What If Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy Came to Netherfield as Widowers Ten Years Later?

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Source: Gift from Publisher

TYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Variation

THE PREMISE: Elizabeth Matthews née Bennet returns to Longbourn with her two children to help her mother and unmarried sister, Jane, locate and settle into a new home after her father passed away. And at the same time, two wealthy widowers have recently let Netherfield Park. Mrs. Bennet is about to go distracted, because she much rather play matchmaker with her two eldest daughters instead of taking the steps to relinquish her home to those undeserving Collinses…

MY THOUGHTS:

It is ten years later and our principal couples are meeting for the first time! I love outside of canon stories, and I love the uniqueness of seeing these characters meet at a later time in life. Three of them are widowed, two of them are single parents, and only one of them experienced a happy love match. I was eager to see how time, these new life experiences, and these different circumstances altered the characters we know and love.

There were several interesting deviations Ms. Gonschior employed in this premise:

• What if Mr. Bingley settled in Derbyshire and married Georgiana?
• What if Elizabeth accepted less than a love match, experienced loss, and is now financially independent?
• What if Mr. Darcy followed expectations and married someone with pedigree and connections from the ton?
• And what if Jane held onto her promise to marry only for the deepest love?

Such a creative combination, right? I appreciated the plausibility of these alterations and how for the most part they felt in character. I enjoyed how the focus of the story and for many of the characters was learning how to carry on with life. They’ve all suffered grief, they all experienced unexpected changes, and now the need to figure out how to move forward. I admired how Elizabeth bared the sole responsibility of caring for and assisting her mother and sister. In addition, I love that one of Mr. Darcy’s aims during this sojourn in Hertfordshire is to see his friend return to himself and no longer evade society.

I loved witnessing the sweet and gentle relationships that formed between these characters. It was heartwarming to see these characters go from neighbors, to supportive friends, to something more. I also enjoyed seeing the sweet friendships that formed between the children, and seeing the relationships with the adults and these children.

But I will admit, I think that with a divergent premise like this I had some expectations of seeing these changed circumstances produce more impact on these characters. While I enjoyed the tender and light romances that developed, I wouldn’t have minded seeing more focus on each characters’ internal obstacles and journeys of coming to these relationships from places of grief, disillusionment, and guardedness. I think the unique alterations with each character’s past experiences would produce some refreshingly new conflicts and/or struggles to explore – maybe even some new attitudes or new flaws But generally, it seemed like any obstacles these characters encountered were minor and dealt with swiftly and easily.

Bitter Mournings is a touching and tender tale of moving forward and being open to love. Having previously read and loved Reflections by Lind Gonschior, I’m beginning to discern her contemplative approach to these characters and her penchant for creating inventive and bold twists. She is definitely an author I hope to see more from soon!

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