First thoughts: ‘Dreaming of Mr.Darcy’ by Victoria Connelly was a cute page
turner. I loved it. This book is centered more on ‘Persuasion’ despite the title and has references to ‘Emma’
and of course, ‘Pride and Prejudice’. I had a look into life in dreamy seaside
towns which are definitely a wonder as seen through this book.
Review: Events in her life and at work lead Kay Ashton to
quit her job and move to Lyme Regis when she comes into some money so she can
pursue her passion in peace. Her passion – bringing Jane Austen characters to
life on paper with her illustrations – especially dreamy Mr.Darcy. But peace is
nowhere to be found – since, no sooner than she settles into the B&B she buys at Lyme, she has the cast of Persuasion in her aptly named B&B, Wentworth House. She falls for the leading man,
Oli, playing Captain Wentworth, while Adam Craig, the quiet screen-writer and
producer of the movie falls for her.
A comedy of errors is what most of the
book is as Kay tries to play an ‘Emma’ to Adam and Gemma (the leading lady of
Persuasion who is the most unlikely actress you will see). Twists – the expected,
the unknown, and always sweet – keep the reader engrossed in the book until the
end.
All the characters in the book are delightful and the author
makes sure you do not get lost in any storyline as she weaves stories around
the central characters and the others. One of my favorite supporting characters
in this book – Nana Craig(see 1 below). Her description of Lyme Regis and surrounding
places has now made me add this to my ‘to-visit’ places list. Kay’s habit of
day-dreaming herself into the most fantastic scenarios always made me smile(see
2 below).
makes sure you do not get lost in any storyline as she weaves stories around
the central characters and the others. One of my favorite supporting characters
in this book – Nana Craig(see 1 below). Her description of Lyme Regis and surrounding
places has now made me add this to my ‘to-visit’ places list. Kay’s habit of
day-dreaming herself into the most fantastic scenarios always made me smile(see
2 below).
1.“‘She’s a bit hard
of hearing,’ he said, ‘except if you’re gossiping with somebody in the room
next door, and then she hears everything.’” (pg 99 of the digital ARC)
of hearing,’ he said, ‘except if you’re gossiping with somebody in the room
next door, and then she hears everything.’” (pg 99 of the digital ARC)
2.“She might end up best friends with Gemma
Reilly and Sophie Kerr! They’d invite her to red carpet premieres and Kay would
get a swishy new haircut and become a media darling. ‘Confidante to the stars,’
they’d call her. ‘Former B and B owner, Kay Ashton, is now a star in her own
right, with her bestselling book, The Illustrated Darcy.’” (pg 50 of the
digital ARC)
Reilly and Sophie Kerr! They’d invite her to red carpet premieres and Kay would
get a swishy new haircut and become a media darling. ‘Confidante to the stars,’
they’d call her. ‘Former B and B owner, Kay Ashton, is now a star in her own
right, with her bestselling book, The Illustrated Darcy.’” (pg 50 of the
digital ARC)
Side note: If someone does come out with an ‘Illustrated
Mr.Darcy’ or similar book, I will definitely be getting that book as well!
Mr.Darcy’ or similar book, I will definitely be getting that book as well!
Rating: B+ (loved it and will be picking more of Victoria Connelly’s books to read)
Disclaimer:Thank you to Sourcebooks for sending me a digital review copy via NetGalley. I was not compensated for my review. My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist. They are my personal opinions formed when I read this book.
Disclaimer:Thank you to Sourcebooks for sending me a digital review copy via NetGalley. I was not compensated for my review. My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist. They are my personal opinions formed when I read this book.
Wednesday Memes:
Kathy over at Bermudaonion’s Weblog hosts Wondrous Words Wednesday.
If you come across a word (or two) while reading that is new to
you and would like to share your new knowledge, then hop over to
Kathy’s place and link up!
If you come across a word (or two) while reading that is new to
you and would like to share your new knowledge, then hop over to
Kathy’s place and link up!
This week, I again rushed over to the dictionary for difficult words for inspiration and to use for WWW as well as ABC Wednesday where the letter is Z.
So linking up to both WWW and ABC Wednesday here, I present the letter – Z!
Zwitterion : n. ion charged both positively and negatively. Amino acids are the best-known examples of zwitterions
Zeugma n. literary device of using word to modify two other words with only one of which it is correctly used. zeugmatic, a. One example of this: “You held your breath and the door for me” Check wikipedia for more wonderful examples.
Zither: n. musical instrument of strings stretched over a horizontal sounding board and plucked with a plectrum.
Zoanthropy:n. delusion of a person who believes himself changed into an animal.
Zometherapy:n. medical treatment by raw meat or meat juice. zomotherapeutic, a. (ewww!)
Zither: n. musical instrument of strings stretched over a horizontal sounding board and plucked with a plectrum.
Zoanthropy:n. delusion of a person who believes himself changed into an animal.
Zometherapy:n. medical treatment by raw meat or meat juice. zomotherapeutic, a. (ewww!)
Zyzzyva is a tropical American weevil often found
in association with palms. It is a snouted beetle. “Zyzzyva” is the
last word in many English-language dictionaries.
 |
| Image from wikipedia |
The yellowish weevil is no longer than an ant. It was first discovered in
1922 in Brazil,
and named by a Irishman Thomas Lincoln Casey, Jr. An entomologist
at New York’s Museum of Natural History thought that, because there was not a
Latin name or Brazilian name associated with this weevil, it was probably named
Zyzzyva as a practical joke to place it in a prominent ending position in many
guides and manuals
1922 in Brazil,
and named by a Irishman Thomas Lincoln Casey, Jr. An entomologist
at New York’s Museum of Natural History thought that, because there was not a
Latin name or Brazilian name associated with this weevil, it was probably named
Zyzzyva as a practical joke to place it in a prominent ending position in many
guides and manuals
And last, but not the least:
“I am a zizzer zazzer zuzz as you can plainly see.“
-Dr.Seuss
aren't we ALL a bit animalistic?!
ROG, ABC Wednesday team
I love to read too. I am now your follower.
Zing is it for me. Hope you can visit and see. Have a nice day!
Very nice choice for Z, nice presentation too.
Zodiac is one of my entries. Come see it when you get a chance. Thanks!
I am your new follower.
Oh, I want to be a zwitterion!
HelenMac
ABC Team
Dreaming of Mr. Darcy sounds cute! Thanks for your review. I've been wondering about it.
Thank you for the review. I love books featuring Lyme Regis as it's a regular holiday place for my son and family – fossil-hunting etc. and then there's the Jane Austen connection. I will be looking out for this novel as it sounds like a fun read.
Have a good week!
Some fantastic and quite gruesome words this week (words that start with 'Z' tend to be quite harsh sounding, I think)
'Zither' is the only one of your selection that I know of.
'Zwitterion' would be my favourite word.
'Zometherapy' sounds like it would be my worst nightmare!
Thanks for sharing and glad that you enjoyed the book.
Yvonne
I knew zither, but that's it. Dreaming of Mr. Darcy sounds cute!
I'm glad to know there's actually a term for the zeugma. I've noticed it, but didn't know it had a name.
JNCL
The Beauty of Eclecticism
Ah, very clever and funnish!
Your reviews are really nice! hope you write many more 🙂
I knew zither, but not plectrum! Fun words!
Great z words. All were new for me.
a great post to finish off the round: http://jobryantnz.wordpress.com/2012/01/15/z-is-for-zinke/
Thank you for the comments, the compliments, the visits and the follows! I am loving the dictionary of difficult words – lots of great words there for me.. And memes/challenges are perfect for me to keep doing what I love – writing/reading! I promise to respond individually from next week!