Loving Mr. Darcy: Journeys Beyond Pemberley [Paperback]

Sharon Lathan (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 1, 2009

"Highly entertaining... I felt fully immersed in the time period, thanks to the author's attention to detail. It is a real credit to Ms. Lathan that her storytelling style is in keeping with the author of the work that inspired this novel. Well done!"
Romance Reader at Heart

Beyond Pride and Prejudice…Beyond 'I Do'…

Darcy and Lizzy venture away from Pemberley to journey through England, finding friends, relatives, fun, love, and an even deeper and more sacred bond along the way.

Having embarked on the greatest adventure of all, marriage and the start of a new life together, now the Darcys take the reader on a journey through a time of prosperity, enjoyment, and security. They experience all the adventures of travel, with friends
and relatives providing both companionship and complications, and with fun as their focus.

The sights and sounds, tastes and flavors of Regency England come alive. Through it all, Darcy and Lizzy continue to build a marriage filled with romance, sensuality, and the beauty of a deep, abiding love.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The second in Sharon Lathan's Darcy Saga (Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy) fails on two levels. Readers new to Darcy and Elizabeth will be bored reading page after page about two paragons—he is a gracious and expert billiards player, she is an excellent manager of the household—while they go about their life, with the occasional dustup with Lady Catherine, all while awaiting the birth of their first child. Meanwhile, Austen lovers may well be insulted to read un-Austenesque conversations, scenes and goings-on. Either way, the brilliance of Austen is notably absent. Too often the day-in-the-life focus seems small, as do the couple's PG-13–level lusty thoughts and behaviors. Yes, it's romantic that in a break of Regency tradition they sleep in the same bed and make love often, but it's a lot of nothing after their 15th bout, as is suffering through Darcy hiding his erections from a jovial, knowing father-in-law-to-be. Austen's characters deserve far better than this. (Sept.)
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Review

"In true Jane Austen style, this story is filled with period details and witty dialogue... a very pleasant read!" - Romance Reader at Heart

"A refreshing and romantic continuation of a beloved novel! " - Awaiting Diana

"The attention to details will leave readers with a firm memory of Sharon Lathan's talented writing, the characters -new and old- will leave you wanting more, and the everlasting love between Darcy and Lizzy will leave more than one reader swooning." - A Bibliophile's Bookshelf

"This is one of the most romantic take off on Pride and Prejudice that I have read. " - This Book For Free

" If you are like me and love Pride and Prejudice sequels then this series should be on the top of your list - trust me!" - Royal Reviews

"I really fell in love with Lathan's continuation of Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam's story." - One Literature Nut

"Whether it's happiness, sadness or even at times a bit of anger, the emotions are vivid and pop off the page to affect the reader. This really helped to draw me in and hook me." - A Journey of Books

"Sharon really knows how to make Regency come alive. Her descriptions of people, places, and things suck you in and refuse to let you go. " - Love Romance Passion

"It's actually quite nice to read this type of romance, hero and heroine together, having fun, taking care of hearth and home and anything else required of them – together. " - The Good, the Bad the Unread

"The way Ms. Lathan allows the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth to evolve is wonderful and will surely induce a contented sigh from all romantics. " - Once Upon a Romance

"Sharon Lathan has done a wonderful job of giving Darcy and Elizabeth a very loving and intimate relationship." - Wendi's Book Corner

"Reading Sharon's continuing saga of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth is enough to make my [Pride and Prejudice] fan-girl heart beat just a little bit faster." - Good and Bad Books

"Loving Mr. Darcy gives a deeper picture of Fitzwilliam Darcy in love - which Pride and Prejudice fans are sure to enjoy. " - Starting Fresh

"A fantastic read... I highly recommend it and the others in Lathans' series." - The Book Zombie

" You'll enjoy Loving Mr. Darcy as long as you don't mind a little steamy romance! " - Cheeky Reads

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark; First Edition edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402217412
• ISBN-13: 978-1402217418
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (85 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #159,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sharon Lathan is the best-selling author of The Darcy Saga 8-volume sequel series to Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. She is a native Californian currently residing in the sunny San Joaquin Valley with her husband of twenty-six years. When not hard at work on her faithful MacBookPro laptop or iMac desktop, Sharon is at the hospital where she works as a Registered Nurse in a Neonatal ICU, as she has for twenty-eight years.

Sharon is a member of the Jane Austen Society of North America, the Romance Writers of America, the Beau Monde and Hearts Through History chapters of the RWA, and serves on the board of her local chapter, the Yosemite Romance Writers. In 2010 Sharon created Austen Authors with novelist Abigail Reynolds, a group blog for published Jane Austen literary fiction authors. To learn more about Sharon and her series of romantic historical fiction novels, come to her website at: www.sharonlathan.net

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Loving Mr. Darcy... over... and over... and over... again. January 21, 2011

By Great Dane

Format:Paperback

I bought three of the books in this series, starting with this one, eager to read them as I'd enjoyed some of the other P&P sequels out there. I was looking for escape, some transport to a time of grace and manners. I read 1/3 of this book and promptly returned all three for a full refund. They are a chore to read. They have none of the charm, intelligence, and chaste, yet terribly sweet and romantic feel of the real Jane Austen. The back flap has the audacity to say that Jane would probably have approved of this. Oh my, I beg to differ.

