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Love at First Slight
It may not be universally acknowledged, but the unvarnished truth is that a young widow in possession of a good fortune is not necessarily in want of another husband.
In this humorous, topsy-turvy Pride & Prejudice variation, all major gender roles are reversed. It is Mr. Bennet’s greatest wish to see his five sons advantageously married. When the haughty Miss Elizabeth Darcy comes to Netherfield with the Widow Devonport (nee Bingley), speculation — and prejudice — runs rampant.
William Bennet, a reluctant and irreverent reverend, catches Miss Darcy’s eye, even though he is beneath her station. His opinion of her is fixed when she slights him at the Meryton assembly. As her ardour grows, so does his disdain. When she fully expects to receive an offer of marriage, he gives her something else entirely . . .
In this humorous, topsy-turvy Pride & Prejudice variation, all major gender roles are reversed. It is Mr. Bennet’s greatest wish to see his five sons advantageously married. When the haughty Miss Elizabeth Darcy comes to Netherfield with the Widow Devonport (nee Bingley), speculation — and prejudice — runs rampant.
William Bennet, a reluctant and irreverent reverend, catches Miss Darcy’s eye, even though he is beneath her station. His opinion of her is fixed when she slights him at the Meryton assembly. As her ardour grows, so does his disdain. When she fully expects to receive an offer of marriage, he gives her something else entirely . . .
344 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 29, 2013
30 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
About the author
J. Marie Croft
15 books37 followersJ. Marie Croft (Joanne) is a life-long resident of Nova Scotia, Canada, but spends a lot of time in Regency England with Jane Austen's beloved characters. She has written a dozen Austenesque stories: three novels, three novellas, and six short stories for anthologies. Joanne shares with her husband a love of their adult twin daughters, a spoiled calico cat, the great outdoors, geocaching, and British crime dramas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
March 18, 2014
I was so excited to read this book when I heard the premise; Pride and Prejudice, but with the genders swapped! So we see Miss Elizabeth Darcy, the proud granddaughter of an Earl, going into Hertfordshire to stay at the estate of the Widow Davenport (nee Bingley) where she meets William Bennet, one of five brothers, and a very poor match for an heiress like her. I thought this was a very interesting idea. I know there are Pride and Prejudice-inspired books out there with a gender-swap element, but the ones I know of are modern, and I thought that a historical gender-swap would be harder to make work due to societal constraints at the time.
The Characters: Firstly, not all of the characters are changed, although nearly all the main ones are - I thought this was entertaining in its own right in a lot of cases. Mr Bennet is a slave to his nerves, and determined to get his 5 sons married. Mrs Bennet is a reclusive alcoholic.
‘In no particular order of precedence, Flora’s main occupations were reading ribald romances, sampling grapes in all their myriad, fermented forms, and maintaining her husband’s frangible nerves’
There are five Bennet brothers, but the order is different from Pride and Prejudice. Here Martin (Mary) is the eldest and the heir to Longbourn, followed by the handsome Charles (Jane) who is apprenticed to Uncle Gardiner. William (Elizabeth) is next, he is training to be a clergyman and will be in line for the living that Longbourn can award, once the present incumbent inherits an estate, which is expected soon. William doesn’t feel he’s well-suited to be a clergyman, his dream would be to inherit an estate. Twins Christopher (Kitty) and Laurence (Lydia) follow, they are intended for the army.
The family are friends to the Lucas brothers and all look forward to the arrival of Mrs Davenport’s party, the supercilious Bingley brothers (Casper Bingley in particular I found very amusing, due to his foppish clothes and Miss Darcy’s distain for him). When Mr William Bennet meets Miss Darcy, he asks her to dance and is turned down with little ceremony, deemed only tolerable. He is teased by practically everybody about this, and his vanity turns him against Miss Darcy, so that he doesn’t realise when she falls prey to his ‘smouldering eyes’:
‘With a start, Elizabeth realised she had stared for what must have been an improper extent. Proper duration for ogling deacons was not a subject touched upon at the London seminary she had attended.’
Unfortunately for Miss Darcy, William doesn’t appreciate that she has feelings for him and he dislikes her heartily, although he feels attraction for her that he fights against admitting.
‘William’s hand dropped to his side and developed a quiver. He slowly backed away. The woman is downright dangerous. A god-awful jolt from her hand at Netherfield, and now she is the source of inexplicable palsy. Heaven help de Bourgh should he embrace her’
I thought it was interesting to see the characters with their genders swapped, William Bennet is a much less alpha male type than Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (understandable, as Darcy causes many events to happen, a role taken on by Miss Darcy here), but he’s quite light hearted and loveable. I was not impressed with his rudeness towards Miss Darcy though! Miss Darcy was a very interesting character. She was quite spoiled and used to getting anything she wanted, willing to be a bit improper and forward in achieving this aim, rude and snobby, but she was quite different behind closed doors, sweet, loving, and hoping to be loved in return. This brings me on to my next point...
Sexism – I wasn’t expecting to get this from reading the book but the way I reacted to the characters’ qualities differed when applied to the opposite gender. I really wasn’t expecting this, and it caused me to wonder how far I have double standards between the sexes. For example, the Hunsford scene in Pride and Prejudice left me feeling extremely sorry for Mr Darcy, but also fairly sorry for Elizabeth Bennet as it was a bolt out of the blue. There is a Hunsford-style scene here and I didn’t have much sympathy for William Bennet, in fact, I wanted to line up behind Lady Cassandra Fitzwilliam (Colonel Fitzwilliam!) for his blood due to his lack of gentlemanliness. Nearly all my sympathy in this scene was reserved for Miss Darcy, and the amount of forgiving she has to do over the course of the book made me feel that she was almost saintly. This certainly gave me new appreciation for Mr Darcy in P&P, the man takes on a family from a lower social class, who are not especially good company for somebody who he has loved steadfastly even though they’ve made their disdain of him clear and it’s cost him a load of money to do so! It also highlighted to me how many instances of rudeness towards Elizabeth Bennet just exist in her head, viewed through her prejudices.
Miss Collins is another character I felt differently about than her male counterpart in Pride and Prejudice, but I put this down to societal reasons – Mr Collins was full of self-importance, and Miss Collins had to be more humble, and I found her much more likable as a result, as does her cousin.
The Difficulties – The difficulties with gender swap in a historical setting seem to me to be how you get key events to happen. Getting Mr Bennet to ask Miss Darcy to dance when he doesn’t want to isn’t too hard, you have to get him forced into a situation where it would be rude not to ask (Elizabeth is impertinent to Darcy, but she doesn’t cross the line to absolute rudeness until Hunsford), the real difficulty is getting a Hunsford style scene – how can you get a situation where William Bennet would be so rude as to tell a lady that she’s the last lady in the world he would ever marry?
Also, to my understanding, a gentleman wouldn’t usually ask a lady of a higher social class to marry him, unless he had a fine fortune, which Mr Bennet doesn’t have. It’s particularly problematic that Miss Darcy is an heiress, as a man with no money proposing to a woman with a lot of it would very likely be seen as a fortune hunter by the lady’s relatives (and in 20-year old Miss Darcy’s case, her guardian, the Earl). When you add to this the fact that he doesn’t initially want to marry her at all it becomes especially problematic! I also couldn’t foresee how Laurence could be endangered by Miss Wickham. I will be fair to Ms Croft, she manages to work around all of these issues in what I felt was a plausible way, although I despaired as to how it would be possible.
The Story – the story is largely very similar, although there are areas which differ as Miss Darcy would obviously have less say over her life and movements than Mr Darcy would, although she is one hell of a heroine, she is a lady who makes things happen! There were some differences in storyline that I felt differed unnecessarily from the original, but other changes were necessary due to the gender reversal. Since Pride and Prejudice is more focused on Elizabeth’s viewpoint this is also focused on William Bennet’s view of things. I would have liked a bit more Miss Darcy, but we don’t get more Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice so I accept this!
The Wordplay – Ms Croft is obviously a lover of words, and there are quite a few puns and instances of alliteration. If you don’t like these they may begin to grate on you, but I don’t mind them. There are quite a few word-plays within the text that gave me a smile:
‘ “Pig-headedness runs in the family, as I have often reminded you.” “And I have steadfastly refused to believe it.” ‘
The Areas I Felt Could Have Been Improved – Not much actually. There was the odd American word like ‘dang’ and I thought there was too much mild swearing, feeling that gentleman should have refined the language a touch more around ladies. There were some things I might like to have been different, but when I thought about it, often these were reflections of Pride and Prejudice, for example, I would have liked more time in Elizabeth’s head, but we get very little of Darcy’s feelings in P&P so it was fitting.
In Conclusion: I really enjoyed this book. I liked the initial gender swap premise, I enjoyed how the author changed things around to make it work and I appreciated that it made me reflect on my own reactions and consider new things about the original story. I found the book very readable, in fact I read the first 70% in one sitting and gave myself a headache because I didn’t want to put it down! I just couldn’t see how the author could give this couple a happy ending. I found myself thinking about this book after I read it, which is always a good sign, and I had LOADS I wanted to say about it, so kudos to you if you’ve made it to the end! For these reasons, I would rate this book as a 5 star read.
The Characters: Firstly, not all of the characters are changed, although nearly all the main ones are - I thought this was entertaining in its own right in a lot of cases. Mr Bennet is a slave to his nerves, and determined to get his 5 sons married. Mrs Bennet is a reclusive alcoholic.
‘In no particular order of precedence, Flora’s main occupations were reading ribald romances, sampling grapes in all their myriad, fermented forms, and maintaining her husband’s frangible nerves’
There are five Bennet brothers, but the order is different from Pride and Prejudice. Here Martin (Mary) is the eldest and the heir to Longbourn, followed by the handsome Charles (Jane) who is apprenticed to Uncle Gardiner. William (Elizabeth) is next, he is training to be a clergyman and will be in line for the living that Longbourn can award, once the present incumbent inherits an estate, which is expected soon. William doesn’t feel he’s well-suited to be a clergyman, his dream would be to inherit an estate. Twins Christopher (Kitty) and Laurence (Lydia) follow, they are intended for the army.
The family are friends to the Lucas brothers and all look forward to the arrival of Mrs Davenport’s party, the supercilious Bingley brothers (Casper Bingley in particular I found very amusing, due to his foppish clothes and Miss Darcy’s distain for him). When Mr William Bennet meets Miss Darcy, he asks her to dance and is turned down with little ceremony, deemed only tolerable. He is teased by practically everybody about this, and his vanity turns him against Miss Darcy, so that he doesn’t realise when she falls prey to his ‘smouldering eyes’:
‘With a start, Elizabeth realised she had stared for what must have been an improper extent. Proper duration for ogling deacons was not a subject touched upon at the London seminary she had attended.’
Unfortunately for Miss Darcy, William doesn’t appreciate that she has feelings for him and he dislikes her heartily, although he feels attraction for her that he fights against admitting.
‘William’s hand dropped to his side and developed a quiver. He slowly backed away. The woman is downright dangerous. A god-awful jolt from her hand at Netherfield, and now she is the source of inexplicable palsy. Heaven help de Bourgh should he embrace her’
I thought it was interesting to see the characters with their genders swapped, William Bennet is a much less alpha male type than Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (understandable, as Darcy causes many events to happen, a role taken on by Miss Darcy here), but he’s quite light hearted and loveable. I was not impressed with his rudeness towards Miss Darcy though! Miss Darcy was a very interesting character. She was quite spoiled and used to getting anything she wanted, willing to be a bit improper and forward in achieving this aim, rude and snobby, but she was quite different behind closed doors, sweet, loving, and hoping to be loved in return. This brings me on to my next point...
