Scan barcode
rosemwood's review against another edition
3.0
This is Mary's side of the story from Pride and Prejudice. There are three parts to this story and the first part was very painful to read. The writer tried to stay close to Jane Austen's story but it fell flat and made me question the whole story. I almost dnf this book but once I started on part two it was like it was a different writer and story. If the author could have just started from part two I feel this could have been a four star book. I am not a huge fan of another author extending a story from another author.
katykelly's review against another edition
3.0
Fans may find themselves outraged... it's a fascinating reimagining but not one I agreed with.
I'm definitely a devotee - Pride and Prejudice is my favourite books, I've read it many times, seen multiple adaptations, read many books on the author, visited her home, identified with her heroine and even written essays about the source novel. I've also read other works inspired by Austen's masterpiece of manners, for both teens and adults, and tried to keep an open mind.
If I wasn't coming to this with my background and dare I say it 'prejudiced' attitude to the characters, language and plot, I might really have let myself enjoy the story of Mary. If I could let go of the perfection of the central relationship, the 'happy ever after' and ideal partnership it enshrines, I might be able to let myself consider Chen's alternative a possibility. But of course, I can't.
Split into two halves, we are treated to Austen through Mary's eyes - and Part One, I appreciated, as an insight into well-beloved Bennetts, balls and beaus - though as soon as I saw Mary and Darcy speaking to each other I could feel my rancour rising. The sections with Mr Collins I DID think worthy, as I often felt they would have made a good match and wondered why this was not advanced. But again, Collins' 'confession' and history, as related to Mary (quite suddenly and without much build-up) didn't feel true-to-character. Either he's a sycophant or he's a bumbling fool - he can't really be both.
It is Mr Collins himself who offers Mary some good life advice, would you believe:
"One should never settle in life for what others may think is best and right for you. There is always the larger and more delicious fruit hanging from a higher branch... if someone would only lend you the ladder to reach it. And the ladder is what will make all the difference."
Part One contains the story we know, it is then left and we wonder - just where will the next part take Mary? It is into the unknown of the P&P universe.
My hackles were raised with a mention of "Lizzy's bad teeth" however, and every subsequent character who appears - from Darcy's sister to Colonel Fitzwilliam, acts so out of character with what we know of them from Austen that it became so disconnected with her original that I just gave up feeling outraged and was able to enjoy it as a separate piece. I wouldn't have thought I could. Though whole scenes, acts and speeches once given to Elizabeth are now replayed in a new context with Mary.
I still do not agree with how Chen gives voice and thought to any character - and often their language and actions are incredibly anachronistic for their period. It was interesting to see the destinies Chen chose to envision for Lydia, for the Collinses, for the Darcys - I will not say anything more - but for anyone who loves Austen, it is a reach.
Note - there is some fairly strong and unexpected sexual content, VERY out of keeping with Jane Austen, though amusing to a modern audience. This would make it less suitable for a younger teenager who may have studied Austen and be reading around the author.
One aspect that amused me throughout was the book Mary finds herself becoming engaged in writing, her novel is very (unwittingly?) funny in its ridiculousness.
Mary herself is entirely a young woman unchained from the confines of Austen. I had to give up feeling affronted and just give in to the Jane Eyre-like, romance-rooted, independent-and-spirited Lizzy-like sister who takes her character but refuses to live her life.
This is going to polarise, though readers who come to this with no real love for or knowledge of Austen will probably have no problem with the liberties taken. For fans, it could finish them off!
Kudos to the author for braving the forthcoming indignations, but I'm afraid for me, it stole from one Peter to pay Paul (read for this Lizzy and Mary) and as someone familiar with every character, did not ring true for any.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.
I'm definitely a devotee - Pride and Prejudice is my favourite books, I've read it many times, seen multiple adaptations, read many books on the author, visited her home, identified with her heroine and even written essays about the source novel. I've also read other works inspired by Austen's masterpiece of manners, for both teens and adults, and tried to keep an open mind.
If I wasn't coming to this with my background and dare I say it 'prejudiced' attitude to the characters, language and plot, I might really have let myself enjoy the story of Mary. If I could let go of the perfection of the central relationship, the 'happy ever after' and ideal partnership it enshrines, I might be able to let myself consider Chen's alternative a possibility. But of course, I can't.
