On Oakham Mount // by Sophia Meredith
Type: Variation
Setting: Regency
Read Via: Kindle Unlimited
Overall Rating: 3.9/5.0
Characters True-to-Original Rating: 4.8/5.0
Copyright: 2015
Pages: 279 (per Kindle)
Clean Rating: G. Totally clean except for a few “he found himself yearning for her” moment.
Synopsis (via Amazon):
When Mr. Bennet insists that Elizabeth marry the odious Mr. Collins, she dashes off in tears to seek refuge on Oakham Mount. There, she encounters Mr. Darcy seeking distraction from his own concerns. In a moment of emotional turmoil they turn to each other, and Mr. Darcy is moved to offer a solution to Elizabeth’s dilemma: A marriage of convenience. But when this engagement is broken almost before it has begun, why do the two feel so bereft? Could there be more between them than a simple arrangement? Can these two proud, strong-willed individuals overcome all the obstacles that keep them apart? More importantly, can they open their hearts to each other and to love?
Review:
This was a straightforward and pleasant P&P variation. When Mr. Collins proposes to Elizabeth, Elizabeth’s father tells her that she must wed him, rather than supporting Elizabeth’s decision to refuse Mr. Collins as he does in the original. Elizabeth is devastated by this betrayal from her favorite parent, and horrified at the prospect of marriage to Mr. Collins. She runs off to the woods to cry her heart out. While she is there, Darcy rides by and sees her. He’s feeling a bit annoyed himself, having just receive another letter from Lady Catherine, hounding him about marrying Anne. As Darcy and Elizabeth converse, he feels moved to offer for her.
On the whole, I’m not sure why I didn’t feel like rating this book higher. I think it was just because it was rather boring. Everyone was super nice, except for Lady Catherine (and Wickham, but he doesn’t really come into things much until he absconds with Lydia), so it was basically just Darcy and Elizabeth misunderstanding each other that was keeping them apart, and I’m always annoyed when the only thing standing in the way of true love is a straightforward conversation.
The whole proposal thing felt a little weird, but on the whole seemed not unreasonable. However, I think the whole story would have been better if the marriage had gone through and we had worked from there.
I’m not even bothering with a spoilers section for this one since there really aren’t any. A placid tale with characters very true to Austen’s original, but somehow without their engaging manners.
Can't Stop Reading P&P Variations... 