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Love, Lies and Lizzie

3.56 of 5 stars 3.56 · rating details · 117 ratings · 14 reviews

When Mrs. Bennet inherits enough money to move into the kind of village she has always dreamed of, her daughters find themselves swept up in a glamorous life of partying and country pursuits. However, Lizzie and her sisters soon discover the truth.

Paperback, 208 pages

Published January 25th 2009 by Piccadilly Press

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Sep 15, 2010 Rebecca- Books rated it 4 of 5 stars

Well...normal story. I was in the library, saw this and was like 'Ooooo Pride and Prejudice re-make!', whipped out my library card and rushed towards to the desk in a hurry, getting it and rushing into the sunset, happy. Well, yes, not quite but you get the picture...if anyone is reading this apart from myself.
Well, when I first started reading it, I was thinking 'God, Jane Austen would be turning in her grave' and at the beginning, the word 'muttered' is repeated a number of times on the same p...more

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Jan 12, 2010 Laurel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: austen-sequel, contemporary-fiction

Lizzie and Darcy with cell phones

In her fourth book in the Jane Austen in the 21st-century series for young adult readers, (and some older adults who are forever young at heart), author Rosie Rushton tackles Jane Austen’s most famous novel, Pride and Prejudice, retelling the story with a contemporary twist. Her teenage Lizzie Bennet and sisters are still hunting for beaus, but with all of the advantages of modern technology: mobile phones, laptop computers and blackberries. The Bennet family alw...more Lizzie and Darcy with cell phones

In her fourth book in the Jane Austen in the 21st-century series for young adult readers, (and some older adults who are forever young at heart), author Rosie Rushton tackles Jane Austen’s most famous novel, Pride and Prejudice, retelling the story with a contemporary twist. Her teenage Lizzie Bennet and sisters are still hunting for beaus, but with all of the advantages of modern technology: mobile phones, laptop computers and blackberries. The Bennet family always wanted to be well connected. Well, now they are.

Rushton has been faithful to the original storyline, cleverly transferring the machinations of Regency courtship into the traumas of 21st-century teenage search for romance. There are plot changes, but half the fun is remembering the differences, and seeing her logic in updates. The most significant change is that the Bennet’s are wealthy – nouveau riche – since Mrs. Bennet inherited a bundle from a third cousin. This Mrs. Bennet is still as outrageously unrefined as ever, using her new money to social climb through Meryton’s better families. Mr. Bennet is still an unhappy bystander, but now resides in his music room listening to Wagner at full volume instead of the quaint and quiet 19th-century pastime of reading. The five Bennet sister’s personalities and foibles are all updated cleverly. Lizzie, like Austen’s, is as spirited and outspoken as we would wish her to be, Jane as kind and accepting as ever, Mary/Meredith a fervent ecologist afraid of global warming and food additives, and Kitty/Katie and Lydia are now twins; one wilder than Austen ever could have imagined, and the other unhappy because she is not. I’ll let you sort out who is who! The male love interests play out well too. Fitzwilliam/James Darcy is dishy and arrogant enough to drive a Ferrari and Charles/Charlie Bingley still a pushover. Mr. Collins/Drew Collins is as toady as ever, only times two since he can reach characters by cell phone, text messages and e-mail ad nauseam. There is no getting away from him! All comfortably familiar. Only Charlotte/Emily Lucas and George Wickham were a surprise. I’ll let you discovery why.

Updating a classic of world literature is a daunting task that Rushton handled with composure and energy. Her plot, characters and language was up to the minute, filled with modern technology and cultural references that teenagers (and adults) will identify with. I had to laugh when Darcy’s famous 'be not alarmed, Madame' letter explaining to Lizzie his reasons for separating Jane and Charlie and his treatment of George Wickham arrived via e-mail! How else? There’s also lots of texting flying about speeding up the pace. Certain elements of the original story were omitted, not causing any offense to this devotee of Austen’s works. In reverence to Jane Austen, Rushton began each chapter with epigraph from the original text, foreshadowing the narrative. It was a nice touch connecting the two novels with quotes that any Austen fan will recognize.

