What do you think?
Rate this book
Universal Truth
Sometimes, being overlooked allows you to be seen more clearly.
Everyone thought they knew everything there was to know about Mary Bennet. The quiet, bookish, middle daughter certainly didn’t have anything going for her. While her beautiful and talented sisters did great things, everyone assumed she would spend all of her days locked away in her parents’ library.
One day, an old family friend arrives and gives Mary hope. There is a small, elite college that offers full scholarships to five special people each year. To apply, Mary has to admit that her family, whom she loves, might be holding her back even though they mean well. Can she muster the courage to walk away from everything she knows for a world that might not understand her?
This modern-day reimagining of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice tells the story of one young woman’s relentless search to find and live her own truth.
Everyone thought they knew everything there was to know about Mary Bennet. The quiet, bookish, middle daughter certainly didn’t have anything going for her. While her beautiful and talented sisters did great things, everyone assumed she would spend all of her days locked away in her parents’ library.
One day, an old family friend arrives and gives Mary hope. There is a small, elite college that offers full scholarships to five special people each year. To apply, Mary has to admit that her family, whom she loves, might be holding her back even though they mean well. Can she muster the courage to walk away from everything she knows for a world that might not understand her?
This modern-day reimagining of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice tells the story of one young woman’s relentless search to find and live her own truth.
342 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 11, 2025
About the author
A.R. Farina
9 books10 followersA.R. Farina shares his empty nest with his wife, a librarian, where they read books and watch sunsets. When not busy writing, he spends his time as a college professor with both an M.A. Ed. and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing.
His Austen Chronicles series, a modern-day YA re-imagining of the Jane Austen novels, will be published by 4 Horsemen Publications. The first three books in the series are now available wherever books are sold.
His Austen Chronicles series, a modern-day YA re-imagining of the Jane Austen novels, will be published by 4 Horsemen Publications. The first three books in the series are now available wherever books are sold.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 5, 2026
There are many truly wonderful things about this unusual variation of Pride and Prejudice that make it stand out. One of those things is also a weakness at times, but I'll get to that shortly.
First of all, it perfectly captures the interpersonal dynamics found in a large family of any era. This happens to be set in Connecticut during the late twentieth century starting in 1989, but five girls between the ages of fifteen and twenty-two living under the same roof are going to create a lively household anywhere. Even more so when their mother is a drama queen, as is Mrs. Bennet (a former Miss Connecticut in the beauty contest world).
The book is also filled with era-specific details – for example, sharing a single landline with no cell phones and researching via library rather than Google. It mentions lots of great songs that came out at that time. Everything works to create the perfect 80s-90s vibe.
Most impressively, Mary is a fantastic character here. Similar but not the same as Jane Austen’s Mary Bennet. This one is studious, reading way more than Fordyce, though she can quote him off the top of her head if asked. Always takes notes in her ever-present notebooks. She’s observant. Reflective. Brilliant, actually, but an outsider in her own family. She has the most in common with her father (who encourages her in his own understated way) and her aunt, Mrs. Phillips (who is a much better cheerleader). Mary chafes at the restrictions of small town life and wants more for her own future. Although Lizzy and Darcy’s story plays out in the background, Mary proves herself worthy to be the heroine this time.
This brings me to the distinctive style of narration. It’s omniscient. That’s not so unusual. What takes it to outside-the-box territory is that it’s also conversational, the author essentially becoming an additional character. He breaks the fourth wall, embarking on a one-sided, casual conversation directly with the reader, even asking your opinion on various dubiously-related topics he raises in tandem with the story being told. It’s a storytelling technique I’ve not encountered to this degree before. In introducing William Collins into the story, comments about the character’s tendency to ramble off onto verbal tangents leads to the author’s admission that he does the same thing, the difference being that the author does eventually return to the original topic. I found it charming, especially in the early chapters when it’s an engaging way to provide pertinent background information about all the characters.