Split into two halves, we are treated to Austen through Mary's eyes - and Part One, I appreciated, as an insight into well-beloved Bennetts, balls and beaus - though as soon as I saw Mary and Darcy speaking to each other I could feel my rancour rising. The sections with Mr Collins I DID think worthy, as I often felt they would have made a good match and wondered why this was not advanced. But again, Collins' 'confession' and history, as related to Mary (quite suddenly and without much build-up) didn't feel true-to-character. Either he's a sycophant or he's a bumbling fool - he can't really be both.
It is Mr Collins himself who offers Mary some good life advice, would you believe:
"One should never settle in life for what others may think is best and right for you. There is always the larger and more delicious fruit hanging from a higher branch... if someone would only lend you the ladder to reach it. And the ladder is what will make all the difference."
Part One contains the story we know, it is then left and we wonder - just where will the next part take Mary? It is into the unknown of the P&P universe.
My hackles were raised with a mention of "Lizzy's bad teeth" however, and every subsequent character who appears - from Darcy's sister to Colonel Fitzwilliam, acts so out of character with what we know of them from Austen that it became so disconnected with her original that I just gave up feeling outraged and was able to enjoy it as a separate piece. I wouldn't have thought I could. Though whole scenes, acts and speeches once given to Elizabeth are now replayed in a new context with Mary.
I still do not agree with how Chen gives voice and thought to any character - and often their language and actions are incredibly anachronistic for their period. It was interesting to see the destinies Chen chose to envision for Lydia, for the Collinses, for the Darcys - I will not say anything more - but for anyone who loves Austen, it is a reach.
Note - there is some fairly strong and unexpected sexual content, VERY out of keeping with Jane Austen, though amusing to a modern audience. This would make it less suitable for a younger teenager who may have studied Austen and be reading around the author.
One aspect that amused me throughout was the book Mary finds herself becoming engaged in writing, her novel is very (unwittingly?) funny in its ridiculousness.
Mary herself is entirely a young woman unchained from the confines of Austen. I had to give up feeling affronted and just give in to the Jane Eyre-like, romance-rooted, independent-and-spirited Lizzy-like sister who takes her character but refuses to live her life.
This is going to polarise, though readers who come to this with no real love for or knowledge of Austen will probably have no problem with the liberties taken. For fans, it could finish them off!
Kudos to the author for braving the forthcoming indignations, but I'm afraid for me, it stole from one Peter to pay Paul (read for this Lizzy and Mary) and as someone familiar with every character, did not ring true for any.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.
wnyreader's review against another edition
There was a plot point at about the 80% mark that I simply could not stomach. The look at Mary as her own character felt minimized and cheapened by it and I didn’t have the will to continue reading.
showell's review
3.0
If you ignore that this is supposed to be a retelling/continuation of Pride and Prejudice and simply evaluate it as a book that happens to use many of the same names and places, this novel is actually quite promising. It’s packed with emotional punch - by turns sad and hilarious. It’s unfortunate that it was presented as P&P fan fiction because I think it would make a marvelous novel if the characters/places had had different names, but as it is, it is getting poor reviews from all of us Austenites who are busily pointing out where it falls short as an adaptation/extension of Austen’s original.
The first third of the novel is pretty good, even as fan fiction. Others complain about things like the women drinking wine and the dialogue being wrong for the period, etc but I don’t really care about that. Mary’s hidden and ultimately doomed love affair with Mr Collins was both believable and tragic.
It is after Mary ends up at Pemberley that the book really begins to lose its way as P&P fan fiction, in my opinion. I find it ironic that Chen has Mary write a Freaky Friday type novel at the end of the book in which two of her characters swap bodies, but retain their essential personalities, because in many ways I think that is exactly what Katherine Chen has done here. Her Mary reads to me as if Lizzy had somehow gotten trapped in Mary’s body. It doesn’t appear to have been a straight swap, though, because the Lizzy in Chen’s novel isn’t simply Mary from P&P. I’m not sure who Chen’s Lizzy is, maybe Charlotte or Kitty?