Sexism – I wasn’t expecting to get this from reading the book but the way I reacted to the characters’ qualities differed when applied to the opposite gender. I really wasn’t expecting this, and it caused me to wonder how far I have double standards between the sexes. For example, the Hunsford scene in Pride and Prejudice left me feeling extremely sorry for Mr Darcy, but also fairly sorry for Elizabeth Bennet as it was a bolt out of the blue. There is a Hunsford-style scene here and I didn’t have much sympathy for William Bennet, in fact, I wanted to line up behind Lady Cassandra Fitzwilliam (Colonel Fitzwilliam!) for his blood due to his lack of gentlemanliness. Nearly all my sympathy in this scene was reserved for Miss Darcy, and the amount of forgiving she has to do over the course of the book made me feel that she was almost saintly. This certainly gave me new appreciation for Mr Darcy in P&P, the man takes on a family from a lower social class, who are not especially good company for somebody who he has loved steadfastly even though they’ve made their disdain of him clear and it’s cost him a load of money to do so! It also highlighted to me how many instances of rudeness towards Elizabeth Bennet just exist in her head, viewed through her prejudices.
Miss Collins is another character I felt differently about than her male counterpart in Pride and Prejudice, but I put this down to societal reasons – Mr Collins was full of self-importance, and Miss Collins had to be more humble, and I found her much more likable as a result, as does her cousin.
The Difficulties – The difficulties with gender swap in a historical setting seem to me to be how you get key events to happen. Getting Mr Bennet to ask Miss Darcy to dance when he doesn’t want to isn’t too hard, you have to get him forced into a situation where it would be rude not to ask (Elizabeth is impertinent to Darcy, but she doesn’t cross the line to absolute rudeness until Hunsford), the real difficulty is getting a Hunsford style scene – how can you get a situation where William Bennet would be so rude as to tell a lady that she’s the last lady in the world he would ever marry?
Also, to my understanding, a gentleman wouldn’t usually ask a lady of a higher social class to marry him, unless he had a fine fortune, which Mr Bennet doesn’t have. It’s particularly problematic that Miss Darcy is an heiress, as a man with no money proposing to a woman with a lot of it would very likely be seen as a fortune hunter by the lady’s relatives (and in 20-year old Miss Darcy’s case, her guardian, the Earl). When you add to this the fact that he doesn’t initially want to marry her at all it becomes especially problematic! I also couldn’t foresee how Laurence could be endangered by Miss Wickham. I will be fair to Ms Croft, she manages to work around all of these issues in what I felt was a plausible way, although I despaired as to how it would be possible.
The Story – the story is largely very similar, although there are areas which differ as Miss Darcy would obviously have less say over her life and movements than Mr Darcy would, although she is one hell of a heroine, she is a lady who makes things happen! There were some differences in storyline that I felt differed unnecessarily from the original, but other changes were necessary due to the gender reversal. Since Pride and Prejudice is more focused on Elizabeth’s viewpoint this is also focused on William Bennet’s view of things. I would have liked a bit more Miss Darcy, but we don’t get more Mr Darcy in Pride and Prejudice so I accept this!
The Wordplay – Ms Croft is obviously a lover of words, and there are quite a few puns and instances of alliteration. If you don’t like these they may begin to grate on you, but I don’t mind them. There are quite a few word-plays within the text that gave me a smile:
‘ “Pig-headedness runs in the family, as I have often reminded you.” “And I have steadfastly refused to believe it.” ‘
The Areas I Felt Could Have Been Improved – Not much actually. There was the odd American word like ‘dang’ and I thought there was too much mild swearing, feeling that gentleman should have refined the language a touch more around ladies. There were some things I might like to have been different, but when I thought about it, often these were reflections of Pride and Prejudice, for example, I would have liked more time in Elizabeth’s head, but we get very little of Darcy’s feelings in P&P so it was fitting.
In Conclusion: I really enjoyed this book. I liked the initial gender swap premise, I enjoyed how the author changed things around to make it work and I appreciated that it made me reflect on my own reactions and consider new things about the original story. I found the book very readable, in fact I read the first 70% in one sitting and gave myself a headache because I didn’t want to put it down! I just couldn’t see how the author could give this couple a happy ending. I found myself thinking about this book after I read it, which is always a good sign, and I had LOADS I wanted to say about it, so kudos to you if you’ve made it to the end! For these reasons, I would rate this book as a 5 star read.
January 24, 2018
I won a paperback copy of this book from the raffle held at the end of the blog tour for The Darcy Monologues and, thus, the review below is a copy of the review I posted after reading the Kindle version. I love the use of double entendres, alliterations, double meanings, etc. The humor is outstanding: both subtle and in your face. Excellent book.
The review written by Lieder Madchen “Natalie” says so many things I would have written and which I agree with so do read her review, please.
As has been explained in other reviews in this book the world of Pride and Prejudice is turned inside out, upside down and with the reversal of roles and characteristics…and very well done, in my opinion. Not only that but Jane Austen’s words are used by different persons and in different situations with tweaks and twists enough to allow this JAFF lover to be delighted in the creativity and thus not to bemoan another author using JA’s words rather than her own. It was interesting to read of Mrs. Bennet’s interest in naughty novels and her wine, while her husband has spasms all over with flutterings about his nerves and concerns over obtaining wives, preferably rich ones, for all of his five sons. Further role reversals were well played out and showed much thought and imagination. Cassandra’s artistic ability was original in her role reversal - taking the place of Richard Fitzwilliam in this story. Elizabeth Darcy’s younger brother’s (George’s) relationship with Miss Wickham, Olivia Collins’ and her brother’s visit to Longbourn during which she zeroed in on William Bennet as a suitable mate, Sir Lewis de Bourgh and his son – oh, a very modern assignment to the son’s preferences here…really scandalous and – well, you may be very surprised in reading of that.
I agree with several other reviews, in that I would have liked to read more at the end, re: William’s profession, Olivia’s relationship with the new curate, and the Widow Jane Bingley’s charity or even if she remained in mourning for her first love. We read at the beginning that, as a third born son, William had no hope of inheriting an estate, small as Longbourn was and being left to the oldest son, Martin, so had chosen to enter the profession of clergy man. However he liked breeding dogs, walking the fields, estate management and seemed very well suited to the role of country gentleman.
I was also looking for some resolve for the two dogs, Cordelia/Delia and Ryd Evon. Were the bloodlines tainted? Did they live in peace with their owners now together? They seemed to drop out of sight towards the end.
After reading this story, does anyone wonder at this author’s home life, as I do? If she uses puns with the frequency they are used in this story I can only imagine many groans in daily conversation from her family. I do applaud her use of the English language…alliterations, puns, double entendres, and rhyming prose. The book is well written and edited.
A few phrases to make you groan or to pique your interest:
“…sparring brown hares and brown-haired sparring…”
“Do you know why Latin students often remain bachelors? When asked to conjugate they decline.”
“Like items stitched by Mrs. Bennet, Olivia’s hopes were fated to come apart at the seams.”
As they passed a row of shrubbery, he said, “Now stop hedging, please.”
At times I had to put my kindle down as I was just laughing or groaning too much to proceed. This book is a wonderful parody in my opinion. It follows canon in its own way but is also unique.
Others have opined about the proposal scene at Hunsford. To undertake to re-write that act with roles reversed took guts and creativity. But, once again in my opinion, it was written with originally so as not to make the reader feel uncomfortable or to think that things were stretched and twisted to make them fit.
Well done – a true romantic comedy!
Oh, Oh, Oh, can't forget the wet shirt scene - in all its glory but here is it a spill into a stream and as her ....well, you must read it for yourself.
The review written by Lieder Madchen “Natalie” says so many things I would have written and which I agree with so do read her review, please.
As has been explained in other reviews in this book the world of Pride and Prejudice is turned inside out, upside down and with the reversal of roles and characteristics…and very well done, in my opinion. Not only that but Jane Austen’s words are used by different persons and in different situations with tweaks and twists enough to allow this JAFF lover to be delighted in the creativity and thus not to bemoan another author using JA’s words rather than her own. It was interesting to read of Mrs. Bennet’s interest in naughty novels and her wine, while her husband has spasms all over with flutterings about his nerves and concerns over obtaining wives, preferably rich ones, for all of his five sons. Further role reversals were well played out and showed much thought and imagination. Cassandra’s artistic ability was original in her role reversal - taking the place of Richard Fitzwilliam in this story. Elizabeth Darcy’s younger brother’s (George’s) relationship with Miss Wickham, Olivia Collins’ and her brother’s visit to Longbourn during which she zeroed in on William Bennet as a suitable mate, Sir Lewis de Bourgh and his son – oh, a very modern assignment to the son’s preferences here…really scandalous and – well, you may be very surprised in reading of that.
I agree with several other reviews, in that I would have liked to read more at the end, re: William’s profession, Olivia’s relationship with the new curate, and the Widow Jane Bingley’s charity or even if she remained in mourning for her first love. We read at the beginning that, as a third born son, William had no hope of inheriting an estate, small as Longbourn was and being left to the oldest son, Martin, so had chosen to enter the profession of clergy man. However he liked breeding dogs, walking the fields, estate management and seemed very well suited to the role of country gentleman.
I was also looking for some resolve for the two dogs, Cordelia/Delia and Ryd Evon. Were the bloodlines tainted? Did they live in peace with their owners now together? They seemed to drop out of sight towards the end.
After reading this story, does anyone wonder at this author’s home life, as I do? If she uses puns with the frequency they are used in this story I can only imagine many groans in daily conversation from her family. I do applaud her use of the English language…alliterations, puns, double entendres, and rhyming prose. The book is well written and edited.
A few phrases to make you groan or to pique your interest:
“…sparring brown hares and brown-haired sparring…”
“Do you know why Latin students often remain bachelors? When asked to conjugate they decline.”
“Like items stitched by Mrs. Bennet, Olivia’s hopes were fated to come apart at the seams.”
As they passed a row of shrubbery, he said, “Now stop hedging, please.”
At times I had to put my kindle down as I was just laughing or groaning too much to proceed. This book is a wonderful parody in my opinion. It follows canon in its own way but is also unique.
Others have opined about the proposal scene at Hunsford. To undertake to re-write that act with roles reversed took guts and creativity. But, once again in my opinion, it was written with originally so as not to make the reader feel uncomfortable or to think that things were stretched and twisted to make them fit.
Well done – a true romantic comedy!
Oh, Oh, Oh, can't forget the wet shirt scene - in all its glory but here is it a spill into a stream and as her ....well, you must read it for yourself.
October 8, 2015
I love it when authors employ humor in their storytelling, but it can be a chancy thing for the humor element to set well with me. But I wanted to finally read one of this author's books, I love P&P retellings, and I most definitely wanted to read a book chalk full of role-reversals. Heh, yeah, that last part was tantalizing. Think of every one of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice characters, add in a few more original characters for good measure, now switch their gender. Yep, see? Couldn't miss it!
