Speechless

A snowbound with Mr. Darcy Pride & Prejudice Variation

By: Jessie Lewis

Narrated by: William Matthews

Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

Could anything be worse than to be trapped in a confined space with the woman you love?

Fitzwilliam Darcy knows his duty, and it does not involve succumbing to his fascination for a dark-eyed beauty from an unheard of family in Hertfordshire. He has run away from her once already. Yet fate has a wicked sense of humour and deals him a blow that not only throws him back into her path but quite literally puts him at Elizabeth Bennet’s mercy. Stranded with her at a remote inn and seriously hampered by injury, Darcy very quickly loses the battle to conquer his feelings, but can he win the war to make himself better understood without the ability to speak?

Thus begins an intense journey to love and understanding that is at times harrowing, sometimes hilarious and at all times heart-warming.

©2019 Jessie Lewis (P)2020 Jessie Lewis

Really drew me in from the first sentence

Excellent. The early description of Mr. Darcy's injuries had me hooked. I could not imagine what had happened to him. I hung in there with Mr. Darcy the entire time he was trying to recover. The story is all from his point of view and I thought it was great. Elizabeth was snarky most of the time and I wanted to slap her, but she redeemed herself.

Nice story

Nice story. Ended abruptly. Would have liked to hear an epilogue or more of a wrap up.

Wonderful storytelling

Author Jessie Lewis is a masterful storyteller as is narrator William Matthews. Enjoyable. Lovely voice.

best variation

This is one of my favorite P&P variations. It is so well written and performed!

Gripping Beginning

Audiobook, second listen. (I forgot to add a review the first time.)
Narration by William Matthews is very good. There is a richness and depth to his voice that I love, and his huskier voice for Darcy while he was healing at the end of the story was very appropriate.

Oh my, the beginning pages of this book had me holding my breath. The descriptive narrative of what Darcy is experiencing after an accident captured me from the opening lines. The story, while not directly a first-person account, is primarily told from Darcy’s perspective—struggling to communicate after having lost his voice. Communicate—to Elizabeth of all people! He must suffer through both physical and emotional pain and suffering, not to mention the mortification of Elizabeth helping him take care of his personal needs. They eventually work through the issues that caused misunderstandings of their past. A very well written book, with excellent dialogue that is not actually “spoken” by Darcy for most of the story. Highly recommend.

One of my absolute favorites

I'm writing this review after my second listen to this wonderful Pride and Prejudice variation, and it was just as good the second time around. Be prepared to wring your hands and suffer along with Darcy, while wishing Lizzy could see just a tiny part of who he is inside!

The story is told from Darcy's point of view as he wakes in a strange room in utter torment. To his surprise, Lizzy is there with him and taking care of his every need. Slowly the truths come out as our couple learns to communicate with each other, and maybe finally understand each other as well.

I thought the author did an excellent job describing what Darcy went through physically and mentally, but without drawing it out unnecessarily. Every time I thought it was almost too much pain for him, something sweet happened to make up for it. It was the perfect amount of angst. With Lizzy and Darcy literally stuck in the same room together, they got plenty of screen time together, and I loved every moment of it.

The narration was well done, and pulled me right in to the story. I will be re-listening again and again!

Great read

I have read it as a book and listened to it. Great narrator. Great Jaff

A Must Listen

Interesting and fast moving variation, with a talented narrator. I enjoyed how Darcy and Elizabeth had to work especially hard to communicate and that each had to face their own failings and misconceptions.

Great story

I love this story. It's extremely original, yet faithful to Jane Austen's characters. The story deviates from canon right after Bingley & Darcy escape to London. Darcy decides to return to Hertfordshire and happens upon a carriage accident. What follows becomes the basis of the tale.

The narrator is not overly expressive or strong in differentiating voices, but does a great job clearly reading the story. If you go into this expecting a pleasant reading of a unique take on Pride & Prejudice, you will not be disappointed.

I enjoyed it quite a bit in Kindle format

The story is told entirely from Darcy's POV, although there is a scene from Elizabeth's POV on the author's website. This version is in the winter following The abandonment of Netherfield, but before Rosings. Darcy hasn't been humbled, and Elizabeth believes Wickham. For the first few chapters, Darcy is mostly busy trying not to die. For more than 90% of the book, his injuries render him completely unable to talk. they communicate through a combination of writing and lip reading.

There aren't many other principal characters until the last quarter of the book. Mrs. Gardiner is less confident than usually written, and that's too bad, The Fitzwilliams are not at their best. In the end, half the group come to like her, and they get their HEA.

But.

The narrator is not a strong one. While his reading is not monotonous, it isn't particularly engaging. He's not able to craft very different voices, especially among the women. His reading is occasionally halting, especially while doing dialogue--and most of this book is dialogue.

I can recommend the book, but not the audiobook. in my case, I rallied myself to continue because I already knew how it would end, and I wanted to hear that.