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No Indignity So Abhorrent

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“Assistance is impossible; condolence, insufferable. Let them triumph over us at a distance, and be satisfied.”In a world where a single misstep by a woman is injurious to all her family, the Bennets of Longbourn finds themselves shunned and despised by all their friends when one sister runs away with an officer. Mr. Bennet rouses himself from his beloved books and pursues the lovers to London, but returns empty-handed, his daughter lost forever.When the Bingley party arrives at Netherfield Park, they discover a neighborhood with a salacious scandal and a family ostracized from their midst. Though Miss Bingley revels in the gossip she learns from those with little sense and less discretion, Fitzwilliam Darcy keeps himself aloof, unwilling to join the condemnation without proof of poor behavior.Thus, when Darcy meets Miss Bennet by chance on a secluded path of her father’s estate, he finds her strangely compelling. The compulsion to continue to meet with her is strong, in defiance of the consequences if they should be discovered. Elizabeth Bennet finds herself equally intrigued, so much so that she begins to dream of a life free of scandal, where the Bennets have some hope of redemption.This re-imagination of Jane Austen’s beloved Pride and Prejudice answers the question of what might have happened had Fitzwilliam Darcy arrived in Meryton to find a Bennet family mired in scandal, one that he can do nothing to repair. Though many challenges lay in their path, including fallen sisters, despicable libertines, and a neighborhood determined to denounce the Bennets as depraved, Darcy and Elizabeth are convinced that their future happiness lies together.

550 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2023

158 people are currently reading
48 people want to read

About the author

Jann Rowland

88 books192 followers
Jann Rowland is a Canadian, born and bred. Other than a two-year span in which he lived in Japan, he has been a resident of the Great White North his entire life, though he professes to still hate the winters.

Though Jann did not start writing until his mid-twenties, writing has grown from a hobby to an all-consuming passion. His interests as a child were almost exclusively centered on the exotic fantasy worlds of Tolkien and Eddings, among a host of others. As an adult, his interests have grown to include historical fiction and romance, with a particular focus on the works of Jane Austen.

When Jann is not writing, he enjoys rooting for his favorite sports teams. He is also a master musician (in his own mind) who enjoys playing piano and singing as well as moonlighting as the choir director in his church’s congregation.

Jann lives in Alberta with his wife of more than twenty years, two grown sons, and one young daughter. He is convinced that whatever hair he has left will be entirely gone by the time his little girl hits her teenage years. Sadly, though he has told his daughter repeatedly that she is not allowed to grow up, she continues to ignore him.

Website: http://onegoodsonnet.com/
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5 stars
173 (37%)
4 stars
172 (37%)
3 stars
99 (21%)
2 stars
14 (3%)
1 star
5 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
Profile Image for Sheila Majczan.
2,698 reviews206 followers
September 10, 2023
527 pages on my Kindle for PC. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars. This is an author whose stories I borrow from KU as soon as I read that he has a new release. Although I must add that this one needs some editing and did drag in places for me.

The story description tells us that the Bennet family now lives in the disgrace connected with Lydia's disappearance. She has left no communication informing her family of who she left with and/or their intentions. (It is not W.)

So, the family lives in isolation. Mrs. Bennet spends her days in her bedroom bemoaning their fate. The sisters however eventually grow close and help each other, i.e., Kitty learns to play the pianoforte. Mary expands her reading beyond religious tracts. Elizabeth continues her walks although none are walks into Meryton. Plans are made for each sister to take their turn staying with the Gardiners in London in hopes that away from Meryton their disgrace is not known and they just might meet a man to marry. So, Jane is off to London...and she does meet someone. (This is a new twist from canon.) Mr. Bennet finally takes some steps to protect his family's future.

Meanwhile back in Hertfordshire, Bingley, his sisters, Hurst, Darcy and Georgiana come to stay at Netherfield. Darcy only catches a quick glance of a woman in the distance but is somehow intrigued and upon meeting Charlotte Lucas and learning her viewpoint about the gossip and her praise of her friend, Elizabeth, he now is even more intrigued. He rides out hoping to come upon her as he has learned of her walks and chanced upon her once before.

His stance, knowing the gossip, is that the sisters are not to blame for Lydia's fall from grace. Eventually Papa Bennet learns of these meetings and is not at all happy that Elizabeth might add to their disgrace if anyone learns of it...and they do.

