The Peculiarity of Mr. Darcy's Mirror

by L.L. Diamond, Carol S. Bowes (Editor)

Ellie Gardiner has landed her dream job restoring art at the mysterious estate of Pemberley. Once a majestic home in the Derbyshire peaks, the long-abandoned property is in desperate need of help with a crumbling east wing, overgrown gardens, and a house full of possessions belonging to the once wealthy Darcy family. The most bizarre bit, however, is an enormous mirror in the once great ballroom. How does an almost two hundred and fifty-year-old mirror have not one speck of dust nor any sign of age? And why does it not show her reflection? Instead, some unknown lady stares back at her—a lady with a teasing smile wearing an empire waisted dress that one might see in a period drama. Do not even get her started on Fitzwilliam Darcy, the reclusive early 19th century gentleman whose painting she is restoring. He was the last successful master of Pemberley and also another puzzle to solve. Why would a man of sense and education hide himself away from the world? More importantly, why is she so obsessed with a man who has long since been dead?

After a couple of glasses of wine on a rainy evening, Ellie throws caution to the wind and presses her hand against her reflection, only to wake up in a time and place that is definitely not her own. Who is Elizabeth Bennet, and why does everyone keep calling her that? When she happens upon Fitzwilliam Darcy, the very man from the portrait, he comes to her aid, but what she truly needs is to return to her own time. Will she simply wake up one morning and resume her life at the Pemberley of the future? Must she travel to Fitzwilliam Darcy’s Pemberley and touch the same mirror as the one that transported her here? If she is to attempt the latter, she will need to trust Fitzwilliam with the truth, but if she does, will he even believe such an outlandish story? Blimey, what if she remains stuck in the 19th century forever?

Genres: Time Travel, Historical, Romance, Audiobook

309 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 6, 2022

About the author

Amazon best selling author L. L. Diamond is more commonly known as Leslie to her friends, and Mom to her three kids. A native of Louisiana, she has spent the majority of her life living within an hour of New Orleans until she followed her husband to the ends of the earth as a military wife. Louisiana, Mississippi, California, Texas, New Mexico, Nebraska, England, Missouri, and now Maryland have all been called home along the way.

Aside from mother and writer, Leslie considers herself a perpetual student. She has degrees in biology and studio art, but will devour any subject of interest simply for the knowledge. As an artist, her concentration is in graphic design, but watercolor is her medium of choice with one of her watercolors featured on the cover of her second book, A Matter of Chance. She is a member of the Jane Austen Society of North America. She also plays flute and piano, but much like Elizabeth Bennet, she is always in need of practice!

Reviews

[James S · Rating 5 out of 5]

time travel and more

A finely crated time travel romance and more. Some parts required a few readings for me to understand all the ins and outs of the traveler(s) go through. The metaness of everything was terribly fun to read about. A four dimensional puzzle can be difficult to craft. Great story. 👍🏻😀

[Ree · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Engaging TIme-Travel Tale
Ellie Gardiner is a modern-day art restorer who has landed a dream job at Pemberley which, unfortunately, has seen better days. In this modern century, part of it is crumbling, and it is now no longer owned by the Darcy family. After working on restoring some minor items, Ellie finally gets to work on a more important piece of Pemberley’s history—Fitzwilliam Darcy’s portrait. When she discovers his old journals, she becomes quite intrigued with the man who stepped away from society and never married. When exploring the ballroom, she comes upon a large mirror, and unlike most of the artifacts in the house, this one is surprisingly in pristine condition. It’s what she sees when she looks into the mirror that will raise her curiosity and, ultimately, change her life forever.

This thoroughly-engaging, alt-universe/time-travel Pride and Prejudice variation pulled me right in and didn’t let go until the end—as do all the books from this favourite author. I positively loved the character portrayals, both Ellie and her modern-day friends, as well as beloved Regency characters. Kudos, Ms. Diamond, for keeping the language straight between the times! A touch of drama and mystery, flowing dialogue, and a love story that spans two centuries kept me intrigued from start to finish.

I highly recommend this book, and I am looking forward to the promised audiobook release as well.

I received an advance copy of this book from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review. I also purchased the published Kindle version for my library.

