Without Reserve: A Pride & Prejudice Variation

I highly recommend this story! I am a fan of Ms Reynold's works and this is one of my favorites. Her story explores a new avenue in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. I feel she does an excellent job in showing us the struggle our beloved couple has to go through. You can feel their dispair and their happiness. Thank you Abigail, for bringing to us this wonderful tale. It is one that I plan to read again and again.

I am a huge fan of all of Abigail's 'variations' on the original Pride & Prejudice, but also have to agree with another reviewer here. Here is a story that works beautifully whether you know/understand/love P & P or not. (Actually, I would say that of all Abigail's works, with hindsight). This is a lovely 'what if' - I love the sheer romance of it all, that Darcy loves Elizabeth so much that he pursues her, then leaves her in peace because he believes she has made a choice that she is happy about, and wants what is best for her; then he finds his purpose again in such a wonderful way... the second part of the book, with his renewed determination to win her to his point of view is just so rewarding, romantic and superbly written that you almost don't want the story to end! Another great read, I highly recommend it.

Of all the published P & P variations published by Abigail Reynolds, this is one of my favorite! It's fast pace (like the original P & P), and there's quite a bit of character development for both Darcy and Elizabeth. The Darcy portrayed in this book seems more consistent with that in the original Austen novel, in that he showed fierce determination and single-mindedness to be with Elizabeth, even when she was betrothed to another. When he learned that she had ended that engagement, he became even more determined to win her and to marry her, despite her concerns about what marriage to her would do to him on a social level. Darcy stuck to her like velcro to comfort her and to assuage her of the disgrace she felt by breaking her engagement to another. These sections were a bit hard to read but I did find them credible given the norm of the period ... Darcy devised a series of plans to "persuade" Elizabeth to marry him: put her in a compromising situation, seduce her outright, or involve her family in encouraging her to marry him. I personally found this part of the book to be very interesting and asked myself if Jane Austen's Darcy would do that. Indeed, the Darcy we know was quite clever although stubborn. One always had the feeling that underneath that cool arrogant facade was a man of great passion. Equally interesting to read were the parts when Darcy questioned his own intentions and admonished himself for being selfish...The passion he felt for Elizabeth and the continuous admonition he gave to himself because of his efforts to seduce Elizabeth gives the reader something to consider in the context of "love, allure/sex, marriage..." In the end, the determined Darcy gets the girl! Hurray!

Without Reserve is a beautiful story full of glorious angst and emotion. This is one of my favorite Abigail Reynold's Pemberley Variations, exploring the roads not taken in Pride and Prejudice. Here Darcy is faced with Elizabeth's engagement to a childhood acquaintence, a very likeable Mr. Covington. As with all her stories, her characters are honest, believable and even LOL amusing... for instance, when Darcy volunteered himself as "chaperone" for Elizabeth and her other suitor! And I swear my heart skipped a beat when Darcy first kissed Elizabeth, before escaping to Europe. "Their eyes met again for a long moment, and she looked away at first. He moved towards the door, then stopped again just at the edge of the vestibule. 'Before I go, though, Miss Bennet, I must beg your forgiveness.' 'My forgiveness? For what?' she asked. 'For this," he said. Before she realized what he intended, he leaned towards her and kissed her, a brief, tender touch of his lips to hers." This is a book I delight in re-reading anytime--anywhere. One doesn't have to have read Pride and Prejudice to follow this story. Most enthusiastically recommended!

Taken as just a romantic tale, Without Reserve is a very satisfying read. But, readers of Pride and Prejudice will find this to be a very original and satisfying variation. The idea of Darcy faced with another suitor for Elizabeth's hand makes an excellent story, and provides a look at some of the social customs of the time. It also provides some heart-wrenching moments as well as some beautifully romantic scenes. The interactions between the main characters, Darcy and Elizabeth are beautifully evocative. The use of Blake's poetry serves to complement the story and helps to frame the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth. I love this story - I've read it over and over again. It keeps your interest throughout, and should appeal to a wide range of readers.