Yes, the couple falls in love, but Bennet will not yet allow Darcy to propose immediately. He wants things done right and that means a period of open courting. Now you can imagine what Caroline Bingley thinks of Darcy giving attention to someone from "that family". Bingley has his ball, and it is here that Darcy has a public confrontation with the local populace, shaming them for ostracizing the Bennets when it is only Lydia who acted against propriety.

Wickham and Lady Catherine have their part. Lady C. shows up at Longbourn with Collins in tow.

So, the story spends many pages on the development of the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth, how they handle gossip, etc.

There are some surprises as this author changes several pairings. Plus, he gives us an epilogue.
Profile Image for Sam H..
1,228 reviews61 followers
September 2, 2023
This is an interesting variation, going down the path of the Bennets experiences after Lydia's disappearance.

I liked the duality of Jane's and Elizabeth's finding love at the same time, but in different places.
For me this was the most organic Jane-Col.F matching I've read.
Also refreshing was Darcy being intrigued and nearly pursuing Elizabeth right from the start. No pride, agg, guilt or self debating!

I did not like the repetition and over explaining. This book probably could have been 100 pages shorter, and it would have flowed better too. Although the 2nd half moved along faster than the first, which was a slog to push through.
Profile Image for Ree.
1,338 reviews80 followers
September 10, 2023
3.5* rounded up

Good story, but quite a few flaws a good editor would have caught. It could have also been pared down quite a bit, as I found it too long.
Profile Image for Gratia.
228 reviews6 followers
September 1, 2023
An interesting story

Another novel take by Mr Rowland. As usual from this author, this was an engrossing tale that has plot twists that are not usually seen. There was more romance between ODC, which I think enhanced the story. I had just finished reading A Devoted Sister a few weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised to see that Mr Rowland had released another book. This leads me to my one small criticism of this book: I think it should have been reviewed/edited one more time before it was released. Unlike the many other books that I have read from him, I found instances where there was repetition of information. This was true especially in chapter 38. Regardless, I did enjoy the story and would recommend it as one that is low angst with no explicit scenes.
Profile Image for Polly.
183 reviews
September 3, 2023
An interesting concept, but far too long and quite repetitive. The Darcy in this has no improper pride, which is not something I’m opposed to reading in variations, though I prefer such character changes to be explained by the circumstances of the variation - in this case, there was no discernible reason as to why he would have very little concern for his family name. The main pitfall of this variation was simply that I found many aspects of its plot unconvincing, and this combined with its dragged out second half reduced my enjoyment in reading it.
Profile Image for James S.
1,437 reviews
September 13, 2023
Lydia disappears

When she is never found, Meryton shuns the Bennets. No one will wed a ruined woman and all of the Bennet sisters are ruined. The story begins about one year after Lydia’s disappearance.

Lots of details about what a shunning is like and how psychological painful it is.

No hints from me. Good story recommended.
Profile Image for Michelle David.
2,560 reviews13 followers
September 3, 2023
Dark but delightful

An interesting variation indeed. What would happen if Lydia eloped before the Netherfield party arrived in Meryton and the Bennets were shunned by the whole town? I enjoyed it.
1,205 reviews31 followers
October 3, 2023
Wonderful

This author is an automatic purchase for me. Although almost all of the players in this variation are out-of-character, the premise is interesting, and demands great changes. True to the expectation that Lydia Bennett was so wild that she would eventually ruin her family, Lydia elopes with a militia officer, and disappears without a trace. The remaining Bennetts are instantly shunned by Meryton society, and become the subject of malicious gossip, deserted by almost all of their friends, having attained the reputation for all being fallen women. Into this scene comes the Bingleys, the Hursts, and Darcy with his sister Georgiana. At first the party at Netherfield has no contact with the Bennetts, as they never show their faces in society. But eventually, Darcy sees Elizabeth while riding, stops to speak with her, and they strike up a friendship that quickly turns to mutual attraction.

