Tag: Spoilers

Undoing

by L.L. Diamond

Genres: Historical British Fiction, Historical Regency Fiction, Historical Romance
Release Date: March 27, 2020
Pages: 439
Purchase from: Amazon
My Rating: ★★★★☆

Seventeen-year-old Elizabeth Bennet had always hoped to marry for love – that is until she surrenders to her mother’s demands and marries the handsome Duke of Leeds. Thrust into a society disinclined to accept a country nobody who somehow entrapped one of their most prominent members, Elizabeth holds her head high, ignoring their whispers and stares and a husband whose indifferent behaviour confuses her. Her marriage of convenience is nothing like what she expected.

Fitzwilliam Darcy is a man torn. After meeting the Duchess of Leeds at a ball, he is fascinated by her intelligence and humour, but how does one maintain a respectable friendship with a lady – particularly when that lady is the wife of his cousin and godfather? His father and his sister both love Elizabeth, and he quickly realises he loves her as well, though not as one loves a cousin or even a sister. His feelings must stay hidden from everyone, particularly Elizabeth, but how is he to keep himself under such strict regulation when he is constantly thrown into her company? How does one prevent their own undoing?

Contains scenes with adult content.

Entailed To Heirs Female

by Victoria Lynn

Genres: Regency Romance
Release Date: June 21, 2022
Pages: 335
Purchase from: Amazon
My Rating: ★★★☆☆

In this low angst, a sweet retelling of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Bennet is not just idle, he is actively cruel. And Mrs. Bennet, while still uneducated, must do whatever she can to protect her daughters from their father.

Mr. Darcy’s epiphany comes much earlier than in canon and it changes his relationships not only with the Bennets but with his sister, his cousin Anne, and Bingley.

When the Bennet matriarch moves to an estate outside of Bath with her daughters, Bingley follows and so do both Darcy siblings.

Something New to Observe

by Kimbelle Pease

Genres: Regency Romance
Release Date: September 30, 2021
Pages: 368
Purchase from: Amazon
My Rating: ★★★☆☆

One warning, two cautions, and a note:

WARNING: In deference to a truth universally acknowledged that men do not behave the same when no women are present as they do in mixed company, this vagary does have occasional uses of profanity. The men in my life would consider it amusing but naïve to afford the same semantics of conversation for wholly different circumstances such as these, or they would should one of them choose to read it.

This vagary proposes an alternate telling of the original Pride and Prejudice and considers what may have happened should the characters have been afforded a slightly altered set of circumstances. What if Mr. Darcy had accepted quite early that he was falling in love with Elizabeth? What if Elizabeth was the least stubborn of her sisters? What if Mrs. Bennet was allowed to settle in mind and spirit? What if Mr. Bennet exerted himself on behalf of his daughters? What if Mr. Collins was in some way welcomed as the next owner of the estate? Those are only some of the twists within this tale, and while not canon, I hope I gave your favorite character a moment unto themselves that will make you smile.

CAUTION: I want to specifically state that this vagary is not for all Pride and Prejudice genre readers. If one reads to find fault in what is not canon, I’ve been most forthcoming about the fact that it is a vagary, so you should already be on your guard and perhaps pass it by. For those of you who are strict authoress-guidelines conscious, I will argue that in all time periods people spoke with the use of contractions. To that end, I was true to life rather than follow her pointed non-use of them. Outside conversation, however, you will not find them, and I hope that soothes any feathers which may be ruffled at such a bold defiance.

CAUTION: My editor also requested that I issue a point of clarification on her behalf. I confess that as an author em-dashes drive me nanabas, so in conflict with her excellent advice, I did not include many of them where she said they should be. Despise me for it if you must, but no novel, story, prose, or verse ever hinged on one’s use. The lacking or use of a comma, however, has cost millions. I promise that for those, I let her fully guide me.

NOTE: My personal pleasure in writing this book was the intent to make any who read it find themselves staying up at night; not because ODCs are near death, have been forced to do that which they despise, or are off chasing Lydia again, but because I believe I am not the only one of us who dearly loves to laugh.