November 8, 2022 - Audiobook ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I enjoyed Joanna Lee’s narration and performance very much. She captured the personalities of the characters very well. If I have one tiny critique it would be that at times I felt there wasn’t enough distinction between a character voice and the narrative portion which made it sometimes seem the character was still talking. This wasn’t bad enough to cause me to lower my rating.

Finally, this book screams SEQUEL, please!

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

5+ stars!

[Lady Mercury · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved it! Everything about the book.

I do wonder however as to why I was so st*pid and hesitated months before finally reading. Should have known better, It‘s L.L Diamond after all. Brilliant!!

Dear Readers, it is a bit angsty, or rather anxiety. But nevertheless worth the read.

The narration was good, sometimes it was hard to devide the narration of the book and who Person speaking because they still sounded the same.

- Clean Content (kisses)
- a bit angst/ anxiety
- about 7 hours audiobook


Edit: I relisten to the book, the story itself deserves 5 Stars like I stated earlier, however if I should rate the narration.. that‘s another matter entirely. I would maybe rate it only 2,5-3 stars. Many characters sounded the same, Oliver sounded rather like a girl, and as I stated previously, deviding the narration from the speaker was at times hard because it also sounded the same, means you needed to pay good attention.

Would I recommend the audiobook anyway? YES!! Because the narrated was still able to convey the emotions and I laughed, cried and got goosebumps, not every Narrator is able to render me crying. 🤷‍♀️

[Elizabeth Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My ideal fantasy

All I can say is I couldn't put the book/ kindle down until I finished the story. I enjoy fantasies and read or watch on YouTube but this one held me securely til the end!

[MichelleH H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who better than L.L. Diamond to tell a dual timeline story, and throw in time travel? She does contemporary and historical JAFF equally so well. I would give this more than 5* if I could, I loved it that much.

The blurb sets the story up perfectly so I'm not going to rehash that. I'm loathe to spoil anything about this story and thus it's difficult to say anything without ruining the enjoyment for the next reader. Ellie's struggle with her 21st century mouth was hilarious at times, other times I held my breath waiting for the roof to crash down on her. I rooted for this Jane, who with her utter serenity took 'Elizabeth's changes' all in stride and helped her adjust to her 1811 life 'again' due to her receiving a great blow to the head and losing her memories. I loved this wonderful, heroic, hot, swoon worthy, etc., Darcy. And I adored this Mr. Bennet. He was the dad Ellie should've had in the future, and the father the Bennet girls should've had from the beginning.

When Ellie's struggle to get back to her life in the future gets more complicated with her falling for the man she has come to rely on for the previous two months, the angst grows. Though I wouldn't call it an angsty story, more that 'how is she going to solve all of this?' feeling ramping up as the last quarter of the book proceeds. Did I already say I loved it? Pray, do not take this as a challenge....but oh, don't spoil it!!!!

Highly recommend to all JAFF lovers. I can't wait for the audio book.

[Meredith (Austenesque Reviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who is That Woman Dressed For a Ball?

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Source: Gift from Author

TYPE OF NOVEL: Time Travel/Body Swap

THE PREMISE: Modern art conservator, Ellie Gardiner, is thrilled to begin working on restoring the hidden and neglected paintings of Pemberley before it is set up to be a public museum. But there is this odd mirror in the ballroom that inexplicably changes only her appearance when she looks into it. What happens when Ellie touches this mirror and ends up in someone else’s body where she meet the handsome estate owner who’s portrait she is in the middle of restoring…

MY THOUGHTS: This premise might be every Janeite’s fantasy come to life, and I am ready to live vicariously through our sarcastic and artistic heroine! Imagine – swapping bodies with Elizabeth Bennet… How can one do this in real life??? Anyone know where to find this peculiar type of mirror???

This is such an enthralling tale! It kind of reminds me of Lost in Austen, but this time the heroine is not a devout Jane Austen fan who knows how things are “supposed to be.” What Ellie does know is that Mr. Darcy died without marrying, and due to death taxes and spendthrift descendants his grand estate eventually became property of the bank. I loved following Ellie on this fantastical adventure. I loved seeing her face all the challenges of living in a different time and not knowing the etiquette, the people who are supposed to be her family, and even the language! It was interesting to see all the subtle ways word usage has changed in 200+ years.

