Jane Austen Month: Book Review: The Plight of the Darcy Brothers

Author: Marsha Altman (http://marshaaltman.wordpress.com/book-2/) 
No of Pages: 366

Publication House: Sourcebooks Landmark
Date of Publication: 1st August, 2009

Genre: Classic 
Series: Pride and Prejudice Continues
Buy: Almost

Summary: (from goodreads.com)

In this lively second installment, the Darcys and Bingleys are plunged into married life and its many accompanying challenges presented by family and friends.

With Jane and Elizabeth away, Darcy and Bingley take on the daunting task of managing their two-year- old children. Mary Bennet returns from the Continent pregnant by an Italian student promised to the church; Darcy and Elizabeth travel to find the father, and discover previously unknown and shocking Darcy relations. By the time Darcy discovers that there's more than one sibling of questionable birth in the family, the ever-dastardly Wickham arrives on the scene to try to seize the Darcy fortune once and for all.

** The book had been sent by the author for an honest review and by no means the review is biased/influenced**

STAR RATING: 4/5

DESCRIPTION IN ONE LINE: Full of surprises at every single page. 

Title: The title made me go DARCY BROTHERS!!!!!!! There were no Darcy brothers till now all of a sudden.....there has to be family secrets around here and that too messy ones. It is curious enough to pick it up and go through it.

Title Rating: 4/5

Cover: The cover shows me a serious fight going on between the Darcy Brothers...I supposed that as it ought to be something shocking. 

Cover Rating: 4/5

Characters: Take a look at the complete list of characters here: P&P Continues Characters right here: The story has Darcy's two illegitimate brothers and honestly I liked the one so timid and faithful. As he hasn't seen the outer world he is so innocent that you can not want to not like him. Wichkam was a surprise in himself and had his moment of heroism which was not palatable to me. Mary who was the ideal child had a most surprising turn and the guy responsible was a mystery in itself.

Characters Rating:4/5

Review: The story takes the Darcy and emotionally stressed Elizabeth in order to protect the reputation of Elizabeth's sister Mary but they have no clue that they shall be discovering secrets which will change the entire sanctity of his father's image in Darcy's mind. Even though he is having a hard time believing things but he loves his brother immensely and is ready to go to any lengths to make him safe and tell the society his real identity. A real page turner and fast paced. I couldn't keep it down till I got to the very end.

Review Rating: 4/5

Appreciation: The book had unexpected twists and turns and the little Mr Darcy is a complete darling.

Let Downs: No matter what, Wichkam's true identity was not palatable. 

Final Verdict: Great improvement than the first book as the narration got a lot better and as you go from one book to other you just love it automatically. The twists and turns keep the journey alive.

Would I be reading more from MARSH ALTMAN: Yes the entire series is worth reading and immensely enjoyable.

The book is available here: Plight of the Darcy Brothers: A tale of the Darcys & the Bingleys (The Pride & Prejudice Continues)

Here are the previous blogs in Jane Austen month:
Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Volume 1
Pemberley to Waterloo: Volume 2
Kitty Bennet's Diary: Volume 3
Anna Elliott's exclusive interview: Behind the Books with Anna Elliott
The Darcys and the Bingleys: Book 1
Marsha Altman's exclusive interview: Behind the Books with Marsha Altman

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page

Behind The Books with Marsha Altman: Jane Austen Month

Today on our blog we have Marsha Altman who shares my love for Jane Austen books and has taken her legacy forward in form of Pride and Prejudice Continues. She is an author and historian specializing in Rabbinic literature in late antiquity. She is also an expert on Jane Austen sequels, having read nearly all of them. She works in publishing and is writing a series continuing the story of the Darcys and Bingleys. A resident of New York city and P&P lover. Here are her responses to my explicit questioning to her:   

1. What drew towards writing in first place and at what age you took up your pen?

I do not remember not wanting to be a writer, but then again I also don't remember a lot from before I knew how to read and write. Before the age of three children are not as able to form long-term memories.

2. Why did you take up writing Pride and Prejudice? Has Jane Austen be an inspiration for you from the beginning?

I had read her and seen the miniseries when I was a teenager, but I got interested again after the 2005 movie and this started the whole series.

3. Which character from the Pride and Prejudice book do you relate yourself to and why?

If any woman on earth answers anything other than "Elizabeth Bennet" she is a liar.

4. Who is your favorite besides Darcy?

Mr. Bingley. Poor Mr. Bingley. When you read the book the first time you think the book's going to be about him, and then it isn't. He's like the fake-out in the beginning of a Law and Order episode, where there's an initial suspect and then they rule him out and you don't see him much for the rest of the episode.

