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A review by fluffy8u
Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart by Beth Pattillo
Did not finish book.
I knew I wasn't going to care much about this book when I picked it up. It asks the reader to stretch their imaginations too much.
First off it seemed like there were less than 25 people at this symposium which is held at an infamous college (Oxford's Christ Church, where Lewis Carroll taught and wrote the Alice books), that discussed a highly popular and seriously studied author, Jane Austen. "It's exclusive," you say. And sure, it could be, but even though the main character says that her high school teacher of a sister has one of the less prestigious occupations there, several of the background characters seem like housewives with the hots for Darcy (there's nothing wrong with a full time mom going to a literary symposium, actually bravo to them) and are out of place where, I got the impression, that scholars and historian should be. The whole thing felt like a book club meeting with one Jane Austen historian.
Secondly, the protagonist, Claire, appeared to just stumble on to a great secret concerning Jane Austen, the lost first draft of "Pride and Prejudice" which is in the procession of a woman whom everyone says is too dementia riddled to know truth from fiction, but Claire believes and she starts to investigate whether or not the manuscript really is "First Impressions" (which the writing style does not change between the novel and the bits of the supposed manuscript that Claire (and the audience) reads). I know this is a major plot point, but it just felt like to much of a stretch.
Then there's the case of the Mr. Darcy wanna be that turns Claire, already a barely believable character, into a Mary Sue. He comes in and sweeps her off her feet, into his handsomely good looking and rich arms? Mmm hm. Sure, sure. It's all just too much of a fantasy, that has way more stretches than I listed here, and is somewhat poorly written.
First off it seemed like there were less than 25 people at this symposium which is held at an infamous college (Oxford's Christ Church, where Lewis Carroll taught and wrote the Alice books), that discussed a highly popular and seriously studied author, Jane Austen. "It's exclusive," you say. And sure, it could be, but even though the main character says that her high school teacher of a sister has one of the less prestigious occupations there, several of the background characters seem like housewives with the hots for Darcy (there's nothing wrong with a full time mom going to a literary symposium, actually bravo to them) and are out of place where, I got the impression, that scholars and historian should be. The whole thing felt like a book club meeting with one Jane Austen historian.
Secondly, the protagonist, Claire, appeared to just stumble on to a great secret concerning Jane Austen, the lost first draft of "Pride and Prejudice" which is in the procession of a woman whom everyone says is too dementia riddled to know truth from fiction, but Claire believes and she starts to investigate whether or not the manuscript really is "First Impressions" (which the writing style does not change between the novel and the bits of the supposed manuscript that Claire (and the audience) reads). I know this is a major plot point, but it just felt like to much of a stretch.
Then there's the case of the Mr. Darcy wanna be that turns Claire, already a barely believable character, into a Mary Sue. He comes in and sweeps her off her feet, into his handsomely good looking and rich arms? Mmm hm. Sure, sure. It's all just too much of a fantasy, that has way more stretches than I listed here, and is somewhat poorly written.