Ellie is quick, perceptive, and genuine. I appreciated that she wasn’t completely baffled and clueless about how to passably act as a woman living in 1811, and that her difficulties and mistakes felt realistic and plausible. In addition, I admired how Ellie was quick to take the measure and accurately sketch the characters of everyone around her. I especially loved how she triggered some alterations in the Bennet household – and how she handled Wickham was *chef’s kiss* 🤌🏼

Another aspect I loved about this tale was its masterful construction and execution. Even though we are in an extraordinary situation of time travel, body swapping, and unexplained phenomena it still felt natural. While there was maybe a part or two that was a little challenging to wrap my head around, mostly all the explanations and behaviors were rooted in reason and sense. In addition, as with L. L. Diamond’s previous novels, I greatly admired her style of writing. Her character’s display their distinct personalities swiftly, she practices excellent economy by only depicting scenes/narratives that are relevant and informative, and she is an expert at inserting wit, charm, and tension in equal measure. I’m always happy to read anything she writes.

Well-crafted, witty, and whimsical The Peculiarity of Mr. Darcy’s Mirror is perfect wish fulfillment. If you ever dreamed of trading places with Elizabeth Bennet – this is a book you must add to your reading list! An exceptionally stunning gem by L. L. Diamond!

Austenesque Reviews

[Cndblank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well done. Fresh take.

[Sam H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is my favorite of this author's books.

The first time I read it, I was distracted by the wormhole of - but if she changed the past, Ellie wouldn't be there to go back in the first place...

This time I just enjoyed the story. Aside from medical issues, we don't get the heroine's details of the seedier side of regency living. no toilets, running water, feminine hygiene etc.

But the dynamics of a modern sentiment meeting a Regency Darcy works really well. The balance between Ellie's independent spirit and Darcy's mindset of having given up on finding love, creates a great, but oh so subtle sizzle. While there is some spoken of and thought attraction, it doesn't take over the story.

I loved that Mr. Bennet could tell his daughter was not inside Lizzy's body. Ellie was the perfect foil to get him to wake up and shape up as far as his parenting goes.

An enjoyable story and a definite reread.

[Suzan Lauder · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my top ten books of 2022.

[Nakia Shultz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Different but enjoyable

I adore P+P variations. I love to explore how an author uses my favorite characters. This is very different than what I was expecting but it was an enjoyable read. Sorry no spoilers but I recommend reading this book and making your own judgment.

[lily johnson]

A peculiar idea

Wonderful story and very well written great plot I am amazed at the story and its execution was superb. Thanks for getting my travel time shorter.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful variation. The writing is tight; the dialogue is superb. Diamond made the characters absolutely sparkle with life. I say with confidence: I will be reading it again.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Frustrating. I love a time travel story but kept getting pulled out of this due to inconsistent and anachronistic language/ behaviour. There are also a number of errors in the plot, as well as some spelling mistakes, that have been missed during the editing process.



Good bits:

- The reason for the time travel is very creative. I enjoy a soul mates storyline almost as much as a time travel one. The Harry Potter-esque afterlife scene was fun. I liked the explanation of lifetimes and an overarching plan, why Ellie’s life was the particular one chosen, and the clearing up of why Mr Darcy had retreated from society. I enjoyed finding out who Ellie’s parents were. I also liked the side story about Mr Bennet and Beth.

The backstory gave a lot of explanation as to why Mr Darcy was attracted to Ellie despite her being very different, and why she was so drawn to him - which significantly lessened my irritation at his OOC behaviour. I wish it had been made clear earlier. I feel the book would have read a lot better.


Negatives:

- I found the language choices were often jarring, regardless of whether this was a variation or an original work.

There are a lot of Americanisms used in everyone’s speech, particularly for modern characters, but it is heavily implied they are all English (or at least from the UK). People say ‘some’ instead of a bit/a little, ‘Momma’ instead of Mum, ‘breaker’ instead of tripped switch, and so on. Then they throw in random cockney slang for no reason.

