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meguniqueuser's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
To say this is based on Pride and Prejudice is a big misstep. The character names are used, but their characterization is extremely loose and the plot points used even looser. The title of this book is pretty misleading since it is not a retelling of Pride and Prejudice but basically a different story.
Elizabeth is aged down to 17 and it becomes unbelievable that she is supposedly good at detective work. More importantly now that she is younger her prejudice and assuming are not character flaws, but immaturity.
Once I got past the misuse of invoking Jane Austen’s name, the story was fine and enjoyable. The mystery was mysterious and not obvious. The reveal was a bit shocking but also a bit hilarious.
I didn’t enjoy the voice the audio narrator used for Darcy, it was comical in a bad way.
Elizabeth is aged down to 17 and it becomes unbelievable that she is supposedly good at detective work. More importantly now that she is younger her prejudice and assuming are not character flaws, but immaturity.
Once I got past the misuse of invoking Jane Austen’s name, the story was fine and enjoyable. The mystery was mysterious and not obvious. The reveal was a bit shocking but also a bit hilarious.
I didn’t enjoy the voice the audio narrator used for Darcy, it was comical in a bad way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Misogyny
withlivjones's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This was a fun and gripping take on Pride and Prejudice, and although it’s not a completely faithful adaptation of the story, I did like how all the characters fit into the plot and all the little references to the original text.
I love the romance between Lizzie and Darcy in the novella and I loved it here too, there were so many sweet moments between them and I loved their rivals-to-lovers dynamic. My only criticism is that one of my favourite things about the original novella is how restrained Austen is when addressing the romance - the reader has no idea about Lizzie and Darcy until Darcy’s first confession and proposal, so that comes as a complete shock when it happens and it’s only after that that Lizzie begins to even consider Darcy as a match - whereas this novel reads much more like a contemporary romance which does make it much easier to digest but it’s immediately obvious that Lizzie is attracted to Darcy and that they’re going to get together in the end. It’s very minor but I did miss the subtle yearning of Austen’s writing.
The mystery itself was very well-written, and although readers who know the story well can probably decipher the guilty party fairly easily, there are still enough twists to make it interesting. I was, however, rather sceptical about the fact that one of the major plot points hinges on the fact that Mr Collins couldn’t name-drop Lady Catherine at every opportunity or else he’d be found out, and that particular character detail pretty quickly made me suspicious.
Overall, a really run read perfect for Pride and Prejudice fans!
I love the romance between Lizzie and Darcy in the novella and I loved it here too, there were so many sweet moments between them and I loved their rivals-to-lovers dynamic. My only criticism is that one of my favourite things about the original novella is how restrained Austen is when addressing the romance - the reader has no idea about Lizzie and Darcy until Darcy’s first confession and proposal, so that comes as a complete shock when it happens and it’s only after that that Lizzie begins to even consider Darcy as a match - whereas this novel reads much more like a contemporary romance which does make it much easier to digest but it’s immediately obvious that Lizzie is attracted to Darcy and that they’re going to get together in the end. It’s very minor but I did miss the subtle yearning of Austen’s writing.
The mystery itself was very well-written, and although readers who know the story well can probably decipher the guilty party fairly easily, there are still enough twists to make it interesting.
Overall, a really run read perfect for Pride and Prejudice fans!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Sexism, Death, Murder, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Misogyny
Moderate: Racism and Adult/minor relationship
lunep's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Death, Sexism, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Stalking and Confinement
Minor: Classism, Infidelity, Sexual harassment, Grief, Racism, and Cursing
beatriks's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Murder
a_alves00's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gun violence, Murder, Misogyny, Sexism, Stalking, Violence, and Kidnapping
madamenovelist's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Clever premise, execution wasn’t to my taste very much. One the one hand, the concept of making Mr. Bennet & Mr. Darcy barristers in different firms and Lizzy bend her inquisitive self to solving a murder mystery is a clever retelling spin! On the other, so many characters were so woefully out of character that I couldn’t decide if I liked this book or found it irritating. If I read classic characters I already know, I like to feel the same people were dumped in an alternate universe. This feels like most of the characters should have been OCs instead? The moment that completely suspended disbelief and draggef me out of the story was Lizzy randomly suspecting Caroline as possible murderer for absolutely no reason, just vibes and plot propulsion . In an attempt to make Austen more diverse, Charlotte Lucas is biracial…but it’s so blink-and-you-miss it that it feels well-meaning but hollow. Three stars because two would be stingy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcoholism
koplomps's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
livelaughomo's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Racism
diadoodle's review
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Murder, Gun violence, and Misogyny
diana_raquel's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a brilliant idea, conceived and executed by a clever young woman, must be claimed by a man.”
