Elisa Benitez is proud of who she is, from her bitingly sarcastic remarks, to her love of both pretty boys and pretty girls. If someone doesn’t like her, that’s their problem, and Elisa couldn’t care less. Particularly if that person is Darcy Fitzgerald, a snobby, socially awkward heiress with an attitude problem and more money than she knows what to do with. From the moment they meet, Elisa and … Elisa and Darcy are at each other’s throats — which is a bit unfortunate, since Darcy’s best friend is dating Elisa’s sister. It quickly becomes clear that fate intends to throw the two of them together, whether they like it or not. As hers and Darcy’s lives become more and more entwined, Elisa’s once-dull world quickly spirals into chaos in this story of pride, prejudice, and finding love with the people you least expect.
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Absolutely adorable P&P retelling with (several) modern twists!
Elisa Benitez and Darcy Fitzgerald’s story hits all the main plot points of Pride and Prejudice , but does so with plenty of modern touches that help to make the story Ms Mesler-Evans’ own. Elisa is bisexual and of Hispanic heritage; Darcy is biracial and a lesbian. Camilla (the second youngest of Elisa’s sisters) is trans, and Elisa’s parents are divorced (I was especially interested that the author went there–I’ve read so many analyses re: the elder Bennets and their marriage, and they’ve been about a 50-50 split between they had a good marriage and their marriage was a disaster; though I’m not willing to commit 100% to one argument or the other, this worked here). I enjoyed noting the differences and seeing how the author made Jane Austen’s period piece become more modern.
For the most part it really, really worked–I’d venture to say that even someone completely unfamiliar with the storyline would enjoy this book’s plot and characters on their own merit. A few bits felt slightly forced (Lady Catherine’s final scenes, I’m looking at you) and others were an improvement (Colin/Mr. Collins and Charlene/Charlotte’s eventual relationship is so much more palatable here!) and I turned the final page of the story with a huge smile on my face. Final verdict? I’ll get in line to read Ms Mesler-Evans’s next book, even if it’s not an Austen retelling 🙂
Rating: 4 stars / A-
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
I loved the direction this one went, I love how inclusive it was with lesbian, bi, trans; and biracial characters. I also really liked the changes in the characters. In some of the early reviews some of the things they nitpicked about were the things I liked. I like the changes to the Colin and Lydia characters there is nothing wrong with making them more likeable especially since I really hated the original characters. I loved the updatedness it worked well. I was worried how the Lydia, or in this case Lucia, was going to play out but she did exactly what I had always hoped would happen to Wickham. He has always been a money hungry pervy creep and it was nice to see actually portrayed as such.
Now the main character Elisa Benitez, Elizabeth Bennet, is a bi-sexual Mexican American and while technically is still a high school student goes to school at the local community college which is where she meets Darcy Fitzgerald. Darcy a biracial cis lesbian who is just visiting but is staying long enough she fills her time with some college classes before she starts at the university. Their first meet as you can guess is argumentative, they get into a literary debate over Lord of the Flies. It doesn’t get any better when they just happen to start running into each other in social situations. It plays out pretty much the same as the original except updated for modern American times, except for the slight personality changes in Colin and Lucia. It’s a little bit more obvious to the reader that Darcy and Elisa like each other but Elisa is a little oblivious.
Overall, such a good read. I inhaled this book I didn’t want to put it down. It’s in third person POV but sometimes changes from over Elisa to Julieta, Charlene, Lucia, and Darcy. It is more of a romance than a social commentary but had there been more I can just hear how people would be complaining that it’s “Too Preachy”; there is some and it the right amount of feminism and in one particular case it’s also the reason Colin isn’t a douche at the end of the book. I loved this book it’s definitely one that I would own a physical copy of to keep on my bookshelf.
When I saw there was a lesbian retelling of Pride & Prejudice, I couldn’t click request fast enough. I don’t think I can even count how many retellings I have read since I first encountered Eliza Bennett and Mr. Darcy.
My hopes were high. And they were sadly not met. Here’s what didn’t work for me:
-Much of the dialogue is word for word from the original P&P
-No chemistry between Elisa and Darcy
-While I appreciated the inclusivity (transgender, non-binary etc), it felt OTT and forced
-Elisa was kind of a bitch. Eliza Bennett was snarky but never outright mean
Basically I just felt disappointed. And I wished it was better executed.
A modern day Jane Austen styled novel. Darcy and Elisa start out hating each other but through the tumult of friends and family they fall in love. This story charts the tale of the five Benitez girls and their best friend Charlotte as they find their place in the world. It addresses relationships that are same sex and those that are not. It shows how parents can love their children no matter who they choose to love. It also makes fun of the financial disparity that exists in the two groups and how love can obliterate that divide. It is filled with funny and witty quips that will make you love these characters.