Ellie mixes slang/speech patterns from around the UK and the USA (partially explained by her uni locations), so it is hard to tell where she is supposed to be from. No one 1811 comments on her accent being different from Elizabeth’s, nor does she indicate to the reader that she now speaks any differently than her (Ellie’s) normal accent. It was hard to believe she could pick up more complicated Regency wording and an 1800s Hertfordshire accent without effort, but still manage to say things like ‘sure’ and ‘I guess’ which are not typical even in modern England.

The author also ignores etymology of words - e.g. Darcy questions the meaning of ‘dim’, which might not have meant stupid in 1811 but was still a word, one used by Austen in her novels. Similarly bollocks was not yet an expletive, but it did mean testicles; even if someone didn’t understand why it was being used in the context, they would be confused (perhaps upset) at a cry of Testicles! I felt that this could have been corrected by Darcy questioning the word and her feigning ignorance with the cover of ‘my injury made me do it’, but it was too much of a stretch to pretend he didn’t understand the words at all.

Similarly, Ellie makes a point of mentioning a few times that she’s confused by the word bedlam, but using bedlam in a phrase isn’t uncommon in the UK, eg. ‘It’s bedlam in there’ aka noisy/chaotic.

This probably won’t be as annoying if you’re not as familiar with UK speech patterns and/or not interested in etymology.


- Sometimes references that should have been questioned weren’t.

At one point Ellie says she was afraid of being burned at the stake - I would expect Englishmen in 1811 to say ‘this Isn’t Scotland’ and/or ‘it’s 1811, we don’t do that kind of thing in modern times’ since witches were never burned at the stake in England and the last witch trial was almost 100 years prior. Darcy picking up on this would have cemented her story as a time traveller as a century one direction or the other is much less of a big deal to someone speaking from 200/300 years in the future than it would be to a person of the time.

Darcy doesn’t ask many questions about terms she uses, even when she says her parents die in a car crash he breezes past it and later says she didn’t mention cars.


- Explanations on behaviour and etiquette given weren’t always accurate. At one point Darcy even corrects his uncle for calling Ellie ‘Miss Bennet’ because she had an elder sister, who IS NOT THERE. This mistake is not uncommon in JAFFs, but it’s up there with calling Sir William ‘Sir Lucas’ in my list of pet peeves. Austen literally wrote the correct address for you - just copy it!


- There are some continuity errors/ plot holes.

Ellie doesn’t recognise Wickham’s name despite Darcy explaining Wickham’s role at Ramsgate a few meetings earlier and specifically naming him. When she meets him, Darcy partially explains the connection again.

Ellie says repeatedly that she only read Darcy’s diary up to the evening prior to Ramsgate. When she checks it after returning to 202- she says this again, then a few moments later remembers that she first read that ‘a young lady’ died while Darcy was at Netherfield, but it now says that she took a fall and is now in a ‘coma’. How has she read an entry from late September/early October if she stopped reading the entries in the summer?

Darcy’s diary in the future says it ends on 10 June 1812, even though he ‘disappeared’ some time in December 1811 (perhaps January 1812) and all other aspects of the timeline are changed by that.

I thought it was strange that despite their feelings for each other, and given that her main reason to return was that she had ‘stolen’ Elizabeth’s life, Ellie travelled back without making plans to communicate with Darcy or Mr Bennet. Darcy also later is very quick to attempt leaving her. It undermines their strength of feeling. Particularly as she quickly hits upon the idea of the diary to find out what happened it would have been easy to make that a plan for communicating at least with her.


- On top of the above issues, I didn’t find it worked well as a P&P variation because of the characterisations. There is an explanation given at the end but I felt it undermined the point of soulmates - to me a soulmate is someone who is well suited to you, not someone you must love against your character and inclination.

Ellie is a poor replacement for original Elizabeth, especially as she is supposed to be her soul. This isn’t Austen’s Darcy either. I have read other time travel novels who have made me believe original Darcy was the man admiring the time traveller (whether Lizzy or an OC) but this did not.