This isn’t to say that the choices Chen’s version of Lizzy makes in the aftermath of marriage aren’t heart breaking and believable, just that they don’t ring true for Austen’s Lizzy. The Colonel also doesn’t seem at all like the man Austen portrayed in her book. Darcy is more or less correct but Chen’s plot requires Darcy to do a couple of things, especially in the first third of the book, that Austen’s Darcy just wouldn’t do.
I do like that in the end Mary gets her happy ending. But I can’t shake the feeling that I just read a book in which I learned what might have happened to Lizzy if Kitty had married Darcy in Austen’s original, instead of Lizzy herself.
TL;DR: I enjoyed this book but trying to map its characters to Austen’s original left my mind in a bit of a muddle. If you read it, do yourself a favor and ignore that it’s supposed to be a retelling/extension of P&P. Try to just read it as a novel on its own.
The first third of the novel is pretty good, even as fan fiction. Others complain about things like the women drinking wine and the dialogue being wrong for the period, etc but I don’t really care about that. Mary’s hidden and ultimately doomed love affair with Mr Collins was both believable and tragic.
It is after Mary ends up at Pemberley that the book really begins to lose its way as P&P fan fiction, in my opinion. I find it ironic that Chen has Mary write a Freaky Friday type novel at the end of the book in which two of her characters swap bodies, but retain their essential personalities, because in many ways I think that is exactly what Katherine Chen has done here. Her Mary reads to me as if Lizzy had somehow gotten trapped in Mary’s body. It doesn’t appear to have been a straight swap, though, because the Lizzy in Chen’s novel isn’t simply Mary from P&P. I’m not sure who Chen’s Lizzy is, maybe Charlotte or Kitty?
This isn’t to say that the choices Chen’s version of Lizzy makes in the aftermath of marriage aren’t heart breaking and believable, just that they don’t ring true for Austen’s Lizzy. The Colonel also doesn’t seem at all like the man Austen portrayed in her book. Darcy is more or less correct but Chen’s plot requires Darcy to do a couple of things, especially in the first third of the book, that Austen’s Darcy just wouldn’t do.
I do like that in the end Mary gets her happy ending. But I can’t shake the feeling that I just read a book in which I learned what might have happened to Lizzy if Kitty had married Darcy in Austen’s original, instead of Lizzy herself.
TL;DR: I enjoyed this book but trying to map its characters to Austen’s original left my mind in a bit of a muddle. If you read it, do yourself a favor and ignore that it’s supposed to be a retelling/extension of P&P. Try to just read it as a novel on its own.
paperbacksandpines's review
4.0
[b:Mary B: An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|36505861|Mary B An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|Katherine J. Chen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1509400038l/36505861._SY75_.jpg|58223947] is one of several Jane Austen retellings I've been diving into for the past few summers since I discovered Katie from Books and Things' Jane Austen July readathon. Similar in terms of subject coverage of [b:Pride and Prejudice|1885|Pride and Prejudice|Jane Austen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320399351l/1885._SY75_.jpg|3060926] to both [b:Longbourn|17380041|Longbourn|Jo Baker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1452268403l/17380041._SX50_.jpg|24080996] and [b:The Other Bennet Sister|45186556|The Other Bennet Sister|Janice Hadlow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1582124111l/45186556._SY75_.jpg|69908883], this book covers Mary's story, in particular. Without a doubt, Chen's writing was well executed and she achieved a level of empathy and compassion that not all authors can do, even for characters like Lydia! ;)
While both Longbourn and The Other Bennet Sister cover the events in Pride and Prejudice from a different character's perspective, this book, like [b:The Other Bennet Sister|45186556|The Other Bennet Sister|Janice Hadlow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1582124111l/45186556._SY75_.jpg|69908883] covers Mary's point of view. The book is divided into three parts: , the first part of the book spanned Mary's childhood at Longbourn through the engagements of Lizzy and Jane, the second part of the book took place at Pemberley, and the third part of the book took place back at Longbourn and.
