Mr. Darcy Forever (edition 2012)

Another Victoria Connelly to add to my faves! She has a deliteful lite touch in her writing that adds to my enjoyment even when the topics are downright serious.

Well executed characters and excellent development of the two sisters of this story. Several surprise twists add to the reading value. The Jane Austen sites and sights of Bath's festival will satisfy any Austenites!

Victoria is adept at dropping cues to today's Austen followers to p up and laugh out loud ") The contemporary situations are well thought out with realistic and authentic solutions. I was entirely impressed with this story of two sisters mesmerized by the same man with incredible outcomes affecting their lives both presently and for the future. What they do with their infatuations makes for fascinating spicy situations.

And when they both show up in Bath for the JA Festival, who could predict what will result? Will they find their own Mr Darcy? and will he be forever?

Loved it! TY again, Victoria ! always a pleasure {& definitely a reading Treat!} ( )

First I want to say that this book put a HUGE smile on my face. I too have found great comfort in Jane Austen movies and I have almost all adaptations. I have been very leery about reading Jane Austen "spin offs". I'm really speaking of the vampire, zombie and werewolf variety. In reading, Mr. Darcy Forever, I was quite surprised and pleased. I won't give yet another synopsis of the book, as there are many, I will give my opinion of the plot, characters and writing.

The main characters are sisters, Sarah and Mia, who throughout the book are referenced to Elinor and Marianne of book/movie Sense and Sensibility. I must say that I would agree. Mia is ruled by her heart and Sarah by her head. Monica Castle, Sarah and Mia's mom left them when they were 11 and 20 (I believe) leaving Sarah to be both sister and mother to Mia. There are many twist in the plot and the characters. Sarah has OCD and Mia is in a perpetual state of poor. There are secondary characters that lend a great deal to the story as well. There's Alec (the insensitive rake whom both sisters fall for), Shellley (Mia's friend from Acting School), Gabe (Shelley's one arm neighbor and friend who has a secret of his own), Pie (Shelley's strange and unkempt housemate), Lloyd (a photographer who Sarah met at the festival) and Bingley (Shelly's wet nose dog).

The plot is centered around The Jane Austen Festival that occurs every September in Bath. Three years ago an unspeakable act caused a riff between the sisters. Unknowingly, both will be attending the festival. This is where all the action and craziness occurs. I loved the references to Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion and Northanger Abbey which has propelled me to rewatch the movie in the near future. The descriptions of the events (the dance) and locations (the park and Barton Cottage), where the sisters stayed for Mia's 21st birthday, were breathtaking! I could close my eyes and imagine I was there taking a long stroll in the woods or sitting on the bench in the park taking it all in.

There wasn't a time, when reading, that I was bored. It was a slow read for me because I didn't want to miss anything. At most times, I was reading as well as remembering a scene mentioned from one of the movies and had to turn back pages to focus on the words on the Kindle. The writing was superb, in my opinion. I am eager to read the first two novels in the Mr. Darcy Trilogy. I would recommend this book to any Janeites or romance fans alike.

A special thanks to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book which otherwise I wouldn't have discovered and enjoyed. ( )

This chick lit Austen spinoff is very Sense and Sensibility meets The Holiday. I previously read and reviewed Dreaming of Mr. Darcy, the prior book in this series (although the books are not particularly interrelated so far as I can tell). I am happy to report that this one is as charming, for a Jane Austen and chick lit fan, as the former.

The older sister, Sarah (the Elinor), has a pretty severe case of OCD, which is why she's so incredibly fastidious. This is a really interesting take on the character of Elinor, who is, excepting Fanny Price, arguably the most boring of Austen's heroines. I like her, but she's definitely reserved. Interestingly enough, I just read another Austen-inspired novel (Compulsively, Mr. Darcy) which did a modern take on P&P with Darcy suffering from OCD. Thankfully, this one's better.


The story alternates between the sisters' trip to Devon for Mia's 21st birthday, where they get to stay in Barton Cottage, and three years later, when the sisters, now estranged, both go to the Jane Austen festival in Bath. How they lost touch is learned slowly. These switches between time worked effectively. Although most of the broad plot is clearly recognizable as Sense & Sensibility, Connelly does make some derivations from the Austen novel. To my mind, these were nice additions, allowing for the modernization of the tale and for her to make her own story.

However, I do want to point out that there is some serious instalove going on here in all sorts of places. Of course, you can see that sometimes it doesn't work out, but that sure doesn't stop these ladies from 'falling in love' within a matter of days again. Sigh. Will people never learn?

Now that I know that people can actually rent the building used as Barton Cottage for Sense & Sensibility, I have a new vacation dream to add to my list. Oh yeah, also that Jane Austen festival. Now to find a friend that would go with me...and the money and time with which to do it. ( )

Mr. Darcy Forever is the third book in a series of books by Victoria Connelly, all of which center around a Jane Austen Festival in Bath. In this book, two sisters, long estranged, end up at the festival and find their lives changed.
Sarah, the older sister, suffers from severe OCD, and traveling to the festival is a nightmare. She comes to Bath because being immersed in Jane Austen is the only time she can forget all of her rituals and just enjoy herself. She meets Lloyd, a photographer and fellow OCD sufferer, on the first day of the festival.
Mia is the younger of the sisters and she comes to Bath for the festival and stays with her old friend Shelley. Mia is happy to get away from her grungy bedsit (very small apartment) and away from her failed career as an actress. She is hoping that she will not run into Sarah during the festival because they have not spoken in three years. She shares her story with Shelley’s neighbor Gabe and finds herself drawn to the slightly older man.
From the beginning of the book and interspersed throughout, are glimpses of a vacation Sarah and Mia took where they stayed in the same cottage where the movie Sense and Sensibility was filmed. The vacation of a lifetime turns into the means of the sisters breaking apart. As the story goes on, more of what happened comes out and we finally find out what has caused this split between two sisters who were once so close. It’s almost painful to read as the crisis approaches.
Like the previous books in the series, A Weekend with Mr. Darcy and Dreaming of Mr. Darcy, this book was a great read. As an Austen fan, I enjoyed the whole festival atmosphere and the tidbits of information about the well-loved author. The two sisters are interesting characters and both likeable despite their situations. When they meet possible romantic interests it’s good, but we really want to see them be happy together, not apart. The reason for the split is somewhat shocking when finally revealed but the reader still hopes for reconciliation because we know they can’t be happy without each other. ( )

Mr. Darcy Forever by Victoria Connelly is the third book in the author’s Austen Addicts series, though each book can be read as a stand alone. Sarah and Mia Castle could not be more different, and while they compare themselves to Austen’s famous sisterly pair Marianne and Elinor from Sense & Sensibility, they are far more complicated. Mia is a wanna-be actress/singer who is struggling to find her niche in her career and who readily sticks her foot in her mouth, while Sarah is suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and can barely eat in restaurants without first examining their cleanliness. These sisters are like best friends and both love Jane Austen and the yearly festival in Bath, but what happens if a man comes between them?

Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2012/03/mr-darcy-forever-by-victoria-connelly.html ( )