The genius of Jane Austen was her ability to make character, scenes, and plots come to life in a way that timelessly transcends the era of the reader. P&P is the single best romance novel ever written (just my opinion)and she did it at a time when women weren't encouraged in such pursuits and she did it without one sex scene or deep, hungering kiss. I didn't have to read the passion and love. I felt it. It made me want to keep reading and that kept me dreaming and imagining.

Ms. Lathan's series, however, has no plot. No scene set that we couldn't just picture from one of the movies. The only characters that mildly develop are Georgianna, Mary, and Miss Bingley. And Elizabeth and Darcy? They are the dullest, most self-absorbed sex addicts ever to grace a Regency novel from any time. They fawn and coo over each other all day and not 3 pages passes without them getting naked and going at it, almost perturbed that the others in their lives prevent them from non-stop bedsport. It's impossible to read if you have any respect at all for the original. I don't mind a little added "heat" but this drivel is just painful and ridiculous.

Boom boom. Oh my beloved lover, I love you and want to show you with a new position I've dreamed of.... Oh, William, the pleasure you give me, I can't wait to devise more ways to show you the ardent depth of my deep love. Boom boom. 3 pages. A dance. A meal. Boom boom. A mention of family or friends. Boom. Shopping. Repeat.

Save your money. Read more ›

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars So close, yet... November 24, 2009

By Marie-Louise

Format:Paperback

I was given this silly but readable P & P sequel by a friend who knows I'm an Austen addict. It's enjoyable, but... a bit insipid. I haven't read the book that precedes this, but Ms Lathan appears to have paid attention to her critics. There is more of Darcy and Elizabeth's families, more connection to the wider world, of Elizabeth's experience at becoming Mrs. Darcy among the Ton. However, too often the dialog seems straight out of a bad bodice ripper novel. There's incessant lovemaking, coupled (pun intended) with drippy dialog that is simultaneously coy and explicit. IE: "She looked into his shining eyes, hers misty...(Darcy)'Save the words my lover. Rather, free your mind and devise stimulating bedroom actions that will convey the depth of your gratitude.'(p.109)
Ugh! It actually takes away from the story, which I found enjoyable - Caroline Bingley is believably developed, as are Mary and Kitty. However, Lydia and Wickham are noticeably absent, as are Charlotte or Mr Collins.

I'm indeed an Austen fan, but not a purist where language and setting are concerned. Really getting Austen right is beyond many modern authors, especially romantic authors. Austen wasn't about romance, after all, but about romance as a vehicle for examining character, society and even religion. Some authors are better at using 19th c Regency language and imagery; others do not even try. Ms Lathan is is somewhere between. However, like too many Austen sequels, this one seems to embrace explicit sexual as a substitute for strong dialog, an intriguing story, and fully engaging characters. This isn't a bad sequel - It is just that Ms Lathan is capable of more than just another Harlequin romance masquerading as an Austen sequel.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Enough already! March 11, 2010

By A. D. Casey

Format:Paperback

I read the first book in this series a long while ago and found it to be a sweet book. I re-read the book at the time that I purchased this one, and I wondered what I ever saw in the book in the first place. This book was even worse than the first.

There is simply no plot... at all! In the first book or the second book. I adore the relationship of Elizabeth and Darcy, but when the book is full of nothing but the two of them quoting of their love over and over to the point where I roll my eyes every time I see one of those passages coming (which is practically every page), it's time to say... enough is enough! It's ridiculous, really, and I have a feeling Austen herself would have gagged after a while of reading this rubbish. Her beautiful characters are gone to be replaced by two people who have no individual characteristics at all except their relationship? She would have been extremely undone.

I have read some well thought out P&P sequels in the past, and I know that it is possible to create such a novel that keep Elizabeth and Darcy in character, has interesting plot lines, and does not overdo the relationship of the two. This novel, however, is nothing but fanfiction of the worst kind.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Where were the editor & fact checker? April 8, 2010

By M. Lesser

Format:Paperback

This is a perfectly dreadful novel. The author, in attempting to imitate Miss Auten's beautiful prose, has created a monstrosity of the worst kind. She exhibits a lack of knowledge of the rules of grammar (who vs. whom), a lack of a good copy of Roget's thesaurus and a lack of familiarity with the nuances of Regency society. I'm as much a fan of a titilating sex scene as the next woman, but her descriptions of the Darcys' bedroom intimacy are no better than run-of-the-mill soft core porn, of thr type found in Harliquin romance novels, are much too long and much too frequent. If Miss Austen were alive today she would be mortified by this hideous sequel.