Darcy and Fitzwilliam: A Tale of a Gentleman and an Officer
Karen Wasylowski, 2011
Sourcebooks
481 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781402245947
Summary
Darcy and Fitzwilliam is the continuing story of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam from Jane Austen’s wonderful novel Pride and Prejudice.
The two men are cousins, best friends and fierce competitors although their personalities are polar opposites. Where Darcy is a powerful landowner, wealthy, handsome, reserved, haughty, and meticulous, his older cousin Richard Fitzwilliam is an Army Colonel, a second son with no personal funds, affable, vivacious and a bit careless in his appearance.
Both men find their ultimate paths in life overlapping as they become entangled with the women they love, elopements, a small child, and the indomitable Lady Catherine de Bourgh. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
Karen V. Wasylowski is a retired accountant living in Bradenton, Florida, (USA) with her husband, Richard, and several pets. They spend their free time in volunteer work with the St. Vincent DePaul Society which provides assistance to the poor and Project Light of Manatee, an organization that provides free literacy instruction to immigrants and anyone below the poverty level. Darcy and Fitzwilliam is Karen Wasylowski’s first novel. (From the publisher.)
Book Reviews
Married life is bliss. At least that is what Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam’s cousin Fitzwilliam Darcy would have him believe. But Richard has no intention of stepping into the parson’s mousetrap until he encounters America widow Amanda Penrod at one of London’s innumerous balls. Instantly smitten, Richard suddenly finds himself behaving as foolishly as Mr. Darcy did when he was courting Elizabeth Bennet. While Richard is busy struggling to navigate the unfamiliar seas of romance with Amanda, an unexpected storm in the person of Caroline Bingley threatens to stir up the formerly placid matrimonial waters of the Darcy household. While staying true to the spirit of the immortal Jane, Wasylowski does bring some subtle changes of her own into Pride and Prejudice (including giving one of literature’s great harridans, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, a kinder, gentler personality), and her deftly written tale of family, friendship, and marriage should please most Regency readers.
Booklist
Pride and Prejudice has given contemporary writers of historical fiction an endless source of ideas. Many of these novels of possibilities are very good and honor the original classic, while others are wastebasket material. Karen V. Wasylowski has turned out one of the former, a charming and believable rendering that offers the reader a look at the men in Pride and Prejudice. Fitzwilliam Darcy, true to the Austen image, is prideful and arrogant, yet exceedingly charming, a handsome gentleman. His cousin Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam, two years older, is described in the novel as barrel-chested, slightly rougher looking in an unkempt uniform, a decorated officer....
More than not you will chuckle and giggle reading the tete-a-tete that takes place among the characters. Elizabeth has a contemporary tongue for a 19th-century wife and during many tempestuous tiffs, boldly stands up to Darcy. Fitzwilliam and Darcy are a comic pair as well, always trying to outmaneuver the other. The cagey Aunt Catherine is embraceable as she shows clever wisdom in her astute handling of all situations. Austen would no doubt welcome Darcy and Fitzwilliam, an amusing and witty interpretation.
Historical Novel Reviews
This story is amazing. It’s not just a glimpse into the idle lives of the extremely rich and entitled, and certainly not a flippant narrative of a life unbridled by the constraints of the middle class.... This is a visceral tale that positively drips with social commentary, tackling problems that few Austenesque writers would attempt to undertake....
There is little else anyone can say to you, clever reader, except this: Read this book. A cutesy romance of love and lace it is not. Darcy and Fitzwilliam is a gripping interpretation of life in Regency England, bravely attempting to bring issues of tension to the table. Domestic violence, alcoholism, harsh words, sex, royalism, and loathsome small-mindedness abound, and all through the vision of Jane Austen’s characters.
Jessica Hastings - A Historical Romance Book Review
Discussion Questions
1. What is a "bromance”?
2. Were the Jane Austen characters from Pride and Prejudice appearing in Darcy and Fitzwilliam—Fitzwilliam Darcy, Elizabeth Bennet, Jane Bennet, Charles Bingley, Caroline Bingley, Mr. Bennet, Colonel Fitzwilliam, Anne de Bourgh and Lady Catherine de Bourgh—true to their original interpretations? Describe the characters. Which character was most similar? Which character was most changed from the original?
3. Colonel Fitzwilliam appears in only a few pages of Pride of Prejudice, yet he was very important to the plot He was the independent verification Jane Austen needed to convince the reader that Darcy was a good man, a good friend, and that his actions toward Wickham were noble; that, in truth, Wickham was a scoundrel with dishonorable intentions toward Lizzy. What were the Colonel’s feelings for Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice, and her feelings toward him? How did they change in Darcy and Fitzwilliam?
4. What of the new characters introduced? Amanda Penrod, Harry Penrod, Dr. Anthony Milagros? Describe the characters. Were they true to Jane Austen’s type of characterization?
5. What were some of the social issues involving women of Regency England discussed in Darcy and Fitzwilliam? Women’s rights? Medical care? The attitude of the aristocracy toward marriage? The morals of the Regent’s court?
6. Colonel Fitzwilliam was haunted by the war, and the atrocities that he had seen. Is that similar to what soldiers experience now? What are the common symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disease?
7. What other major themes did the author explore?
8. Were you gripped immediately by the book or did it grow gradually on you?
9. Were the dialogues between the men, Darcy and his cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam, believable? Were they enjoyable?
10. Were you offended by the sometimes coarse language between the men, or did you find that to be expected when two friends sit in private to discuss?
11. Were you offended by the sexual references and scenes? There were some very angry Janeites over the sexual aspect of Darcy and Elizabeth, as well as the introduction of a gay character into a Jane Austen sequel. Were you offended by the gay character?
12. Were you offended that Darcy and his Elizabeth had disagreements, fights, and an outright brawl, during her pregnancy?
13. Did you empathize with Amanda’s fear of losing her child, with Richard’s anger over her desire to return to her mother-in-law’s home?
14. Was the ending satisfying? Believable?
15. Most importantly—did you laugh?
(Questions kindly provided by the author.)