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ABOUT THE BOOK
What secrets lie in Mr. Darcy’s past? During a summer sojourn in Ramsgate, Elizabeth Bennet meets Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy—an irresistible, eminent, and seemingly unobtainable model of an ideal gentleman. Following a whirlwind romance with Mr. Darcy and a blossoming friendship with Georgiana Darcy, her life is forever altered. When Darcy disappears under mysterious circumstances, the new Mrs. Darcy’s world is thrown into chaos. A friend of Darcy’s provides much-needed support as Elizabeth is confronted with rumours insinuating lewd explanations for his absence. Could any of them be true? In this Pride and Prejudice variation, a Regency mystery romance, Elizabeth cannot be certain what to believe or whom to trust. She is determined to find out what befell Darcy, but will the truth break her heart?
Trigger warning: This story mentions a past assault on a young woman which is thwarted by a main character.
OPENING LINES
“With a long, slow inhalation, I savoured the damp, salty air and marvelled at the graceful dance of the tide. How could anyone fail to be fascinated by the seaside?”
GUEST REVIEW by Sophia Rose
A summery, seaside romance leads to love, and a woman is married before she is forced to wonder just what secrets her husband has been keeping when he disappears. A riveting mystery wrapped around a romance set in the world of Jane Austen’s classic, Pride and Prejudice found a target audience in me.
The Mysterious Disappearance of Mr. Darcy is part historical mystery and part romance. Fitzwilliam Darcy and his sister come to the Regency-era seaside resort of Ramsgate, as does Elizabeth Bennet with her aunt and uncle. Elizabeth and Darcy get off on the wrong foot when he suspects her motives of being friendly toward his sister. Beach walks and Elizabeth’s cute little dog. A whirlwind romance ensues, and they marry.
Elizabeth finds herself the wife of a wealthy man with high society connections. London society is watching the new Mrs. Darcy to see if she’ll survive or thrive in their cutthroat world. Elizabeth has her own doubts after hearing gossip and rumors about her husband, and those really set in to hound her when her husband suddenly disappears.
I was really curious to know what happened to Darcy and was glad this book read so quickly that I wasn’t left hanging for long. Very interesting…but I mustn’t spoil your enjoyment. There were some vicious gossips in this one and some worthy villains, too. Poor Elizabeth had to show so much strength during the time of her husband’s absence when she was wondering what was going on and getting flak from the gossip about why he was gone.
The Mysterious Disappearance of Mr. Darcy was well-paced and developed for characters, romance, and mystery for all its shorter page count. It’s a complete variation from the classic so being familiar or not with the original is not an issue for readers. This would appeal to historical mystery fans who like a good deal of sweet Regency romance as well. A riveting mystery wrapped around a romance set in the world of Jane Austen’s classic, Pride & Prejudice, found a target audience in me.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
When not writing, Award-winning Regency romance author Kelly Miller spends her free time singing, playing the piano, reading, and amusing her dogs. Like a much-loved Jane Austen character, she is an excellent walker. Her Austenesque Regency romances have won first-place honors from the Chanticleer International Book Awards, Royal Dragonfly Book Awards, Indies Today Book Awards, Incipere Book Awards, and Firebird Book Awards. Connect with Kelly via her Linktree.
ABOUT SOPHIA ROSE, GUEST REVIEWER
Sophia is a quiet, curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, piano-playing, and gardening. Road trips and campouts, museums and monuments, restaurants, and theaters are her jam. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and a loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, baseball, cats, Scooby Doo, and chocolate.
As a lifelong reader, it was inevitable that Sophia would discover book blogs and the joy of blog reviewing. In 2012, she submitted her first book review and is currently an associate reviewer.
Sophia is a prolific reader and audiobook listener of many wonderful books, authors, and narrators. Few genres are outside her reading tastes, but her true love is fiction, particularly history, mystery, sci-fi, and romance. Sorry, no horror...or she will run like Shaggy and Scooby.
Thank you so much for your lovely review, Sophia! And thank you, Christina, for featuring it on your blog! 😄
Kelly Miller
Sounds riveting -- an intriguing blend of P&P and Rebecca, perhaps? Thanks for this review, Sophia Rose, and congrats to Kelly Miller on writing such a captivating book!