A Pride and Prejudice Variation
by Monica Fairview
Fantasy, Regency, Jane Austen theme | Published: March 2021 | Goodreads | Website
A sparkling tale of Regency England, a forced marriage, and two magicians who must work together to save the Kingdom.
Elizabeth Bennet is stunned when the Royal Mages come to her peaceful country home of Longbourn to take her away. She is even more bewildered when she is commanded to marry a powerful mage by the name of Fitzwilliam Darcy. She has always dreamed of marrying for love, and an arranged marriage with an arrogant stranger was never part of her plans.
But Darcy and Elizabeth have no choice in the matter. Uniting their two forms of magic is essential if the Kingdom is to defeat Napoleon’s mages. They may dislike each other on sight, but Darcy and Elizabeth have to overcome their differences and find common ground before it is too late. Fortunately, it is not long before the sparks begin to fly between them.
Join the author of ‘Fortune and Felicity’ in this Jane Austen Fantasy Variation, an enchanting story of determination, love, and hope against all odds.
About the author:
Monica Fairview writes Jane Austen sequels and variations as well as Regencies. Her latest novel is a Pride and Prejudice fantasy variation, Dangerous Magic. Her biggest claim to fame is living in Elizabeth Gaskell’s house in Manchester, long before the house was restored. After studying in the USA, she taught literature, then became an acupuncturist. She now lives near London.
Monica loves anything to do with the nineteenth century, and obsessively follows every period drama she can find. Some of her favorites are ‘North and South’, ‘Bright Star’ and ‘War and Peace’, and a dozen others that she couldn’t possibly list here. Of course, she has watched Pride and Prejudice (1995 and 2005) more times than she could count on her hands and toes.
Monica enjoys reading fantasy and post-apocalyptic novels but avoids zombies like the plague. She loves to laugh, drink tea, and visit National Trust historic properties [those were the days!], and she is convinced that her two cats can understand everything she says.
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Excerpt:
Elizabeth disliked the idea of having to share a room. Not in principle, of course. She had always shared with her sister Jane, but this was different. When Lady Alice first took her to the Maidens’ Hall, she had implied that all single ladies shared rooms, to ensure that they stuck to the rules.
“We cannot have you sneaking off to see Mr. Darcy before you are married,” she had added, turning her stern look on Elizabeth.
Elizabeth had laughed. The very idea that she could possibly be tempted to meet clandestinely with the austere Mr. Darcy was ridiculous. If anything, after their last encounter, she would have preferred never to meet him again.
Elizabeth had quickly discovered that sharing rooms was only true in the case of young apprentices at the Academy, not adult Royal mages. However, when she heard she was to board with Miss Caroline Bingley, Elizabeth did not mind. She had liked Mr. Bingley on sight, and she was certain she would get on with his sister. The tall, fashionably dressed young lady was surprised at discovering that an extra bed was being put in her bedchamber for Elizabeth, but she was polite and willing to be helpful. Miss Bingley showed her around the Maidens’ Hall, introduced her to some of the other mages, and explained what to expect and where to find things.
Sitting on her bed that first afternoon, Elizabeth leaned her back on the wall and confided her unhappiness to Miss Bingley, much as she would have done with her sister Jane. She shared the story of how the mages had appeared out of the blue and practically dragged her to the Hall to marry Mr. Darcy.
Miss Bingley listened without interruption, but then as Elizabeth came to the end of her tale, she gave a little contemptuous laugh.
“You do know that Mr. Darcy owns one of the largest estates in Derbyshire,” said Miss Bingley. “And that he possesses a large fortune.”
“I know it now. I did not know it at the time.”
“Surely now, armed with that knowledge, you must be thrilled at such an opportunity.”
“Not at all,” replied Elizabeth, “Now that I have met Mr. Darcy, I am even less inclined to marry him.”
Miss Bingley stared but said nothing. Elizabeth sighed. If they had given her the time to pack her things, she might have brought a book, but she had nothing to do now. She wanted to write a letter to her family, but she needed to find out where to obtain paper and ink.
Before she could ask, however, Miss Bingley spoke again.
“What academy did you study at before you came here?”
“I didn’t study at one. There wasn’t an academy anywhere near where we lived, and my father didn’t want to part with me.” “You never studied magic formally?”
Elizabeth shook her head with a smile. “No.”
Again, Miss Bingley gawked. Elizabeth began to wonder if Miss Bingley was as friendly as she appeared.
There was a long silence. “You know,” said Miss Bingley, suddenly, “most young ladies would give an arm and a leg to be able to marry Mr. Darcy.”
“I would imagine that would rather defeat the purpose.”
Miss Bingley wrinkled her forehead, perplexed.
“If they did give away an arm and a leg, it would be more difficult for them to assist Mr. Darcy, would it not?”
Miss Bingley snickered. “I suppose so. It was not meant to be literal, Miss Bennet.”
Elizabeth’s smile grew wider. “I have always thought the English language fascinating. One never knows quite how to understand things.”
Miss Bingley gave her a superior look and turned to pick up a book from the table near her bed.
“Is your book entertaining?” asked Elizabeth, feeling more cheerful now that she had flustered Miss Bingley.
“Hardly,” said Miss Bingley. “It is The Common Compendium of Spells.”
“You are studying spells, then? What do you read for pleasure, Miss Bingley?”
“We have no time to read for pleasure at the Hall, Miss Bennet.”
Elizabeth gave Miss Bingley a bemused look. “Then it is even worse than I imagined. There is nothing like the pleasure of a good novel.”
“We are not here for pleasure, Miss Bennet. We are here to save the Kingdom from Napoleon.”
“I suppose, then, that we must remain eternally grim.”
* excerpt courtesy of author