Rushton is a British author and this edition has certain colloquialisms that were quite over this Colonial’s head. I do however, have a new appreciation for snogging, Pimms and wankers; — the other words I just guessed at. The novel is split into two parts, and for some reason the second half was not as fleshed out as the first, which made it rushed and thin. My biggest disappointment was that Lady Catherine/Katrina De Burgh was not nearly as officious or condescending as she could have been, and that her final showdown with Lizzie was on the phone and not vis-à-vis, diminishing the significance to the original infamous altercation in the prettyish kind of a little wilderness. No polluting of the Pemberley shades even alluded to. No Pemberley even mentioned in the entire book!

This was a fast read and great fun. Kudos to Rushton for having the sense not to open the novel with her version of "It is a truth universally acknowledged." The cover art is also a lovely complement to the novel. Well done.

Laurel Ann, Austenprose(less)

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Jan 10, 2010 Meredith (Austenesque Reviews) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: jane-austen, pride-and-prejudice

An Upbeat and Updated Version of “Pride and Prejudice” for YA Readers

If you have not yet come across this series “Jane Austen in the 21st Century,” by Rosie Rushton, it is a collection of updated versions of Jane Austen's novels geared towards the young adult audience. This is the fourth book in the series, yet it is the first one I read. Rosie Rushton started this series in 2005 with “The Dashwood Sisters' Secret of Love” (Sense and Sensibility), in 2007 “Summer of Secrets” (Northanger Abbey) w...more An Upbeat and Updated Version of “Pride and Prejudice” for YA Readers

If you have not yet come across this series “Jane Austen in the 21st Century,” by Rosie Rushton, it is a collection of updated versions of Jane Austen's novels geared towards the young adult audience. This is the fourth book in the series, yet it is the first one I read. Rosie Rushton started this series in 2005 with “The Dashwood Sisters' Secret of Love” (Sense and Sensibility), in 2007 “Summer of Secrets” (Northanger Abbey) was published, 2008 saw the publishing of “Secret Schemes, Daring Dreams” (Emma), “Love, Lies, and Lizzie” (Pride and Prejudice) was published in 2009, and due to come out in 2010 is “Echoes of Love” (Persuasion).

In “Love, Lies, and Lizzie” the Bennet's have just inherited a fortune that allows Mrs. Bennet to finally purchase her dream house in Longbourn Oakes. She is anxious to live amongst the upper set and is delighted when neighbor, Mrs. Vanessa Bingley befriends her and invites the Bennets to an outdoor party. It is at this party that the Bennet girls meet Charlie and Caroline Bingley and their friend James Darcy. Charlie and Jane of course hit off right away, and as expected Lizzie overhears an unflattering remark about herself from James Darcy. From there the story follows many of the parallels of “Pride and Prejudice:” their father's godson, Drew Collins, comes to stay with them for three weeks, Lizzie meets and falls for a sexy and charming George Wickham, the Bingleys and Darcy abruptly depart from Longbourn Oakes without saying goodbye...

“Love, Lies, and Lizzie” is a fairly accurate and cleverly modernized portrayal of “Pride and Prejudice” in the 21st Century. I loved how Meredith (Mary Bennet) is a die-hard environmentalist and Drew Collins (Mr. Collins) is the hotel manager protégé of the esteemed Katrina de Burgh (Lady Catherine) of De Burgh Hotels. Some characters I felt miss the mark a little though; Lizzie, who usually is portrayed as outspoken and impudent, seemed to continuously attack James Darcy over the same argument and not let it rest. I thought she was a little too belligerent and that she seemed to have lost her light-hearted and teasing manner. The character of Katrina de Burgh was a little off too; at first she seemed to be promoting a relationship between Lizzie and James, and then her confrontation with Lizzie at the end of the book was very weak and a little disappointing.

My other small complaint is that the book seemed to start leisurely and slow paced in Part One, yet Part Two (which is significantly shorter) was wrapped up rather quickly and not as fleshed out as the beginning. In addition, I wish that James Darcy and the romantic parts of the book could have received more page time, but I noticed the author trying to stress the theme of family more than the theme of love.

