What If Elizabeth Attempted to ‘Accidentally’ Encounter Mr. Bingley?
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Gift from Publisher
TYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Variation Novella
THE PREMISE: A determined Lizzy contrives to visit Mayfair with Maria Lucas in order to encounter Mr. Bingley and let him know of her sister’s presence in London. But a major mishap ensues and Elizabeth and Maria end up being cared for by none other than Mr. Darcy…
WHAT I LOVED:
- Intense and Dramatic: The Prologue opens with such a scene and such a description! And then it jumps back one day to tell the events leading up to the Prologue scene. I was immediately engaged and anxious to witness more scenes after the Prologue. Elizabeth schemes land her (and Maria) in a very disastrous predicament. I appreciated this creative and plausible premise – I like how it was introduced, and how well it was executed.
- Mr. Darcy: Heroic, honorable, brave – Mr. Darcy is quite the swoony hero in this tale. He has no implacable resentment or improper pride – he immediately heeds Elizabeth’s reproofs and makes every effort to show his depth of compassion and civility for her and everyone in her world. I loved seeing Mr. Darcy make the most of each opportunity to improve Elizabeth’s opinion of him. And I loved how Ali Scott illustrated his remorse for all his mistakes and the tender moments where his feelings for Elizabeth are most ardent and difficult to conceal.
- Improving Upon Acquaintance: Darcy and Elizabeth in close quarters – my favorite! I love seeing how this forced and unexpected closeness pushes Darcy and Elizabeth to have more interaction and for their relationship to evolve and develop in new ways. I loved witnessing how Elizabeth reacted to Mr. Darcy’s solicitous behavior, how she felt seeing his kindness towards her relations, and how she rose to his defense during Colonel Fitzwilliam’s provoking taunts. This is just the type of journey I love witnessing Darcy’s and Elizabeth’s relationship take.
- The Whole House Knows: Mrs. Annesley, Georgiana, Colonel Fitzwilliam – many people of Darcy House seem to correctly guess Darcy’s feelings, and do their best to encourage Elizabeth’s feelings for Mr. Darcy. It was endearing and entertaining, and kind of gave me Beauty and the Beast vibes! I loved how all were in support of Elizabeth being Mr. Darcy’s choice and how they sing his praises to her.
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER:
- Lydia/Wickham: My only cause to repine is that the Lydia/Wickham storyline interrupted and took focus away from Darcy and Elizabeth. (I know that is the whole point of it…) I wish we saw less Lydia/Wickham and more Elizabeth/Darcy, and also Georgiana and Jane.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
🎩 Mr. Darcy coming to the rescue, being the object of his solicitous care – swoon!
💗 I love stories where readers can witness the gradual evolution of Elizabeth’s feelings and see her introspective reflections about Mr. Darcy.
❤️🩹 A sensitive and expressive tale of healing, heart, and hope.
I am so, so, over the Lydia/Wickham story line and wish more authors would just skip it. Glad to hear that this book has other redeeming features.
I read and enjoyed this story.
I loved this book!!! I read it in 2 days! It drew me in from the first pages.
I’m definitely with you on the Lydia/Wickham storyline. I’ve been so over that for ages now. At least it seems as if Darcy and Elizabeth have strong feelings before this interruption so maybe we won’t have the misunderstanding on both sides this time? Hopefully!
I got all swoony over this rescuer and solicitous Darcy, too.
Loved this book too! Very sweet!