Caroline Bingley

A Continuation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice

De: Jennifer Becton

Narrado por: Anne Day-Jones

When Charles Bingley and Mr. Darcy made proposals of marriage to the Bennet sisters at the end of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Caroline Bingley was both distressed by her brother's choice of bride and humiliated by Mr. Darcy's rejection of her. And she made her objections known.

Now banished from her brother's household, Caroline must return to her mother's home in the north of England until she can make amends with both Bennet sisters. Desperate though Caroline may be to return to polite company, she absolutely refuses to apologize to Miss Elizabeth Bennet, and instead, she seeks an alternative route back into society in the form of Mr. William Charlton, heir to a barony.

Through her connections with Mr. Charlton's sister Lavinia, Caroline begins to infiltrate the household in the hopes of securing the gentleman and his title for herself. However, she must also contend with her vexing emotions regarding Mr. Patrick Rushton, a once-wealthy landowner, and the meddlesome opinions of Mrs. Rosemary Pickersgill, the companion sent by her brother.

When all that Caroline has ever dreamed of attaining - an ancient family name, a title, and a home of her own - is finally within her reach, will she grasp for it even if it means disregarding the workings of her own heart? Or will she cast off the trappings of society and give herself to true love?

©2011 Jennifer Becton (P)2013 Jennifer Becton

Good story, could have been executed better.

I really liked the idea for the story. I’ve often felt like many of Jane Austen’s more minor characters could have interesting back stories. I wish the author had delved a little bit more into how Caroline became such a byatch. Her brother and parents are so nice and not snobby. So what happened to her? (And Mrs. Hurst, her sister, for that matter.) That could be an interesting story on its own. Caroline Bingley had to deal with the same lack of power that Jane Austins heroines had to deal with. She just had a different value system.

The love story wasn’t super-convincing. I needed there to be more scenes showing that the two were falling in love. I quite disliked the gentleman in question for much of the first half of the novel. I feel like the love-hate relationship could have been portrayed more skillfully.

I definitely found that I was on Caroline’s side. It actually wasn’t a difficult transition to make from P&P where she is such a villain. She is portrayed as sort of a Scarlett O’Hara-esque character. She is a strong woman who has goals and will stop at nothing to achieve them. The romance even reminded me a bit of Scarlet O’Hara and Rhett Butler, albeit not fully fleshed out.

So, all in all, it was an enjoyable read. But, I feel like the characterization in certain plot elements were weak. The narration was good too.

don't like her

I feel Miss Austin did her books justice I. a way that a continuing story is not needed especially for this character, Caroline was rude, stuck up and not worth writing about this book just shows that the character is the same they did not change her at all

Enjoyable, Exceptionally true to the original

I appreciate the author's decision not to overly include the Darcy's in her tale about Miss Bingley. I was very impressed with her efforts to keep the character's natures true to the original story. I always felt that there was a side to Miss Bingley that had to be more like her brother because of her warning to Elizabeth concerning Mr. Wickham. So I always felt there had to be a redeemable quality to Miss Bingley. I am so glad Jennifer Becton chose to explore this notion. I did think the ending felt a tad rushed, and I also think Caroline could have come to an understanding of love a tiny bit sooner than the very end of the book. But it was wiser for the author to err on the side that she did than to totally transform the characters motivations. An exceptional rendition and sequel to the master, Jane Austen. I believe she would have liked it herself.

Charming and Delightful

I enjoyed the humanization of Caroline Bingley so much that I listened to the entire book twice in a one week period. Caroline is petty, striving, and so utterly clueless when it comes to the subtleties of human interaction that I found myself laughing out loud. The story remains firmly within the Austen universe of P&P without making the reader suffer through the utter tediousness of Darcy/Elizabeth perfection. The original supporting characters are believable as are their motivations within the confines of Austin's strict societal mores.

In short, the story was refreshing and enjoyable. Additionally, the narrator's use of regional accents made me appreciate her performance as well.

Give Caroline a chance. Even shrill harpies deserve love.

Depressing

Caroline is a miserable unpleasant person for 98% of the story. It is very difficult to listen to a story in which the main character has no redeeming qualities. The narrator didn’t help. She just made me hate Caroline even more, but maybe that was the point.