I liked the changes that circumstances demanded of the Bennett family. With only themselves to depend on and associate with, Jane cast off her rose colored glasses and grew a backbone. Elizabeth started out uncharacteristically bitter, but soon became a catalyst for a closer relationship with Mary and Kitty. Those two became more thoughtful and well rounded. Mr Bennett came out of his study and started taking care of his family. Mrs Bennett's shock at what happened subdued her, in a good way. I also like what happens to Jane in London. It's a clever twist, and so satisfying. This is a swoon worthy Darcy, and the romance is lovely.

I deducted a star because of the pall cast over most of the story by the depressing circumstances that the Bennetts had to endure. Their suffering was so great for such a long time that I couldn't wait for something positive to happen. It does happen, but it's a long time coming. However, the book is very well written and well edited. I recommend it highly for a very angsty, but also very romantic and satisfying tale, and a pleasant way to pass some time.
Profile Image for J.C. Plummer.
Author 3 books30 followers
August 22, 2024
Interesting story, but the beginning is very slow, and even when the story finally starts to move along, the pacing is still very uneven. There is a lot of repetition. All this results in a story that should have been edited down by at least 100 pages.

I’m not sure I ever really understood why Darcy found Elizabeth so intriguing when they first met and began to meet secretly. On the other hand, the romance with Jane and Col Fitzwilliam was very nice, and I liked Charlotte's romance that is mentioned in the epilogue.

Lastly, in addition to reading it when it was first released, I just finished listening to the audiobook. I’m very glad that the author has found a new narrator for his books since the release of this one. Why was the narrator lisping so much? Why was she reading it so slowly as if the listener is a child? I don’t like to increase the playback speed, but I finally gave up listening to it at normal speed; it was nearly unbearable.
343 reviews
January 17, 2024
More than 4 stars but not quite 5 stars …..

The good: the story is a distinct departure from canon and other variations I have read — and I have read hundreds. The disappearance of Lydia before Bingley and Darcy come to Netherfield Park is unique and fascinating. The changes to each of the Bennets, the Darcy’s, the Bingleys and Colonel Fitzwilliam are significant and very well written; the setting at Longbourn is instrumental to the development of the relationships. The absence of many of the iconic scenes and interactions makes the story even better.

The not so good: there were enough editing errors to be distracting. It was disconcerting for a conversation between two characters to switch to a conversation between different characters in a different location from one paragraph to the next with no warning of the context switch. There also were sections where an interesting event occurred followed by very detailed recounting of that event with one or more confidants. The last observation is that, while the title is very appropriate, there is no context in which the quotation is used or its meaning referenced.

Nit-picking aside, this book is highly recommended as a unique and interesting variation by a favorite author—always a must buy for me. I read it first in KU but then bought a copy for my library.
Profile Image for Bethanne.
618 reviews10 followers
Read
September 26, 2023
Good but not great as his usually are

While I enjoyed reading this book, its lacking feeling and angst. Its a subdued accounting of the last few months of the Bennet family shunning after Lydia ran away and disappeared. For a year the only individual besides the steward and tenants to continue visiting is Charlotte Lucas. Not even Lord Lucas has visited his long term friend and the Bennet girls have stayed away from Meryton because of the attitude.
Darcy runs into Miss Elizabeth on her walk through Longbourne and they gradually develop a friendship. He's miserable with Caroline trying to catch him and Elizabeth is miserable with having no one to talk to. Mr Bennet is hiding in his office, Mrs Bennet hiding in her bed, Mary hiding behind her books, Jane hiding in London, and Kitty is just lost and confused.
16 reviews
January 8, 2024
Low angst JAFF

In this story, the what-if takes place before the initial meeting between Elizabeth and Darcy. Elizabeth can’t even attend the assembly because the Bennett family is mired in scandal due to Lydia’s actions.

Additionally, much of the conflict faced by the characters is external. You don’t see as much of the misunderstanding and growth of the characters.

While I’m not typically a fan of stories that deviate so far from the original, I still recommend the book. I think the originality of the story as well as the character growth we see in some of the other Bennetts made it an enjoyable read
280 reviews
February 9, 2024
Desiring to try his hand at estate management, Bingley has decided on Netherfield Park.