While Mary's siblings and family members consider her to be both silly, strange, and useless, not worth investing any time in getting to know her and love her on a deeper level, I felt that her family members were not nearly as deeply cutting in this book than they were in The Other Bennet Sister. This book has many overlaps in terms of storyline with The Other Bennet Sister. Perhaps this is due to the limited characters that could possibly have a potential relationship with Mary. I felt that my favorite character came off looking a lot better and did not fall so far from grace in this book than they did in The Other Bennet Sister, and for that I was grateful.
Chen painted Mary with deep sympathy in this book, and while all her decisions weren't ones that benefitted her, I empathized with and liked her, which wasn't necessarily the case with Austen's original rendering. My slight criticism is that Mary seemed to fall in love, or infatuation, and transfer her feelings from one person to the other easily and without much explanation. I don't think this is because Mary was desperate but perhaps her limited life experiences, combined with her loneliness, was driving her decisions.
If you are a hardcore fan of Pride and Prejudice, you may not enjoy this book but if you can read a Jane Austen with an open mind, not expecting it to be an exact replica of the original, you may enjoy this book. Don't let the unfathomably low ratings for this book scare you away. Based on your rating of this book on your own experience and not someone else's.
While both Longbourn and The Other Bennet Sister cover the events in Pride and Prejudice from a different character's perspective, this book, like [b:The Other Bennet Sister|45186556|The Other Bennet Sister|Janice Hadlow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1582124111l/45186556._SY75_.jpg|69908883] covers Mary's point of view. The book is divided into three parts: , the first part of the book spanned Mary's childhood at Longbourn through the engagements of Lizzy and Jane, the second part of the book took place at Pemberley, and the third part of the book took place back at Longbourn and
Spoiler
back in DerbyshireWhile Mary's siblings and family members consider her to be both silly, strange, and useless, not worth investing any time in getting to know her and love her on a deeper level, I felt that her family members were not nearly as deeply cutting in this book than they were in The Other Bennet Sister. This book has many overlaps in terms of storyline with The Other Bennet Sister. Perhaps this is due to the limited characters that could possibly have a potential relationship with Mary. I felt that my favorite character came off looking a lot better and did not fall so far from grace in this book than they did in The Other Bennet Sister, and for that I was grateful.
Chen painted Mary with deep sympathy in this book, and while all her decisions weren't ones that benefitted her, I empathized with and liked her, which wasn't necessarily the case with Austen's original rendering. My slight criticism is that Mary seemed to fall in love, or infatuation, and transfer her feelings from one person to the other easily and without much explanation. I don't think this is because Mary was desperate but perhaps her limited life experiences, combined with her loneliness, was driving her decisions.
If you are a hardcore fan of Pride and Prejudice, you may not enjoy this book but if you can read a Jane Austen with an open mind, not expecting it to be an exact replica of the original, you may enjoy this book. Don't let the unfathomably low ratings for this book scare you away. Based on your rating of this book on your own experience and not someone else's.
stasiareading's review
3.0
There were parts of this story I liked and enjoyed, but also parts I really did not like.
My main problem was how Lizzy was portrayed in this story.
My main problem was how Lizzy was portrayed in this story.
rosannelortz's review
2.0
The premise of this book was interesting: to tell the story of the forgotten middle sister Mary from Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice. The first part of the book was engaging--Mary's ill-fated interest in Mr. Collins and misapprehension of his character was well-portrayed. But once the events in the final chapter of the original Pride and Prejudice are reached, that's when things begin to go a bit sideways. In order to make Mary a sympathetic character, the characters of those we hold near and dear (particularly Lizzy and Darcy, but also Colonel FitzWilliam) are altered beyond recognition. On the plus side, I found the writing style compelling and the pacing of the story excellent, but surely it should be possible for Mary to find her own Mr. Darcy without sabotaging the life of the Mr. Darcy who we all know and love?
whitreadslit's review
3.0
I have always been a huge fan of Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice has long been my favorite of Austen's works, so when I saw this title on NetGalley, I was rather excited to dive into it. I generally really like retellings of classic stories from one of the side character's perspectives. Getting to hear from Mary Bennet seemed like it would be an interesting and entertaining take on one of my favorite novels.
I will say that, being that this is Chen's first novel, I felt that it was very well written. I felt like she attempted, and achieved, writing in a similar style to Austen. This definitely helped me to feel re-immersed into the world of the Bennet family. I was thoroughly entertained by the entire novel, and was able to finish it in speedy fashion, which is generally a good sign in a novel.