This author didn’t convince me that Mr Darcy, especially pre-Hunsford Mr Darcy, would find Ellie attractive. One of his defining characteristics is that he despises forwardness/bad manners as defined by 1811 standards - which doesn’t change even after the failed proposal. What’s more, Elizabeth agrees with him. He is attracted to Elizabeth in large part because - unlike her family - her manners are excellent and she uses her wit and cleverness to appear polite while roasting people. Ellie’s manners as per that time period are poor. She is direct. She is openly critical. There isn’t much to distinguish her in outspokenness than Mrs Bennet or Lydia, though she is less giggly and vulgar. She often uses language that would be considered completely unacceptable at the time. She isn’t particularly clever or witty. Nor do we see him experience any growth because he loves her - he just does. In fact, the moment he falls in love is given as the time a half-dressed Ellie downs brandy in front of him, which just feels like the absolutely opposite of what Mr Darcy’s reaction would actually be. Learning it’s a soulmate thing explains why he loves her so easily, but I find it sad that without that it doesn’t feel like he would have even liked her.

I also didn’t really get why she was so drawn to him, apart from perhaps that he was kind to her at a stressful time, until we are told they’re soulmates.

I was surprised by Mr Bennet, who seemed far more open and less mocking than his original self. I didn’t entirely believe his listening to Ellie about Lydia when he never listened to Elizabeth, but I did like that she told him exactly what Lydia said - to me that was a great example of a modern woman being unembarrassed to be direct about a sexual topic, therefore shocking Mr B into action.


- I also found it weird that the author only described characters by colour if they were black, with the B capitalised. The only time nationality is mentioned is with the ‘Indian’ doctor who actually has the most authentically English sounding dialogue. Not entirely sure what the point/intent was; I’m giving the benefit of the doubt as attempting to be inclusive, but it did read strangely.

[Bethanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing story!

I am blown away by how interesting this story is and how different it is from other time travel stories. The entire concept of Darcy and Elizabeth meeting each other throughout history is wonderful and joyful to imagine love enduring throughout time.
Ellie is an art restoration expert in 2022 and is hired to restore old paintings in Pemberley for the Chinese company that purchased the run down estate. She sees a different woman in the mirror in the ballroom and when she touches it is instantly transported back to 1811 and the first Darcy in Meryton. Her speech gives everyone the impression that she's suffered a brain injury except for Mr Bennet who realized this isn't his Lizzy.
I enjoyed the moral dilemma that Ellie faces with falling in love with Darcy. If she married him and somehow returned to her original time period she was forcing the 1811 Elizabeth to be in a marriage she didn't sign up for. Her thought was that wasn't fair or ethical.
Its a very well written story and quite believable. My favorite part was Ellie standing up to Mrs Bennet and outright refusing to agree to marriage to Mr Collins! In most Regency-Georgian stories the " honor thy mother " is so strong that she is abused by Mrs Bennet and says nothing, unlike our present day where someone would speak up for themselves.
I absolutely, positively, without any reservations love this story!

[Barbara K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book blurb says everything I would have said about the plot of this story, and probably says it better.

I've read other books by this author that I didn't like as well. That's mostly a matter of personal taste. Because of that, though, I was uncertain when I chose this whether I'd like it or not, and I chose it primarily because of the time-travel premise and because of other positive ratings and reviews. I was pleasantly impressed to find it a thoroughly enjoyable read.

The premise is fascinating, different from other time-travel stories, and presents a mystery until it gets to what I'll call the philosophical underpinnings of the story, toward the end. I loved the reference to Harry Potter, as that's one of my favorite passages from those stories. The author mentions in her own notes how this idea came to her, and I found that fascinating as well, because I've come up with ideas in similar ways, and sometimes when that happens, even if you're not sure about it, you have to go with it and see how it works out. I would say this idea worked out very well.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent time travel story that didn’t make my head hurt with too many questions.

Well written and edited with only a few mistakes.

[Linda Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Time-traveling twist

Ms. Diamond has managed to intertwine the 19th and 21st century stories, creating a coherent and satisfying variation on Pride and Prejudice. We root for time to somehow permit Darcy and Elizabeth (Ellie) to find their happily ever after in one timeline or another.

