Reviews

Elizabeth of East Hampton by Emily Harding, Audrey Bellezza

isobel33's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

readundancies's review against another edition

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lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Let it be said that I have read a not insignificant number of Pride and Prejudice variations, retellings, etc. 

I feel that allots to me some level of qualification to discuss this novel. 

There were a lot of character renditions that I wholeheartedly approved of (see: Mary, Kitty, Lydia). In the same vein, there were also characters that I felt could have had a little bit more work done (see: Mrs. Bennet, Jane, Charlie).

The first half of the novel was definitely the weaker half. It was hard to get my head to grasp how little of Mr. Bennet we were presented with which meant I never really understood him as a character. And I didn't exactly know where Mrs. Bennet lay in the land of the Bennet family outside of her role as a mother because in the original Pride and Prejudice, her mothering instincts were very pronounced, and they were not so in this novel. Mr. Bennet on the other hand was barely in the novel and considering that Elizabeth is supposed to be his favourite, it just didn’t really make a lot of sense to me because we never really were privy to their connection.

The conflict between Will and Lizzie in the first half was weak. Considering the second half was so much stronger than the beginning, it’s a bit of a disappointment that the hostility between them on Lizzie‘s part was not really rooted in very much at all. I think the modernization of the plot was done fairly well but again, there were weaker aspects in the backstory regarding Tristan, who was clearly supposed to be Mr. Wickham but he didn’t really fit the role that well outside of the obvious. I was a little upset at how Georgina was kind of not a thing, but in the same vein Mary’s plot twist in which she takes the role of Lydia albeit inadvertently worked really well for me.

I love how Lydia was portrayed as an influencer, I loved how Kitty was her own person and had so much initiative, which is not something that’s typically attributed to her character, and I loved how Mary’s sermonizing and preaching manifested in the form of environmentalism as opposed to religion. I wish Mrs. Bennet’s endeavours in MLM‘s was a bit more substantial than what was presented to us as readers and I wish Mr. Bennet was a fully-fledged character because clearly he has regrets, but we don’t really ever get to touch upon them in the way that is seemingly touched upon in the original. 

My biggest gripe, however, is Jane and how lacklustre and under developed her character was. She supposed to be a really important driving force in the novel for a lot of Lizzie‘s actions and her lack of depth made her seem like way more of a side character than she should be and also didn’t really justify a lot of the turmoil that ensued because we never really get to know very much about her as a character. 

I thought the renditions of Lizzie and Darcy were fine. I just found they were missing a lot of the emotional depth that I have attributed to the characters and that the original managed to to portray in a way that really connects you to them. I never really felt connected to this Lizzie and Darcy, which is a shame because that’s kind of a vital important part of a Pride and Prejudice variation. I think at the end of the day, I liked more of the changes that were made to characters that are not always portrayed with a lot of faith, but because the story is meant to be about Lizzy and Darcy and we get both of their perspectives, I was a little disappointed to not be able to connect to them in the way that I normally would.

fhicks's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

emilynsopp's review against another edition

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3.0

A fun, fast read.

eddykate's review against another edition

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4.0

I am furious………….at how much I enjoyed this

mmmoureau's review against another edition

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4.0

Thank you NetGalley, Gallery Books and Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am hesitant to admit that I’m not very familiar with the Pride & Predigest story so I was unsure about reading this but I really enjoyed this retelling.

I like this story but wish there was a bit more interaction between Lizzy and Will. It felt like there was some tension but lots of “dislike” and then all of a sudden not and some long distance lusting and then love.

There were a lot of side characters and stories but I was able to keep them straight throughout the book. Some were less necessary than others.

The cameo of Emma and George was cute and will push me to read their book soon.

__meg's review against another edition

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lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

brin3543's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

3.25

This is a modern day retelling of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice that is done well. I think I was hoping for more of a twist or deviation from the original storyline because this felt unnecessarily slow at times (10 hour audiobook). 

But if you enjoyed the original Pride & Prejudice then I think you would really enjoy this story.  

meganquirk's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

sayfarah's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I loved this duo’s first Austen retelling project, so I was looking forward to reading this. This is a very contemporary retelling of Pride and Prejudice. In fact, I would say it takes inspiration from the novel as opposed to being a retelling of it. It reads as a regular romance novel set in the Hamptons. From that aspect, it’s a fun, easy beach-read.

No retelling will ever live up to the original, but this one didn’t quite work as well as I wanted it to. I’m not sure but it could have been the pacing. Lizzy and Will never disliked each other as strongly as in the classic, there isn’t that much yearning, and the points of disaster, ie Wickham’s actions, Lizzy’s family, Will’s words and behavior, weren’t as disastrous and didn’t cause as much tension as the original. There’s just a lot going on in terms of the subplots. Also, I couldn’t get over the fact that Darcy is blond here, but that’s just a me thing. I’m sure a blond, surfing Mr. Darcy in swim shorts is someone’s type, it’s just not mine. There are also 2 or 3 spicy scenes, so if you’re looking for a true Austen retelling, just be aware. 

I really enjoyed the reimagining of the Bennet sisters though, they were entertaining. And the writing is great. I enjoyed reading it, it’s a fun, modern take on Pride and Prejudice, it just wasn’t my favorite. I enjoyed their Emma retelling a lot more.