Status Updates From Without Undue Pride

DNF 33% - I will come back to this one later

Started on 7/6 and finished on 7/12! I've always loved Heather Moll's special brand of Austen inspired stories. This was was quite the twist on a second chance romance as Darcy initial meets Elizabeth as the newly married Mrs. Fitwilliam, bride to his beloved Colonel Fitzwilliam. When tragedy strikes and Elizabeth finds herself a widow spurned by the Fitzwilliam, Darcy shows us all why he is the very best of men!

Elizabeth is more agreeable to consider to prostitute herself to breed an her for her brother-in-law, that she was every willing to consider an honourable marriage proposal from Darcy. I am forced to understand that this Elizabeth is a mentally unstable hysteric (in the old sense of the diagnosis), and NOT a sound, honourable, genteel lady!

Now Elizabeth is subject to physical violence by her brother-in-laws staff, she’s imprisoned, bruised, pinned down to take her child away from her every 4 hours….. and all this because Charlotte betrayed her and sold her off to her brother-in-law in exchange for a comfortable carriage ride to Meryton! DELIGHTFUL !!!

Oh My God !!!!!! This Elizabeth is seriously mentally unbalanced, she actually wants to harm her child through poverty and serious humiliation. This is beyond ridiculous and doesn’t pass any test for internal logic, historical soundness, or thoughtful romance storytelling. What I just read about the christening is BAD TASTE and a hard pass!

This Darcy is so “honorable” as to abandon Lizzy in poverty and unprotected in a random norther city, with no servants or family, no protection from strangers, on her own with a newborn, just because he is so “gentlemanly” as not to contraeict her irrational wishes of Feminist “independence” — this is seriously the worst Austen Variation I have come across…

This is the STUPIDEST Elizabeth I have ever read in any Austen Variation >>> ridiculous, careless, obstinate to the point of self destruction, parental neglect, maybe even criminal neglect… sordid setting and circumstances for Elizabeth’s childbirth. Why ?????

The feminist rant got old 100 pages ago! The boring recitation of every pne of Lizzy’s woes, her deep abiding hatred of “men” in general, make the character absolutely insufferable ! I wish Darcy got rid of her and started courting Charlotte, who is much more sensible, less damaged, and more grateful of his kindnesses…

Why does Lizzy torture us with sooooo much repetition of her woes???? Endless listing of her suffering and her indecision — this needs serious editing !

A very meddlesome charlotte

I am interested in how the HEA will come about. I started this with much excitement and anticipation. I don’t mind the E married/loved before D trope. This is not the issue. And I actually applaud the author for how she sets up the whole narrative related to E & the colonel. I just don’t E here.

I could accept that Elizabeth is determined to live a solitary, independent life if she had money, but she is dead broke! And it’s the regency era, too. So this is baffling and doesn’t portray the intelligent, sensible Elizabeth we know.

A very stupid, stubborn, and selfish Elizabeth. I get that she has trauma from the war and probably some pregnancy hormonal reactions, but this was disappointing (mostly at around the half way mark and beyond)