I was a fan of the first section of the book, which deals with the part of the original novel where Mr. Collins comes to visit Longbourn. It has been a long held theory amongst 'Janeites' that Mary, umm, shall we say, 'had a thing' for Mr. Collins, and Chen thoroughly explores this possibility. I was having such a good time with the novel during the first part of the book because I felt like I had been dropped right back into this world that I loved, and was seeing it from a different perspective.
After this first part of the novel is where my problem with the story set in. The remainder of the book takes place after Jane and Elizabeth are each married off to Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy, respectively. Mary goes to Pemberley to stay with Lizzie and Darcy for several months...and here is where things start to go awry.
I am all for having a creative idea for how things might have turned out for these characters after Pride and Prejudice ended, but not to the detriment of the characters themselves. I felt that Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam, Georgiana Darcy, and even Mary Bennet were portrayed in such a way that they would never have actually behaved, given the very fully fleshed-out characters that Austen wrote in her original story. This bothered me immensely, and had me crying out, "They would never do that!!" over and over again. Taking well-loved characters and having them behave completely contrary to how they ever have behaved in the past was just not a great move, in my opinion.
Since these extreme character choices affected my view of the greater portion of the novel, it left me feeling disappointed and dissatisfied. This book had such potential to be a really great story, given that it was very well written and had a great opening section. However, it ended up falling flat for me.
My Rating:
3.0/5.0
I gave Mary B 3 STARS. It was well written and had a strong opening section, but the decision to make a complete departure from how the original characters would behave was highly frustrating for me.
I will say that, being that this is Chen's first novel, I felt that it was very well written. I felt like she attempted, and achieved, writing in a similar style to Austen. This definitely helped me to feel re-immersed into the world of the Bennet family. I was thoroughly entertained by the entire novel, and was able to finish it in speedy fashion, which is generally a good sign in a novel.
I was a fan of the first section of the book, which deals with the part of the original novel where Mr. Collins comes to visit Longbourn. It has been a long held theory amongst 'Janeites' that Mary, umm, shall we say, 'had a thing' for Mr. Collins, and Chen thoroughly explores this possibility. I was having such a good time with the novel during the first part of the book because I felt like I had been dropped right back into this world that I loved, and was seeing it from a different perspective.
After this first part of the novel is where my problem with the story set in. The remainder of the book takes place after Jane and Elizabeth are each married off to Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy, respectively. Mary goes to Pemberley to stay with Lizzie and Darcy for several months...and here is where things start to go awry.
I am all for having a creative idea for how things might have turned out for these characters after Pride and Prejudice ended, but not to the detriment of the characters themselves. I felt that Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam, Georgiana Darcy, and even Mary Bennet were portrayed in such a way that they would never have actually behaved, given the very fully fleshed-out characters that Austen wrote in her original story. This bothered me immensely, and had me crying out, "They would never do that!!" over and over again. Taking well-loved characters and having them behave completely contrary to how they ever have behaved in the past was just not a great move, in my opinion.
Since these extreme character choices affected my view of the greater portion of the novel, it left me feeling disappointed and dissatisfied. This book had such potential to be a really great story, given that it was very well written and had a great opening section. However, it ended up falling flat for me.
My Rating:
3.0/5.0
I gave Mary B 3 STARS. It was well written and had a strong opening section, but the decision to make a complete departure from how the original characters would behave was highly frustrating for me.
crystalvaughan0603's review
2.0
*A few minor spoilers*
[b: Mary B: An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|36505861|Mary B An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|Katherine J. Chen|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1509400038s/36505861.jpg|58223947] started out as a good book. I wanted to like it, but, alas, I was unable to. Mary Bennet is the overlooked Bennet sister. TBH, we find Lydia and Lizzie infinitely more interesting than any of the other sisters. They do things: argue with well-to-do men, run off with ne’er-do-wells, travel and make themselves silly. Alright, so Jane drifts through Lizzie’s story, not actually doing much of anything but be pretty and Kitty chases Lydia chasing men. But they are seen, at least occasionally. But Mary? Beyond her inability to play the piano, all we know of the middle Bennet sister is she is dreadfully plain. All of her sisters are described as attractive, but Mary is just plain. She's such a wallflower, sometimes I think even [a: Jane Austen|1265|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1380085320p2/1265.jpg] forgot about her.
So I was excited for the chance to know Mary Bennet. I wanted to know what she thought of her sisters and their escapades. This novel will start to give you the story, but then it drifts off into fanfiction. Mary B. does things that I don’t think Mary Bennet would have ever done. While her relationship with Mr. Collins does ring true, I can’t say the same for her relationship with Mr. Darcy or his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. And the most interesting potential relationship (with her father) and her feelings for it are never fully explored in my mind.
The only other Bennet sister we truly focus on is Lizzie, and that's surely only because Mary has come to visit her in Pemberley. There is surprisingly little room for another woman in Mary's story. Lizzie is *SPOILER ALERT* pregnant and none too happy about it. She spends most of her time in her room, not really interacting much with her sister or husband. In fact, her personality and relationship with Darcy are so very different from what we see at the end of Pride and Prejudice as to be from an entirely different universe.
Indeed, the only woman besides Lizzie who spends time with Mary is Charlotte who jumped on the grenade that was Mr. Collins (bless her heart and I hope she made it to literary heaven). Charlotte is not treated with any more respect than Lizzie is. She is so changed from Pride and Prejudice and even earlier in this book as to be completely unrecognizable.
Mary B. denigrates her sisters, judging them as spoiled and unworthy. Again, aside from the first third of the book, these do not feel like the same characters that Jane Austen created. I would have loved to see Mary Bennet find her own way without some of the missteps that I feel she would never have made.
[b: Mary B: An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|36505861|Mary B An Untold Story of Pride and Prejudice|Katherine J. Chen|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1509400038s/36505861.jpg|58223947] started out as a good book. I wanted to like it, but, alas, I was unable to. Mary Bennet is the overlooked Bennet sister. TBH, we find Lydia and Lizzie infinitely more interesting than any of the other sisters. They do things: argue with well-to-do men, run off with ne’er-do-wells, travel and make themselves silly. Alright, so Jane drifts through Lizzie’s story, not actually doing much of anything but be pretty and Kitty chases Lydia chasing men. But they are seen, at least occasionally. But Mary? Beyond her inability to play the piano, all we know of the middle Bennet sister is she is dreadfully plain. All of her sisters are described as attractive, but Mary is just plain. She's such a wallflower, sometimes I think even [a: Jane Austen|1265|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1380085320p2/1265.jpg] forgot about her.
So I was excited for the chance to know Mary Bennet. I wanted to know what she thought of her sisters and their escapades. This novel will start to give you the story, but then it drifts off into fanfiction. Mary B. does things that I don’t think Mary Bennet would have ever done. While her relationship with Mr. Collins does ring true, I can’t say the same for her relationship with Mr. Darcy or his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. And the most interesting potential relationship (with her father) and her feelings for it are never fully explored in my mind.
The only other Bennet sister we truly focus on is Lizzie, and that's surely only because Mary has come to visit her in Pemberley. There is surprisingly little room for another woman in Mary's story. Lizzie is *SPOILER ALERT* pregnant and none too happy about it. She spends most of her time in her room, not really interacting much with her sister or husband. In fact, her personality and relationship with Darcy are so very different from what we see at the end of Pride and Prejudice as to be from an entirely different universe.
Indeed, the only woman besides Lizzie who spends time with Mary is Charlotte who jumped on the grenade that was Mr. Collins (bless her heart and I hope she made it to literary heaven). Charlotte is not treated with any more respect than Lizzie is. She is so changed from Pride and Prejudice and even earlier in this book as to be completely unrecognizable.
Mary B. denigrates her sisters, judging them as spoiled and unworthy. Again, aside from the first third of the book, these do not feel like the same characters that Jane Austen created. I would have loved to see Mary Bennet find her own way without some of the missteps that I feel she would never have made.
hellohellomaria's review
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Lovers of Pride and Prejudice may not love this as so many of the characters have bad outcomes - but it is an interesting read. At times I felt Mary's character development was not quite believable - she grew a lot.