Resentment or love, anger or passion, guilt or hope—which will win?How does a man with faults and a resentful temper act when the woman he ardently loves fiercely rejects his marriage proposal and accepts no explanation from him? How does he react when she finds him again in London four months later, asks for his help, and places all her hopes in him?And what does he do if she is in a position to … position to help him in return?
Their lives—and those of the people around them—are changed in ways they could never imagine. Happiness and peace seem lost forever, but Fate has other plans and propels them on a journey—difficult and romantic, tender and painful—in pursuit of their happily ever after.
Warning: There are several scenes better suited for Mature audience. The final chapter contains an explicit sex scene, but it can be avoided without affecting the plotline.
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“It is the curse of the powerful to be blind to their own faults.” Robert Fanney
All I can say is gird up your loins and prepare for a bumpy ride throughout most of this story. We open with Darcy bitter, angry, brooding, and despondent over his failed proposal. Georgiana is also dealing with her own grief over disappointing her brother, the family name, and an accident that could have killed her. She thinks Darcy is upset with her, not realizing that he is too emotionally damaged himself to help her and… let’s just say… Darcy House is not a congenial place at the moment.
Across town, near Gracechurch Street, Mrs. Gardiner is recovering from a disappointment and Elizabeth is helping with the children. This kept them in town and they did not go on their tour of the north. Elizabeth meets a young girl and her aunt in the park near Gracechurch Street and they become friends.
“I’m not conceited. Conceit is a fault and I have no faults.” David Lee Roth
When Darcy finds out where Georgiana has been spending her time and who her new friend is, he goes bat_ crazy and pitches a Fitzwilliam fit worthy of Lady Catherine. Man, this Darcy is a mess and he is unknowingly destroying Georgiana, because, as everyone knows, the world revolves around teenagers and she thinks that whatever is wrong with her brother must be her fault. La! Help us.
“We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers – but never blame yourself. It’s never your fault. But it’s always your fault, because if you wanted to change you’re the one who has got to change.” Katharine Hepburn
Mr. Bennet arrives in London with Colonel Forster hard on the heels of Lydia and Wickham. OMG!! Unknown to everyone, Darcy had already received word [from his agent in the field] that Wickham had eloped with a Bennet girl and Darcy assumed it was Elizabeth. When she arrived to ask for his help in finding Wickham, he [still angry from thinking she had overthrown him for his enemy and had now been abandoned] was cruel to her and spoke to her with the barest of civility. She, thinking she deserved his disdain and his manner toward her, was filled all over again with shame that he should see her and her family in this light. However, he did agree to help find the scoundrel. It was later that he learned it was Lydia and not Elizabeth that had fallen under the power of his enemy.
“Come t’e’ picciol fallo amaro morso! Dante. What grievous pain a little fault doth give thee!” Madeleine L’Engle, A Wrinkle in Time
This was hard to read. My heart went out to Darcy and Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet as each examined their roles in the ‘failure to inform’ trope. They were all consumed with the ‘if I had done this, then this would not have happened’ scenario. Of course, we the reader know the reality of Lydia’s and Wickham’s proclivities and base nature. Let’s face it, no one could have stopped that train.
“Teach me to feel another’s woe, to hide the fault I see, that mercy I to others show, that mercy show to me.” Alexander Pope
This story centered around Darcy and Elizabeth and their introspection as they worked through their feelings and emotions. They each are at rock bottom as they deal with what they have done and what they now know. They each try to decipher what to do to save Georgiana and deal with the presence of the one person they thought to never see again.
Georgiana was the spoke that this wheel spun around. She was the manipulator and catalyst all in one. Her wants and desires moved the action. Everyone was in place due to what she needed to recover from her turmoil. We learned of a shocking ‘accident’ that had thrown poor Georgiana’s emotions in a mess.
I thought our HEA would never arrive and I loved how it came about. Poor Darcy was pulled through the wringer in this one. He was a mess and Elizabeth was no better. These two could hardly have a conversation without misunderstanding each other or being harsh and cruel to each other. It began to get on my nerves.
I loved Lady Hardwick, another relation of Darcy’s. She was just what the story needed to keep everything grounded and offered comedic relief to lessen the tension. I was a bit concerned about Lord Mowbray [who was fascinated with Lizzy] and Lady Emmeline [a Caroline Bingley type on steroids] who wanted Darcy… of course. The author missed a lot of action by not following up on that thread. They were a train wreck waiting to happen.
Rating: PG-13: slight sensual comments here and there, until the very end PG->17, wedding night, bedroom scene that could easily be skipped over to the epilogue. I thought that was well played by the author.
Source: I won a copy from the author’s blog tour without any expectation of a review. This is an honest review.