Pemberley By The Sea: A Modern Love Story, Pride And Prejudice Style (2008) - Plot & Excerpts
This is a modern day retelling of Pride & Prejudice. Cassie is a marine biologist with a past and Calder is part of a rich political family with secrets. Cassie makes for a great Lizzie Bennet with a quick wit and a teasing nature aware of her own independence and not reliant on a man to make her happy. Calder isn't a bad Darcy either, he plays the aloof member of high society quite well. The storyline was a bit...jumpy, with the last third of the book seeming almost like an entirely different story. If that last section hadn't been in the novel I might've given it 4 stars. Certain characters seemed to disappear for a while there as well without even a mention, Erin (Jane Bennet) and Scott (Bingley) vanished without any conclusion to their part of the story until they were briefly mentioned but still without any conclusion.I enjoyed this book as a contemporary romance, great for a summer read. I think even if you weren't familiar with the Pride & Prejudice story this is still entertaining if contemporary romance is your thing. I haven't read any of the authors other P&P retellings but I think I might give them a read here soon. I can honestly say that this is one of the first real adult romances that I have ever read. It was a bit more vivid than the ones that I typically read. It took a little getting used to, but I've got a pretty good handle of it now. I was never one to be partial to one-night stands. I liked the general story. Marine Biology meets Pride and Prejudice sounds like my exact cup of tea. Certain things just threw me off. Now don't get me wrong, I am a TOTAL romantic,...but after a while I just wasn't feeling it. At first I was cheering for Calder and Cassie, but eventually the spell broke and I was left wondering when I fell off the bandwagon. I still wanted them to be together, I just didn't feel how it ended up that way. Some things were really working for me, and now I'm trying to find out where in the heck I made a wrong turn and figure out where I need to be in order to get back onto the highway.I loved reading Calder's rewriting of Pride and Prejudice!!! I can honestly say that I teared up at the same time Cassie was. How can you not absolutely love that?!?! My heart was melting into slop, right there. THAT is the reason this book gets a 4 (its not the only reason, but it IS one of the main ones).I liked the characters overall. Cassie had so many different aspects to her and Calder was just one big surprise after another. It was a perfect onion! (peeling back the layers at a pace that is easy enough to enjoy the flavor, but not ever reaching the point of tearing up with stinging pain)Erin changed a lot over the course of the book, which is very good. I am a fond believer that supporting characters should learn and develop just as much as the main characters do.I really enjoyed reading the descriptions of Woods Hole. I enjoyed the beauty and simplicity of it all. Although it also had its many layers. I believe I can name that as the key technique in this novel: Layering. The layering was absolutely sublime.Overall, this book wasn't absolutely amazing, and probably should have received a 3. Or maybe a 3.64, to be precisely fair. But given some of the writing style, development and that wonderful rewritten part, I just had to bump it up. Don't come expecting too much, this book is just a quick little chick-lit morsel. =)
What do You think about Pemberley By The Sea: A Modern Love Story, Pride And Prejudice Style (2008)?
Eh, a little too predictable for me. I stopped reading about halfway through.
—tyty
This was a charming book and I was drawn in to it immediately.
—Kryssie
Molto carina questa rilettura di Pride&Prejudice!
—Nicholai
Kind of cute but dragged on for too much.
—Batman703480
