Remembrance of the Past [Paperback]

Lory Lilian (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2, 2009

In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennet unexpectedly met Mr. Darcy while visiting Pemberley. In this 'what if' story, Elizabeth Bennet and her relatives - Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner - are in London, ready to start their tour to the Lakes in June. During this time, Elizabeth's path crosses with Mr. Darcy's again. However, Mr. Darcy is not alone in London: besides his close family - Georgiana and Colonel Fitzwilliam - an old and dear friend has returned and claimed a well-deserved place in their lives. This is a story about hopes and desires, about losses and fears, about second chances and happiness.

Product Details

• Paperback: 456 pages
• Publisher: Meryton Press (September 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1936009021
• ISBN-13: 978-1936009022
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #730,246 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An ingenious treat for anyone who loves romance, September 22, 2009

By 

Elisavet KATSIKA (Thessaloniki, Greece) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Remembrance of the Past (Paperback)

There are many reasons to recommend this 'what-if' story where our beloved "Pride and Prejudice" characters follow a little different path, but as equally interesting as in the original novel.

Mrs. Lilian really 'knows' her characters and provides amazing insights into their thoughts and especially their feelings. Those of us who have fallen in love with Mr. Darcy, either by reading the original book or by watching ANY of the adaptations on TV will not be disappointed by the way he is pictured here. We're more likely to fall even harder for him, as we watch him first as a desolate man, then as a decided betrothed and then as a tender, passionate and all-masculine lover.

As for Elizabeth Bennet, at last the independent intelligent woman finds a romantic heroine she can identify with! Elizabeth is strong as she is tender. She does not sit back and waits for the hero to sweep her off her feet (although she gives him opportunities to save her), she speaks her mind and she is Darcy's equal in everything.

The scenes between the two main characters are terrific, but there is also a new character who will charm everyone. Lady Cassandra arrives and affects everyone's lives as she brings with her the "remembrance of the past" - Darcy's past, as well as her own. And that remembrance will lead them all to the quest of true love, of healing, of forgiveness, of revenge (yes, because there are some pretty awful villains other than Wickham here)so that in the end they will be able to embrace Elizabeth Bennet's philosophy and "remember only what makes them happy".

"Pride and Prejudice" is my all-time favourite book and I can honestly say that this story does it credit. Respect to the original characters, imagination, intelligence, drama, a bit of agony, romance, intelligence and passion.

Really, what more can a reader ask?

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars First Half Wonderful & Last Half Not So Good, November 15, 2009

By 

Steven J. Zawacki (Charlottesville, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Remembrance of the Past (Paperback)

About half-way through "Remembrance of the Past" I was convinced I was reading a 6-star (out of 5) Pride & Prejudice variation - the best of the pack - but the author's missteps in the second half cured me of that opinion.

The novel picks up the story two months after Darcy's disastrous proposal at Hunsford. He has completed much of his Austen-intended character arc and, along with Fitzwilliam and Georgiana, stumbles across Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner in Hyde Park. Elizabeth is visiting her aunt in London prior to them leaving for their tour of the Lake District, which, if I'm not mistaken, is a mismatch of boundary conditions with the original novel. But who cares? Given this change, the story and characters we love follow the path not taken, but this time with a wonderful new character in the mix, Lady Cassandra, an old friend of Darcy's called back from the continent by Georgiana to debug Darcy's post-Hunsford funk, after she has thrown her hands up in defeat.

The Good: Lady Cassandra is one of the best things about this novel, and Jane herself would have approved of the character. More than once I thought to myself that Darcy should throw Elizabeth over for Cassandra. You can think of Cassandra as a 25 year-old looker, a sort of Elizabeth on steroids, or perhaps a "nice" Lady Catharine. She's strong-willed, speaks her mind and (for example) is not afraid to grab Wickham by the gonads when the going gets tough. Good for her! Several times she saves Darcy's or Elizabeth's bacon.

The Bad: The sex started about half-way through, and surprisingly it's not between Darcy and Elizabeth, but that's not what I'm complaining about. The author has her characters talking about sex, which in itself is unlikely in Regency England, but what really got to me was her euphemism for sex, which went something like, "They did ... you know." It was cute the first couple of times but after it was repeated over, and over, and over ad nauseam, it became grating to the nerves. I really expect a professional writer to come up with a few alternatives, like maybe "sex" or "making love" or "interlude" or, well, you get the picture. This is a small thing, but it gets to you after awhile. However, the biggies, in my opinion, are that the author doesn't carry through with her villain (and surprise - it's not Wickham) to the extent necessary, nor does she "show" (rather than "tell") crucial scenes. The biggest of those was a duel fought by Darcy with the villain. How is it possible a scene like that is not presented in the novel? For shame!

So, 6-stars got reduced to 4. And at that I was generous.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I loved it !, October 10, 2009

By 

KMioara (EU) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remembrance of the Past (Paperback)

There are many things I loved about this story : the love stories, the mistery, the wonderful "mix" of well known, classic plot line, "classic" characters with new plots and development, new characters with strenght and impact, the vivid writing style, the witty dialogs, the passionate, tasteful description of passionate scenes,( not too much, not too litle ), the author's talent and her deep understanding of Pride and Prejudice's characters ... and I could go on like this for quite some time....

In short, I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read more about Pride and Prejudice characters; it is surely one of the best variations and a wonderful romance novel.