I was prepared to have a good time and do some giggling and snorting- and I certainly did that many times, but I found it a pleasant surprise how much this book engaged me to really consider things in a way that I hadn't before. It held a mirror up for me to see how I associate things with gender. I had to ask myself questions like did it make a difference if the one doing/saying/thinking something was a woman or a man? And yes it did, I found. Just like I responded differently and engaged in the story differently when the roles were reversed. I found Elizabeth Darcy's first scene at the ball to be more abrasive than I ever did Mr. Darcy's. And an indolent Mrs. Bennet with a nervy Mr. B was an unsettling swap. It was refreshing to ponder this though it truly is a story and meant to be appreciated as such.
Now while some swaps made me thoughtful or mildly uncomfortable. Most of them had me highly amused. A Miss Wickham, a Sir Lew deBourgh, a Miss Collins, the youngest two Bennet boys, and a Mr. C. Bingley was a hoot. Villains are villains no matter what as are snobs, silly folk, and those focused on themselves.
I liked how the author balanced out keeping things close to the original, but also explored a few new avenues with the freedom from the characters swapping from male to female or the reverse.
I can see where this wouldn't be for everyone whether it was the style of humor or the gender swapping, but I had a good time with it. Austenesque Lovers who want something a bit different should take a look.
I was prepared to have a good time and do some giggling and snorting- and I certainly did that many times, but I found it a pleasant surprise how much this book engaged me to really consider things in a way that I hadn't before. It held a mirror up for me to see how I associate things with gender. I had to ask myself questions like did it make a difference if the one doing/saying/thinking something was a woman or a man? And yes it did, I found. Just like I responded differently and engaged in the story differently when the roles were reversed. I found Elizabeth Darcy's first scene at the ball to be more abrasive than I ever did Mr. Darcy's. And an indolent Mrs. Bennet with a nervy Mr. B was an unsettling swap. It was refreshing to ponder this though it truly is a story and meant to be appreciated as such.
Now while some swaps made me thoughtful or mildly uncomfortable. Most of them had me highly amused. A Miss Wickham, a Sir Lew deBourgh, a Miss Collins, the youngest two Bennet boys, and a Mr. C. Bingley was a hoot. Villains are villains no matter what as are snobs, silly folk, and those focused on themselves.
I liked how the author balanced out keeping things close to the original, but also explored a few new avenues with the freedom from the characters swapping from male to female or the reverse.
I can see where this wouldn't be for everyone whether it was the style of humor or the gender swapping, but I had a good time with it. Austenesque Lovers who want something a bit different should take a look.
April 28, 2015
4.5 stars: The review written by Lieder Madchen “Natalie” says so many things I would have written and which I agree with so do read her review, please.
As has been explained in other reviews in this book the world of Pride and Prejudice is turned inside out, upside down and with the reversal of roles and characteristics…and very well done, in my opinion. Not only that but Jane Austen’s words are used by different persons and in different situations with tweaks and twists enough to allow this JAFF lover to be delighted in the creativity and thus not to bemoan another author using JA’s words rather than her own. It was interesting to read of Mrs. Bennet’s interest in naughty novels and her wine, while her husband has spasms all over with flutterings about his nerves and concerns over obtaining wives, preferably rich ones, for all of his five sons. Further role reversals were well played out and showed much thought and imagination. Cassandra’s artistic ability was original in her role reversal - taking the place of Richard Fitzwilliam in this story. Elizabeth Darcy’s younger brother’s (George’s) relationship with Miss Wickham, Olivia Collins’ and her brother’s visit to Longbourn during which she zeroed in on William Bennet as a suitable mate, Sir Lewis de Bourgh and his son – oh, a very modern assignment to the son’s preferences here…really scandalous and – well, you may be very surprised in reading of that.
I agree with several other reviews, in that I would have liked to read more at the end, re: William’s profession, Olivia’s relationship with the new curate, and the Widow Jane Bingley’s charity or even if she remained in mourning for her first love. We read at the beginning that, as a third born son, William had no hope of inheriting an estate, small as Longbourn was and being left to the oldest son, Martin, so had chosen to enter the profession of clergy man. However he liked breeding dogs, walking the fields, estate management and seemed very well suited to the role of country gentleman.
I was also looking for some resolve for the two dogs, Cordelia/Delia and Ryd Evon. Were the bloodlines tainted? Did they live in peace with their owners now together? They seemed to drop out of sight towards the end.
After reading this story, does anyone wonder at this author’s home life, as I do? If she uses puns with the frequency they are used in this story I can only imagine many groans in daily conversation from her family. I do applaud her use of the English language…alliterations, puns, double entendres, and rhyming prose. The book is well written and edited.
A few phrases to make you groan or to pique your interest:
“…sparring brown hares and brown-haired sparring…”
“Do you know why Latin students often remain bachelors? When asked to conjugate they decline.”
“Like items stitched by Mrs. Bennet, Olivia’s hopes were fated to come apart at the seams.”
As they passed a row of shrubbery, he said, “Now stop hedging, please.”
At times I had to put my kindle down as I was just laughing or groaning too much to proceed. This book is a wonderful parody in my opinion. It follows canon in its own way but is also unique.
Others have opined about the proposal scene at Hunsford. To undertake to re-write that act with roles reversed took guts and creativity. But, once again in my opinion, it was written with originally so as not to make the reader feel uncomfortable or to think that things were stretched and twisted to make them fit.
Well done – a true romantic comedy!
Oh, Oh, Oh, can't forget the wet shirt scene - in all its glory but here is it a spill into a stream and as her ....well, you must read it for yourself.
As has been explained in other reviews in this book the world of Pride and Prejudice is turned inside out, upside down and with the reversal of roles and characteristics…and very well done, in my opinion. Not only that but Jane Austen’s words are used by different persons and in different situations with tweaks and twists enough to allow this JAFF lover to be delighted in the creativity and thus not to bemoan another author using JA’s words rather than her own. It was interesting to read of Mrs. Bennet’s interest in naughty novels and her wine, while her husband has spasms all over with flutterings about his nerves and concerns over obtaining wives, preferably rich ones, for all of his five sons. Further role reversals were well played out and showed much thought and imagination. Cassandra’s artistic ability was original in her role reversal - taking the place of Richard Fitzwilliam in this story. Elizabeth Darcy’s younger brother’s (George’s) relationship with Miss Wickham, Olivia Collins’ and her brother’s visit to Longbourn during which she zeroed in on William Bennet as a suitable mate, Sir Lewis de Bourgh and his son – oh, a very modern assignment to the son’s preferences here…really scandalous and – well, you may be very surprised in reading of that.
I agree with several other reviews, in that I would have liked to read more at the end, re: William’s profession, Olivia’s relationship with the new curate, and the Widow Jane Bingley’s charity or even if she remained in mourning for her first love. We read at the beginning that, as a third born son, William had no hope of inheriting an estate, small as Longbourn was and being left to the oldest son, Martin, so had chosen to enter the profession of clergy man. However he liked breeding dogs, walking the fields, estate management and seemed very well suited to the role of country gentleman.
I was also looking for some resolve for the two dogs, Cordelia/Delia and Ryd Evon. Were the bloodlines tainted? Did they live in peace with their owners now together? They seemed to drop out of sight towards the end.
After reading this story, does anyone wonder at this author’s home life, as I do? If she uses puns with the frequency they are used in this story I can only imagine many groans in daily conversation from her family. I do applaud her use of the English language…alliterations, puns, double entendres, and rhyming prose. The book is well written and edited.
A few phrases to make you groan or to pique your interest:
“…sparring brown hares and brown-haired sparring…”
“Do you know why Latin students often remain bachelors? When asked to conjugate they decline.”
“Like items stitched by Mrs. Bennet, Olivia’s hopes were fated to come apart at the seams.”
As they passed a row of shrubbery, he said, “Now stop hedging, please.”
At times I had to put my kindle down as I was just laughing or groaning too much to proceed. This book is a wonderful parody in my opinion. It follows canon in its own way but is also unique.
Others have opined about the proposal scene at Hunsford. To undertake to re-write that act with roles reversed took guts and creativity. But, once again in my opinion, it was written with originally so as not to make the reader feel uncomfortable or to think that things were stretched and twisted to make them fit.
Well done – a true romantic comedy!
Oh, Oh, Oh, can't forget the wet shirt scene - in all its glory but here is it a spill into a stream and as her ....well, you must read it for yourself.
February 7, 2014
4.5 stars!
In this incredibly clever and rollicking romp of an Austenesque novel, J. Marie Croft decides to put the shoe on the opposite foot and have nearly all the characters of Pride and Prejudice swap genders!
- Instead of 5 Bennet sisters there are 5 Bennet brothers – Martin, Charles, William, and the troublesome twins, Kit and Laurie.
- Mrs. Bennet is a retiring and unsociable individual who prefers staying home reading novels and Mr. Bennet has nervous complaints and is anxious to get his sons married!
- The recently widowed Jane Davenport travels to Netherfield Park in company of her two dandy brothers, her sister-in-law, and her much sought after heiress friend, Elizabeth Darcy.
- Mr. Collins’s honorable and esteemed patron is Sir Lewis de Bourgh, who lives with his unmarried son, Andrew in Kent.
- The sycophantic Olivia Collins hopes to wed William Bennet, but he seems to only have eyes for the flirtatious and comely Felicity Wickham.
I most definitely loved how J. Marie Croft cunningly and craftily reconstructed the story of Pride and Prejudice with the genders reversed! It worked really, really well – the insult at the Meryton Assembly, the reason William travels to Kent, the disastrous proposal scene, the debacle in Brighton – were all slightly altered due to the gender change in a way that was satisfying and credible. For example, instead of chasing after and flirting with redcoats, Kit and Laurie (Kitty and Lydia) spend time idolizing and imitating the militia officers in Meryton.
Like Jane Austen, J. Marie Croft has a splendid command of language. Her narration is witty, subtle, and sharp, her characters engage in banter and pithy remarks, her scenes drip with sarcasm and satire. One of my favorite scenes is where Mr. Bennet is bitterly complaining and whining about Mary King being no longer a marriageable prospect for one of his sons. Mrs. Bennet remarks: “Indeed, dear. Now, shall we play piquet, or can I interest you in more of these grapes? They are rather sour though, are they not?” - page 85 (HA! Love it!)
I thoroughly enjoyed all the characters in this novel and loved how they all had their typical odd quirks and eccentricities. William and Elizabeth with their penchant for puns and quips, Cassie Fitzwilliam with her pointed machinations to make William uncomfortable, Mr. Bennet with his competition with Sir William Lucas, and Mrs. Bennet with her guilty pleasure of reading gothic novels! The only thing I felt lacking in this novel was a little bit more closure at the end for some of these characters. Olivia Collins, Jane Davenport, and Charles Bennet in particular – I would love to know what became of them!
If the assurance of an inventive premise, wit, hilarious misadventures, and humorous gender swaps isn’t enough to entice you to pick up a copy of Love at First Slight, then perhaps the fact that this novel may be the only novel where Elizabeth goes from being Elizabeth Darcy to Elizabeth Bennet will! :D I highly recommend!
In this incredibly clever and rollicking romp of an Austenesque novel, J. Marie Croft decides to put the shoe on the opposite foot and have nearly all the characters of Pride and Prejudice swap genders!
- Instead of 5 Bennet sisters there are 5 Bennet brothers – Martin, Charles, William, and the troublesome twins, Kit and Laurie.
- Mrs. Bennet is a retiring and unsociable individual who prefers staying home reading novels and Mr. Bennet has nervous complaints and is anxious to get his sons married!
