Mr. Darcy's Great Escape by Marsha Altman

W.O.W.!!!!!!!!!!
Mr. Darcy's Great Escape was uh-may-zing.
The storyline was unique. I don't think Austen's characters would have followed this route, but Altman's characters just took a life of their own!

I was totally blind-sided when Darcy and Dr. Maddox realized what their trip to Romania actually was. I felt badly for both of them, as well as their wives!

It was hard seeing my beloved Mr. Darcy go through so much in both The Plight of the Darcy Brothers and Mr. Darcy's Great Escape, but I think with all of the suspense of wondering if the characters I've grown to love would survive this novel kept me turning the pages long after my bed-time.

I was sad when the book ended. I wanted the story to keep going, but I just don't think Mr. Darcy could make it through another story. A part of me was hoping for a 4th in this series, but Altman gave such a good ending for every character that I can't imagine anything else happening that would make a good story.
One thing about this series I didn't like was that the Bingley's weren't really a part of the story that much. Bingley and Jane were just kind of background characters left behind the real stories. I would have liked to see them play a more significant role in the stories.

Read this series. Even if you're not a huge Austen nerd like myself, this is an entertaining and great series.

click here to purchase the first novel of the series.

The Plight of the Darcy Brothers by Marsha Altman

The second of Marsha Altman's Darcy and Bingley series. I liked this one better than the first one. I had no idea what to expect, but I read this in one night because I just couldn't put it down. Darcy and Elizabeth's trip to the Continent and everything going on with their families; there was so much going on, but it was all linked together through their relationships.

Plight was a real page turner (obviously, if I read it in one go!) There were so many twists and turns, and I had NO IDEA what was going to happen next. I get so tired of novels that are so predictable. Altman kept me on my toes and entertained, which is exactly what I expect of my reading material.

It's hard to explain why I loved this book so much without posting spoilers...just read this book. Even if you didn't like the first of the series that much, you may like this one a lot better. There is just so much action and excitement! You won't get bored reading this book.

The Darcys and The Bingleys by Marsha Altman

Just reading the book description I cringed at the words "Kama Sutra" I had a difficult time mixing that with Jane Austen's characters. I just couldn't see Mr. Darcy actually owning that book, let alone giving it to Mr. Bingley. I felt like I was reading with one eye open hoping and praying that it wasn't going to turn into a trashy romance novel. I despise trashy romance novels.

The book could have easily done without the kama sutra, Altman's characters and storyline would have been able to hold itself up without it. I wasn't a fan of the first half of the book, but the second half really brought me in. The introduction of new characters and a lot of mystery and adventure kept me from putting the book down. I grew to love Altman's vision of what happened after Pride & Prejudice ended.

All in all, this was a fun read and probably one of the more entertaining Pride & Prejudice sequels out there. There were some definite laugh-out-loud moments, and I felt as though Altman was keeping us readers on our toes.

I would recommend this to any open-minded Austen fans.

-Jenna