5. Does any of the characters from your books relates to anyone from your own family?

Georgiana Bingley's first words (in The Plight of the Darcy Brothers) are a version of my own first words. I didn't say individual words first, I just was quiet for a long time and then I said a full sentence, and like Mrs. Bingley, my mother almost passed out from the shock. Any other relatives who might have inspired characters would probably rather not know about it so I'm not going to say their names in case they google themselves. 

6. Who is your favorite writer and which book have you read repetitively?

This is a trick question, right?

7. From where do you take inspiration for the names of your characters?

I tried to stick to the naming conventions of the Georgian period, i.e. naming everyone some version of the name George, and having children given the same name as their fathers, but of course that got very confusing very fast, especially when I learned rather late in editing the series that in that time period they didn't use Roman numerals for non-kings to distinguish generations, just Elder and Younger. Then a lot of people ended up getting nicknames, like Georgiana became Georgie, and Charles Bingley's son Charles became Charlie. When I expanded out there were some Daniels and Brians because I was just running dry on English monarch first names. Some of the foreign names are just pulled from books I was reading at the time (I was reading "Lady Audley's Secret" when I wrote Book 6, which has a character named Detective Audley, and Alison Darcy is named after the Wife of Bath in the Canterbury Tales, which I was reading for class at the same time I was writing the scene where her mother reading it) or the names of foreign historical figures when naming foreigners, so I knew that the name was in use at that time period and isn't newer.  There is one character, Saul Franklin, who appears later in the series and is the only reoccurring American character, and he's named after my great-grandfather, and his son Edward is named after my grandfather.

8. If you would have got a chance to meet with Jane Austen in person what would've you asked from her?

"So you've been dead for a while. What happens when we die? I've always been curious."

9. Do you ever wish the you could change some incident of the story to entirely something else?

You mean, other than the historical mistakes I made because I hadn't done enough research and when I went to edit them there was no way to work them out of the plot?

10. Message to all your readers and your upcoming projects?

Book 10 comes out this winter, and closes the series. I'm working on a satire of a thriller, and I've published a Kindle Worlds book for the "Wayward Pines" genre, but I'll hopefully be returning to my true love, science fiction. Whatever I publish going forward that I want people to know about will probably be published under the name Marsha Morman, though it will show up on the Marsha Altman site. Authors often use different pen names for different genres so people don't get confused about what they're getting when they go to read all of the titles of a particular author.

It was a pleasure getting to know Marsha and here's the link to her official website: http://marshaaltman.wordpress.com

You can also find my reviews of Jane Austen Month:

>Georgiana Darcy's Diary

>Pemberley to Waterloo

>Kitty Bennet's Diary
>Behind the books with Anna Elliott

>Darcys and the Bingleys
>Plight of the Darcy Brothers

I'll be reviewing more of her works when I get the chance.

You can Buy Marsha Altman's books from amazon.com . This link redirects you to her amazon.com page where all her works can be found out for purchase or gifts.

**This material cannot be copied or used without the author's permission. **

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page

Jane Austen Month: Book Review: The Darcys & The Bingleys

Author: Marsha Altman (http://marshaaltman.wordpress.com/book-1/) 
No of Pages: 432

Publication House: Sourcebooks Landmark
Date of Publication: 1st September, 2008

Genre: Classic 
Series: Pride and Prejudice Continues
Buy: Definitely

Summary: (from goodreads.com)

A Tale of Two Gentlemen's Marriages to Two Most Devoted Sisters

Three days before their double wedding, Charles Bingley is desperate to have a word with his dear friend Fitzwilliam Darcy, seeking advice of a most delicate nature. Bingley is shocked when Darcy gives him a copy of an ancient, illustrated book of sensual secrets-but it does tell him everything he needs to know.

Eventually, of course, Jane finds this remarkable volume and in utmost secrecy shows it to her dear sister Elizabeth, who goes searching for a copy in the Pemberley library...

By turns hilarious and sweet, The Darcys & the Bingleys follows the two couples and the cast of characters surrounding them. Miss Caroline Bingley, it turns out, has such good reasons for being the way she is that the reader can't help but hold her in charity. Delightfully, she makes a most eligible match, and in spite of Darcy's abhorrence of being asked for advice, he and Bingley have a most enduring and adventure-prone friendship.

** The book had been sent by the author for an honest review and by no means the review is biased/influenced**

STAR RATING: 4/5

DESCRIPTION IN ONE LINE: The humour mixed with the P&P magic makes the perfect recipe of a good read. 

