I rarely get far with Austen fanfic, but with this book I saw the appeal. Though slow-paced, it was an easy read, more like watching a fairly respectful movie version of Austen than reading one of her novels. So you get a little kissing, even Darcy in a soaked shirt, but nothing too out there. (Which I, for one, appreciate.)The fancy of this book is that Elizabeth's father died just before Darcy was about to propose to her, and so he never did. The family is now in uncomfortable straits and Jane has married a shopkeeper, making Elizabeth even farther out of Darcy's sphere -- yet he still can't seem to forget her. The story includes a theory which has been suggested before, that Mr. Darcy has Aspergers Syndrome, strengthening the case by casting his cousin Anne De Bourgh as someone with more classic autism symptoms. (This isn't particularly supported by the original text, but isn't strongly contradicted, either.) That was rather interesting, and I was sorry it was just a minor thread that wasn't developed very far.Reynolds does a decent job of writing a witty Elizabeth and a lovesick Mr. Darcy, but she doesn't have Austen's gift for fascinating characterizations, and the many extraneous threads involving new characters were dull. But if you're a fan of the Austen movies and have a yen to see some more of the characters, you might enjoy this.
