Long and Short Reviews

Pemberley Remembered by Mary Simonsen
TRC Castle Garden Publishing
Historical Romance
Full length, Sweet
Review by Rose

While visiting Montclair, an 18th Century Georgian country house located in the Peak District of Derbyshire, England, Maggie Joyce, a 22-year-old American living in post-war London, is told that the former residents of the mansion, William Lacey and Elizabeth Garrison, were the inspiration for the characters of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet in Jane Austen’s masterpiece, Pride & Prejudice, and that Montclair is the novel’s Pemberley.

During her visit to the nearby Village of Crofton, Maggie meets Beth and Jack Crowell, both of whom have ties to the Lacey family and Montclair, and who know if the legends associated with the house and Fitzwilliam Darcy are true. While exploring the truth behind the romance of Darcy and Elizabeth, Maggie is drawn into the love story of the Crowells, who married in the midst of the horrors of World War I, as well as her own love story with Rob McAllister, an American who flew on bombing missions over Germany during World War II, and who has returned to England for his own deeply personal reasons.

♥ ♥ ♥

For anyone who is a lover of Jane Austen’s works, and in particular Pride and Prejudice, Pemberley Remembered is a must read. Ms. Simonsen, in her debut novel, has captured not only the essence of Austen’s work, but has brought a rare talent for weaving historical tales together and making the reader feel as if she is right there. There were times during my reading of this story I would find myself forgetting that the characters of P&P, as well as the characters in this book, are fictional.

This is not a simple love story, but is, instead, three love stories woven together seamlessly. Maggie is attempting to work out her relationship with Rob and where, if anywhere, it is going. You have the story of William Lacey and Elizabeth Garrison, told in their letters and diaries which Maggie studies, trying to discover the truth of the legend. And, you have the romance of the Crowells themselves and the mystery of how they know so much about the legend.

Ms. Simonsen gives a character list at the beginning of her book but, in this reviewer’s opinion, it would pay the reader good stead to read back over Pride and Prejudice before starting Pemberley Remembered, or at the very least to watch one of the many fine movies that have recently been made of P&P, in order to keep the characters straight in your head.

The research and detail that has gone into Pemberley Remembered is evident and the intertwining of the three love stories is masterfully done. I throroughly enjoyed this outing. It is truly a book that is well worth reading more than once, if only because there is so much richness in the book, you can’t grasp it all in one sitting. It is truly something to be savored. For that reason, I give this novel five books.

A gently used copy of this book is being given away this week in our Blog Review contest. To enter, just fill in the comment form below between 7/21/08 & 7/25/08, and you will be included in the drawing to be held on 7/26/08. Good Luck!!

Comments:

Date: Sat, Jul 26, 2008 at 12:52 PM

Your Name: Mary Simonsen
Your Comment: I am the author of Pemberley Remembered, and I want to thank you for the very flattering review. I did spend a lot of time researching the book, but the histories of Regency England and World Wars I and II have always been of interest to me. If a reader wants a brief summary of Pride & Prejudice, they can go to my website, www.pemberleyremembered.com, and there is a tab entitled \"P&P Summary.\" Thanks again. Mary Simonsen

Date: Sat, Jul 26, 2008 at 11:40 PM

Your Name: Sally K. Wolstromer
Your Comment: Maggie Joyce, a young woman from Pennsylvania, USA, finds romance and love while researching the characters from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Set in post WWII England Maggie meets the family that the Pride and Prejudice story was supposedly based on. A beautifully written story Ms. Simonsen intertwines three separate time periods and keeps your interest in all of them. Well done!