Title: The book title shows that there is going to be an equal focus on the Darcy and Bingley families as P&P moves further from the joint wedding of Fitzwilliam and Charles with Elizabeth and Jane. 

Title Rating: 4/5

Cover: The cover is vibrant and compliments the story and makes us expectant to what might the book have as we turn the pages.

Cover Rating: 4/5

Characters: The characters in the story get a witty twist and they have taken up comical outlook towards life which makes them more lovable. Caroline finally seems to overcome her pride and accept the reality of love and life. Besides the Pride and Prejudice characters there is a Lord Kincaid with a shady character and the multilingual  doctor who seems out a rare choice by the lady in question.

Characters Rating:4/5

Review: The book opens right with the talk of Kamasutra and I was like no no no this isn't my P&P. I just wondered if Jane Austen knew she might term it as a vulgarity. As I kept reading on there was the talk about the marital bliss but it didn't cross any limits and could be termed as almost appropriate. Then as the story moved to Caroline it took a turn for the fun and at some instances I was forced to actually let a chuckle or two out. The story keeps a smile on the face intact.

Review Rating: 3.5/5

Appreciation: This books makes you go LOL literally and the point where Darcy is taken advantage of his drugged condition was the best in this particular book. 

Let Downs: The opening got me really shocked as it was not something a classic novel is supposed to have.

Final Verdict: This book makes a decent read and although the first half was not that brilliant it bore promise and it did end well. Although I don't like the idea of Darcy being in harm's way.

Would I be reading more from MARSH ALTMAN: Yes the author bears promise and I shall be reading more.

The book is available here: Darcys & the Bingleys: Pride and Prejudice continues

Here are the previous blogs in Jane Austen month:
Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Volume 1
Pemberley to Waterloo: Volume 2
Kitty Bennet's Diary: Volume 3
Anna Elliott's exclusive interview: Behind the Books with Anna Elliott

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page

Behind The Books with Anna Elliott: Jane Austen Month

Today on our blog we have Anna Elliott who shares my love for Jane Austen books and has taken her legacy forward in form of Pride and Prejudice Chronicles. A resident of Washington DC she is a mother of affectionate mother to two daughters who are a constant source of inspiration to her and a doting husband. Her books have been loved by readers worldwide and having a conversation with her I have found have an extremely charming personality and so likable by anyone and everyone. She has an amazing and impressive number of titles in her kitty and her books are the kind that make you eager to know the end. She researches her topics well which make you feel the emotions of the character's of her books. Here are her responses to my explicit questioning to her:   

1. What drew towards writing in first place and at what age you took up your pen?

I've been writing stories for as long as I've been able to write, really. I can remember in first or second grade writing a long story called 'Ice Cream Land' about a character who travels to a land made of candy and ice cream.  I've been entertaining myself by making up stories ever since. :)

2. Why did you take up writing Pride and Prejudice Chronicles?I love Pride and Prejudice and just really wanted to know what might have happened to the characters after the close of the book.  I love that world so much that I wanted more!  It was a privilege to be able to imagine myself into Jane Austen's immortal novel.

3. Has Jane Austen be an inspiration for you from the beginning?I've loved Jane Austen from the first time I read one of her books, which I think was in my early teens.  Her amazing wit and vividly drawn characters are a constant inspiration.

4. Which character from the Pride and Prejudice book do you relate yourself to, and why?I've always felt the strongest connection to Georgiana.  She's hardly described at all, and yet I felt very drawn to her.  Maybe because she's described as shy, and I've spent most of my life being shy, too.

5. Georgiana's character was the least described in the entire book how did you manage to build an entire character with such limited instances of her interaction?Maybe because I've always felt the most connected to Georgiana, hercharacter just sprang to life for me right from the start.  As soon as Istarted writing, I could hear her voice as I imagined it would be.

6. Does any of the characters from your books relates to your own daughters and husband?Interesting question!  Probably not in terms of actual personality traits, but I definitely base relationships in my books on relationships in my real life.  Georgiana and Edward are really friends as well as being in love; they laugh together, they talk, they share a sense of humor. At least, I hope that comes through in the story, and that's definitely the case with my husband and me.  Likewise, my daughters at 5 and 8 are obviously much younger than any of the Bennet sisters, but the sisterly relationships and friendships between all of them are very much based on my girls.  I don't have any sisters myself, but I have a ring-side seat to observing every day just how close the sisterly bond is, even when you're driving each other a little crazy. :)

7. Who is your favourite writer and which book have you read repetitively?

Oh gosh-- too many to list, really.  I love classic mysteries, and have read Agatha Christie's books more times than I can count, as well as Dorothy L Sayers and Patricia Wentworth.  I love Mary Stewart's books. Ire-read the Little House on the Prairie series every few years, and thesame goes for Maud Hart Lovelace's Betsy-Tacy series.  Obviously I love Jane Austen, too!

