Mr. Darcy's Christmas Mishap

A Pride and Prejudice Variation Romance

De: Rachelle Ayala

Narrado por: Virtual Voice

What if Bingley and Darcy had stayed at Netherfield that first Christmas?

Elizabeth Bennet’s Christmas plans are simple: help Jane secure Mr. Bingley’s affections and avoid her mother’s matchmaking schemes. She certainly doesn’t plan on Mr. Darcy watching her every move with those intense, unreadable eyes.

Just as she glimpses the man beneath the scowl, charming Edward Hardinge arrives from Liverpool. He brings exotic tales, dazzling geodes, and polished compliments. Darcy brings… brooding silence and occasional sarcasm.

Perfect.

Desperate to spend time with Elizabeth, Darcy arranges a sleigh expedition to gather Christmas greenery. What could go wrong? Everything, thanks to Caroline Bingley’s meddling. The resulting disaster strands half the party in a snowdrift, forces Elizabeth into ill-fitting riding clothes, and reveals exactly who keeps their composure in a crisis.

Hint: It’s not Caroline.

Between fiery parlor games, mistletoe mishaps, and midnight library confessions, Elizabeth discovers first impressions can be dangerously misleading. Edward’s charming attention hides surprising motives. And Darcy? Those flushed ears and fumbled words might mean something far different than disapproval.

As the Christmas Eve ball approaches, Darcy must decide if his pride is worth sacrificing for love. Meanwhile, Elizabeth confronts an uncomfortable truth: the man who infuriates her most is the only one who truly sees her heart.

Who knew a merry little mishap could become the greatest blessing of all?

Features: Holiday setting • Jealous Darcy • Rival suitor • Winter mishaps • Parlor games • Family fun • Christmas ball • Witty banter • Period-perfect romance • HEA guaranteed

53,000 words, clean romance

Entertaining

This is a sweet, low angst, Pride and Prejudice variation with a HEA ending for both Elizabeth and Jane. It was kind of fun to watch Mr. Darcy have to learn quickly how to deal with jealousy since someone else seemed to be seeking E's affections as well. And I didn't mind skipping confrontations with Collins, Lady C and Wickham.
I've had a run of P&P variations that have had a lousy Mr. Bennet so I was relieved to have a wiser Mr. Bennet this time around. He still smirks instead of disciplines his wife and daughters but he showed wisdom when addressing Mr. Darcy about Lizzy.
The audio version I listened to had virtual voice narration which is never the ideal but the female voice was as good as virtual voice gets. The male was not as good. It was quite monotone. But I enjoyed the story well enough to overlook the subpar narration.

Love triangle

This is sure to become a favorite. The gradual fall from denial into love is very much like Jane Austin. The 2nd love interest adds a nice contrast to Darcy. The token is also very romantic. A must read.

Stop using AI Narration

The story was cute, but using AI for narration is terrible. At best it sounds monotonous. At worst, it misses the correct emphasis on words based on context. Pay actual humans to do the job that only humans can understand how to do. AI ruins the audible experience.