Body and Soul: A Pride and Prejudice Variation

Timeless Love: Darcy and Lizzy Variations

De: MJ Stratton

Narrado por: Harry Frost

She's in her mother's body. He's in her father's body.

Elizabeth Bennet's tolerance for her mother's poor behavior has reached its peak. When Mrs. Bennet enumerates the benefits of her second daughter marrying Mr. Collins, Elizabeth confronts her, declaring a disinclination for the match and pleading with her mother to show sense. Unsurprisingly, Mrs. Bennet does not comply, and the pair go their separate ways for the rest of the evening. Resolved to face the matter on the morrow, Elizabeth is shocked to awaken in the mistress's chambers—trapped in her mother's body!

Darcy returned to Netherfield Park with his friend Charles Bingley, hoping his presence will prevent the gentleman from making any rash decisions regarding his latest angel. Instead, his attention is once again seized by Elizabeth Bennet, the entirely unsuitable miss with fine eyes and pert opinions. Finally resolved to pursue the lady, he is dismayed to awaken in her father's body, and to learn the lady he had courted for the past few weeks was not herself.

The two couples must resolve their differences in hopes of restoring their souls to their respective bodies. As time passes, worry the situation will never be rectified presses each party to repair all that is broken.

In this Darcy and Elizabeth low angst Pride and Prejudice variation, two couples must overcome their past misunderstandings whilst in search of their happily ever after. All MJ Stratton's books are clean Pride and Prejudice variations.

©2025 MJ Stratton (P)2025 MJ Stratton

More than just a swap.

Harry Frost gives not just his usual outstanding performance, but extra kudos for managing to keep the characters straight at any given time. It shows to his talent and dedication to his craft. Well done!

I’m always surprised when I expect a variation to go in a certain direction—and it doesn’t. When I read that Elizabeth wakes up in her mother’s body, I braced myself for a romp or a farce. But that’s not what this story turned out to be at all. The setup may sound light, and there are those moments, but the author takes it in a much more thoughtful direction—one focused on self-awareness, accountability, and quiet emotional shifts.

Elizabeth receives a shock when she wakes up in her mother’s bed and discovers her body is no longer her own. Through Mrs Bennet’s eyes, she begins to see how the biting and sarcastic wit she’s inherited from her father has affected her mother—and how much it has shaped the way she judges others. In turn, Mrs Bennet wakes in Elizabeth’s body, and begins to understand how others truly see her—and how her behaviour has not only harmed her daughters’ reputations, but altered her own standing in the eyes of her family and community—and especially that of her husband’s. Later in the book, Mr Bennet and Mr Darcy experience the same kind of dislocation, and that turn allows Mr Bennet, in particular, to finally recognise the harm caused to his wife and daughters by years of detachment and mockery.

If you’ve read MJ Stratton before, you’ll know she has a real heart for redemption stories, where people learn from their mistakes and try to make things right. That’s very much the case here, and it’s one of the things I enjoy about her writing. With each new book, I’ve also noticed how her style continues to grow more confident and distinctive.

This variation stood out to me for its sincerity and how it gave secondary characters especially, a real chance to change. If you enjoy JAFF stories that lean into growth and reflection, while not losing sight of a light and sweet romance, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this book.

Recommend.

Clean and sweet.