8. From where do you take inspiration for the names of your characters?I looked at first names that were popular during the Regency era, and then for last names, I read through lists of English surnames.  I always try to choose a name that matches the feeling I have about a character.

9. If you would have got a chance to meet with Jane Austen in person what would've you asked from her?I would love to know how her unfinished books (the Watsons and Sanditon) would have ended if she'd had the chance to finish writing them!

10. Do you ever wish the you could change some incident of the story to entirely something else?Oddly enough, I can't remember ever wishing that I could change anything. I think Jane Austen's original story is just so wonderful that there's nothing at all that can be improved.

11. What made you include the lovely illustrations in your stories?I have a gorgeously illustrated version of Pride and Prejudice that my husband bought for me as a gift.  I love how the illustrations compliment the text, and just wanted to evoke some of that same feeling in my books. I'm lucky enough to have a friend (Laura) who's an amazing artist!

12. Message to all your readers and your upcoming projects? (Please say there's going to be more in the P&P Chronicles....heheh because I loved them so much I don't want them to end)Later this winter I have a novella coming out as part of a compilation of Regency Romance stories.  Mine is a prequel to Georgiana Darcy's Diary, centering on Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy and focusing on the weeks leading up to their wedding.  I'm really excited to share it with everyone, it was tons of fun to write!

It was a pleasure getting to know Anna and here's the link to her official website: http://www.annaelliottbooks.com/index.php

You can also find my reviews of her books here:
>Georgiana Darcy's Diary
>Pemberley to Waterloo
>Kitty Bennet's Diary
I'll be reviewing more of her works when I get the chance.

You can Buy Anna Elliott's books from amazon.com . This link redirects you to her amazon.com page where all her works can be found out for purchase or gifts.

Here are the links for all the books which are currently available for free:
Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice continued (Pride and Prejudice Chronicles Book 1)
Dawn of Avalon
The Witch Queen's Secret
Susanna and the Spy

**This material cannot be copied or used without the author's permission. **

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page

Jane Austen Month: Book Review: Kitty Bennet's Diary

Author: Anna Elliott (www.annaelliottbooks.com) 
No of Pages: 231

Publication House: Wilton Press
Date of Publication: 15th March, 2013

Genre: Classic Romance
Series: Pride and Prejudice
Buy: For Sure!
Borrow: For no reason leave it behind

Summary: (from goodreads.com)

Kitty Bennet is finished with love and romance. She lost her one-time fiance in the Battle of Waterloo, and in the battle's aftermath saw more ugliness and suffering than she could bear. Staying with her Aunt and Uncle Gardiner in London for the winter, Kitty throws her energies into finding a husband for her hopelessly bookish sister Mary, and discovering whatever mysterious trouble is worrying her sister Jane. But then she meets Mr. Lancelot Dalton, a handsome clergyman with a shadowed past--and discovers that though she may be finished with love, love may not be at all finished with her.

Kitty Bennet's Diary is Volume 3 of the Pride and Prejudice Chronicles. It can be read alone, but refers to events from Volumes 1 and 2. Kitty Bennet's Diary is appropriate for all ages.

** The book had been sent by the author for an honest review and by no means the review is biased/influenced**

STAR RATING: 4/5

DESCRIPTION IN ONE LINE: The near perfect close to the series.

Title: The title was appropriate as it shows that the focus has moved from Georgiana to Kitty as the former had found her closure and Kitty was still left hanging with her emotions. 

Title Rating: 4/5

Cover: The cover maintained the depicting a scene from the story but that building doesn't justify anywhere from the story. The cover could have been better than this but this is a personal opinion and others might choose to differ from it.

Cover Rating: 3.5/5

Characters: KITTY: The old immature Kitty is found nowhere and is replaced by a girl full of self reproach and fully sensible. She has decided to let no person be allowed to bypass her rigid mental wall that she has built around herself. There are so many things bothering her emotionally but she finally found that she could be phoenix.

LANCELOT: Scarred from within but strong from the outside. He is a man with a golden heart who appears most interestingly to rescue his damsel in distress. His encounters and behaviour towards Kitty is most musing and kept me turning page after page.

Characters Rating:4/5

Review: The story finally takes a turn from serious to amusing. The dialogues made me laugh out loud. Kitty has decided to get Mary married and become a proper society woman but she has no clue that while helping Mary come out of her shell and bringing Jane's misfortune to an end she'll lose her heart to a man who shares her concerns and has been scarred from the same battle but just mentally. Her discovery of love is most entertaining and from book 1 to 3 the story took turn towards exciting.

