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kat__z8's review against another edition
emotional
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? Yes
4.5
As a Pride and Prejudice enjoyer, I've read about 3 retellings of it, both cishet and wlw, and this one's definitely my favourite so far.
One thing that I adored from the original is the portrayal of familial bond and its complexity. I think it's done very well in this book. I would say the romance is also just as intriguing.
Overall, it's a faithful retelling, but with a modern twist that kept me curious. Extra points for the queer MCs and diverse cast of characters.
One thing that I adored from the original is the portrayal of familial bond and its complexity. I think it's done very well in this book. I would say the romance is also just as intriguing.
Overall, it's a faithful retelling, but with a modern twist that kept me curious. Extra points for the queer MCs and diverse cast of characters.
haneyhaney's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
should be one star for how little chemistry darcy and elisa had AND for how long i spent reading about mr collins
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
3.0
Although I ended up liking this retelling of Pride and Prejudice, I was not as invested in the plot as I thought I would be.
the_true_monroe's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
My only knowledge of Pride And Prejudice prior to listening to this audiobook was from The Sleepy Bookshelf, which I was meant to fall asleep during, and I did. Even so, I did pick up on a lot of the ways this book retold the story and really want to read Pride and Prejudice for real now.
With that being said, I did not realize at first that this was meant to parallel Pride And Prejudice so at first a lot of things caught me off guard. For example, Elisa’s mom Alejandra is extremely inappropriate in a way that is outwardly gross- she was not just trying to sneak them into a relationship - her words and actions were sexualizing her children… for money.
One story I really liked wasbetween Collin and Charlene. Collin was not said to be autistic/ neurodivergent but he was definitely characterized that way especially with the special interests and excessive scripting. Seeing his growth once he recognized major issues of his, and standing up to his mom was wonderful. This whole thing including how he ended up friends with Elisa felt natural.
I was very shocked though how this book dove very deeply intostatutory rape, grooming and pedophilia . I think it was very well done in terms of realistic experiences and addressing victim shaming but, woah.
Overall, some other things that I did like were how queer characters were just there- yes there were mentions of homophobia and transphobia but there was so much love and acceptance. The interludes were also fun although at first confusing.
3.5 /5 although I may update this once I actually fully read Pride And Prejudice.
With that being said, I did not realize at first that this was meant to parallel Pride And Prejudice so at first a lot of things caught me off guard. For example,
One story I really liked was
I was very shocked though how this book dove very deeply into
Overall, some other things that I did like were how queer characters were just there- yes there were mentions of homophobia and transphobia but there was so much love and acceptance. The interludes were also fun although at first confusing.
3.5 /5 although I may update this once I actually fully read Pride And Prejudice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Classism, and Vomit
Moderate: Rape, Stalking, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Violence, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Transphobia, Sexual harassment, Biphobia, Physical abuse, Car accident, Self harm, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Ableism
laura_cs's review
5.0
I received an ARC of this title from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a good fortune must be... difficult."
This is the polite-company word Elisa Benitez uses to describe Darcy Fitzgerald, the super-rich ice queen she has the misfortune of sharing an English class with. Unfortunately, the semester-long torment becomes even worse as Elisa's older sister Julieta becomes involved with Darcy's best friend, Bobby. No matter how much Elisa tries to keep her distance from Darcy, the two girls keep finding themselves thrown together (thanks a lot, universe). But the more Elisa learns about Darcy, she has to wonder: will she ever know the whole truth about her?
The LGBT retelling of Jane Austen's classic "Pride and Prejudice" that you didn't know you needed until it existed, "Most Ardently" is a fun wlw glow-up of the original that still hits on tough topics as hard as Austen did, such as poverty, class differences, and abusive predators. Even then, it's still a very fun, almost light-hearted book that brings a smile to your face. The witty dialogue would make Jane smile, all of the characters have been adapted and 'modernized' perfectly, and I most definitely approve of the Benitez' sisters willingness to ride-or-die for each other. An example of both: "Lucia, for the last time, property damage is not feminism." "Anything can be feminism if you play Beyonce in the background while you do it."
In short, you will love this book "Most Ardently".
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a good fortune must be... difficult."
This is the polite-company word Elisa Benitez uses to describe Darcy Fitzgerald, the super-rich ice queen she has the misfortune of sharing an English class with. Unfortunately, the semester-long torment becomes even worse as Elisa's older sister Julieta becomes involved with Darcy's best friend, Bobby. No matter how much Elisa tries to keep her distance from Darcy, the two girls keep finding themselves thrown together (thanks a lot, universe). But the more Elisa learns about Darcy, she has to wonder: will she ever know the whole truth about her?
