Perfect Bride for Mr. Darcy by Mary Lydon Simonsen
Jane Austen - all the love. Elizabeth Bennet - guaranteed witty conversation. Mr. Darcy - swoon. A Jane Austen knock off - excuse me, homage - moved to the top of my To Read pile as soon as I brought it home.
"Perfect Bride" follows the plotline of Pride and Prejudice. The first chapter introduces us to Darcy and the Bingley family, in a scene that didn’t make it into the original book. Surprisingly, Mr. Darcy had a reason for acting like an unmannered cad. It wasn’t a very nice reason, but a reason existed.
We follow Elizabeth on a visit to the friend who married Cousin the Vicar who will inherit Mr. Bennet’s property. Everyone remains in character. Happily, the Vicar spends most of his time out in the garden, and we don’t have to listen to him brag about how Lady Catherine condescended to talk to him about his sermons.
After Chapter Two, I put this book aside and started reading something else. I started again, and somehow, I was not having my Jane Austen homage moment. I put the book aside again.
I tried reading it for the third time, and then I realized. Why am I reading this book when I could be reading the back of a cereal box? This book reads like a ‘missing scenes’ book, but those scenes have been cut for a very good reason. They don’t advance a new plot, there’s nothing but gossip happening here that hasn’t happened better and wittier in the original.
Sigh.
New great-book review going up soon, to make up for this not-so-great book.