Review Rating: 4/5

Appreciation: This books USP was the wit and humour in the dialogues which refresh your mind from usual blandness of your life and make the characters so much more interesting.

Let Downs: I will openly admit that out of the entire series this book was the one I loved the most so I don't feel there were any letdowns in the plot or the story.

Final Verdict: This book has its own set of charms and Mary, Kitty and Jane were all who made us believe that there can be a story without Elizabeth stealing the show. (Although Elizabeth will always be my favourite)

Would I be reading more from ANNA ELLIOTT: Good reading material is always every author's dream so I shall buy some more for my kindle.

The book is available here: Kitty Bennet's Diary (Pride and Prejudice Chronicles Book 3)

Next in the line is an exclusive interview by Anna Elliott:

Here are the previous reviews in this series:
Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Volume 1
Pemberley to Waterloo: Volume 2

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page

Jane Austen Month: Book Review: Pemberley to Waterloo

Author: Anna Elliott (www.annaelliottbooks.com) 
No of Pages: 276

Publication House: Wilton Press
Date of Publication: 25th December, 2011

Genre: Classic Romance
Series: Pride and Prejudice
Buy: Go Ahead!
Borrow: Don't miss the chance, it's emotional

Summary: (from goodreads.com)

Can their love withstand the trials of war?

Georgiana Darcy and Edward Fitzwilliam want only to be together. But when the former Emperor Napoleon escapes from his exile on the Isle of Elba, Britain is plunged into renewed war with France ... and Edward is once more called away to fight.

To be with the man she loves, Georgiana makes the perilous journey to Brussels, in time to witness the historic downfall of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. But when Edward is gravely injured in the battle, she will need more courage than she ever knew she had to fight for their future together.

** The book had been sent by the author for an honest review and by no means the review is biased/influenced**

STAR RATING: 4/5

DESCRIPTION IN ONE LINE: Emotional drive, wells up the heart.

Title: W for Waterloo and W for War.....they are synonyms of a sort in every person's memory. The title is apt as it's the journey of Ms Darcy from her beautiful estate of Pemberley to the gloomy misfortune of Waterloo.

Title Rating: 4/5

Cover: The cover is certainly better than the last book as it depicts a scene from the book and makes the reader curious about the contents of the book.

Cover Rating: 4/5

Characters: GEORGIANA: She emerged as one of the strongest lady who has the capacity to endure every hardship and still stay optimistic. She doesn't get scared on tending the wounds and seeing the dying people. She was feeling depressed but kept her calm for the sake of everyone. She is no longer afraid of her past that threatens her integrity and faces Wickham with candor. 

EDWARD: A battle is something from which a person cannot come unscathed physically and mentally. He lost his ability to see and went through all the general emotions a guy  goes through in such a scenario. He wanted to open up his heart to his betrothed but he was frustrated from his condition. We feel pity for him but can't stop loving his for his brave attitude and his sincerity.

KITTY: The immature girl grew up through this journey facing the horrors of war. She went through a complete transformation from a girl who was mindless and almost had a blow to her reputation due to a potential scandal. She became a woman from the carefree flirtatious girl. 

Characters Rating:4/5

Review: After reading the first book I was really eager to read the next in the series. I could feel the joy of the Darcy's new born, Georgiana's worry, her tender care for the suffering of the unknown and her patience with Edward. I went through the ride of the emotions as the story moved forward and couldn't leave it till the last page.

Review Rating: 4/5

Appreciation: The real time description of the war connected me to the battle as if I witnessed it and felt as if I was right there in the pages of the book.

Let Downs: There are errors a bit here and there but by no means they are disrupting the story at any point.

Final Verdict: The story gave me a combination of romance mixed with the war's negativity and it made a deadly combination which gets a reader hooked to the story and I was glad Georgiana found her happy ever after.

Would I be reading more from ANNA ELLIOTT: Definitely. I'm going to review the next one in the series pretty soon and shall wait out for new ones from her.

The book is available here: amazon.com

Next in the line is:

Here is the previous review of Georgiana Darcy's Diary: Pemberley to Waterloo: Georgiana Darcy's Diary, Volume 2
Coming soon is a candid interview with ANNA ELLIOTT. So keep reading and feedback is most welcome :)

To get your book reviewed you may contact me on:

Email: inextrica.sukriti@gmail.com

Facebook: Sukriti Goyal

Goodreads: Sukriti

Library Thing: My page

Book Blogs: My page