Sir William Lucas apprises Bingley of the owners of all the surrounding estates except one. When questioned about the estate nearest to Netherfield, little is said, which has Darcy intrigued. To further aide his introduction to the neighborhood, Sir William, invites Bingley and his family and guest to his home for a gathering. There is much gosdip regarding the family at Longborne , much of it negative but not all. See how suspicions and assumptions can ruin friendships and true friends can lend the support needed to endure. Enjoy!
389 reviews
September 19, 2023
good twist on Pride and Prejudice

I enjoy reading Jann Rowland ‘s books about Elizabeth and Darcy . This was an interesting variation. Lydia has run off and no one has heard from her. The Bennetts find themselves ostracized and excluded from local society.
Bingley rents Netherfield, but Jane has already met and fallen in love with colonel Fitzwilliam. The rest proceeds with the same end, and various bumps along the way. Very enjoyable!
Profile Image for Sara (onourshelves).
790 reviews16 followers
October 9, 2023
4.5
I thought this was excellent. One problem I tend to have with Rowland's variations is they tend to drag, but I thought this one was especially well crafted. The Bennets are rejected in their neighborhood because Lydia ran off with an officer, but after hearing about Elizabeth, Darcy wanted to know more about her, leading to secret meetings, courtship, and Darcy and Bingley standing up for the Bennets generally. I thought it was very creative, and I was very invested throughout.
523 reviews2 followers
September 7, 2023
An intriguing alternative

This variation begins with several incidents turned on their heads, as Lydia has managed to run off and disgrace the Bennets BEFORE Bingley even moves to Netherfield. Lots of interesting moments, snide Caroline dialogue, unexpectedly firm Jane, ever-congenial Bingley, and a strong Colonel Fitzwilliam. Nicely done!
Profile Image for Mariska.
667 reviews2 followers
September 17, 2023
Absolutely Delightful In Every Way!

Jann Rowland has given us another masterfully crafted angst free gripping story of loves triumphant power. Giving us a Darcy who is worthy of all of our swooning from the very start. I love it when Darcy is witty, charming, understanding, and rather decisive at all times. The Bennets are forged in fire, and become very strong indeed.
Profile Image for Vicki.
724 reviews15 followers
October 1, 2023
This was an interesting idea, but…there’s not enough work done to make it feel believable that Darcy is singing a different tune and doesn’t have anything to overcome to be with Elizabeth. I think where this book shines is the Bennet family dynamics, even though that can feel a little too good to be true at times.
23 reviews
October 13, 2023
Consequences

Lydia disappears one night and since she can't be found and they don't hear from her, the family is shunned by their community. It is almost a year later that Lizzy and Jane begin to find happiness with Darcy and the Colonel (yes, that Colonel) and the family situation starts to lighten. A daring, yet warm and stunning take on our intrepid Darcy and Elizabeth.
123 reviews3 followers
September 4, 2023
Lovely

The Bennet's situation is interesting and quite sad. The resolution verged on magical, as it came about through a series of coincidences. I've always enjoyed this author's work, and am happy to say he did not disappoint.
91 reviews1 follower
September 19, 2023
A good read

I enjoyed this story with its twists from canon. It seemed a little slow at the beginning, but definitely entertaining. Some issues with grammar and incorrect words, but not enough to be too irritating.
659 reviews
September 20, 2023
Decent

It took a while before a conversation took place between Darcy and Elizabeth. Other than that, it was a pleasant read.
I liked Charlotte's HEA; I found the pairing believable.

Sidenote: later in the book, Jane's responses seemed off, like she suddenly became Elizabeth.
Profile Image for Tammy Buchli.
724 reviews16 followers
October 12, 2023
I am generally fond of Rowland Austenations, and the plot for this one was promising. But it was bloated, and just so slow… if the padding had been edited out, it would have made a very nice novella!
25 reviews
October 22, 2023
too long

I felt the basic theme and story a good one. It was edited for mechanics, but not what would have made it a better story. There was redundancy and the story moved too slowly.
27 reviews
September 4, 2023
Great book

Another superb book from Jann. He is a master at writing a different take on P&P variations that will pull you in.
Profile Image for Terri Conley.
1,039 reviews7 followers
September 4, 2023
I really hoped to like this one but it started well but seemed to flag for me.
793 reviews5 followers
October 2, 2023
Kept my attention

Kept my attention. Felt bad for the Bennet's. But this did lead to growth in some areas not expected.
Lydia did what we expected, or did she?
Will they recover?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews

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