THE DARCYS GIVE A BALL

Author: Elizabeth Newark ISBN: 9781402211317 3/2008 HISTORICAL Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS
Time Period: Regency

While Jane and Lizzie plan a lavish ball at Pemberley, the Darcys’ second son falls in love with the Collins’ daughter, first-born Juliet Darcy is almost lured into an elopement, and Georgiana’s timid daughter Lucy is the new target of Miss Caroline Bingley’s meddling. The Darcys Give a Ball is a charming and very amusing imagining of the next generation of Jane Austen’s beloved characters from Pride and Prejudice and other novels, where all the young people come together for a surprising and altogether satisfying ending. Sons and daughters share the physical and personality traits of their parents, but of course have minds of their own, and as Lizzie says to Jane: “The romantic attachments of one’s children are a constant distraction.”

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Elizabeth Newark’s THE DARCYS GIVE A BALL is splendid! Had I not known this was not penned by Jane Austen, I would have assumed the iconic author had written it herself. This story has style and flair, and the hear-felt emotional stirrings Ms. Austen’s characters are so famous for.

A very quick read, THE DARCYS GIVE A BALL is wonderful for a number of reasons. As I said, the characters are just what we’d hope they would be. Mr. Darcy in his fifties is just as dashing as when he was young. Charlotte and Elizabeth’s lifelong friendship has only deepened. Their children are the focus of this story, but none of the older characters are neglected. I was thankful for that, since I love them so. But characters aside, this story is well-written, with vivid descriptions that make the scenes leap from the pages. One of its best attributes is that the story is circular, beginning and ending with a death so that by the time I reached its conclusion, I felt complete satisfaction. All was as it should be—as, I’m certain, Ms. Austen would have wanted it to be—in the Darcy household.

I sincerely hope Ms. Newark writes more stories using these familiar characters. Any Jane Austen fan or Regency romance reader will love THE DARCYS GIVE A BALL.

Kay James