Overall, I thought “Love, Lies, and Lizzie” an entertaining and delightful read. These books are very suitable for introducing Jane Austen to a younger audience, but that doesn't mean they can't be enjoyed by adults!

Austenesque Review(less)

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Jul 07, 2010 Brigitte rated it 1 of 5 stars

I purchased this book, thinking it might be a cute re-telling of Jane Austen's P&P. While the character names were similar, personalities were exaggerated and over the top. Even though the story (what there is of it) is cute, it is incredibly poorly written. The dialogue is very sophmoric, as though the writer is trying to use every entry in her tag phrase list ("he said...check. she said....check. she grimaced....check. he grinned ....check., etc). Much of the writing sounds as though the w...more

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Feb 07, 2011 SJH (A Dream of Books) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

I haven't read anything by Rosie Rushton before but I picked this one up in the library because a) the cover is really pretty and b) it's described as a moder-spin on 'Pride and Prejudice' and as my other passion besides YA is 19th century literature, that definitely sounded like the sort of book I'd enjoy. I'm pleased to say that I absolutely loved it and I'm going to make a point now of searching out some of Rosie Rushton's other books. She's apparantly written several novels in the 'Jane Aust...more I haven't read anything by Rosie Rushton before but I picked this one up in the library because a) the cover is really pretty and b) it's described as a moder-spin on 'Pride and Prejudice' and as my other passion besides YA is 19th century literature, that definitely sounded like the sort of book I'd enjoy. I'm pleased to say that I absolutely loved it and I'm going to make a point now of searching out some of Rosie Rushton's other books. She's apparantly written several novels in the 'Jane Austen in the 21st Century' series so I'm excited to get my hands on the rest! 'Northanger Abbey', 'Sense and Sensibility', 'Emma' and my personal favourite 'Persuasion' have all been given the Rushton treatment.

The story draws inspiration from 'Pride and Prejudice' but brings the literary classic up-to-date for a modern, teen audience. One of the things I enjoyed the most about it was identifying all of the similarities and differences between the characters and who they're all supposed to be based on. For example, Lizzie is now a young teenage girl who near the end of the book goes on a work placement to France to help out at a music therapy centre, unlike in the original where Elizabeth is on a touring holiday with her Aunt and Uncle. Mrs Bennet is still a screeching social climber who wants the whole family to take their rightful place in the world among the upper echelons of society. Jane is still the good, kind and considerate sister, while Lydia remains the livewire who becomes embroiled with George Wickham, the dastardly villain of the book. They're all still looking for love but doing it the modern way now with emails, texts and phone calls. No old-fashioned courting here then!

It's a credit to Rushton that she manages to make James Darcy as gorgeous, strong and silent and just as much a dark horse as the original Mr Darcy. A difficult thing to do considering the latter is beloved by females around the world. I was definitely rooting for him and Lizzie to hurry up and realise that they're perfect for each other. I will also admit that I had a Darcy sized crush on him throughout and loved all the scenes building up to their romance.

When a classic is as beloved as 'Pride and Prejudice' I imagine it must be a daunting task trying to do justice to it and yet craft something new at the same time, but Rushton's got it spot on! Her take is fresh and modern and will appeal not only to Austen fans but also to those who like a good romance with a strong hero and heroine. 'Love, Lies and Lizzie' most definitely charmed me! (less)

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May 12, 2013 Ceri rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a modern version of Pride and Prejudice for young adult readers. Lizzy's family has some into some money and moved to a posh estate where they meet the Bingley family, which includes Bingley parents in this version. Unlike many modern versions this one is not just inspired by P&P but quite closely follows the story. There are some differences of course, for example the Mr Collins character is Mr Bennet's godson rather than the heir to his estate but in essentials it's not far off. Th...more

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Jun 12, 2010 Milka rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-during-2009, austen-adaptations

This is the fourth Jane Austen in 21st Century YA novel written by Rosie Rushton. Rushton's teenage version of Elizabeth Bennet and her sister are looking for guys, just like the Bennet sisters in the original Jane Austen novel. In Love, lies and Lizzie they don't write letters to their loved ones; they have cellphones, Internet and all the other devices of modern technology to help them out.