- The recently widowed Jane Davenport travels to Netherfield Park in company of her two dandy brothers, her sister-in-law, and her much sought after heiress friend, Elizabeth Darcy.
- Mr. Collins’s honorable and esteemed patron is Sir Lewis de Bourgh, who lives with his unmarried son, Andrew in Kent.
- The sycophantic Olivia Collins hopes to wed William Bennet, but he seems to only have eyes for the flirtatious and comely Felicity Wickham.
I most definitely loved how J. Marie Croft cunningly and craftily reconstructed the story of Pride and Prejudice with the genders reversed! It worked really, really well – the insult at the Meryton Assembly, the reason William travels to Kent, the disastrous proposal scene, the debacle in Brighton – were all slightly altered due to the gender change in a way that was satisfying and credible. For example, instead of chasing after and flirting with redcoats, Kit and Laurie (Kitty and Lydia) spend time idolizing and imitating the militia officers in Meryton.
Like Jane Austen, J. Marie Croft has a splendid command of language. Her narration is witty, subtle, and sharp, her characters engage in banter and pithy remarks, her scenes drip with sarcasm and satire. One of my favorite scenes is where Mr. Bennet is bitterly complaining and whining about Mary King being no longer a marriageable prospect for one of his sons. Mrs. Bennet remarks: “Indeed, dear. Now, shall we play piquet, or can I interest you in more of these grapes? They are rather sour though, are they not?” - page 85 (HA! Love it!)
I thoroughly enjoyed all the characters in this novel and loved how they all had their typical odd quirks and eccentricities. William and Elizabeth with their penchant for puns and quips, Cassie Fitzwilliam with her pointed machinations to make William uncomfortable, Mr. Bennet with his competition with Sir William Lucas, and Mrs. Bennet with her guilty pleasure of reading gothic novels! The only thing I felt lacking in this novel was a little bit more closure at the end for some of these characters. Olivia Collins, Jane Davenport, and Charles Bennet in particular – I would love to know what became of them!
If the assurance of an inventive premise, wit, hilarious misadventures, and humorous gender swaps isn’t enough to entice you to pick up a copy of Love at First Slight, then perhaps the fact that this novel may be the only novel where Elizabeth goes from being Elizabeth Darcy to Elizabeth Bennet will! :D I highly recommend!
November 7, 2013
4.5 Stars
I laughed so hard while reading this book, there were times when I had to stop and bury my face in a pillow so I wouldn't wake anyone up. Even if I discounted the hilarious character interactions, the endlessly diverting twists to the story, the colorful and highly creative language, etc., the writing alone would have left me chortling.
With their genders reversed, Miss Austen's familiar characters have been turned completely on their heads. William Bennet is an out-doorsy, easygoing sort of fellow who develops an unreasonable dislike for the aloof, aristocratic Miss Elizabeth Darcy after she declares him to be 'tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me'. Mr. Bennet flutters about, trying to find rich wives for his five sons while his wife hides away with her novels and wine. I read with delicious anticipation, never quite knowing what to expect. Certain scenes were especially entertaining, particularly a rather damp accidental meeting...
My favorite parts of the novel were probably William's internal self-scoldings and the puns, oh, the puns! I'm not usually big on puns, but these were alternately utterly brazen or almost invisibly sneaky and I could not help but laugh, particularly when I caught them before the characters did. I also greatly enjoyed certain characters' alliterative tendencies and varied vocabularies, especially when revealed in the form of insults. I only have one complaint. Well, half of a complaint, really. Throughout the book, Elizabeth and William are engaged in a battle of quotes and pithy sayings. I loved the quotes, but the sayings were occasionally a little overwhelming.
While Love at First Slight is mostly a comedy, one mustn't forget the romance, which was just beautifully done from start to finish. I cracked up yet again at the realization that William and Elizabeth are fated to be...Mr. and Mrs. Bennet! I was supposed to be done mentioning the comedic qualities of the story, wasn't I? So much for that; the laughter just doesn't seem to stop!
I received an advance e-copy of this book from Meryton Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.
I laughed so hard while reading this book, there were times when I had to stop and bury my face in a pillow so I wouldn't wake anyone up. Even if I discounted the hilarious character interactions, the endlessly diverting twists to the story, the colorful and highly creative language, etc., the writing alone would have left me chortling.
With their genders reversed, Miss Austen's familiar characters have been turned completely on their heads. William Bennet is an out-doorsy, easygoing sort of fellow who develops an unreasonable dislike for the aloof, aristocratic Miss Elizabeth Darcy after she declares him to be 'tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me'. Mr. Bennet flutters about, trying to find rich wives for his five sons while his wife hides away with her novels and wine. I read with delicious anticipation, never quite knowing what to expect. Certain scenes were especially entertaining, particularly a rather damp accidental meeting...
My favorite parts of the novel were probably William's internal self-scoldings and the puns, oh, the puns! I'm not usually big on puns, but these were alternately utterly brazen or almost invisibly sneaky and I could not help but laugh, particularly when I caught them before the characters did. I also greatly enjoyed certain characters' alliterative tendencies and varied vocabularies, especially when revealed in the form of insults. I only have one complaint. Well, half of a complaint, really. Throughout the book, Elizabeth and William are engaged in a battle of quotes and pithy sayings. I loved the quotes, but the sayings were occasionally a little overwhelming.
While Love at First Slight is mostly a comedy, one mustn't forget the romance, which was just beautifully done from start to finish. I cracked up yet again at the realization that William and Elizabeth are fated to be...Mr. and Mrs. Bennet! I was supposed to be done mentioning the comedic qualities of the story, wasn't I? So much for that; the laughter just doesn't seem to stop!
I received an advance e-copy of this book from Meryton Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Read
November 3, 2017In all my years of reading Austen-inspired novels, I never once thought about how Pride and Prejudice would have turned out had all the gender roles been reversed, but I’m so glad J. Marie Croft did. Her newest novel, Love at First Slight, is clever and even downright hilarious at times.
In this rendition of Austen’s beloved novel, Benjamin Bennet is determined to make good matches for his five sons: Martin, the heir who would rather read scripture and moralize than run an estate; Charles, who is easy-going and would rather go into trade with his uncle than study law; William, who is flirtatious, outspoken, outdoorsy and would much rather manage an estate than be a deacon; and twins Christopher (Kit) and Laurence (Laurie), who are obsessed with joining the militia and spend much of their time raising hell and embarrassing the rest of the family. It’s Flora Bennet who would rather stay at home reading horrid novels, drinking wine, and lamenting that she never had a daughter.
When the widow Mrs. Jane (Bingley) Devenport takes up residence at Netherfield with her dandified brothers, Leonard and Casper, and the haughty heiress Miss Elizabeth Darcy, Mr. Bennet is determined that at least one of his sons will soon be settled comfortably at the neighboring estate. While Jane hits it off easily with Charles at the Meryton Assembly, William’s request for a dance with “Miss La-Di-Da-Darcy” is turned down, and he overhears her call him merely “tolerable” and make several jokes about his profession. What follows is a humorous retelling of Pride and Prejudice, with Felicity Wickham catching William’s eye and having nothing nice to say about Miss Darcy, Olivia Collins setting her sights on the middle Bennet brother, and even the formidable Lady Catherine and her daughter Anne replaced by the equally domineering Sir Lewis and his son Andrew.
I don’t want to say more about the plot because even though Croft follows the original novel closely, the reversal in gender roles means there is a lot that is different. Croft does a great job changing the circumstances to go along with the change in gender, and I loved watching the evolution of Elizabeth and William in these new roles. I was curious how it was going to play out, especially as Elizabeth’s feelings toward him deepened in an era when “a lady’s feelings cannot be made known.” And what scandal could befall the Bennet family this time, and how would Elizabeth smooth it all out?
Croft’s handling of the flipped characters was beautifully done, and she perfectly balanced the subtle humor with the ridiculous, mirroring Austen in that respect. Love at First Slight‘s originality makes it a must-read for fans of Austen-inspired novels and especially for readers who have grown a bit tired of all the Pride and Prejudice-inspired novels being published (and it continues to surprise me that I have yet to tire of them myself). I’ve long loved Austen for the timelessness of her stories and characters, and Croft’s novel is an example of the many different ways Austen’s novels can be explored.
Review posted on Diary of an Eccentric
In this rendition of Austen’s beloved novel, Benjamin Bennet is determined to make good matches for his five sons: Martin, the heir who would rather read scripture and moralize than run an estate; Charles, who is easy-going and would rather go into trade with his uncle than study law; William, who is flirtatious, outspoken, outdoorsy and would much rather manage an estate than be a deacon; and twins Christopher (Kit) and Laurence (Laurie), who are obsessed with joining the militia and spend much of their time raising hell and embarrassing the rest of the family. It’s Flora Bennet who would rather stay at home reading horrid novels, drinking wine, and lamenting that she never had a daughter.
When the widow Mrs. Jane (Bingley) Devenport takes up residence at Netherfield with her dandified brothers, Leonard and Casper, and the haughty heiress Miss Elizabeth Darcy, Mr. Bennet is determined that at least one of his sons will soon be settled comfortably at the neighboring estate. While Jane hits it off easily with Charles at the Meryton Assembly, William’s request for a dance with “Miss La-Di-Da-Darcy” is turned down, and he overhears her call him merely “tolerable” and make several jokes about his profession. What follows is a humorous retelling of Pride and Prejudice, with Felicity Wickham catching William’s eye and having nothing nice to say about Miss Darcy, Olivia Collins setting her sights on the middle Bennet brother, and even the formidable Lady Catherine and her daughter Anne replaced by the equally domineering Sir Lewis and his son Andrew.
I don’t want to say more about the plot because even though Croft follows the original novel closely, the reversal in gender roles means there is a lot that is different. Croft does a great job changing the circumstances to go along with the change in gender, and I loved watching the evolution of Elizabeth and William in these new roles. I was curious how it was going to play out, especially as Elizabeth’s feelings toward him deepened in an era when “a lady’s feelings cannot be made known.” And what scandal could befall the Bennet family this time, and how would Elizabeth smooth it all out?
Croft’s handling of the flipped characters was beautifully done, and she perfectly balanced the subtle humor with the ridiculous, mirroring Austen in that respect. Love at First Slight‘s originality makes it a must-read for fans of Austen-inspired novels and especially for readers who have grown a bit tired of all the Pride and Prejudice-inspired novels being published (and it continues to surprise me that I have yet to tire of them myself). I’ve long loved Austen for the timelessness of her stories and characters, and Croft’s novel is an example of the many different ways Austen’s novels can be explored.
Review posted on Diary of an Eccentric
April 1, 2019
This is playful, creative and well-written. I'm one of those who has read literally hundreds of fan fiction variations of Pride and Prejudice, and this is among the cream of the crop. J. Marie Croft is an excellent writer with a light and lively style that is different from anything I've previously read.
I absolutely loved the puns and alliterations sprinkled tastefully throughout the book. There was nary a grammatical or spelling error to be found. (Huzzah!!)
The gender switcheroo is one I didn't think could be pulled off. How is a wealthy Regency gentlewoman supposed to propose to a man, anyway? But Ms. Croft had a deft touch in the botched proposal scene, making it a believable misunderstanding that's humiliating to both Elizabeth and William, and the rest of the plot was similarly well managed.
The 5 Bennet brothers do get on each others' nerves in similar but not identical ways that the P&P sisters do. I grew up as the only girl in a family with several brothers, and I recognized the horseplay and teasing among the young men depicted.
