Title & Author: Disenchanted by Kara Pleasants
First lines of first chapter: Hertfordshire was not known for its magic. At least, not the kind of magic that was considered modern, effective, or quality.
My thoughts: There have been numerous retellings of Pride and Prejudice, some better than others. In this one, Mr. Darcy is a talented wizard; Elizabeth, who is thought to have no magic, can secretly break enchantments; and there is a dangerous Necromancer Thief roaming the countryside stealing other people's magic. All the other characters from Austen's novel are also there. I laughed when Caroline Bingley's enchanted tea accidentally ended up cursing Jane. I also liked how in this one, Mr. Bennet is more astute and present and plays a larger role, having once been a talented wizard himself. And there's a very fun twist at the end with Mrs. Bennet that totally made me smile.
There were a few things that didn't work as well. I felt the whole Wickham storyline was completely unnecessary to Pleasants' plot. And I'm already very familiar with all of Austen's famous lines; I really don't need to have them repeated yet again here. In fact, I wish Pleasant had worried more about developing her own version of these well-known characters, and telling her own story, rather than trying so hard to adhere to Austen's original plot. Because I liked all the magic, and the idea of a secret Wizarding court with fun code names for each member, and how Darcy's magic needed Elizabeth's in order to catch the Necromancer. I wanted more of that!
So while I loved the idea of this one, it ended up being just a 3-star read for me. Not awful, but not wonderful either. Though parts of it are very fun. And I'm not sorry I read it.
Happy Reading!
Sometimes the idea is better than the product, but at least you don't regret the time reading it. :)
ReplyDeleteNo, there was enough about it that I liked to make up for where it lacked. It just could've been a lot better, you know?
DeleteI read several Pride and Prejudice pastiches a few years ago. I was really interested to see how writers took the idea and ran with it. Some of them were quite good. I think I would give this one a pass, however.
ReplyDeleteSome Pride & Prejudice retellings have been quite fun and entertaining. I even read one with dragons once that I quite liked. :)
DeleteIt does sound like a good premise. Too bad it wasn't better.
ReplyDeleteThe first half read slow because the author was trying to stick to close to the original story; the second half of the book was better.
DeleteI love reading books with twists on classics. Sometimes they're brilliant, other times they just don't work. But it's always fun to see how somebody else reimagines a beloved tale. :)
ReplyDeleteIt is fun to see different versions of a book. I especially love Beauty & the Beast retellings. And this P&P retelling has some good points. I didn't hate it. I just couldn't give it higher than 3 stars.
DeleteBeautiful cover.
ReplyDeleteIt is, isn't it? :)
DeleteThe Cover is beautiful! Sorry it didn't quite hit the mark for you.
ReplyDeleteThanks. It wasn't necessarily a bad read, it just could have been so much better. But the cover really is beautiful. :)
DeleteIt's a shame isn't it? I always get a little bored with too close a retelling, despite the 'twist' of magic or whatever. I suppose I don't like to know what's going to happen before it happens.
ReplyDeleteExactly! The author would have done much better if she'd worried less about sticking to the script and just wrote the characters her way and told her story. Because when she did that in this book, it really worked.
DeleteBummer this one wasn't better. It sounds like it has a super cute setup.
ReplyDeleteIt does...and it has some cute parts in it. I really liked about half of the book. The other half...not so much.
DeleteIt so happens that I've been reading some Jane Austen fanfiction recently. (Someone recommended fanfiction on Archive of Our Own for getting over reading slumps, and it really works!) And lo, here I find you talking some more about Mr. Darcy! :) One retelling that you might like is Unequal Affections by Lara S. Ormiston, see if you want to give that a try.
ReplyDeleteI will! Thanks for the recommendation. :D
DeleteSorry to hear you didn't like it more.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to like it more, but it just wasn't as good as I hoped.
DeleteI love that beginning! This sounds fun.
ReplyDeleteIt had some fun moments in it. :)
DeleteIt does sound like fun and maybe as if they author was trying to be too faithful to the original which lead to the weakness of Wickham storyline being included. A good reworking I think has the confidence to drop what doesn't work for their own "new" version or to amalgamate characters, etc.
ReplyDeleteYou're right. When Pleasant did concentrate on her own storyline it worked much better. She really didn't need Wickham in this one at all.
DeleteSorry to hear this was just an okay read for you. It sounds like the author probably should have just left Wickham out altogether.
ReplyDeleteI think so. Her own story line was enough.
DeleteGranted this wasn't the best read, but I am so intrigued -- this is the first magic retelling of P&P I've seen!
ReplyDeleteThe magic part was very fun. I read another P&P spinoff called Dangerous Magic by Monica Fairview that was also fun. In that one Elizabeth ends up in an arranged marriage with Darcy because of their magic. :)
DeleteThere's definitely a lot of retellings of P&P, but this one sounds refreshing given the magical element. :)
ReplyDeleteI did like the magic in it!
DeleteThere are so many re-tellings of Austen's works aren't there? I'm not too big on them but obviously if it's one that's really recommended then I'll check it out. Bummer this one wasn't quite as good as you expected.
ReplyDeleteI've read a few retellings, and some I've liked and some have been pretty ho-hum. This one lands right in the middle.
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