What If Elizabeth Bennet Accepts Mr. Darcy’s Hand in Order to Save Her Uncle?

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Source: Gift from Publisher

TYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Variation

THE PREMISE: A quickly formed marriage of salvation soon develops into a harmonious and happy union full of devoted and passionate love with the only troubles arising from dangerous suitors from Elizabeth’s past, Darcy’s notorious reputation, and a secret society with an assassination plot…

WHAT I LOVED:

• Imaginative and Intriguing: This variation begins with quite a few alterations in Darcy’s and Elizabeth’s recent pasts – Elizabeth and her sisters are orphans, Longbourn has a thriving new enterprise, and Darcy reacts more resolutely and responsibly to Wickham’s dastardly elopement attempt. Individually these new developments would be interesting to explore, but having them combined together made for a most stimulating and entertaining experience.

• Elizabeth’s Character: I loved Elizabeth in this story – I love how she is resourceful, selfless, and competent. Not only does she find a way for her and her sisters to prosper and become financially independent, but she also makes a great sacrifice for love of her family. In addition, unlike what we sometimes see in canon, this Elizabeth Bennet is not quick to pass judgment on others.

• Darcy’s Devotion: Even though I’m not a fan of it when characters fall in love very swiftly, I loved Darcy’s reasons for becoming instantly charmed and besotted with Elizabeth Bennet in this story. His powerful and passionate connection to her was lovely to witness. And I loved seeing him pursue Elizabeth with such determined persistence and become fiercely protective and devoted to her after they wed. He doesn’t much resemble the haughty and selfishly disdaining Darcy from P&P, but that can be attributed to the different choices he made in his life.

• Some Drama: Mary Anne Mushatt’s stories are anything but boring! Ms. Mushatt has a talent for creating an array of diverse and intriguing characters that manufacture compelling and thrilling conflicts within her tale. With all the excitement and new drama being introduced and heightened with each chapter it makes for a very gripping and fast reading experience.

WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:

• Sometimes Hard to Follow: It may have been just me, but I did sometimes find some storylines a bit of a challenge to understand. Mostly it was the secret society and the assignation mission, but also the family of French émigrés. Some of it felt a little implausible, and the motivation of these characters’ actions sometimes felt unclear. I think some storylines had the potential to be a very strong and gripping subplots, but I don’t know if it got all the way there.
• Cohesion: There is so much new activity and eventfulness in this story that it didn’t always feel like much of it linked together. When comparing the beginning chapters with the ending chapters, one would think they were two completely different novels. In addition, some storyline arcs felt like they were dispatched and resolved a tad quickly and conveniently.

NOTE: Although nothing very explicit or graphic takes places on page, there were several mentions of intimate scenes, death, and violence. And so I’d recommend this story for Mature Audiences.

CONCLUSION:

For the Deepest Love is an exhilarating and fast-paced adventure that is sure to engage and delight readers who love stories filled with ardent attachments, sinister villains, and dangerous perils! And although some suspension of disbelief and acceptance must occur, this variation is a captivating and consuming read that will be hard to put down!

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