As for the difficulty in identifying who's who with the gender bending mentioned in some other reviews, my advice is to start reading it as a brand new Regency romance novel. It won't take you long to figure it out. (Hint: Never trust anyone named Wickham!) If you love P&P fan fiction, don't pass this one up!
I absolutely loved the puns and alliterations sprinkled tastefully throughout the book. There was nary a grammatical or spelling error to be found. (Huzzah!!)
The gender switcheroo is one I didn't think could be pulled off. How is a wealthy Regency gentlewoman supposed to propose to a man, anyway? But Ms. Croft had a deft touch in the botched proposal scene, making it a believable misunderstanding that's humiliating to both Elizabeth and William, and the rest of the plot was similarly well managed.
The 5 Bennet brothers do get on each others' nerves in similar but not identical ways that the P&P sisters do. I grew up as the only girl in a family with several brothers, and I recognized the horseplay and teasing among the young men depicted.
As for the difficulty in identifying who's who with the gender bending mentioned in some other reviews, my advice is to start reading it as a brand new Regency romance novel. It won't take you long to figure it out. (Hint: Never trust anyone named Wickham!) If you love P&P fan fiction, don't pass this one up!
December 26, 2020
Brilliant topsy-turvy Pride and Prejudice variation
This unique and entertaining gender-reverse trope had me laughing out loud on several occasions. The timeline of canon was twisted with clever turns, hilarious banter and saucy innuendo. I absolutely adored the language.
Heartily recommend this book!
This unique and entertaining gender-reverse trope had me laughing out loud on several occasions. The timeline of canon was twisted with clever turns, hilarious banter and saucy innuendo. I absolutely adored the language.
Heartily recommend this book!
April 9, 2021
The blurb uses the phrase 'topsy-turvy' which is perfect because everything in this variation of P&P was 'switched at birth.' It was fairly clean, no sex or violence. We do get to see into the lusty thoughts of our virile hero, and there is some bantering innuendo between the brothers, sometimes cut short when Mrs Bennet shows up.
But before I really start my review I want to let readers know who are disturbed or offended by post-Regency anachronistic language in a Jane Austen Fan Fiction work, to look elsewhere. For me the use of words not accurate to Austen's times were the most hilarious parts of this delightful story. I recognized them when I saw them but loved this story all the more for it. I also recognized several nods to Georgette Heyer, and it's believed she made up a fair amount of the Regency slang she used in her stories.
Croft did such a perfect character switch with all the important players from P&P. I loved the writing style. With the Bennet family having five sons and a nervous matchmaking father and a non-involved or at least not worried mother, the story follows canon nearly to the letter except all the male characters are now women and all the female characters are now men. If you thought that might be easy to rewrite by just flipping characters you would be wrong. Because men think, speak and act, and react like men. In this book it all worked. The 'switch' was a perfect success. That my friends can only be carried off by a skilled writer. J. Marie Croft writes like she absolutely loves her job.
The story has very little angst outside of what P&P has in its story arc. By that I mean no kidnappings, murders, horrible Lady Catherine plots or Wickham scheming to be the worst villain on the planet. Like I said earlier, it follows canon and there was enough angst in the original to keep us loving it for 200 yrs. I have to spoil this just a little by saying the Hunsford proposal scene was so much worse than canon by about a factor of five. Wow. I was shaken after that scene. Heart ache, oh my. But oh, the funny moments between Our Dear Couple when we get to hear William's robustly male views of Elizabeth in little embarrassing moments. He's all man our Will is. Woo! And Elizabeth is no slouch in the eye assessment of a beautiful man department herself. She has her Colonel Fitzwilliams counterpart in her cousin Cassandra Fitzwilliams, and they share some delightful 'girl talk' about a certain man's um...features.
I recommend this highly to JAFF readers. It is a great story, and I loved it. I can't wait to read more of Croft's stories.
But before I really start my review I want to let readers know who are disturbed or offended by post-Regency anachronistic language in a Jane Austen Fan Fiction work, to look elsewhere. For me the use of words not accurate to Austen's times were the most hilarious parts of this delightful story. I recognized them when I saw them but loved this story all the more for it. I also recognized several nods to Georgette Heyer, and it's believed she made up a fair amount of the Regency slang she used in her stories.
Croft did such a perfect character switch with all the important players from P&P. I loved the writing style. With the Bennet family having five sons and a nervous matchmaking father and a non-involved or at least not worried mother, the story follows canon nearly to the letter except all the male characters are now women and all the female characters are now men. If you thought that might be easy to rewrite by just flipping characters you would be wrong. Because men think, speak and act, and react like men. In this book it all worked. The 'switch' was a perfect success. That my friends can only be carried off by a skilled writer. J. Marie Croft writes like she absolutely loves her job.
The story has very little angst outside of what P&P has in its story arc. By that I mean no kidnappings, murders, horrible Lady Catherine plots or Wickham scheming to be the worst villain on the planet. Like I said earlier, it follows canon and there was enough angst in the original to keep us loving it for 200 yrs. I have to spoil this just a little by saying the Hunsford proposal scene was so much worse than canon by about a factor of five. Wow. I was shaken after that scene. Heart ache, oh my. But oh, the funny moments between Our Dear Couple when we get to hear William's robustly male views of Elizabeth in little embarrassing moments. He's all man our Will is. Woo! And Elizabeth is no slouch in the eye assessment of a beautiful man department herself. She has her Colonel Fitzwilliams counterpart in her cousin Cassandra Fitzwilliams, and they share some delightful 'girl talk' about a certain man's um...features.
I recommend this highly to JAFF readers. It is a great story, and I loved it. I can't wait to read more of Croft's stories.
December 25, 2020
Humor appreciated
Reviewed in Canada on March 7, 2019
This was a bit of a stretch for me and I almost quit reading it. Then we got to Hunsford and I kept wanting to see how things would unfold. I did appreciate the humorous dialogue, and Darcy’s private thoughts, which had me giggling out loud at times. Fun read.
Reviewed in Canada on March 7, 2019
This was a bit of a stretch for me and I almost quit reading it. Then we got to Hunsford and I kept wanting to see how things would unfold. I did appreciate the humorous dialogue, and Darcy’s private thoughts, which had me giggling out loud at times. Fun read.
June 26, 2016
What if instead of being five Bennet daughters, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet would have been blessed with five Bennet sons? If you are interested, just read Love at First Slight by J. Marie Croft.
I have really enjoyed reading this upside-down of Pride and Prejudice. If you are reading this entry and you have not read Pride and Prejudice, I will recommend you to read it before hand as you may not understand everything I comment here.
The writing is really good and I have enjoyed reading a lot of Shakespeare within the book. From my humble opinion, I believe the author has been dutiful on following Jane Austen’s tone while emulating the whole story, from Netherfield is let at last to the wedding. Yes, sorry for the little spoiler but there is a happy ending as it happens in P&P. However, I will tell you a bit more about it.
Martin Bennet is the heir, Charles the second son, William the third son and the twins Christopher and Laurence. If you know Pride and Prejudice you can relate the names to the girls: Martin (Mary), Charles (Jane), William (Elizabeth), Christopher a.k.a. Kit (Kitty) and Laurence (Lydia).
As you may be thinking, this family is not so worried about the future of these five gentlemen but you are mistaken there! Mrs. Bennet does not care but Mr. Benner, he is nervousness itself, he wants his sons to be married as soon as possible and with wealthy women. Benjamin Bennet is extremely happy when a widow, Mrs. Jane Devonport comes to her state, Netherfield. Mr. Bennet is sure that the lady will want to remarry and who is better than his second and handsome second son, Charles?
“What a fine thing for our sons!” In a flutter, Benjamin Bennet relayed the news to his wife.
Jane arrives with his two brothers and sister-in-law, and joining the party, her best friend Miss Elizabeth Darcy.
Mr. Bennet was happy to meet the party at the Meryton assembly. However, he had to check his neighbour’s attention to the newcomers as he was sure that his neighbour wanted his two sons to be the suitors to the widow.
A man’s world might be, but women had the almighty power of refusal, and Benjamin was determined to further his sons’ chances against all other suitors.
Mr. Charles Bennet believed Mrs. Devonport to be an angel. However, there was someone on that assembly that was not observed as an angel, just the opposite, her friend Miss Darcy was soon considered an ill-mannered haughty lady after she slighted Mr. William Bennet:
“Miss Darcy, if you are not otherwise engaged, may I request the honour of sharing the next set with you?”
“I thank you, but no,” said she. “I would rather not.”
She then made a comment about him being tolerable but not handsome enough to tempt her. That though changed quite quickly on the same night.
The main interaction or the main time together for Miss Darcy and the third Bennet son is when William goes to Netherfield to take care of Charles, who fell ill after a downpour. Those days makes William dislike her even more and those days makes her to be more interested in his “smouldering eyes”.
Mrs. Devonport, as amiable as she was, wanted to host a ball at Netherfield. Just a few days before the ball, the Bennet brothers met a charming girl that came with Mr. and Mrs. Foster and the militia, Miss Felicity Wickham. She singled out William Bennet and he was glad to have the attention of such a lovely and beautiful lady, when another lady did not find him tolerable enough. Miss Wickham told him all her sorrows and difficulties she has to endure due to the mistreatment that she declares has been done to her by Miss Darcy. *roll eyes*
During the Netherfield Ball, William expected to dance with Miss Wickham and he was disappointed when he discovered she was absent as she wanted to avoid Miss Darcy. William did not know exactly how but he eventually danced with Miss Darcy and the conversation was not very adequate to a ballroom. Sparks were flying around them when talking or even when silent but maybe not the appropriate sparks.
Just after the ball, all the Netherfield party left to London, not to come back as a letter from Casper Bingley sent to Charles Bennet declared. (Yes, Casper, that is the name of Jane’s unmarried brother, yes Casper, like the ghost! but he is not nice.) Charles was heartbroken. William though the fault was Jane’s brothers and he encouraged his brother to go to town with their uncle and aunt and maybe encounter her. Charles went as he preferred to work in business with his uncle instead of carr yon with the profession of law.
I am not explaining some scenes that are better read in the book that read on a review but I will just mention that William and Elizabeth met again in Rosings Park, the state of Lizzy’s uncle whose priest is William’s cousin. Something very important happens there and I will just give you a teaser of it:
By God! She slapped me! “Ouch.” The sharp, stinging sensation brought him to his senses. Bloody well deserved. I’ve been a monster. (William Bennet)
What if the twins are wild and bring shame to their family? What if Miss Wickham is not as charming as William believes when he meets her? What if Jane does not love Charles? What if William and Elizabeth meet in a very “funny” situation? What if William is a rake in the eyes of a peer? What if hide and seek is a very entertaining game?
You need to grab this book in order to answer all those what ifs, and discover how the happy ending reaches our main characters.
“We are both guilty of forming mistaken first impressions.”
There are funny moments, a few jokes, a lot of alliteration and a great deal of new situations that will make you keep reading even if it is 2am *smile*
I have really enjoyed reading this upside-down of Pride and Prejudice. If you are reading this entry and you have not read Pride and Prejudice, I will recommend you to read it before hand as you may not understand everything I comment here.
The writing is really good and I have enjoyed reading a lot of Shakespeare within the book. From my humble opinion, I believe the author has been dutiful on following Jane Austen’s tone while emulating the whole story, from Netherfield is let at last to the wedding. Yes, sorry for the little spoiler but there is a happy ending as it happens in P&P. However, I will tell you a bit more about it.