Rushton is faithful to the original storyline. Of course there are some changes, since the story takes p...more This is the fourth Jane Austen in 21st Century YA novel written by Rosie Rushton. Rushton's teenage version of Elizabeth Bennet and her sister are looking for guys, just like the Bennet sisters in the original Jane Austen novel. In Love, lies and Lizzie they don't write letters to their loved ones; they have cellphones, Internet and all the other devices of modern technology to help them out.

Rushton is faithful to the original storyline. Of course there are some changes, since the story takes place on a different century. To make the story flow well, some changes are made. For example, Bennet's are not poor in this novel. Mrs. Bennet has inherited a fortune from her third cousin. They buy a house from a neighbourhood filled with rich people and start social climbing. Mr. Bennet's precious library and books has transformed to music room and Wagner.

The personalities of the sisters have been updated well. Lizzie is independent and she speaks her mind, Jane is kind, Meredith (Mary) is an eco-activist afraid of global warming, Katie (Kitty) and Lydia are twins. Lydia is wild and rekless. Katie wishes she could be like Lydia. James Darcy is arrogant and rich, his friend Charlie Bingley a push over. Drew Collins is as wonderful as in the Austen's original novel. You know what I mean.

While reading this books it is interesting to note the differences between the original novel and Rosie Rushton's YA novel. At least the character of Charlotte Lucas was a suprise for me. What is also interesting is to note all the British words Rushton uses, such as snogging. Since the previous novels by Rushton were familiar to me, I knew the meaning of those words pretty easily.

Love, Lies and Lizzie is a good YA book with complex characters and good plot. Connection to Jane Austen's original novel is made by the use of quotations from the original novel always at the beginning of the chapter. I recommend this book to fans of Pride and Prejudice, but also for others. You don't have to know anything about Jane Austen/Pride and Prejudice in order to enjoy this funny and gorgeous young adult novel. (less)

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Jan 24, 2012 Namratha Kumar rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-lit, jane-austen-revisited, chick-lit

"You really are crazy about this guy, aren't you?"

LIZZIE: "Crazy? No, not really. I think I'm more sane than I've ever been."

That sensible,totally "sorted" statement by Lizzie (yet another delightful take on our beloved Elizabeth Bennet) spells out the simple fact that this is a good book and a quick, breezy, readable adaptation of the much revered 'Pride and Prejudice' .

I can't write a review on this book because it would be just another gush-fest on the perfect ensemble cast, spitfire dialo...more

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Jun 27, 2011 Selena rated it 4 of 5 stars

It was quite good. It wasn't exactly the same retelling of the original book In mordern English but still the story was somewhat different as it had a modern storyline but it still resembled features to the original novel so In the end it kind of gave the same moral or the result. I actially enjoyed reading the book because Lizzie had to overcome the same kind of issues but obviously in a different time/generation and she handled it quite well. Rushton retold the story in a way that appeals more...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Sally Round added it

i love this book. it's an amazing modern take on Pride and Prejudice that's wrote in an inspiring fashion. One of my favorite books for it's sheer simplicity.xx

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Jul 25, 2011 Joanna Yeoh added it

The characters are presented in greater extremes but the modern take on the situations of the plot make it more relevant to present-day readers.

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Sep 04, 2011 Belle rated it 4 of 5 stars

I actually think this is better than the original.

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Sep 02, 2010 Katie rated it 4 of 5 stars

starts off ok and gets better

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Feb 15, 2013 Dhanu rated it 5 of 5 stars

i really liked it, it was a predictable because i already read pride and prejudice but it had new twists to it. I really would like to read more books like this!

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Feb 11, 2012 Michela rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

Pride and Prejuduce in the 21st century. Loved it.

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About Rosie Rushton

Rosie Rushton began her career as a feature writer for a local paper. Staying Cool, Surviving School was her first book, published by Piccadilly Press in 1993. After writing another non-fiction title, You’re My Best Friend, I Hate You! (available from Puffin), Rosie turned to fiction.

The Leehampton series

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