Unsurprisingly, Jane Austen is one of my favorite authors of all time. And although I love the Regency Era, I'm always a little reticent regarding retellings/inspired books of Jane Austen's work. More times than not, I find that they lack something. And, unfortunately, this retelling is no exception.
As a mystery crime story, this book is really good. The story is well-structured, the characters are well-written, and although I was able to predict some plot points, I never found the identity of the killer and their motivations, so that revelation was interesting to me. As a mystery crime story, this is a 4.5 to me.
However, I was expecting more. I was expecting more sarcasm and irony. The thing about Austen was that she was able to write stories that poked fun and criticized society's rules in a subtle way. And I don't think that this was achieved here. Yes, we see Elizabeth struggle to overcome society's rules, although, I wasn't amused by it. Where is the subtle irony? Where's the poking fun? Other writers of the Regency Era have criticized society's rules and the position of women in said society, but the thing about Austen is that this criticism is very subtle and amusing. And we don't have this in this book.
At the same time, we also have very little interaction between Elizabeth and Darcy. The message of the original book is that first impressions aren't everything. And throughout the interactions between Elizabeth and Darcy, we learn that Darcy is proud because he's a product of society and Elizabeth can be quite judgemental because, again, she is also a product of a society that excluded women. We love the book because of the interactions between Elizabeth and Darcy. In this book, there is more interaction between Elizabeth and Wickham than with Darcy. I know that this is supposed to be a mystery crime story and not a romance, but, I think that the book would benefit from a little more interaction between Darcy and Elizabeth.
So, I would prefer that this was marketed to me as an "inspired book" than a "retelling", but I cannot deny that this is a good narrative. Just don't try to sell it to me as a retelling.
Unsurprisingly, Jane Austen is one of my favorite authors of all time. And although I love the Regency Era, I'm always a little reticent regarding retellings/inspired books of Jane Austen's work. More times than not, I find that they lack something. And, unfortunately, this retelling is no exception.
As a mystery crime story, this book is really good. The story is well-structured, the characters are well-written, and although I was able to predict some plot points, I never found the identity of the killer and their motivations, so that revelation was interesting to me. As a mystery crime story, this is a 4.5 to me.
However, I was expecting more. I was expecting more sarcasm and irony. The thing about Austen was that she was able to write stories that poked fun and criticized society's rules in a subtle way. And I don't think that this was achieved here. Yes, we see Elizabeth struggle to overcome society's rules, although, I wasn't amused by it. Where is the subtle irony? Where's the poking fun? Other writers of the Regency Era have criticized society's rules and the position of women in said society, but the thing about Austen is that this criticism is very subtle and amusing. And we don't have this in this book.
At the same time, we also have very little interaction between Elizabeth and Darcy. The message of the original book is that first impressions aren't everything. And throughout the interactions between Elizabeth and Darcy, we learn that Darcy is proud because he's a product of society and Elizabeth can be quite judgemental because, again, she is also a product of a society that excluded women. We love the book because of the interactions between Elizabeth and Darcy. In this book, there is more interaction between Elizabeth and Wickham than with Darcy. I know that this is supposed to be a mystery crime story and not a romance, but, I think that the book would benefit from a little more interaction between Darcy and Elizabeth.
So, I would prefer that this was marketed to me as an "inspired book" than a "retelling", but I cannot deny that this is a good narrative. Just don't try to sell it to me as a retelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexism, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Gore and Torture
Minor: Stalking