Jane Austen + Shakespeare? Yes, please! Riana Everly gives a delightful twist to Pride and Prejudice with her combination of quotes and themes from the comic play “Much Ado About Nothing”. Her story starts off in the typical way with Darcy’s insults at the Meryton Assembly, but quickly veers in a new direction when one small change to the canon—Jane breaking her ankle rather than taking ill—sets up the stage for an extended house party at Netherfield. Darcy and Lizzy’s bickering is getting on everyone’s nerves, so their friends team up to trick them into thinking that they like each other. It works! The bickering stops. But when the trick is revealed, will Darcy and Lizzy decide they love each other for real, or will they part ways for good?
I thoroughly enjoyed this twist on the canon plot. Riana’s choice to center all the action at Netherfield made it possible for her to accelerate the timeline and bring Colonel Fitzwilliam in as a major player in the story. We also see alternate endings for several of the side characters, which may please fans who were dissatisfied with Austen’s original outcomes for them.
“Some Cupid kills with arrows, some with traps.” If you love Regency-era comedy variations, check out Much Ado in Meryton, and see what all the ado is about!
It sounds like a very interesting book! Thanks for sharing :) I have added it to my TBR list on Goodreads.