Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: The Last Man in the World

Have you ever wondered what if? What if I had gone to a different college, had asked that girl out in High School? This is the question that is explored in the book by Abigail Reyonlds. The question posed is, what would happen if Elizabeth Bennett had accepted Mr. Darcy's first proposal.

There are many different avenues to be explored. In the original Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth falls in love with Mr. Darcy after some time spent apart. She sees him in his home, sees a more relaxed Darcy and begins to fall in love with him. What would have happened if she had not had that chance. What if she had been forced to accept his first proposal, and therefore never found out just how wicked Mr. Wickham was or just how kind Mr. Darcy was? Would she have fallen in love with Mr. Darcy if she had not had the time to discover just who he was? Would she have discovered who he was id she had been with him?

Ms. Reyonlds shows us how fate plays a chance in our lives. She opens a new world for the reader that loves Pride and Prejudice. The true likeness of the characters is carried over, with a little more feeling put into them. You get to see the thoughts of the characters and this helps the reader understand what is happening and why.

Vegas Rich

Vegas Rick by Fern Michaels

This is the story of Sallie Coleman Thornton and her family. I have to admit that I was hooked from the start. The story is good as is the plot, but if you are looking to read this book to expand your mind or to make you a better person, it is not going to happen. This book is what I lovingly call Mind Candy.

It is one of those books that you read because you want to get lost in the world of someone else. You want to see what it is like to be rich, beautiful and loved.

The book starts in 1923 and spans into the seventies. We start with Sallie Coleman and see how she becomes the richest woman in Nevada. We watch as she does what she believes is right and struggles to make herself and the town she lives in a better place. Through her actions to better herself she meets her husband Phillip Thornton. The reader watches as their life together unfolds and how this effects their family.

Once the children have been born the book jumps to the Forties and WWII. It is at this point that we meet Fanny Logan who will some day become Fanny Thornton. We she how she grows into the woman that she is meant to be, and finds the love of the mother she never had in Sallie. We also see Sallie find the love of her life and watch as she continues to make Las Vegas a better place and keep control of her family.

The book will then jump into the Sixties and the Seventies where the second generation of the Thornton family takes their place in Las Vegas. We watch as Sallies second son Simon finds love and as Fanny comes to terms with falling out of love with her husband Ash. We see the children of Ash and Fanny come into their own, and what this means for the Thornton family.

A good book to be sure, it kept me hooked. This was not the first time I had read the book, but it was a wonderful read all the same. There were parts where it felt that the dialogue was a little forced or a little too staged. These little glitches were sprinkled throughout the book, but once the reader gets used to them, you hardly even see them. Ms. Michaels has developed characters that anyone would love to meet and wishes that they could. While not a classic, it is still a good book and one worth having on your bookshelf.

My Cousin Caroline

So once again I have journeyed into the land of the Darcy's. (This should not be a shock to anyone.) I have read the most recent book in Rebecca Ann Collins series My Cousin Caroline. This book is a compilation of the other books, just with a focus on Caroline Fitzwilliam and her family.

Some would say why would anyone read this book if it just a rehashing of all that has come before. Well it is not that. This time around the reader gets to see what drives Caroline and her family. You see her journal entries and and letters which have helped to shape her into the lady that she has become. You see what drivers her to be a good mother and wife.

You can see her shape into a very important part of her family and that the influence of Elizabeth Darcy is very much in place to make her the woman she is. Ms. Collins brings in her talent for relating what is going on with the times to the story. At times it can be a little like a history lesson, but it is entertaining all the same, and it is nice to see what motivates the characters of her story.

A Match for Mary Bennet

A Match for Mary Bennet by Eucharista Ward is perhaps one of my favorite Pride and Prejudice sequels so far. I have always said that a book that leaves you wanting for more is a good book indeed, and this book is such.

I found myself running home from work everyday to read. I usually do this, as I like to read a great deal, but I found myself thinking about the Bennets and all of the wonderful characters that you find in the land of Jane Austen. From the first page I was drawn in, and I have to tell you that I was surprised.

Most authors shy away from Mary Bennet. Lets face it. Austen did not make her a very likable character. We all know that one person that thinks they are better than everyone, or that perfect person who never does anything wrong. Most think this of Mary, but no Ms. Ward. The author shows the reader why Mary is the way she is. You soon see why Mary reacts to things the way she does, and you find a woman who is very independent in a society that does not want her to be independent.

I was afraid that we would see very little of Mr. and Mrs. Darcy, or that we would not get to know what was going on with the Bingley's . If this is a fear of yours you can relax. The entire Bennet family is a part of the story and through visiting and interacting with her sisters you get to see who Mary is and what drives her. What of our other characters like Col. Fitzwilliam and Gerogianna?