The LGBT retelling of Jane Austen's classic "Pride and Prejudice" that you didn't know you needed until it existed, "Most Ardently" is a fun wlw glow-up of the original that still hits on tough topics as hard as Austen did, such as poverty, class differences, and abusive predators. Even then, it's still a very fun, almost light-hearted book that brings a smile to your face. The witty dialogue would make Jane smile, all of the characters have been adapted and 'modernized' perfectly, and I most definitely approve of the Benitez' sisters willingness to ride-or-die for each other. An example of both: "Lucia, for the last time, property damage is not feminism." "Anything can be feminism if you play Beyonce in the background while you do it."
In short, you will love this book "Most Ardently".
lezreadalot's review
3.0
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a good fortune must be... difficult.
Pride and Prejudice was one of the books that I had to do for Literature in school that I actually really enjoyed, and it informed my thoughts on classic literature for a good long time. So... gay modern retelling? Sign me up! And well, I didn't end up loving this as much as I wanted to, but it was still pretty cute and entertaining. The fun part about retellings is seeing the callbacks and little moments that you remember translated into a different setting. I haven't read P&P in like... more than ten years, so a few things managed to surprise me. I liked this incarnation of Elisa a lot, and the author laced this with a lot of humour and family dynamics and cute moments.
I just wish more had been done with the characters and setting. P&P's plot isn't something that can be directed transplanted into a modern world, and don't get me wrong, the author changed and adjusted lots of things to make it fit, but for several plot points, I kept thinking, why is this character acting/reacting that way? I also really wish everyone was a few years older. Their youth had its place, and it's important for another facet of the plot, but something about everyone being 18/19/20 didn't really work for me. Also it was nice to have a Mexican-American Elisa and a black Darcy, but other than the moments when those facts were stated, it felt like their ethnicities were dropped by the wayside? I know some authors don't want to do commentaries on race etc in their books, and honestly, if you don't feel equipped to do it then you shouldn't, but man. Idk. I would have especially liked to see something about how Darcy navigated the seesaw of being black in America but also part of the upper echelon of society.
What was missing for me most of all was the character interaction. I don't know if it's because I read this so quickly, but Elisa didn't even think about Darcy as much as I'd have expected her to. And that was a bummer, because I just wasn't feeling the romance or the chemistry, and when it came time for the declarations, they weren't nearly as affecting as I'd have liked. I mean, that all important week at Pemberley! I was reeeeeeally hoping we'd get a lot of character interaction there at least, but imo what we got wasn't nearly enough.
Listened to the audiobook as ready by Chandra Skyye, which was all right. I don't know that her voices really fit a lot of the characters, but at least there were no egregious accents.
A cute retelling, all in all; like I said, it was pretty funny at times. But it needed a bit more to really stand out.
Content warnings:
Pride and Prejudice was one of the books that I had to do for Literature in school that I actually really enjoyed, and it informed my thoughts on classic literature for a good long time. So... gay modern retelling? Sign me up! And well, I didn't end up loving this as much as I wanted to, but it was still pretty cute and entertaining. The fun part about retellings is seeing the callbacks and little moments that you remember translated into a different setting. I haven't read P&P in like... more than ten years, so a few things managed to surprise me. I liked this incarnation of Elisa a lot, and the author laced this with a lot of humour and family dynamics and cute moments.
I just wish more had been done with the characters and setting. P&P's plot isn't something that can be directed transplanted into a modern world, and don't get me wrong, the author changed and adjusted lots of things to make it fit, but for several plot points, I kept thinking, why is this character acting/reacting that way? I also really wish everyone was a few years older. Their youth had its place, and it's important for another facet of the plot, but something about everyone being 18/19/20 didn't really work for me. Also it was nice to have a Mexican-American Elisa and a black Darcy, but other than the moments when those facts were stated, it felt like their ethnicities were dropped by the wayside? I know some authors don't want to do commentaries on race etc in their books, and honestly, if you don't feel equipped to do it then you shouldn't, but man. Idk. I would have especially liked to see something about how Darcy navigated the seesaw of being black in America but also part of the upper echelon of society.
What was missing for me most of all was the character interaction. I don't know if it's because I read this so quickly, but Elisa didn't even think about Darcy as much as I'd have expected her to. And that was a bummer, because I just wasn't feeling the romance or the chemistry, and when it came time for the declarations, they weren't nearly as affecting as I'd have liked. I mean, that all important week at Pemberley! I was reeeeeeally hoping we'd get a lot of character interaction there at least, but imo what we got wasn't nearly enough.
Listened to the audiobook as ready by Chandra Skyye, which was all right. I don't know that her voices really fit a lot of the characters, but at least there were no egregious accents.
A cute retelling, all in all; like I said, it was pretty funny at times. But it needed a bit more to really stand out.
Content warnings:
Spoiler
discussions of past grooming, csa, rape, abuse.cryptidshel's review against another edition
5.0
I honestly loved this, it was a fairly faithful adaptation while still being new enough to keep people interested. I also love reading about queer women.
colorfulleo92's review
2.0
Had lot of high expectations for this book since it is a pride and prejudice retailing and also gay. But the story was mostly meh and bit boring
katie9787's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
niklit's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A fun retelling that stuck very closely to the original while updating it for a modern audience!