However, once the meat of the story had grabbed my attention, there were times when I wished for fewer interruptions by the author’s side comments, which occasionally deadened the pace. Hence, one of the things I loved most about this book is also what bugged me the most. At times. Enough to bump one star off my rating, but not enough to prevent me from recommending the book highly.
Considering the attention The Other Bennet Sister is currently garnering both in print and on BritBox, it’s notable that this is yet another excellent coming-of-age story centered on the middle Bennet sister. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I received a free copy and am voluntarily leaving a review
First of all, it perfectly captures the interpersonal dynamics found in a large family of any era. This happens to be set in Connecticut during the late twentieth century starting in 1989, but five girls between the ages of fifteen and twenty-two living under the same roof are going to create a lively household anywhere. Even more so when their mother is a drama queen, as is Mrs. Bennet (a former Miss Connecticut in the beauty contest world).
The book is also filled with era-specific details – for example, sharing a single landline with no cell phones and researching via library rather than Google. It mentions lots of great songs that came out at that time. Everything works to create the perfect 80s-90s vibe.
Most impressively, Mary is a fantastic character here. Similar but not the same as Jane Austen’s Mary Bennet. This one is studious, reading way more than Fordyce, though she can quote him off the top of her head if asked. Always takes notes in her ever-present notebooks. She’s observant. Reflective. Brilliant, actually, but an outsider in her own family. She has the most in common with her father (who encourages her in his own understated way) and her aunt, Mrs. Phillips (who is a much better cheerleader). Mary chafes at the restrictions of small town life and wants more for her own future. Although Lizzy and Darcy’s story plays out in the background, Mary proves herself worthy to be the heroine this time.
This brings me to the distinctive style of narration. It’s omniscient. That’s not so unusual. What takes it to outside-the-box territory is that it’s also conversational, the author essentially becoming an additional character. He breaks the fourth wall, embarking on a one-sided, casual conversation directly with the reader, even asking your opinion on various dubiously-related topics he raises in tandem with the story being told. It’s a storytelling technique I’ve not encountered to this degree before. In introducing William Collins into the story, comments about the character’s tendency to ramble off onto verbal tangents leads to the author’s admission that he does the same thing, the difference being that the author does eventually return to the original topic. I found it charming, especially in the early chapters when it’s an engaging way to provide pertinent background information about all the characters.
However, once the meat of the story had grabbed my attention, there were times when I wished for fewer interruptions by the author’s side comments, which occasionally deadened the pace. Hence, one of the things I loved most about this book is also what bugged me the most. At times. Enough to bump one star off my rating, but not enough to prevent me from recommending the book highly.
Considering the attention The Other Bennet Sister is currently garnering both in print and on BritBox, it’s notable that this is yet another excellent coming-of-age story centered on the middle Bennet sister. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I received a free copy and am voluntarily leaving a review
March 4, 2025
This third book in The Austen Chronicles is a love letter to Gen X and a celebration of one of Jane Austen’s most overlooked characters, Mary Bennet. Often cast aside as the bookish and awkward middle child, Mary takes center stage in this novel, which explores her intelligence, ambition, and desire for self-discovery; giving Mary the depth and complexity she deserves.
April 25, 2025
I really do enjoy AR Farina's writing style: it's quirky, irreverent & sarcastic at times and many-a-time laugh-out-loud funny.
Love it! And it just gets better from there. Seriously better. I loved this Mary. Loved the story through her eyes and absolutely loved the narrator. Funny, biting, witty - you get the idea.
Don't miss out on this.
(p.s. Can't wait/Hoping for a Persuasion one in the series!)
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
... we shall think nothing more of the elder Bennets save for one quick reference to them. If you blink, you may miss it, Don't worry. It's not that important.
Love it! And it just gets better from there. Seriously better. I loved this Mary. Loved the story through her eyes and absolutely loved the narrator. Funny, biting, witty - you get the idea.
Don't miss out on this.
(p.s. Can't wait/Hoping for a Persuasion one in the series!)