[Carol Perrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Peculiarly Mr. Darcy's Mirror

Fantastical story! Wow, unbelievably delicious! One of my favorite authors has done it again. She has once again written such a wonderful story that I couldn't stop until I finished reading the entire story. I'm going to stop my review now before I give away anything about this well written, thought out storyline. Job well done. Thank you for sharing your story. I very much enjoyed your efforts. I can now think about going to sleep and dream of Mr. Darcy's mirror, going back to 1811. Well, only if Mr. Firth appears as Mr. Darcy in this marvelous, magical mirror!

[Madenna U · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ellie Gardiner, in modern times, finds herself through a mirror into the life of Elizabeth Bennet. She changes the life of all who care to know her and falls in love with Fitzwilliam Darcy. They have to find there right place in the right time to find their happily ever after.

[abmom · Rating 4 out of 5]

What would any of us not give in order to be in Ellie Gardiner's shoes, to travel back in time, become Elizabeth Bennet and romance and marry Fitzwilliam Darcy ? Though I fretted for most of the story about Elizabeth, the explanation was quite satisfying and the end was cute.

[Teresita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!

A captivating story that will keep you reading non-stop. What an amazing journey! I recommend to start this book while you have plenty of time to read.

[wendy luther · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent omg harry potter meets Syria brown loved it

What a great story the best story I've read this year it had me on tender hooks wanting explanations ....it keeps everyone feeling for Ellie and Fits William ....what a story I really recommend it it will not disappoint

[Rachel Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like always, glad I started an LL Diamond book on a Friday- this is hard to put down. A modern cross over, that I had lots of questions about while I was reading, but it ties up nicely in the end.

[Critical Sandwich · Rating 4 out of 5]

"So, this is a dream. It's all happening in my mind?"
"Ellie, you adored Harry Potter when you were little. Do you remember what Dumbledore told Harry in the seventh book?"
"You mean after Voldemort used the Avada Kedavra curse on him?"
"Yes."
"He said, 'Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?'"
Her mother squeezed her hands. "Exactly."

What a weird book!
A modern heroine Ellie Gardiner is working on art restoration in Pebmerley in the year of 202_ (the last number is not specified). She finds Fitzwilliam Darcy's portrait, his journals and walks around his rundown mansion. She notices a weird mirror, that mirror instead of showing her real reflection, shows an unknown woman in a Regency era dress. After a few days of being creeped out by that mirror, Ellie decides to touch it, and wakes up in 1811 as the woman in the mirror - Elizabeth Bennet, and it's the day after the Meryton Assembly. She doesn't know history, she doesn't know the proper language, she doesn't know the proper dress, and the Bennet family is sick with worry over her and her lost memories.

It didn't work very well with the Language/Historical Accuracy aspect, the Hows and Whys of Elizabeth being in 1800s and Darcy being in the 2020s were not very satisfying Elizabeth should've been even more freaked out by the early 1800 and noticed more stuff, Darcy should've been even more freaked out by the 2020s and noticed more stuff, Darcy's character is extremely OOC, and the way characters talked seemed entirely implausible.
Yet it's so weird and unlike anything else that I've read and that made it quite enjoyable. You should just buckle up and enjoy the ride, you shouldn't question Time Travel and Modern Heroine-in-Another-Timeline and Regency-Proprieties too closely.

I had a few questions when it came to "why Darcy's estate is so rundown in our time" and those questions were answered in a satisfying/interesting manner I don't mean the time-travel stuff, but the Soulmates / real Elizabeth dying stuff and destroying the timeline. The book goes into soulmates trope which I didn't expect.
3.5 stars

[Valeria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastical

I’m usually not a fan of P&P variations that take on a fantastical storyline but this one is very true to canon with modern realism that kept me interested.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my favorite read of the year. I thought it was inventive and creative. The writing was clean and entertaining. I absolutely adored Darcy in this book. He was almost playful and was definitely more outgoing and less adhered to duty than in canon. The female protagonist of Ellie was enjoyable and close enough to Elizabeth Bennett that it was off-putting.

