Read Online The Lady Jewels A Pride and Prejudice Variation The Sweet Regency Romance Series Book 14 edition by Perpetua Langley Literature Fiction eBooks

Product details File Size 811 KB Print Length 241 pages Publication Date March 16, 2019 Sold by  Digital Services LLC Language English ASIN B07PR82PNJ

The Lady Jewels A Pride and Prejudice Variation The Sweet Regency Romance Series Book 14 edition by Perpetua Langley Literature Fiction eBooks Reviews

• I first read this book in Unlimited but liked it so much, I bought a copy for my library.
  
  Interesting and novel plot. Love it that one of the Almack ladies was Darcy's neighbor. And I love Ms. Langley's humor that pops up throughout the book as well.
  
  A very enjoyable read, and I highly recommend it.
• The story is not only a nice P&P variation, it is also a comedic romp much in the genre of The Trouble of being Earnest. The characters speak and think not in normal statements but exaggerated words and sentences that are very sincere in a humorous way.
  
  Darcy is not quite as super intelligent as normally portrayed. He is still proud, a man of honor, a man who can be trusted and a man who is not VERY stubborn, just the right amount of stubborn.
  
  Lizzy is not super Lizzy. She is just clever Lizzy. Her temper is not hair trigger and volcanic. She has the proper temper of a country heroine.
  
  There many eccentric characters. Some are the P&P characters and some are new characters.
  
  I really enjoyed the story. I recommend it highly and will put in my read again stack of books.
• “The Lady’s Jewels” is an engrossing mystery from an author who always tells an amusing story.
  
  Jane and Elizabeth (unlike canon P&P, she is an experienced equestrian) discover an abandoned carriage during a morning ride. No carriage horses, no carriage driver, no outriders, no footmen. But wait, the carriage is not completely abandoned! An older lady is present, accompanied by two Mastiffs. Shockingly, the lady is the well-known Lady Castlereagh, one of the patronesses of Almacks. Even more shocking Lady Castlereagh’s jewel box is missing along with the horses, driver and footmen.
  
  Jane rides for help while Elizabeth renders first aid. The Lady is transported to Longbourn and the local Doctor is summoned. Lady Castlereagh’s injuries prevent her ability to travel temporarily, so she must remain with the Bennet family. She writes to Darcy and Bingley (who are unknown to the Bennets) requesting their presence along with a former Bow Street runner, Mr. Quinn. All the parties will live at Longbourn while the gentlemen find the Lady’s Jewels.
  
  I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond. ~ Mae West
  
  Our story is filled with unique characters from Lady Castlereagh to her Mastiffs to a curmudgeonly doctor to a verbose stableboy. Darcy and Bingley defer to Quinn as the prime sleuth but Elizabeth is often the one with a breakthrough idea.
  
  The reader has more clues to the mystery than the characters and the villain is easily suspected. The story is clean, with more than the usual two HEAs; well-written, well-edited and proofread. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys JAFF.
  
  No gold-digging for me; I take diamonds! We may be off the gold standard someday. ~ Mae West
• I have enjoyed many of Ms Langley’s other works, and regret I couldn’t like this one, too. The most glaring problem is that there’s nothing desirable about Darcy. He’s not evil; he’s just uninspiring. It’s hard to pin a love story on dull; in this instance, Elizabeth and Darcy feel like they’re in parallel lines in the same plot.
  
  Said plot was a bit strained, logistically. How three people manage to survive for weeks in unamiable circumstances makes no sense. Solving a mystery by getting started on it...after breakfast tomorrow...does nothing to add a sense of urgency to the plot.
  
  Second, the story itself went on far too long. Either it should have been cut by a third, or the Lydia subplot should have been fully developed. Lady Catherine and Caroline had their own, totally unneeded subplot.
  
  Basically, there was not enough story, yet too much at the same time.
  
  I did like the waistcoats, though.
• This story was great fun to read. The characters felt very alive and distinctive, and the plot contained a good mystery. All the usual bad folks are there, but fortunately only in small doses, just to move the story along. The eccentric Lady Castlereagh was masterfully done and the mastiffs, along with Mr. Quinn's embroidered waistcoats added more fun to the story. I just loved the way the story wrapped up, and that Charlotte had a HEA that was truly happy.
  
  I also appreciated that the story is well-edited, as so many JAFF stories are appalling in that regard.
  
  My one point of confusion is that this is labeled as #14 in the Sweet Regency Romance series, but there is Lady Catherine Decamps that is also labeled as #14 in the series.
  
  I definitely recommend reading this story!
• In this mystery/romance Elizabeth Bennet is actually the star detective. Bingley and Darcy seem to be more along for the ride and to provide protection and/or housing which others cannot do due to limited finances. Lady Castlereagh brings those 2 gentlemen and a Bow Street detective, Horatio Quinn, (whose services she has used successfully on previous occasion) to Meryton after the 2 elder Bennet sisters discover her unconscious in her abandoned carriage while on a ride up Oakham Mount. (In this story, Elizabeth not only rides but also rides a very fine spirited steed.)
  
  Clues are few and those they uncover or put together are sometimes misleading. Charlotte is recruited as a scribe during meetings in the "war room" Quinn has set up. He insists on interviewing everyone who has appeared on the scene both before and after the lady was found as her jewels and her manservants are missing. Some of those "witnesses" are also unaccounted for. Georgiana shows up in Meryton and with her friendship to Elizabeth growing her history is shared with that new friend. That history seems to have nothing to do with the "case" but...
  
  This was an enjoyable page-turner. Some facts I was able to guess ahead of their disclosure in the story but that did not make the telling any less attractive. I recommend this tale to all JAFF lovers.
  
  Lydia's role is unbelievable/laughable/outrageous. No author has painted this fate for the youngest Bennet sister previously.