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
June 10, 2026
This Pride and Prejudice variation is set initially in 1989 Meryton, Connecticut. 17 year old Mary Bennet, is quiet, bookish, but also very intelligent and is close to her Father and Aunt Phillips rather than her overly dramatic mother. Will she be able to break away from the future her family expect of her. Can she accept her family are holding her back. Will she be stubborn enough to walk away.
An entertaining and well-written different variation which concentrates on Mary.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
An entertaining and well-written different variation which concentrates on Mary.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 23, 2025
Dear reader, it is a Truth that Pride and Prejudice is probably the most Universally acknowledged of all Austen novels, meaning it is no small task to update such a beloved text.
It is with great Pride then that I'm happy to report that Farinanoraks faith in their favoured author remains founded, as he's only gone and done it again...
In quite a contrary move, our heroine for this tale is middle child Mary: she is a worthy addition to the Austen Chronicles protagonist pool alongside Mansfield's Junior and Dashwood's Maggie. She's intuitive and gracious and steadfast as she navigates her way through a tumultuous time in her life (applying for colleges and contemplating the gravitational shift of leaving home) many readers will be able to relate to.
Set in late 1989 and early 1990, the story is peppered with epochal music and film references and features my new favourite fictional location: the Meryton Cinema. It sounds like my kind of hang.
Of course, the wryly interjecting fourth-wall breaking narrator is back, perhaps a little more reserved on this occasion, letting the story unfurl without feeling the need for too much mischievous commentary. Whenever they do choose to breakthrough though, their thoughts are always welcome.
As a fan, I admit I may be Prejudiced but it's my Truth that this is another page-turning, involving read with Universal appeal.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
It is with great Pride then that I'm happy to report that Farinanoraks faith in their favoured author remains founded, as he's only gone and done it again...
In quite a contrary move, our heroine for this tale is middle child Mary: she is a worthy addition to the Austen Chronicles protagonist pool alongside Mansfield's Junior and Dashwood's Maggie. She's intuitive and gracious and steadfast as she navigates her way through a tumultuous time in her life (applying for colleges and contemplating the gravitational shift of leaving home) many readers will be able to relate to.
Set in late 1989 and early 1990, the story is peppered with epochal music and film references and features my new favourite fictional location: the Meryton Cinema. It sounds like my kind of hang.
Of course, the wryly interjecting fourth-wall breaking narrator is back, perhaps a little more reserved on this occasion, letting the story unfurl without feeling the need for too much mischievous commentary. Whenever they do choose to breakthrough though, their thoughts are always welcome.
As a fan, I admit I may be Prejudiced but it's my Truth that this is another page-turning, involving read with Universal appeal.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 6, 2026
There’s something quietly powerful about Universal Truth that lingers long after the final page. At its core, this novel is less about reinvention and more about recognition about seeing oneself clearly when the world has already decided who you are.
Mary Bennet is often overlooked, both within her family and in the expectations placed upon her. Yet A.R. Farina takes this familiar premise and transforms it into something deeply introspective and emotionally resonant. Mary’s journey is not dramatic in the traditional sense, it unfolds gently, with moments of doubt, courage, and self-realization that feel profoundly real.
What struck me most was the emotional honesty. The tension between loyalty to family and the desire for independence is handled with nuance, never feeling forced or overly sentimental. The writing itself is elegant and accessible, with a steady rhythm that mirrors Mary’s internal growth.
As a modern reimagining inspired by Pride and Prejudice, this story stands confidently on its own. It honors its roots while exploring themes that feel incredibly relevant today identity, self-worth, and the quiet bravery it takes to step beyond what is expected of you.
A beautifully written, introspective novel that speaks to anyone who has ever felt underestimated.
Mary Bennet is often overlooked, both within her family and in the expectations placed upon her. Yet A.R. Farina takes this familiar premise and transforms it into something deeply introspective and emotionally resonant. Mary’s journey is not dramatic in the traditional sense, it unfolds gently, with moments of doubt, courage, and self-realization that feel profoundly real.
What struck me most was the emotional honesty. The tension between loyalty to family and the desire for independence is handled with nuance, never feeling forced or overly sentimental. The writing itself is elegant and accessible, with a steady rhythm that mirrors Mary’s internal growth.
