As you all know, I just love Pride and Prejudice, and all the Janeite retellings of this classic novel, so I was absolutely delighted to be assigned this one for ManyBooks:
In Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation, Alice McVeigh retells the familiar story, while adding new scenes, using almost entirely familiar characters. This adds more depth to the story we all love. In this retelling, the author looks at two questions that have long plagued Pride and Prejudice readers. First, why isn’t Darcy already married? And secondly, why doesn’t Mr. Collins notice and propose to Mary?
If it really is a truth universally acknowledged that Bingley must be in want of a wife, why isn’t Darcy in the same category? He’s single, handsome, and even richer than Bingley. Why hasn’t he been married off before the novel opens?
In this retelling, we get several chapters from Darcy’s perspective, describing the experiences that have led him to this point. Darcy, the ultimate book boyfriend, reveals a previous romance, and the novel shows not just how Darcy felt and behaved, but the current fallout. Without too much of a reveal, readers may see how a certain volatile, dramatic woman who places a bit too much emphasis on Darcy’s background might make him extra wary of social climber Mrs. Bennet. This look into Darcy’s past also deepens and develops his relationships with the familiar characters Bingley and Colonel Fitzwilliam, all without contradicting the original novel.
Second, as many readers and retellings have wondered, why doesn’t Mr Collins notice Mary? Collins is pompous and loves to hear himself talk while Mary likes to see herself as a deep thinker, so she could be impressed with that, and then Collins would be happy to have an admirer, which sounds like romance forever, and the entail is settled. Right? In this retelling, we get a satisfying explanation, as well as additional scenes from Mary’s perspective.
Read the full review here: Editorial Review: Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation by Alice McVeigh
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Why does this book assume that the opening line is only about Bingley, and not about Darcy as well? It is a generalization that applies to all single men of fortune. That Bingley is new to the area makes him a new object of the gossip. Plus, everyone already knows now elusive Darcy is, and since he's from the area, he's old news. As for Collins... he wants the "catch" not the leftovers, because he thinks too highly of himself to settle for less. I'm thinking I won't be reading this, because I don't agree with the basic premise.