Martin Bennet is the heir, Charles the second son, William the third son and the twins Christopher and Laurence. If you know Pride and Prejudice you can relate the names to the girls: Martin (Mary), Charles (Jane), William (Elizabeth), Christopher a.k.a. Kit (Kitty) and Laurence (Lydia).
As you may be thinking, this family is not so worried about the future of these five gentlemen but you are mistaken there! Mrs. Bennet does not care but Mr. Benner, he is nervousness itself, he wants his sons to be married as soon as possible and with wealthy women. Benjamin Bennet is extremely happy when a widow, Mrs. Jane Devonport comes to her state, Netherfield. Mr. Bennet is sure that the lady will want to remarry and who is better than his second and handsome second son, Charles?
“What a fine thing for our sons!” In a flutter, Benjamin Bennet relayed the news to his wife.
Jane arrives with his two brothers and sister-in-law, and joining the party, her best friend Miss Elizabeth Darcy.
Mr. Bennet was happy to meet the party at the Meryton assembly. However, he had to check his neighbour’s attention to the newcomers as he was sure that his neighbour wanted his two sons to be the suitors to the widow.
A man’s world might be, but women had the almighty power of refusal, and Benjamin was determined to further his sons’ chances against all other suitors.
Mr. Charles Bennet believed Mrs. Devonport to be an angel. However, there was someone on that assembly that was not observed as an angel, just the opposite, her friend Miss Darcy was soon considered an ill-mannered haughty lady after she slighted Mr. William Bennet:
“Miss Darcy, if you are not otherwise engaged, may I request the honour of sharing the next set with you?”
“I thank you, but no,” said she. “I would rather not.”
She then made a comment about him being tolerable but not handsome enough to tempt her. That though changed quite quickly on the same night.
The main interaction or the main time together for Miss Darcy and the third Bennet son is when William goes to Netherfield to take care of Charles, who fell ill after a downpour. Those days makes William dislike her even more and those days makes her to be more interested in his “smouldering eyes”.
Mrs. Devonport, as amiable as she was, wanted to host a ball at Netherfield. Just a few days before the ball, the Bennet brothers met a charming girl that came with Mr. and Mrs. Foster and the militia, Miss Felicity Wickham. She singled out William Bennet and he was glad to have the attention of such a lovely and beautiful lady, when another lady did not find him tolerable enough. Miss Wickham told him all her sorrows and difficulties she has to endure due to the mistreatment that she declares has been done to her by Miss Darcy. *roll eyes*
During the Netherfield Ball, William expected to dance with Miss Wickham and he was disappointed when he discovered she was absent as she wanted to avoid Miss Darcy. William did not know exactly how but he eventually danced with Miss Darcy and the conversation was not very adequate to a ballroom. Sparks were flying around them when talking or even when silent but maybe not the appropriate sparks.
Just after the ball, all the Netherfield party left to London, not to come back as a letter from Casper Bingley sent to Charles Bennet declared. (Yes, Casper, that is the name of Jane’s unmarried brother, yes Casper, like the ghost! but he is not nice.) Charles was heartbroken. William though the fault was Jane’s brothers and he encouraged his brother to go to town with their uncle and aunt and maybe encounter her. Charles went as he preferred to work in business with his uncle instead of carr yon with the profession of law.
I am not explaining some scenes that are better read in the book that read on a review but I will just mention that William and Elizabeth met again in Rosings Park, the state of Lizzy’s uncle whose priest is William’s cousin. Something very important happens there and I will just give you a teaser of it:
By God! She slapped me! “Ouch.” The sharp, stinging sensation brought him to his senses. Bloody well deserved. I’ve been a monster. (William Bennet)
What if the twins are wild and bring shame to their family? What if Miss Wickham is not as charming as William believes when he meets her? What if Jane does not love Charles? What if William and Elizabeth meet in a very “funny” situation? What if William is a rake in the eyes of a peer? What if hide and seek is a very entertaining game?
You need to grab this book in order to answer all those what ifs, and discover how the happy ending reaches our main characters.
“We are both guilty of forming mistaken first impressions.”
There are funny moments, a few jokes, a lot of alliteration and a great deal of new situations that will make you keep reading even if it is 2am *smile*
October 17, 2020
From Miss Elizabeth Darcy to Mrs Elizabeth Bennet
P&P reverse. You may like this variation or not, but it must be admitted that it is very original, I was amused that Elizabeth fell in love first, that it was she who had no parents, Mr. Bennet's nerves, Mrs. Bennet's good sense, Andrew's secret (De Bourgh). I liked The Matlocks, especially Lord Matlock. Anyway, I will look for more about this author.
P&P reverse. You may like this variation or not, but it must be admitted that it is very original, I was amused that Elizabeth fell in love first, that it was she who had no parents, Mr. Bennet's nerves, Mrs. Bennet's good sense, Andrew's secret (De Bourgh). I liked The Matlocks, especially Lord Matlock. Anyway, I will look for more about this author.
September 9, 2014
Love at first slight è una variation di Orgoglio e Pregiudizio molto particolare, in quanto l'autrice si propone di riscrivere il romanzo austeniano invertendo i sessi di tutti i protagonisti: abbiamo così cinque fratelli Bennet, Martin (Mary), Charles (Jane), William (Elizabeth), e i gemelli Kit (Kitty) e Laurie (Lydia), un signor Bennet che vuole ad ogni costo vederli sposare delle donne ricche (nonché succube dei suoi nervi), e una signora Bennet che si disinteressa alquanto della faccenda e preferisce immergersi nella lettura (e negli alcolici).
Sull'altro fronte, abbiamo invece una Elizabeth Darcy amica della vedova Jane Devenport (Bingley), e i due fratelli e la cognata di questa.
Naturalmente la storia originale si regge molto meglio rispetto a quella raccontata in questo libro, in cui alcune cose sembrano un po' tirate per i capelli: finisce per diventare ridicolo, ad esempio, il desiderio del signor Bennet di vedere tutti i suoi figli ben accasati, quando la sua tenuta non andrà persa, ma diventerà proprietà di Martin, ed almeno altri due dei suoi ragazzi avranno un futuro quanto meno dignitoso.
Inoltre, ho trovato piuttosto difficile la lettura di questo romanzo - credo sia stato il più difficile da leggere in cui mi sia imbattuta fino ad ora -, anche a causa dei molti termini arcaici utilizzati, ed in più, all'inizio, ho fatto un po' fatica a ricordarmi chi fosse chi e che posto avesse nella famiglia (Martin, ad esempio, che è un perfetto corrispettivo maschile di Mary, è il figlio primogenito).
E' stato però carino vedere questa "Lizzy Darcy", a cui la scrittrice assegna la caratteristica di giocherellare spesso con la sua collana, così altezzosa e snob, e poi i lacrime per un amore non corrisposto. Ad un certo punto, però, mi è sembrato proprio che si trasformasse nella vera Elizabeth del romanzo originario, forse troppo repentinamente. L'ho comunque trovata una eroina adorabile. Non mi ha convinto invece William, che mi è sembrato qualche volta irritante e spesso troppo rude, soprattutto con Lizzy.
[inizio piccolo SPOILER]
Mi è spiaciuto che non ci sia stato un lieto fine per Jane e Charles, né un matrimonio per Olivia Collins. A quanto pare, nel manoscritto originale le storie di questi personaggi trovavano una loro conclusione, ma l'editore ha preferito un finale più breve che non li includesse...
[fine SPOILER]
Mi è piaciuta molto Cassie Fitzwilliam, il corrispettivo del Colonnello (che comunque appare anche "al maschile") e cugina di Elizabeth, la quale, in questa versione del romanzo, deve fronteggiare non solo lo zio Sir Lewis DeBourgh, ma anche il proprio tutore, Lord Matlock, padre di Cassie.
Carino anche il piccolo George e la sua passione per l'astronomia.
Fino alla metà della storia, il romanzo rispecchia abbastanza da vicino l'originale, ma comincia ad allontanarsene a partire dalla visita di William con gli zii Gardiner a Pemberley.
Qui vi è una scena che mi ha ricordato abbastanza da vicino quella della famosa "camicia bagnata" della trasposizione televisiva di Orgoglio e Pregiudizio del 1995, che a dire il vero, non ho mai trovato utile ai fini della storia e non mi è mai piaciuta granché. In seguito, viene descritto nei particolari il soggiorno di Will nel Kent, la sua cacciata dalla proprietà e la sua successiva rappacificazione con Elizabeth, seguita dal matrimonio. Non si tratta di eventi noiosi, tuttavia resto dell'idea che, se Jane Austen non si è soffermata su alcuni episodi e alcuni particolari, è perché questi non avevano peso ai fini della storia, o si sarebbero rivelati noiosi (vedi Follies past), e li trovo sempre superflui nelle variation.
Mi è piaciuto molto il finale, soprattutto le ultime frasi concernenti Elizabeth.
Un'ultima considerazione: questo libro -che pur vale, anche se la mia recensione un po' cattiva sembrerebbe sconsigliarlo- mi ha fatto ulteriormente riflettere sulla condizione della donna ai tempi della Reggenza. Pur essendo maggiorenne e ricchissima, infatti, Elizabeth non è libera di fare nulla (non avrebbe potuto aiutare i gemelli senza il benestare dello zio), non potrebbe sposare l'uomo che ama senza l'approvazione del suo tutore, e, dopo le nozze, tutto il suo inestimabile patrimonio passa automaticamente nelle mani del marito.
Qui si tratta di una storia inventata, e si suppone che Will sarà un marito amabilissimo e prodigo di attenzioni nei confronti della moglie, ma non ho potuto non sentire l'ingiustizia di tale situazione, che ha coinvolto moltissime donne che invece hanno vissuto davvero.
http://iltesorodicarta.blogspot.it/
Sull'altro fronte, abbiamo invece una Elizabeth Darcy amica della vedova Jane Devenport (Bingley), e i due fratelli e la cognata di questa.
Naturalmente la storia originale si regge molto meglio rispetto a quella raccontata in questo libro, in cui alcune cose sembrano un po' tirate per i capelli: finisce per diventare ridicolo, ad esempio, il desiderio del signor Bennet di vedere tutti i suoi figli ben accasati, quando la sua tenuta non andrà persa, ma diventerà proprietà di Martin, ed almeno altri due dei suoi ragazzi avranno un futuro quanto meno dignitoso.
Inoltre, ho trovato piuttosto difficile la lettura di questo romanzo - credo sia stato il più difficile da leggere in cui mi sia imbattuta fino ad ora -, anche a causa dei molti termini arcaici utilizzati, ed in più, all'inizio, ho fatto un po' fatica a ricordarmi chi fosse chi e che posto avesse nella famiglia (Martin, ad esempio, che è un perfetto corrispettivo maschile di Mary, è il figlio primogenito).
E' stato però carino vedere questa "Lizzy Darcy", a cui la scrittrice assegna la caratteristica di giocherellare spesso con la sua collana, così altezzosa e snob, e poi i lacrime per un amore non corrisposto. Ad un certo punto, però, mi è sembrato proprio che si trasformasse nella vera Elizabeth del romanzo originario, forse troppo repentinamente. L'ho comunque trovata una eroina adorabile. Non mi ha convinto invece William, che mi è sembrato qualche volta irritante e spesso troppo rude, soprattutto con Lizzy.