The storyline follows Ellie Gardiner, an art restorer, as she is hired to restore the artwork found in a decaying Pemberley. When she first visits the ballroom she sees a woman in Georgian era dress instead of her own reflection, leading her to avoid mirrors. As she continues her restoration, she cleans the portrait of Fitzwilliam Darcy and becomes fascinated by the man and the portrait. She finds his journal and reads up until he goes to visit his sister at Ramsgate. She ends up going to the mirror and ends up touching it to see if the reflection would do the same. She wakes up in Elizabeth Bennett's body in 1811 after Elizabeth has taken a fall. Her idiosyncrasies are assumed to be from her head wound but she ends up telling Mr. Bennett her story. He, Jane, and Mr. Darcy all help her to adjust to the time period by providing her with different types of information and training (I guess is the best word). Jane and Mr. Darcy just assume she has amnesia and roll with it. From there the story progresses of how Ellie and the various people interact. Her set down of Wickham was hilarious. When she finally attempts to re-enter the mirror, there is a twist I didn't expect and thought it led to the conclusion of the book very well. There was a part that got somewhat confusing and bogged down, but I think that was done on purpose to help solve some plot holes that hadn't been addressed. It was done well.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys L.L. Diamond or the time-travel trope in the Pride and Prejudice fan fiction stories. Definitely going to be a re-read for me and possibly a purchase which is rare for me since I mainly use Kindle Unlimited.

[lori huff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating

A wonderfully intriguing, if convoluted, premise that sucks you right in and doesn't let go. Ellie Gardiner, modern day woman who specializes in art restoration, lands her dream job restoring old paintings at Pemberly, a run down old manor house being renovated to turn it into a tourist attraction. The house has a rather tragic and mysterious history, as the Darcy family supposedly fell on some hard times, and eventually abandoned the property. Ellie sees a mirror in the ballroom of Pemberly that reflects, not her own image, but that of a woman from the Regency era. She touches the image and is transported through time to the year 1811, where she has assumed the body of Elizabeth Bennett.

I enjoy these time travel takes on JAFF, and this one is one of the better ones. It's tricky having someone from 2022 plunked down into the Regency era with all of it's strict rules of propriety, it's lack of women's rights, it's poor health care, etc, etc. Somehow the author manages not to make Ellie look too stupid, or act too brassy. She's portrayed as a reasonable and sensible young woman who tries her best to fit in, in spite of such an upheaval. I guess my only criticism would be the amount of modern British slang used, simply because I didn't understand half of it. Sometimes a slang term could be understood through context, but definitely not always.

I love Darcy in this version. He's much quicker at deciding his feelings for Elizabeth, and the romance is lovely. Mr Bennett is much more lovable in this version, and Ellie's/Elizabeth's interactions with Mrs Bennett are priceless. The book is well written and well edited. I recommend it highly.

[Adelle Stavis · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best I have read

This is one of the best crafted JAFF stories I have read, and the Countess is above 700 books to date. Have given 5 stars to fewer than 10 books. Am pretty stingy with rating books

Typically, time travel and body switch stories do not grab my attention. But the author is careful to make modern characters speak and act as modern characters and period characters speak and act appropriately to the time period. The character's struggles are interesting and more believable than the other stories with similar plot hooks - not perfectly believable, but except for the main character's use of some words that would typically be thought of as profanity, the toleration by period characters of Elizabeth/Ellie's idiosyncratic behavior is not so egregious or obvious that it spoils the enjoyment of the story.

It is wonderful to read a story where copy editing/spelling/voice recognition software issues are not prominent. The story is well paced, the dialogue flows smoothly, and there no major plot lines dropped. I did expect the two art restoration professionals to more obviously refer to issues in art restoration that require a more in depth knowledge of chemistry and organic chemistry, which did not occur, but would have added depth to the story and characters.

Overall, a wonderful 'read.'

[Craftyhj · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extremely well thought through plot - I loved it
I don't usually like time travel books. I don't like Dickens' A Christmas Carol for that reason and as a result I kept parking this book despite this being one of my favourite authors. I was challenged to read it in a reading group and I am so glad I did. So very glad.

The plot is excellent and the characters engaging and the internal monologue from Ellie, aka Elizabeth, is very funny as she keeps getting her 21st century tongue in a knot over 19th century decorum. Poor Jane is permanently perplexed although Darcy finds this quite endearing.

The resolution was very well thought out with just the right amount of angst.

So if like me you do not expect this to be your cup of tea, I heartily recommend giving it a whirl - I do not believe you will be disappointed.