Review: A Darcy Christmas

A Darcy Christmas: A Holiday Tribute To Jane Austen by Amanda Grange, Sharon Lathan, and Carolyn Eberhart

Publication Date: October 2010
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Genre: Jane Austen Fiction
ISBN-13: 9781402243394
ISBN: 1402243391

(Received for review from Sourcebooks)

Purchase: Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Borders, IndieBound

If you live in Morehead, KY or the surrounding area:

Purchase from our local independent bookstore: CoffeeTree Books
Borrow from our local library: The Rowan County Public Library

Author's Websites: Amanda Grange, Sharon Lathan, Carolyn Eberhart
Excerpt: Click HERE!
Synopsis (Sharon Lathan's Website):

"Share in the magic of the season in these three warm and wonderful holiday novellas from bestselling authors."

This novel is an anthology of three Christmas-themed novellas with the Darcys of Pemberley as the common thread. "Mr. Darcy's Christmas Carol" is written by Carolyn Eberhart and is a twist on the classic Charles Dickens tale. "Christmas Present" is Amanda Grange's story of a special Christmas celebration with the Darcys and Bingleys. My offering is "A Darcy Christmas" and is the finale to this wonderful book. Keeping my Darcy Saga series in mind with my beloved characters intact, I take the reader down the passage of time when ten individual snippets of the evolving Darcy family celebrating the holiday.

Thoughts:

Jane Austen fiction has become a phenomenon! The characters from Jane Austen's beloved novels have so captivated the world that many writers have written sequels, prequels, mash-ups, variations and lots more. A Darcy Christmas is a Christmas anthology following Austen's much loved characters from Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. Each of the three stories in this anthology is written by a different author and has a different feel to it. But, they flow together well.

"Mr. Darcy's Christmas Carol" is based on the Charles Dickens classic, "A Christmas Carol". I have always loved adaptations of this story and this one written by Carolyn Eberhart is no exception. Mr. Darcy is characterized as the "Scrooge" in this story. I found that a little hard to accept at first because I have come to love Mr. Darcy and wasn't sure I could see him in this light. But as I began to read, I found that Mr. Darcy's ways of conceitedness and arrogance, easily fell into place as reasons for his scrooge like behavior. I liked this one a lot, and I felt that the pace was good for a novella and I was still able to get a good feel for the story.

"Christmas Present" by Amanda Grange follows the Darcy and Bingley families through a very special Christmas. I liked this one because we are able to see what may have happened after Jane and Bingley and Elizabeth and Darcy were married. How their families have evolved and changed and what they have been up to during the intervening years. Christmas is a holiday for families and I felt that Grange was able to really show this through her writing. My only wish was that it was a little longer.

"A Darcy Christmas" written by Sharon Lathan is the concluding story in this anthology and aptly so. The Book is titled after this story and I felt that was appropriate. Lathan follows Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy and their families and friends, throughout ten separate Christmas'. I found that a bit daunting considering it was a novella, but Lathan pulled it off with style. Offering the reader snippets, so that they could see how the family changed over the years. What new faces were added or old faces gone on. I really enjoyed this one a lot.

If you like Jane Austen fiction and you like Christmas. This anthology just in time for the holidays, should be right up your alley. I recommend this one because it is full of much loved characters and is short enough to accommodate all of the hustle and bustle of the season.

A Darcy Christmas is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!