Customer Reviews

The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I thought I would provide the back-cover blurb and a little more detail than the description above.

A thoroughly modern adaptation of Jane Austen's classic novel Pride and Prejudice, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy re-paints our favorite characters in twenty-first century colors.

Judge Fitzwilliam Darcy has had enough. A transplanted Englishman roped into being a San Francisco judge at a young age, Will Darcy is ready to hang up his black robe and return to the life of a country gentleman until he meets Elizabeth Bennet, a fresh-faced attorney with a hectic schedule and no time for the sexy judge. She's just trying to survive her first year as a trial lawyer.

Played out in Judge Darcy's courtroom, tempers and sparks fly as the two battle wits and chemistry, and the inevitable occurs: judge meets attorney, judge snubs attorney, judge falls for attorney.

When the two are unexpectedly thrown together, passions flare. But when the ethical considerations forbid their romance, can Will convince Elizabeth that their love is worth fighting for?

A sexy, bold, and oftentimes hilarious story with a fresh and vibrant cast of characters, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy will pull you in from the first page and won't let go until the last!

Many modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice fall short because the author tries to "rewrite" the story but forgets to develop the characters. I found some of the "connections" to P&P to be a bit of a stretch (i.e., Meryton is a suburb of San Francisco and this F. Darcy is the great, great, great, great, great grandson of the character we Austen fans all love), but the characterization between Darcy and Elizabeth is still there, just like in the original. They are very passionate, a characteristic I always assumed the original couple had, even though Regency England required them to be hidden passions. I could do without the use of the "F" word, but it would not keep me from rereading this book.
Darcy is everything a woman could want - tall, handsome, rich, and sensitive. Elizabeth is an independent woman. I, especially, loved the scene after the bachelor auction when she slapped the wholly crap out of him in the parking lot. You go girl!!!!
Anyway, I would recommend this to anyone who loves P&P as I do.

... and the most swoonable Darcy as well (and if swoonable doesn't YET exist in the dictionaries, I'll plead my non-English speaking... :-) )

But I have to say that Sara Angelini managed to show us what we all suspected and Miss Austen didn't dare to (but mentioned it all the same!) by the time she wrote the wonderful story of Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet: the strong attraction which subsisted between the two of them from the beginning! Yes, she did speak of - or rather made Darcy speak of - those utmost forces of passion...
Yes, we do sense them in this modern narration of the most beloved novel (Pride & Prejudice).
Wonderful story, one of those you would keep on your bed stand for repeated bed time reading...

I loved this book instantly. It was amazingly well written and captured me from the first page. I virtually read the whole thing in one day and have already begun rereading. It was interesting to see the connections to the real Pride and Prejudice as well as entertaining to read about Darcy and Elizabeth in present day terms. The love scenes were either tender or "hot" which I loved because it shows the range and depth of their feelings for each other. This book is well worth the money!

I've read this book over and over and I don't get tired of it. From the story to the dialogue...I highly recommend it!

This book faithfully employs the Regency technique of snappy dialogue but does less so when it comes to chaste interactions between romantic leads. If the idea of Elizabeth, Darcy and white hot monkey love appeals to you, this book friggin' rocks. If not, holy crapcakes, please walk away.
This and "Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife" has profoundly derailed my plans to revisit the western canon this summer. I laughed out loud; the author has a great ear for dialogue, descriptive language and, oh yeah, realistic sex scenes. OMG: a romantic scene that acknowledges the clitoris. Thank you. Ms. Angelini (if that is your real name): Do. Not. Stop. Writing.
LOVED this book.

I loved this modern day depiction of Pride and Prejudice, loosely speaking. I was fine with the characters not adhering faithfully to P&P, since it is such as different era. It was really fun to read about Darcy and Elizabeth, who were well developed characters. The author did an excellent job of depicting the depth of their feeling for each other, the challenges they both had in admitting their love, and developing the relationship. The book was edgy, hot, romantic, and moving. I enjoyed the Northern California setting, too! Thanks for the endearing story and funny scenes.

Wow, excessive use of the f-bomb, and I'm personally not shy about the word. The sex starts on page 102 (foreplay, a bit earlier), and then rest of the book is either graphically described sex or Elizabeth being really immature. Anyone looking for an Austen fix isn't looking for either of those things. When I saw "a modern P&P" on the cover, I expected some character growth along the lines of the original. There is none of that here - Elizabeth just needs to differentiate between professional Darcy and personal Darcy and that's pretty much all you've got for the characters coming to know themselves. There's no Wickham to drive the plot along in the various very important ways he does in the original. Truthfully, I don't see how this book has anything to do with P&P other than naming all the characters the same name. But did I mention there was a lot of graphically described sex? Frankly, that's not plot, and it's just boring, I had to start skimming. All of that being said, there are worse Austen fan fiction books out there, so I can't quite give it one star.

The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini is loosely based upon Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. Fitzwilliam Darcy is the youngest judge appointed to the bench of San Francisco and Meryton is not a town in England, but a town outside of San Francisco, California. Elizabeth Bennet is an attorney with Gardiner & Associates, and the lead attorney is not her uncle Mr. Gardiner, but her boss. California has laws about fraternization between judges and attorneys who work on the same cases, and when sparks fly between Elizabeth and Will, it becomes a sticky situation.

Angelini has a brash style all her own in this modern take on these famous characters, but readers could find the explicit sex scenes and sometimes crass language tough to take if they are looking for the same Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam. However, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy exhibits the dynamics of modern relationships well, from the frenzied first glimpses of attraction to the obsessive first moments together and more.

Elizabeth and Darcy spar well in the courtroom before they realize their attraction, but attorneys, clients, and readers will cringe at the biting remarks they make to one another in the courtroom following a break from the realities of California.

Readers will enjoy this retelling, though they should expect differences in the characters' personalities from Elizabeth's greater outspoken nature and stubbornness to Lou Hurst, Elizabeth's gay friend and confidante. Jane is in the novel with Bingley--both work at the hospital in Meryton--but their love story is more of a sideline and is derailed less by Darcy and more by Jane's need to defend her sister against Bingley's sister, Caroline.

Overall, The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy by Sara Angelini could have been its own stand-alone chicklit novel without the references to Pride & Prejudice, but the modern spin Angelini gives to the characters and the plot makes the novel a quick, fun read. A great way to spend a lazy afternoon.

Knowing I was to be stuck at home without much in the way of entertainment, I ordered a slew of published Pride & Prejudice (my favorite) fan fiction. I've been entertained by all, with some standing out and others forgotten as soon as I closed the cover. Here are my thoughts on "Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy," by Sara Angelini.

This one made me laugh. I really enjoyed this fast paced modern romp. Okay, it didn't completely keep to the true Pride & Prejudice storyline, but the author was smart enough to make it a modern where the constraints of Regency life just don't apply and could have a bit more freedom with her characters. I wanted Elizabeth and Darcy to get together a little faster, but that was it as far as negatives for me.

I do wonder at the ability of an English lawyer ending up as a judge in American higher court. Oother than that found this story memorable and enjoyable with cute and funny situations. I was surprised to find the French usage in this story accurate. For a self-published tome, this was well done and researched (though I still wonder at the Englishman as an American judge.)