As a modern reimagining inspired by Pride and Prejudice, this story stands confidently on its own. It honors its roots while exploring themes that feel incredibly relevant today identity, self-worth, and the quiet bravery it takes to step beyond what is expected of you.
A beautifully written, introspective novel that speaks to anyone who has ever felt underestimated.
March 12, 2025
This is an excellently written modern adaption and the very entertaining narration of Mary's story. Loved, loved, loved it. So much fun.
I think it is not only for the young but young at heart.
Mary is much stronger, and smarter than portrayed in P&P, and actually Mrs. Bennet, although still partial, is smarter. Nice to see that they, Mr. and Mrs. are better attached. She is still not that nice to Mary or Elizabeth.
Very much enjoyed the synopsis of this story, and the references of why the narrator pokes fun, or shortens areas that we do not need to reflect on. Great narrator!
Will I read it again? Certainly. Do I recommend it? Definitely!.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I think it is not only for the young but young at heart.
Mary is much stronger, and smarter than portrayed in P&P, and actually Mrs. Bennet, although still partial, is smarter. Nice to see that they, Mr. and Mrs. are better attached. She is still not that nice to Mary or Elizabeth.
Very much enjoyed the synopsis of this story, and the references of why the narrator pokes fun, or shortens areas that we do not need to reflect on. Great narrator!
Will I read it again? Certainly. Do I recommend it? Definitely!.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
November 28, 2025
A modern day adaptation of Jane Austen's most famous story that lands on every level.
The writing style is engaging, with enough humour & heart to draw you in and keep you there - while the narrative itself is presented in a way that will keep the attention of anyone familiar with Pride & Prejudice, any new readers will be hard-pushed to put the book down at the end of each chapter.
In short: a fun, easy read that is accessible for any reader while delivering emotional beats & humour any generation will enjoy.
The writing style is engaging, with enough humour & heart to draw you in and keep you there - while the narrative itself is presented in a way that will keep the attention of anyone familiar with Pride & Prejudice, any new readers will be hard-pushed to put the book down at the end of each chapter.
In short: a fun, easy read that is accessible for any reader while delivering emotional beats & humour any generation will enjoy.
December 19, 2025
With the BBC's adaptation of 'The other Bennett sister' about to come out this is a timely story about Mary. Another route she might have taken. You don't need to know much about Pride and Prejudice to enjoy this retelling from Mary's POV. It is set in slightly more modern times but the heart of the family remains true and this was an enjoyable read. I am not so fond of the authors voice chipping in, it felt like it derailed the story but it was a different style and the story was great.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
June 26, 2025
I loved being transported to small town life in 1989 with the Bennett sisters. The 5 sisters are all very different, and believable. I found myself remembering similar scenes growing up with my two sisters. The engaging storyline along with the author's wise and witty narration make this an enjoyable book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
August 19, 2026
What a joy to read such an engaging book about Mary Bennett. Loved it!
July 3, 2025
This is a modern version of Pride and Prejudice taking place in mostly 1989 in New England. It is written in a quirky style and the reader is often adressed.
The Bennets lives on a big farm, that is struggeling financially, so they owe money to William Collins. The Bennet girls have all or is currently being homeschooled. Jane and Lizzie are en college and Mary is about to finish high school and are figuring out where she wants to go to college.
Key happenings from the original P&P are still taking place. Bingley and Darcy are coming to the area, Bingley leaves without in explanation and so on and so forth.
For me the story moved to slowly and some how the happenings from P&P didn't quite fit into the story.
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review
The Bennets lives on a big farm, that is struggeling financially, so they owe money to William Collins. The Bennet girls have all or is currently being homeschooled. Jane and Lizzie are en college and Mary is about to finish high school and are figuring out where she wants to go to college.
Key happenings from the original P&P are still taking place. Bingley and Darcy are coming to the area, Bingley leaves without in explanation and so on and so forth.
For me the story moved to slowly and some how the happenings from P&P didn't quite fit into the story.
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews