Customer Reviews

Edmund Bertram's Diary

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased this through Amazon UK and so therefore paid dearly for it in getting it sent to the U.S.-- a little over $50 when all the shipping was done,etc. But this hardcover was so worth it! Amanda Grange does a fabulous job telling Mansfield Park through Edmund's eyes. The infatuation he has with Mary Crawford is clearly developed and the disappointment he later gains by hearing first hand her feelings on the Crawford/Maria affair is heartfelt. But what is so endearing is how he relates to Fanny Price and how he comes to finally realize she is his true match. The writing is top notch and I am more than delighted to have this part of my library. Edmund Bertram's Diary is as honest with his thinking and emotions as Darcy was in his.

Amanda Grange is excellent at these reworkings of Austen's tales from the male perspective. I have deeply enjoyed all of them. This one was also well done, but I honestly didn't care for it. I think it is because I don't really like Edmund. In the recently released BBC adaptation of this novel, I started to like Edmund, but like in book he was distasteful to me in Grange's adaptation. If you like Mansfield Park, I think you will enjoy this book. If you don't, you probably won't.

Amanda Grange has done it again! I love her series on Austen men! This is my fourth book and to be honest, I was a little wary of it because Edmund is not one of my favorite Austen heroes. Like in her other books, Ms. Grange did her homework, her retelling follows the course of Mansfield Park, with accurate dates, events, and dialogue taking place.

Unfortunately, because Ms. Grange is so diligent with her work, it means a lot of Edmund's diary entries are consumed with talk of Mary Crawford. This is because through out most of Mansfield Park that is whom Edmund is in love with. Nevertheless, there is a lot of Fanny in the book too. We see her when she arrives at age 10, and how Edmund befriends her, cares for her like a brother, like a guardian. And again when they are older and even though his mind is full of Mary he looks to Fanny for comfort, support, and advice.

I liked the relationship between Edmund and Fanny a lot in this book and I feel a better understanding of it. It did not bother me that there was so much about Mary Crawford, because that was true to Jane Austen's Mansfield Park.

What I liked most about this book is all the added insight to Edmund. We see his relationship with his brother develop, how he decided to go into the clergy, and his true thoughts and feelings as to being the man of the house when his father and brother go to Antigua. In addition, you see his interest in Mary Crawford develop. What was it that attracted him so much? How did he feel over her teasing about clergymen? What were his thoughts of her after he had given her up? I do like Edmund more than I did before I read this book, and I, of course, have always liked Fanny, but this book has made me dislike Mrs. Norris and Mary Crawford even more. (But that is okay we are supposed to dislike them!)

The only thing that held me back from give this book the full five stars is that I was hoping for more of a romantic love-declaration scene at the end of the book. It is true that in the original that there isn't a big declaration of love, but some of the movie adaptions have tried to add a scene that was not originally in the book. I also would have liked to know more about how Fanny and Edmund did after marriage rather than "We are the same, Fanny and I." Maybe a little description of their happily ever after would have satisfied me more.

So if you are interested in Edmund, and you want to understand him better, or perhaps read the story of Mansfield Park through his eyes then I recommend you give this book a try. I also recommend the others in this series: Colonel Brandon's Diary, Captain Wentworth's Diary, Mr. Darcy's Diary, and Mr. Knightley's Diary.

I really enjoyed this book! If you're a Mansfield Park fan, I'd say to give it a try. Edmund's character is very true to the original book and it's cool to get his perspective on Fanny.

I have read her other takes on the Jane Austen books and found this one to be my least favorite by quite a bit. It is rather boring in the middle as he pines for Mary Crawford. It is an OK read but I do not think is is worth 2 reads....

This novel was an almost three hundred page paraphrase of Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I should have seen the tell-tale signs of a rip off (such as the extremely unoriginal title) but I was too excited over the idea that someone else liked mansfield enough to write a sequel. Everything that isn't plagiarized from the original is very poorly written and completely lacking in emotion. The style of the book is such that the author manages to make even Jane Austen's witty writing dull and lifeless. It simply felt like scanning a bad high school essay on the book or having a friend (who didn't like the book very much) try to explain the plot. The only parts I looked forward to (the proposal scene and the ever after bit) were either left out all together or hustled through. I'm just thankful I didn't pay 14 bucks for this.