me as I am a fan of the series. This appears to be fun reading and, for some reason, that vomit is making me think of the newest Emma movie with its nosebleed. Thank you for the review and in offering a giveaway.
Me too! One thing that was similar was it was just 3 sisters and they all did feel similar in some traits to their LBD counterparts. I wonder if Danica Dawn was a fan of the series too?
LOL! That was quite a scene!
I love modern adaptions that place Elizabeth and Darcy in naturally competitive settings, and lawyers are a great example. 🙂
Oh yes! It works really well! Lots of sparks!
It sounds like a fun book to read–well except for the vomiting part! I always enjoy your honest reviews. Thank you for entering me in the contest.
Lol, they were at least short scenes! Best of luck, friend!
Awesome review!! I love the breakdowns of it. This is the first I’m hearing of this book, but I’m going to add it to my TBR after this– it sounds like so much fun! (Minus the puking ). And that cover– perfection
Thank you, Chelsea!! I’m glad you like the review style and that I can introduce a new book to you! I agree, I loved looking at the cover – it definitely matches the story!
This book looks so cute! I liked the cover art and the premise sounds interesting. I love Pride and Prejudice adaptations and I will be adding this one to my TBR list.
It is! Hope you get the chance to read it soon!!
I love books about lawyers. I always wanted to be a lawyer until I realized I’d actually have to find a way to pay for law school
I’m so sorry you weren’t able to pursue becoming a lawyer, but I agree with you, they are fun to read about!