We find a very surprising match for the Col, see Ms. Darcy become her own woman, and might there be love on the horizon for Ms. Bingley? Ms. Ward does bring new characters into the mix, and I have to say that I enjoyed the kleptomania of Ms. Johnstone and never failed to smile as she tried to leave Pemberly with some keep sake.

If you are looking for a book that will keep you entertained and will do justice to your favorite characters, the please do pick up A Match for Mary Bennet.

The Plight of the Darcy Brothers

Ms Altman has been at it again. The writing style is the same and the reader may find themselves easily lost in this book. It was hard to put down and I must admit it went faster than the first.

The story is centered around Elizabeth and Darcy and their adventure on the continent as they race to preserve the reputation of Miss Mary Bennette. Mary has let her guard down once and has learned that horrible lesson, that it only takes once. She is with child and cannot marry the man as he has been promised to the church. So it is off to France for Elizabeth and Darcy to try and find this man and save the reputation of the Bennette family.

There are many twists and turns in this story and you find out a lot about the Darcy family. Was Darcy's father the gentleman that he was thought to be? Could there be more Darcy relations out there? The reader will see more of Caroline Bingley Maddox and I believe will come to love her. There is also an appearance by the Prince of Wales.

I would recommend this book. It was a fun read and as always I got to spend time with my favorite characters.

The Darcy's and The Bingley's

Once again I am reading a book that deals with Pride and Prejudice. I seem to be stuck on this subject, but can promise you that one day I will move away from it, or not read so many. Finding one good sequel seems to have opened my eyes to all of them :) This time around I have been brought to Marsha Altman.

The Darcy's and the Bingley's picks up before the wedding of our hero and his lady love. We see how Darcy and Elizabeth deal with impending matrimony and with Mrs. Bennete as she nears the finish line. As with all of the continuations of this great story we see our four main characters married. They set out to begin their lives as newly weds, and the reader watches as Darcy and Elizabeth move onto Pemberly and Jane and Bingley settle in at Netherfield park.

But what sets this continuation apart from the rest?

It has to be in the way that Ms. Autlman deals with her characters. The characters speak as they would in this time period, but there is not the formality of Austen. The characters are altogether a bit more loose with each other. The reader feels more of a personal connection with these charecters. Ms Altman has brought them to the level of the modern reader. You see Darcy and Elizabeth joke, Jane taking out the pains of Childbirth on poor Charles Bingley, and you see Caroline Bingley smile and make a joke. Perhaps one of the most shocking things you see in this story is Darcy giving Bingley a copy of the Kama Sutra.

It is also the development of the characters that a lover of Pride and Prejudice can expect, and love. You see characters such as Caroline Bingley come front and center. You see how she deals with the expectations that have been set upon her by society and her parents. The reader just may be surprised by how she deals with this. You will see Jane and Bingley come to the fore front and be a little surprised by the former Ms. Bennette. These characters help develop the story and lets the reader see just how much Darcy and Elizabeth love each other. Some readers may even be surprised to find that they can understand Mrs. Bennette and can even come to love her.

Through the development of characters that were merely mentioned by Austen, Ms. Altman has put her own stamp on this story. If the reader comes to this book with an open mind, and realizes as with all continuations, this is another story by another author, they will be able to enjoy Ms. Altman's book. They may even be able to enjoy the fact that the Kama Sutra pops up in this story.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Everyone has heard of this story in some way shape or form. It could have been the TV movie, the animated movie that Disney did, or the new adaptation that is soon to come from Tim Burton. So with all this new attention to an old story I decided to pick it up and read it for the first time.

I was first surprised to see that there were two stories. Not having been a huge fan of Alice, I did not know that Adventures and Through the looking glass were two separate stories. I have not finished looking glass, but have finished Adventures.

I was pulled in from the first. Carrol knows how to grab the reader from the beginning. I was not only fascinated in how Alice ended up in Wonderland, but also in the style of the story. It seems that this story is one continuous thought. Adventures seems to flow one stream of thought to another, like a child with ADD talking to his friends. The reader jumps from one adventure to another as Alice makes her way through Wonderland. It is interesting to see her interact with the inhabitants of Wonderland and see Alice start to see how adults may see her in her world.

I believe that it is the Child like innocence of Wonderland that brings people back to this story year after year. There is also a layer of danger to Wonderland. They are dangers that look innocent and harmless. Which is another way to look at childhood. The simplicity and complex nature of the story is what makes this story a must read for me.