[inizio piccolo SPOILER]
Mi è spiaciuto che non ci sia stato un lieto fine per Jane e Charles, né un matrimonio per Olivia Collins. A quanto pare, nel manoscritto originale le storie di questi personaggi trovavano una loro conclusione, ma l'editore ha preferito un finale più breve che non li includesse...
[fine SPOILER]
Mi è piaciuta molto Cassie Fitzwilliam, il corrispettivo del Colonnello (che comunque appare anche "al maschile") e cugina di Elizabeth, la quale, in questa versione del romanzo, deve fronteggiare non solo lo zio Sir Lewis DeBourgh, ma anche il proprio tutore, Lord Matlock, padre di Cassie.
Carino anche il piccolo George e la sua passione per l'astronomia.
Fino alla metà della storia, il romanzo rispecchia abbastanza da vicino l'originale, ma comincia ad allontanarsene a partire dalla visita di William con gli zii Gardiner a Pemberley.
Qui vi è una scena che mi ha ricordato abbastanza da vicino quella della famosa "camicia bagnata" della trasposizione televisiva di Orgoglio e Pregiudizio del 1995, che a dire il vero, non ho mai trovato utile ai fini della storia e non mi è mai piaciuta granché. In seguito, viene descritto nei particolari il soggiorno di Will nel Kent, la sua cacciata dalla proprietà e la sua successiva rappacificazione con Elizabeth, seguita dal matrimonio. Non si tratta di eventi noiosi, tuttavia resto dell'idea che, se Jane Austen non si è soffermata su alcuni episodi e alcuni particolari, è perché questi non avevano peso ai fini della storia, o si sarebbero rivelati noiosi (vedi Follies past), e li trovo sempre superflui nelle variation.
Mi è piaciuto molto il finale, soprattutto le ultime frasi concernenti Elizabeth.
Un'ultima considerazione: questo libro -che pur vale, anche se la mia recensione un po' cattiva sembrerebbe sconsigliarlo- mi ha fatto ulteriormente riflettere sulla condizione della donna ai tempi della Reggenza. Pur essendo maggiorenne e ricchissima, infatti, Elizabeth non è libera di fare nulla (non avrebbe potuto aiutare i gemelli senza il benestare dello zio), non potrebbe sposare l'uomo che ama senza l'approvazione del suo tutore, e, dopo le nozze, tutto il suo inestimabile patrimonio passa automaticamente nelle mani del marito.
Qui si tratta di una storia inventata, e si suppone che Will sarà un marito amabilissimo e prodigo di attenzioni nei confronti della moglie, ma non ho potuto non sentire l'ingiustizia di tale situazione, che ha coinvolto moltissime donne che invece hanno vissuto davvero.
http://iltesorodicarta.blogspot.it/
August 24, 2014
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4.5 Austen
"Es una verdad universalmente admitida que una joven viuda, poseedora de una gran fortuna, no necesariamente desea otro esposo". Así inicia la autora su adaptación.
No existe un Charles Bingley sino la señora Jane Devonport; no existe un señor Fitwilliam Darcy de Pemberley, sino una Elizabeth Darcy; no existe una Jane Bennet sino un Charles Bennet; no existe una Elizabeth Bennet sino un William Bennet... Es un poco para esbozar ese cambio de género de la historia original de Orgullo y prejuicio por Love at First Slight... interesante, ¿verdad?... pues hay mucho más.
Estableciendo un poco los roles cambiados, tengo que hacer hincapié que las conversaciones entre los personajes son muy divertidas y al tener los hombres más libertad de opinión estando solos, no se cortaban un pelo al expresarse en malos y buenos términos de las damas de riqueza, sobre todo los más jóvenes Bennet.
Fue exquisito cómo la autora fue encajando cada personaje al cambiar de género, por ejemplo Will Bennet, tenía sus sueños que no iban con la posición que tenía en la vida, y ello requería que se casara con alguien de dinero, pero su sentido de la honestidad, su anhelo de casarse por amor, no admitía hacer un matrimonio por conveniencia, así que asumió que se quedaría soltero y criando a los hijos de sus hermanos. Con diferencia, era el hijo más capacitado para llevar una finca y todo lo que ello requería, dudaba de su capacidad como clérigo por tener ideas prácticas y una actitud irreverente ante la vida, aunque honesta; era un hombre, sin pelos en la lengua, por lo que era capaz de hacer juicios rápidos de personas que apenas conocía, como por ejemplo por una bella dama voluptuosa de cabellos negros y maneras orgullosas, Elizabeth Darcy. En la misma dinámica, la autora trató a todos los personajes, fue uno a uno encajando sus características en la vida que reemplazaba, con todo lo que ello implicaba.
La historia nos brinda numerosos momentos exquisitos, no solo por su picardía e ironía que es el común denominador durante todo el libro, sino también nos hace testigos de conversaciones cálidas entre hermanos, pensamientos individuales de cada personaje, reflejando lo propio de su personalidad, dejándonos constantemente con un sonrisa en los labios, con sensaciones de ternura y lo bien logrado que ha quedado tal o cual escena.
Una sensación agridulce nos deja algunos personajes que no encuentran la resolución esperada, pero no me decepcionó el giro que le dio la autora, fue coherente y razonable. Disfruté mucho del personaje de Elizabeth Darcy, esa imagen de mujer orgullosa y tan vulnerable a la vez, sobre todo cuando abrió su corazón. Incluso diría que era 'muy echada para adelante' en sus acciones, pero con mucho encanto.
Disfruté cómo la autora introdujo muchas pinceladas de las obras de Shakespeare en los diálogos, pensamientos y reflexiones de los personajes, ante determinadas situaciones para subrayar la ironía del momento.
Es de esperarse que al revertir el sexo de los personajes, muchas situaciones cambiaron, sobre todo en una sociedad donde los roles entre hombres y mujeres estaban tan marcados por las reglas estrictas del decoro y la decencia. Justo por eso tenía mis dudas, si este cambio de género podía tener éxito; me alegra haberme equivocado, porque es un trabajo brillante, con todos los detalles muy bien cuidados para hacer encajar con coherencia todos las piezas del puzzle.
Un libro para leer con tranquilidad, pausadamente, porque va haciéndote reflexionar pero sobre todo te divierte muchísimo. Te deja con esa sensación de "resaca lectora", necesitando un tiempo para terminar de asimilarlo y que se disipen todas las buenas sensaciones que te deja. Definitivamente va al estante de los que releeré de tiempo en tiempo en búsqueda de esa misma sensación.
February 28, 2014
4.5 out of 5 stars
When I first heard of this story with all the character genders swapped, I had many questions immediately come to mind. How could certain plots play out when female actions were so limited during Regency times― the proposal, for instance. Never fear, J Marie Croft does a remarkable job of making it work. Not only does she handle all the role reversals with ease and much wit, she follows the original storyline. She gives some quotes to different characters or uses them in a different place and does so seamlessly, never ‘missing a beat’. As for the first proposal, it was flawlessly done!
Mr. Benjamin Bennet was hilarious as the fretting father hoping to marry off his five sons to wealthy women. Mrs. Bennet (Flora) enjoyed her books (and booze) and was not the least interested in talk of the Mertyon Assembly and gentlemen’s cravats!
One of the things that I loved about this book was the author’s clever word play.
“…unless you capture wealthy women’s heartstrings and control of their purse strings.” (Mr. Bennet)
“As a clergyman, he should be filled with the Spirit, not spirits.’ (Martin about William)
“You are the carrier of the dreaded inflection infection. In fact, everything you say is a country-diction of terms.” (William Bennet to Clarence Lucas)
At the church service when Casper (Caroline) prayed for Elizabeth (Darcy) to notice his shapely calves and Elizabeth prayed that Casper would spontaneously combust!
“…the beau monde is riddled with artifice and avarice.” (Elizabeth)
There are many instances of a description with a string of words all starting with the same letter or having the same suffix. I got much pleasure from discovering them as I read and seeing how easily they were incorporated into the story without disturbing the flow of it.
Casper Bingley made an excellent Caroline. I loved William Bennet as Elizabeth and Elizabeth Darcy as Fitzwilliam Darcy. The characters were all done very well and the story worked. It had wit, misunderstandings, romance and was a lot of fun to read. Good job!
The only thing I wished for was a little additional information given to the ending. It came a little quicker than I would have liked. I wanted to know about some of the other characters and what happened to them. I also wanted to know of William’s future plans―would he take the living or run an estate? It is only a small quibble but it left me desiring a bit more.
Overall I found this novel delightful. The title is perfect for this ‘topsy-turvy’ tale with genders reversed. It starts the marvelous word play that is to continue. Love at First Slight is lively and entertaining―much fun to read. Thank you, Ms. Croft for this clever re-telling. I highly recommend!
When I first heard of this story with all the character genders swapped, I had many questions immediately come to mind. How could certain plots play out when female actions were so limited during Regency times― the proposal, for instance. Never fear, J Marie Croft does a remarkable job of making it work. Not only does she handle all the role reversals with ease and much wit, she follows the original storyline. She gives some quotes to different characters or uses them in a different place and does so seamlessly, never ‘missing a beat’. As for the first proposal, it was flawlessly done!
Mr. Benjamin Bennet was hilarious as the fretting father hoping to marry off his five sons to wealthy women. Mrs. Bennet (Flora) enjoyed her books (and booze) and was not the least interested in talk of the Mertyon Assembly and gentlemen’s cravats!
One of the things that I loved about this book was the author’s clever word play.
“…unless you capture wealthy women’s heartstrings and control of their purse strings.” (Mr. Bennet)
“As a clergyman, he should be filled with the Spirit, not spirits.’ (Martin about William)
“You are the carrier of the dreaded inflection infection. In fact, everything you say is a country-diction of terms.” (William Bennet to Clarence Lucas)
At the church service when Casper (Caroline) prayed for Elizabeth (Darcy) to notice his shapely calves and Elizabeth prayed that Casper would spontaneously combust!
“…the beau monde is riddled with artifice and avarice.” (Elizabeth)
There are many instances of a description with a string of words all starting with the same letter or having the same suffix. I got much pleasure from discovering them as I read and seeing how easily they were incorporated into the story without disturbing the flow of it.
Casper Bingley made an excellent Caroline. I loved William Bennet as Elizabeth and Elizabeth Darcy as Fitzwilliam Darcy. The characters were all done very well and the story worked. It had wit, misunderstandings, romance and was a lot of fun to read. Good job!
The only thing I wished for was a little additional information given to the ending. It came a little quicker than I would have liked. I wanted to know about some of the other characters and what happened to them. I also wanted to know of William’s future plans―would he take the living or run an estate? It is only a small quibble but it left me desiring a bit more.
Overall I found this novel delightful. The title is perfect for this ‘topsy-turvy’ tale with genders reversed. It starts the marvelous word play that is to continue. Love at First Slight is lively and entertaining―much fun to read. Thank you, Ms. Croft for this clever re-telling. I highly recommend!
November 13, 2014
Review originally published on my blog: AWordsWorth.blogspot.com
Book provided by publisher for review.
This is one of those books that is just plain fun. Croft took the familiar and beloved tale of Pride and Prejudice, and gave it a fresh new update that is sure to make you laugh out loud. (I did, the cats were frightened). She keeps the original context, it's a historical, Regency novel - and the key scenes definitely do happen. You know, important stuff like the ill-fated first encounter at the Assembly, and a visit to Rosings Park - not to mention the surprise encounter on Pemberley's grounds. But everything plays out with an entertaining flair and a whole new flavor. You see, all the gender roles have been reversed in Croft's rendition.
