Book Review: Darcy and Elizabeth: Nights and Days at Pemberley by Linda Berdoll

This sequel to Linda Berdoll’s Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife delivers mostly what the first book did, only it waited until the last 150 pages to do so. The books have both brought Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice to life in a very creative and interesting way. Berdoll imagines them as passionate lovers who are so hot for each other that they have sex whenever and wherever the urge strikes them. They’re filthy rich, so I guess they can do that, and since they live in such a “polite” era, no one would dare even act like they know what the two have been up to. The sex is playful and fun in this book, too, even if there are too many uses of words like tumescence, nether region, instruments, member, and the like. I can overlook that when I’m having a good time reading about someone who I would love to be—who could turn down a world where you have servants to take care of every need, enough money that you could never spend it all, and all you have to think about is the man you love!

That said, the book suffers from being a sequel to a sequel. Berdoll did a great job in her first book at presuming that the reader had already read P&P and if they hadn’t, she didn’t need to inform them of what happened in that book because they should be ashamed for not reading it. In MDTW, however, the story lacks confidence in the beginning—and not just the beginning 2 or 3 chapters, but roughly the beginning 200 pp.

Another thing that was disconcerting (and a little confusing) was the lack of coherence in the timeline of the story. I didn’t mind switching between characters with each chapter or two, but I did mind (quite a bit so) when chapter 13 would be referring to events that took place WAY before those in chapter 10. I felt like I couldn’t keep up with when things were happening, what strings were supposed to be tied together. I’ve read a number of books that had out of sequence chapters, but that lack of sequence was done on purpose. This instance just looked like bad editing.

One more thing before I end my criticisms of this book, I think that Berdoll needs a really good, tough editor who will help tone her stilted language around to a more easily read (and clear) style that will still evoke the time period without seeming silly or pornographic.

Criticisms aside, I enjoyed the ride I went on in this book. It has a satisfying ending, the story is fun, the characters well wrought. If you’re a Jane Austen purist, you would hate these books, but if you enjoy a story re-told, then you may enjoy this…just be willing to put up with some linguistic gymnastics that often fall flat on their back.