Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman

An Assembly Such as This, Duty and Desire & These Three Remain

Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentlemen Trilogy

Pamela Aiden

rating: 10

~

"She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me."

So begins the timeless romance of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. Jane Austen's classic novel is beloved by millions, but little is revealed in the book about the mysterious and handsome hero, Mr. Darcy. And so the question has long remained: Who is Fitzwilliam Darcy? 

In An Assembly Such as This, Pamela Aidan finally answers that long-standing question. In this first book of her Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman trilogy, she reintroduces us to Darcy during his visit to Hertfordshire with his friend Charles Bingley and reveals Darcy's hidden perspective on the events ofPride and Prejudice. As Darcy spends more time at Netherfield supervising Bingley and fending off Miss Bingley's persistent advances, his unwilling attraction to Elizabeth grows -- as does his concern about her relationship with his nemesis, George Wickham. 

~

"There was little danger of encountering the Bennet sisters ever again."

When Darcy pays a visit to an old classmate in Oxford in an attempt to shake Elizabeth from his mind, he is set upon by husband-hunting society ladies and ne'er-do-well friends from his university days, all with designs on him -- some for good and some for ill. He and his sartorial genius of a valet, Fletcher, must match wits with them all, but especially with the curious Lady Sylvanie. 

~

These Three Remain follows a humbled Darcy on the journey of self-discovery after Elizabeth Bennet’s rejection of his marriage proposal, in which he endeavors to grow into the kind of gentleman he’s always dreamed of being. Happily, a chance meeting with Elizabeth during a tour of his estate in Derbyshire offers Darcy a new opportunity to press his suit, but his newfound strengths are put to the test by an old nemesis, George Wickham. 
~

I was a little worried when I first got these from a friend, even when she told me that they were really good.  I tend to be a little hard on books that are a re-write or an addition to one of my beloved classics, but I had no reason to fear.  These books are by far the best Pride & Prejudice offshoot books I have ever read, and I've tried out quite a few of them.

Pamela Aiden does a great job of providing Darcy's character with the depth that we miss in P&P.  After having read these books I found it rather funny how Mr. Darcy is so idolized in Jane Austen's books, even though he isn't developed a whole ton.  I still love him of course, but I found that fact really interesting…

Also, I really loved getting to learn more about the people from Pemberly and others that are involved in Darcy's private life.  Georgiana is given much more personality and screen time, also Darcy's father-like relationship with Bingley is further deepened.  

Another thing that I thought was really well done was that the whole book didn't focus on just Darcy's love for Elizabeth, like in P&P it is always in the back of his mind but sometimes there are chapters before something reminds him of her, and then he goes through the struggle all over again.  Just like Elizabeth has to in Pride & Prejudice.  

I could go on and on and on, but long story short: this is definitely a series that I recommend to all other P&P lovers, a must read!