Outside A Dog

I wasn’t sure what to expect before I started An Assembly Such as This: A Novel of Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman by Pamela Aidan. I’m not typically a fan of fanfiction, but Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite-ever novels, this one was highly rated on both LibraryThing and Barnes and Noble, and, well, B&N was having a buy-2-get-1-free sale, so into my little virtual shopping cart it went. I’m such a sucker, aren’t I?

In a nutshell, Aidan tells Mr. Darcy’s version of the events of Pride and Prejudice. This first books starts with the arrival of the Bingleys and Mr. Darcy at Meryton and leaves off about two weeks after the ball held at Netherfield, after Darcy and Bingley have returned to London just before Christmas.

I started the book a bit skeptical, but Assembly is well-written, and Aidan does a fine job of recreating Jane Austen’s style. Seeing [reading?] the events play out through Darcy’s eyes felt a little like a behind-the-scenes glimpse at a favorite movie. Darcy’s interactions with Elizabeth were certainly my favorite parts to read, though there are times when the prose gets a little too romance-y for my taste. One passage in particular mentions Darcy being aware of the blood roaring through his veins, and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.

Overall, though, I enjoyed this one, and I’ll probably finish out the series [there are two further books] eventually. While likable, the first book isn’t enough to compel me to rush out and snag the second, Duty and Desire. I did, however, begin to re-read Pride and Prejudice as a result — you know, just to fact-check Aidan, or something.

edit / update: Well, in the time since finishing Assembly, I’ve found myself thinking about it and wondering what happens next, so I think I’ll be bumping Duty and Desire to a spot a little higher on the to-read list.