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64 of 72 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Improbable, February 3, 2005
This review is from: Duty and Desire (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman, Book 2) (Paperback)
My earlier review of Pamela Aiden's first installment cites it as the best P&P spinoff. It was the initial part of a trilogy that offers insight into Darcy's point of view and life apart from Miss Elizabeth Bennet in parallel to the P&P story line. The second installment falls a bit short by comparison.
While the continuation of Darcy's relationship with his valet is particularly delightful, the strategic plot choices seem out of character.
Finding solace in God is certainly a plausible means by which Miss Darcy would overcome her experience with Wickham but to turn to evangelical Christianity rather than the Anglican Church is less realistic. As a ward of an elder brother determined to shelter her and guide her to adulthood as a proper aristocratic woman, it is more likely that he would have seen to it that she pursued a deeper faith within the more conventional church. Having already suffered the consequence of a poor choice of governess, Darcy would have been ever more careful about the character and background of a replacement.
Likewise, the entirety of the plot twists at the country manor is implausible. It served a valuable purpose is demonstrating Darcy considering alternative potential matrimonial options to Elizabeth Bennet and one by one finding reasons to eliminate them. However, that he would attend let alone stay at such an event is entirely out of character for him. It is more likely that he would have pursued a similar interest within the confines of proper London aristocratic society rather than in the plot's bizarre environment.
All in all, the second tome of a trilogy is usually regarded as the least attractive of the three. The final leg promises to give us Darcy's perspective as he struggles more directly with Miss Bennet in the evolution of their relationship. I for one continue to await its publication with undiminished anticipation.
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29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not quite sure why I liked this book so much..., August 31, 2005
This review is from: Duty and Desire (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman, Book 2) (Paperback)
...except perhaps that I was expecting to be disappointed and was instead engrossed and very pleasantly surprised. I had originally been enthralled by the first volume in the series, loving its fresh and unexpected but eminently logical insights into well-loved characterizations, but had gotten distracted from finishing the opener, perhaps momentarily bored with the predictability of its correspondence with Austen's original (paradoxically its original attraction). The second book's description was not enticing for me, promising few familiar characters or favorite events. Eventually I persevered and finished the books at a rapid pace so that I could lend them to an avid friend.
In the event, "Duty and Desire" was not what I expected, instead much better than expected. The first half was charming and engaging and rich with characterization, hardly harmed by its paucity of action. Georgiana's character reveal was plausible and took Darcy's dilemmas to a new level.
The controversial second half flowed very well for me, made clear sense, and had a real and necessary point to it. It all may have seemed to some readers as very monstrous and non-Austenesque - but that's the perverse hidden reality behind the pampered and unhampered lives of many of those to the manor born with silver spoons in their mouths. This was a real alternative for someone in Darcy's position, and he needed to see it for what it is in its stark reality in order to better see and appreciate Elizabeth for who she is. And frankly, it presents a nice mediating contrast and perspective to the banality of Hertfordshire, which hardly seems so utterly bad to Darcy by comparison.
For those who call this "mystery" story absurd and unbelievable - is it really? If anything, it seems more in touch with the actual reality of the times, as lived by its unreal ruling class, than Austen's soft-focus version. (Check out Fay Weldon's revealing "Letters to Alice on First Reading Jane Austen" for more on this point.)
And for those who feel this "mystery" is out of keeping with Austen's literary style - would it really be such a stretch for the author of that Gothic farce "Northanger Abbey"? I agree it would not fit comfortably in the world of "Pride and Prejudice" - but "Duty and Desire" is reaching outside that world (which is mostly Elizabeth's world) into the fringe of Darcy's world to show what he is choosing AGAINST when he chooses to re-enter and commit to Elizabeth's world of wise and kind morality.
Belatedly I realize the core of why I like this particular volume (and the series as a whole) so very, very much. Aidan is taking her characterization of Darcy through a very complete and deliberate psychological odyssey. Each incident stands on its own in terms of entertainment value, but also serves the careful purpose of taking Darcy to every psychological place that he needs to pass through in order to reach his destination (i.e. Elizabeth). Aidan doesn't miss much, and pulls few punches - Darcy really has to go through the ringer, and even entertain some dark temptations that he would naturally be exposed to during his time of despair and vulnerability. The whole work has great psychological realism and resonance for me.
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86 of 103 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Somewhat Tedious Filler Novel, October 2, 2004
This review is from: Duty and Desire (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman, Book 2) (Paperback)
For a "filler" book, it's not bad. It's well written, as was the first book, but it's not nearly as interesting as the first one. The "mystery" introduced wasn't particularly compelling, and I found myself skipping to those bits that gave insight into what Darcy was thinking and feeling, rather than being pulled into the story itself.
One thing that especially frustrated me was the emphasis the author made on religious contemplation. Jane Austen, herself, was certainly a woman of deep religious conviction, but she was as scrupulously careful about keeping her books free from heavy-handed portrayal of religious belief as she was from heavy-handed portrayal of feminist thought. Even though these themes do pop up in her novels, they are never dwelled upon. But this is where Pamela Aidan's most impressive ability -- her ability to keep close to Austen's style -- failed. She failed to maintain Austen's light touch. Nearly the entire first third of this book has a strong religious orientation, and I even put it down in exasperation several times. I never did that with the first book.
Later in the book, we are informed that Darcy's sister, Georgiana, has undergone a religious transformation the likes of which you might see in a newly born-again Christian of modern times. I suspect (I really hope), that Aidan is simply using this as a plot device. Since Darcy himself worries about Georgiana's excessive devotion to her faith, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's so. The third book should be the most interesting of the three, and I await it with great anticipation. Let's hope Aidan writes it as she did the first one and drops the heavy-handed style of this one.
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