First off, I have to tell you that Abigail Reynolds is one of my favorite continuation/alternate P&P writers. She’s actually really great at bringing characters to life and there is no problem with her being able to “show” rather than “tell.” This book is no exception. The trials of Cassie and Calder are realistic and well executed. There are some minor grammatical errors, but they’re not serious enough to impede your enjoyment of the story. The one and only thing I really don’t like about this book is the section with the heavy P&P references. It’s unnecessary and out-of-place, especially because Reynolds uses Elizabeth and Darcy as the “fictional” characters. Without giving too much away, that section feels like a forced attempt to make the novel fit into the P&P fanfic world, and in my opinion, it fails. The story is great on its own and Reynolds is clearly capable of writing an original and engaging romance novel. It’s a bit of a cheat to try to use P&P as a means to expand on her readership.
