Mr. Darcy's Undoing

A rather intriguing idea: what if Lizzie Bennett accepts another man's proposal of marriage after Mr Darcy's first disastrous proposal?

Back home after dodging Mr Darcy's badly put offer of marriage, Lizzie Bennett runs into an old friend of the family, Mr Covington, who proposes to Lizzie after a pleasant, if a little staid, courtship. She accepts, since it seems that Jane will not marry after all and she feels responsibility towards the future of her family, and because she respects Mr Covington, as she did not respect either Mr Collins or Mr Darcy.

Cue Mr Darcy's arrival on the scene, all full of contrition and better self awareness and ready to make things right between Jane and Mr Bingley, and between himself and Lizzie.

Abigail show more Reynolds has weaved in snippets of Jane Austen's original story, so every now and then I found myself reading something very familiar. However, the story itself is obviously completely new, if it still uses many scenes and story lines from the classic [Pride and Prejudice]. Unfortunately, it's not half as fun as the original story, as Lizzie and Darcy are already in love at the start and the original story's joy was watching their attitudes change. There is very little tension as we are given too much insight into Darcy and Lizzie and their emotions with their internal monologues. And plot wise there is far too much sitting around talking, and altogether too many explicit sex scenes, as this seems to be soft porn for Austen aficionados, rather than a clever re-imagining of beloved classic.

Jane Austen would be spinning in her grave. show less

My thoughts:
It is that time again, time for a JA variation. And this one gets a bit passionate towards the end too.

Lizzie meets Darcy, he proposes and she thinks he is an ass. We all know the story. In this one she goes home and meets Mr Covingon, she knows him from before and he asks for her hand in marriage and she accepts. Darcy comes and wants her back but it is too late. Of course Mr. Darcy does not give up, and there are a few twists and turn before they can get their HEA.

Oh Mr. Darcy, you are so improper, not that I complain. It was fun to see his more passionate side, he truly wants her as his wife, he dreams about her (dirty ones ;), and he hopes to sway her with kisses. And who can say no when Mr. Darcy starts kissing you? show more Poor Lizzie does not stand a chance. And I, well I love that his does not want to give up, he knows she loves him too.

What we have in this story is the tale of a man pursuing that which he wants, a few passionate encounters, and that which we all love, Mr. Darcy and Lizzie being totally and madly in love with each other.

Conclusion:
If you want to read about Mr. Darcy seducing with kisses then read this book. It is another cute and passionate re-telling of the story so many of us know and love. show less

Abigail Reynolds is well know for her 'what if' alternate versions of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She takes the beloved characters of Austen and twists and turns the story to shake up their path to love. In Mr. Darcy's Undoing Reynolds picks up the story following Mr. Darcy's disastrous proposal. Elizabeth returns home to Longbourn and realizes that it will fall upon her to make a good marriage to help her family in the event that her father passes away. Elizabeth accepts the offer of a long time friend, Mr. Covington.
Mr. Darcy realizes the mistake he's made in his actions towards Elizabeth and her family. He decides to try to rectify his actions by proving to Elizabeth that he's a changed man. However when he shows up in show more Herfortshire he realizes that he might lose Elizabeth forever.
Reynolds takes this classic story in a new direction where she covers themes such as jealousy, sacrifice, love, and forgiveness. She also turns up the heat in the sensuality department between Elizabeth and Darcy. Although parts of this novel are a pure delight there are aspects of this book that are slightly lacking. Mr. Darcy has seemed to throw his principles to the wind and give up all his propriety. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth's personality did a complete one-eighty. I'm a huge fan of Abigail Reynolds but this book is not my favorite. show less

I enjoyed the plot variation, but I don't recommend this book if readers aren't familiar with Austen's beloved novel because the author assumes readers already understand the original plot and characters. Additionally, the author includes a good deal of impropriety between Lizzy and Darcy that Austen would find appalling.

I enjoyed the plot variation, but I don't recommend this book if readers aren't familiar with Austen's beloved novel because the author assumes readers already understand the original plot and characters. Additionally, the author includes a good deal of impropriety between Lizzy and Darcy that Austen would find appalling.

Mr. Darcy’s Undoing by Abigail Reynolds is the latest in her “What If?” series of Pride & Prejudice variations that seeks to uncover how far Darcy will go to woo Lizzy if after his disastrous proposal she accepts one from another man. Darcy has made is arrogant speech about loving Lizzy against his better judgment and has proposed they get married, and she has refused by the time this book opens.

Lizzy has a dilemma before her; she had hoped to marry for love, but with her sister Jane’s hopes of marrying Mr. Bingley dashed and her continued depression about losing him, Lizzy realizes that she no longer has the luxury to marry for love and must find a suitable man with means to save her family from ruin upon the death of her show more father. She takes the responsibility on when a family friend Mr. Covington begins to show interest in her. After accepting his proposal and resigning herself to a marriage based on necessity and fondness, which she hopes will grow into love, Mr. Darcy arrives on the scene with Mr. Bingley and things get more complicated as she realizes her true feelings for Darcy.

Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2011/10/mr-darcys-undoing-by-abigail-reynolds.html show less

This is one of the "what if's" for Pride and Prejudice. You can see my review on Impulse and Initiative for all the books in the series I've read - they're pretty much the same when it comes to forming an opinion: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/847343509?book_show_action=false