To Conquer Mr. Darcy

By: Abigail Reynolds

Narrated by: Elizabeth Klett

Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

What if...

Instead of disappearing from Elizabeth Bennet's life after she refused his offer of marriage, Mr. Darcy had stayed and tried to change her mind?

What if...

Lizzy, as she gets to know Darcy, finds him undeniably attractive and her impulses win out over her sense of propriety?

What if...

Madly in love and mutually on fire, their passion anticipates their wedding?

In To Conquer Mr. Darcy, instead of avoiding Elizabeth after his ill-fated marriage proposal, Mr. Darcy follows her back to Hertfordshire to prove to her he is a changed man and worthy of her love. And little by little, Elizabeth begins to find the man she thought she despised, irresistible....

©2002, 2008, 2010 Abigail Reynolds (P)2012 Abigail Reynolds

Critic reviews

"Shows a different side of Darcy, a bold side unafraid of going after what he wants." ( Hollywood Today)

"Sure to appeal to fans of lusty historical romance." ( Library Journal)

Good follow on, but not original

Is not Jane Austin quality but a decent imagination of post marriage aspects of the Darcy’s lives

In vain I have struggled to find a plot

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

the book was of the genre I am hooked on at this time but I kept waiting for something to "happen" and it seldom did.

Wonderfully senual!

I love Jane Austen and now Abigail Reynolds. This variation gave me a steamy look at Mr Darcy and left me wanting more. I'm hooked A. Reynolds now on to the next and the next variations. Please try your hand at Sense and Sensibility.

One of my all time favourites

What did you love best about To Conquer Mr. Darcy?

This was one of the first Romance books I read. I was obsessed with Pride and Prejudice in High School.
I love the "what if" idea. That Darcy goes back to Hartfordshire and tries to convince Elizabeth to marry him,
They become engaged before she takes her trip to Pemberley.
And Elizabeth becomes part of the plan to make Wickam marry Lydia.

What was one of the most memorable moments of To Conquer Mr. Darcy?

I really loved the the courtship scenes, and when Darcy tells Elizabeth, that even though they are not yet married by the church, he feels she is his wife. So sweet.

What about Elizabeth Klett’s performance did you like?

I really loved her interpretation

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Not so extreme, I just really enjoyed it.

Any additional comments?

It's really worth the credit.

Ummm, not Jane believable.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

No. It was a good idea to try and imagine what happens after P & P, but the language and the situations presented here are slightly unbelievable.

Has To Conquer Mr. Darcy turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, just other books by this author

Have you listened to any of Elizabeth Klett’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, the narrators voice is well suited to my tastes.

Did To Conquer Mr. Darcy inspire you to do anything?

to avoid any more by this novelist

Harlequin romance meets Jane Austen

This book takes the beloved Jane Austen story and adds a clichéd and sometimes nauseatingly formulaic "romantic" backstory to Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy's courtship and marriage. If you believe that relationships should be all about loving murmurings and simple physical expressions of that love, you will love this. If you believe, like I do, that human relations are somewhat more complicated, don't bother with this trite story

Should have the MA rating

The story was tedious, mostly because Elizabeth is infuriating. I had to continuously remind myself that she is only 20.
This rendition gave me 1810s smash uncontrollably into 1980s type of vibes.
I would have preferred to know that the "romantic" scenes were quite graphic and extended.

The narrator proves that just because someone has a pleasant English accent it does not signify that they will be great story tellers. I would recommend she practice raising and lowering her tonations as well as different voices for both female and male characters. This would make it easier to figure out exactly who was speaking. Her speed of speech was pleasant. I hope she practices to hone her craft as I forsee with some guidance, she could become one of the more enjoyable.

Overall, This story dragged a bit, was often infuriating, and would have been more enjoyable if I had time to prepare for the adult situations so blatantly shoved in my ears.

Great audio book

Love both Reynolds and Klett. Klett voices a very good Darcy and her intonations are soothing and inspiring. I adore Reynolds' characters and their inner voices. Loved this Darcy. Ardently.

P&P Variation - Overstepping Just "A Bit"

Where does To Conquer Mr. Darcy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Having read this book many times in hard copy, I already knew I loved the story. The narrator, Elizabeth Klett, did a very good job and made it an enjoyable listen.

What other book might you compare To Conquer Mr. Darcy to and why?

I read quite a few P&P variations, and have read all of Abigail Reynolds books. It's not possible to compare it to another book other than other P&P variations, and Abigail's books rank right up there with others of the best of the genre.

What does Elizabeth Klett bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Since I have read the book many times before listening to the audiobook, there could only have been a down side to her performance. I was happy that she did a good job and did not make the book more difficult to finish. Many times I have stopped listening to audiobooks because the narrator is terrible. Ms. Klett is quite good. I liked her performance better than the lady who did the other Abigail Reynolds book at audiobooks.

If you could take any character from To Conquer Mr. Darcy out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Mr. Darcy, of course, because he is Mr. Darcy and you can't get much better than that.

Any additional comments?

Abigail takes Darcy and Elizabeth's romance quite a bit further than the acceptable courtship niceties of the Regency Age; and this probably bothers many purists, but for those of us who like to believe Darcy and Lizzy as real people would have many of the same physical and emotional desires as any normal, redblooded, 20 somethings, anticipating their wedding vows can be accepted with a bit of a wink. I did feel, however, feel that Lizzy's actions before officially becoming "engaged" was a bit too much for our dear heroine. She had too much sense to let herself be carried away to that extent before she had a formal engagement. But then, it's Darcy, so who could resist?

I am not opposed to Lizzy and Darcy having normal sexual urges, but Lizzy accepting it so readily BEFORE they were officially engaged, and so many times, was just a tad stretching it for me.

Mature JAFF

Darcy, with a little goading from Richard, refuses to give up on winning Lizzy’s heart. He contacts Bingley to correct his error there and they both go to Netherfield to try to secure their Lady Loves.

Lizzy, being the stubborn, headstrong girl we know and love, fights him initially but slowly sees another, more attractive, side of Darcy. Then the fight is with herself as his innocent touches turn a little more alluring, just as she is struggling with herself not to love and desire him.

So, aside from that very steamy side bar, the story follows fairly close to the original.

The writing is great, the narrator has a great voice, but she seems to be learning how to distinguish male from female characters as they are occasionally difficult to tell apart.