Admittedly, it's a little unusual at first glance: No Mr Darcy! But once you start reading, and the five Bennett brothers take over, it works. Our Darcy is now Elizabeth - a much sought-after heiress with a fortune beyond belief. Her starcrossed lover is the middle Bennett brother, William. (He. Is. Awesome. Also a reverend). Mr Bennett is prone to nervous complaints and has an urgent need to marry off his five sons to rich wives. It is Casper Bingley who is after Miss Elizabeth Darcy, and his sister Jane - a wealthy widow - catches the attention of Charles Bennett. Mr Collins is himself, however he has a sister who is ... a force to be reckoned with. And then there is Sir de Bourgh and his sickly son Andrew. Seriously, this gender-switching works so much better than I'd have expected - and the added hilarity of knowing these characters as other characters amplifies the fun.
The story itself follows the pattern of the familiar original -there are misunderstandings, bad decisions, rash words, fierce encounters. With the different gender roles, the way things play out at the end is a little different, but I found it refreshing and not un-Jane. I love Lizzy, and really, really love Will Bennett. At times irreverent, always carefully fun and light, this is definitely a worthy addition to the Austenesque collection.
Book provided by publisher for review.
This is one of those books that is just plain fun. Croft took the familiar and beloved tale of Pride and Prejudice, and gave it a fresh new update that is sure to make you laugh out loud. (I did, the cats were frightened). She keeps the original context, it's a historical, Regency novel - and the key scenes definitely do happen. You know, important stuff like the ill-fated first encounter at the Assembly, and a visit to Rosings Park - not to mention the surprise encounter on Pemberley's grounds. But everything plays out with an entertaining flair and a whole new flavor. You see, all the gender roles have been reversed in Croft's rendition.
Admittedly, it's a little unusual at first glance: No Mr Darcy! But once you start reading, and the five Bennett brothers take over, it works. Our Darcy is now Elizabeth - a much sought-after heiress with a fortune beyond belief. Her starcrossed lover is the middle Bennett brother, William. (He. Is. Awesome. Also a reverend). Mr Bennett is prone to nervous complaints and has an urgent need to marry off his five sons to rich wives. It is Casper Bingley who is after Miss Elizabeth Darcy, and his sister Jane - a wealthy widow - catches the attention of Charles Bennett. Mr Collins is himself, however he has a sister who is ... a force to be reckoned with. And then there is Sir de Bourgh and his sickly son Andrew. Seriously, this gender-switching works so much better than I'd have expected - and the added hilarity of knowing these characters as other characters amplifies the fun.
The story itself follows the pattern of the familiar original -there are misunderstandings, bad decisions, rash words, fierce encounters. With the different gender roles, the way things play out at the end is a little different, but I found it refreshing and not un-Jane. I love Lizzy, and really, really love Will Bennett. At times irreverent, always carefully fun and light, this is definitely a worthy addition to the Austenesque collection.
March 21, 2015
Love at First Slight didn't start out very promising and I doubted I would even be able to finish it. Luckily I kept that famous blue fish Dory's mantra in my mind..."just keep swimming, swimming, swimming"...or should I say Reading, Reading, Reading..... I'm so glad I did! The twist on Elizabeth & Darcy was so original and there were so many smile worthy moments. Highly recommend for Fans of P&P variations. Just remember if you aren't enjoying the story to just keep reading, reading.....
January 15, 2016
I enjoyed this opposite retelling of P&P. The authors telling flipping the characters roles but still keeping the story appropriate for the new gender was such an enjoyable read. I especially liked the name references such as Catherine/Kitty converting to Christopher/Kit. I will most likely be reading this book again in the future.
May 29, 2015
Role reversals worked! What if Elizabeth was a wealthy heiress and William was a gentlemen son with no fortune and a living in a church instead? All the Characters are reversed but it worked so well! Mr and Mrs Bennet seemed so odd with their roles reversed! Well written and made me laugh!
July 10, 2015
Characters changing gender roles? Too weird for me.
February 1, 2019
Superb
I'm a big fan of any book that has me laughing out loud throughout the story, and this is one. Ms. Croft has that special gift of comic timing as well as being a talented wordsmith. As the story descriptor states, this is a topsy-turvy P&P variation wherein the genders are reversed so that the Bennett siblings are boys, Mr. Bennett is imbued with the silliness, the Darcy character is a woman named Elizabeth, Jane is the Bingley character but a widow, and most other peripheral characters are also exchanged for other sexes and names. The storyline follows the original P&P but with some necessary tweaks and twists. It is told mostly from the point of view of William Bennett, who is substituting for the Lizzy character, but there are thankfully some thoughts from the others to give the story more perspective.
Of course, role reversal creates some challenges and changes since it is typically the man who pursues a woman, and in this story the poor man is ending up with the wealthy woman. To make matters even more interesting the poor William Bennett character is a parson! This was a stroke of genius on the part of Ms. Croft, who gave the parson a playful and irreverent nature, while requiring him to be compassionate and caring as a priest should be. The result is a thoroughly lovable and enticing man who is truly worthy of a wealthy but worthwhile woman.
The frequent use of exclamations and alliterations was hilarious. The whole tongue-in-cheek treatment of the P&P story had me laughing out loud. The story had its moments of drama and angst, but not very many. Well written and well edited, I would highly recommend it
I'm a big fan of any book that has me laughing out loud throughout the story, and this is one. Ms. Croft has that special gift of comic timing as well as being a talented wordsmith. As the story descriptor states, this is a topsy-turvy P&P variation wherein the genders are reversed so that the Bennett siblings are boys, Mr. Bennett is imbued with the silliness, the Darcy character is a woman named Elizabeth, Jane is the Bingley character but a widow, and most other peripheral characters are also exchanged for other sexes and names. The storyline follows the original P&P but with some necessary tweaks and twists. It is told mostly from the point of view of William Bennett, who is substituting for the Lizzy character, but there are thankfully some thoughts from the others to give the story more perspective.
Of course, role reversal creates some challenges and changes since it is typically the man who pursues a woman, and in this story the poor man is ending up with the wealthy woman. To make matters even more interesting the poor William Bennett character is a parson! This was a stroke of genius on the part of Ms. Croft, who gave the parson a playful and irreverent nature, while requiring him to be compassionate and caring as a priest should be. The result is a thoroughly lovable and enticing man who is truly worthy of a wealthy but worthwhile woman.
The frequent use of exclamations and alliterations was hilarious. The whole tongue-in-cheek treatment of the P&P story had me laughing out loud. The story had its moments of drama and angst, but not very many. Well written and well edited, I would highly recommend it
November 21, 2020
A masterpiece of delight
I loved every page -- nay, every word of this amazing story. Not content with switching the genders of the main characters, she resorts to alliteration and puns. And all the while, the canon story shines through.
It is so satisfying to see William refuse Elizabeth's proposal with thunderous words; to see Lady Catherine in male form (though somewhat less effective); to see Kitty and Lydia as rambunctious boys; to see Caroline Bingley as a ridiculous fop.
My highest compliments to this author for such wondrous revelations as lush flora and sweaty psalms.
Ms. Croft, you have a new follower.
7
I loved every page -- nay, every word of this amazing story. Not content with switching the genders of the main characters, she resorts to alliteration and puns. And all the while, the canon story shines through.
It is so satisfying to see William refuse Elizabeth's proposal with thunderous words; to see Lady Catherine in male form (though somewhat less effective); to see Kitty and Lydia as rambunctious boys; to see Caroline Bingley as a ridiculous fop.
My highest compliments to this author for such wondrous revelations as lush flora and sweaty psalms.
Ms. Croft, you have a new follower.
7
October 22, 2025
Interesting story
The writer did a good job to change everything at the same time didn't change.
However, I don't like the way Miss Darcy put herself so low after they had put the past behind and got an understanding. None of P&P variations I have read, Darcy would be so afraid of Elizabeth being upset by him for he made some decisions before consulting her.
The characters were not same as canon due to the change of sex.
And Miss Darcy was far less deserved to be refused harshly than Mr.Darcy. We could judge their behavior in same standard if their rights and society were same. But it isn't.
The writer did a good job to change everything at the same time didn't change.
However, I don't like the way Miss Darcy put herself so low after they had put the past behind and got an understanding. None of P&P variations I have read, Darcy would be so afraid of Elizabeth being upset by him for he made some decisions before consulting her.
The characters were not same as canon due to the change of sex.
And Miss Darcy was far less deserved to be refused harshly than Mr.Darcy. We could judge their behavior in same standard if their rights and society were same. But it isn't.
well-no-or-maybe
May 22, 2022DNF. Switching the gender roles is a fun idea, but evidently difficult to execute. In this try, everyone is flipped. So now there are a ton of new male characters and it is hard to keep track. Worse, you flip Elizabeth Bennet into heiress Miss Elizabeth Darcy and make her the one with a ton of pride. But... she isn't still our Lizzie, so she still has some Lizzie Bennet personality and the flip doesn't quite work. And changing Fitzwilliam Darcy of Pemberley into third-son William Bennet... there are just way too many Williams.
November 18, 2020
Intriguing
I have thought several times about what it would be like if their roles were reversed, and dismissed the idea as implausible. I figured if she was wealthy, there would be no reason to take a poor husband. This was beautifully written to address all concerns I could think of. It was really interesting to see the similarities and differences between the original and its reverse. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I have thought several times about what it would be like if their roles were reversed, and dismissed the idea as implausible. I figured if she was wealthy, there would be no reason to take a poor husband. This was beautifully written to address all concerns I could think of. It was really interesting to see the similarities and differences between the original and its reverse. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
February 16, 2021
Difficult read
I looked forward to this book having read another by Drift and enjoying puns. But I found myself constantly trying to relate the text to the original and comparing this variation the original. Even the puns wore on me two- thirds of the way through (two- thirds of a pun? Pu). And how long was that poor dog pregnant for? Ten-eleven months?
I looked forward to this book having read another by Drift and enjoying puns. But I found myself constantly trying to relate the text to the original and comparing this variation the original. Even the puns wore on me two- thirds of the way through (two- thirds of a pun? Pu). And how long was that poor dog pregnant for? Ten-eleven months?
March 10, 2023
Great!
Wonderful storytelling by flipping it about. I enjoyed the change of characters and personalities. It would have been nice if Charles and Jane had come together since he was in love with her, but the story focused on Elizabeth and William only. Enjoy
Wonderful storytelling by flipping it about. I enjoyed the change of characters and personalities. It would have been nice if Charles and Jane had come together since he was in love with her, but the story focused on Elizabeth and William only. Enjoy
December 6, 2020
This story is a gender-bender - imagine if Elizabeth was Darcy and Darcy was Elizabeth? William is the 3rd of 5 sons, who is father is desperate to see settled. Elizabeth is an heiress who is awkward and haughty. The story starts out very familiar, almost to the point where I wasn't enjoying it. The scenes at Longbourn were exhausting between the 5 brothers and Mr Bennet. I really started to enjoy it when we got to Volume II and William took a temp position at Hunsford. From that point on, it was very interesting to see how Croft modified the story to fit the different gender roles, opportunities, guardianships, etc. and it became much more enjoyable to read!
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