Yuletide Promise - A Pride and Prejudice Variation

by Juliana Abbott

At London's esteemed Twelfth Night Masquerade Ball, Christmas brings miracles as young people in disguise find love unhindered by prejudice. Elizabeth Bennet secures an invitation, hoping for her own magical moment. Can love truly blossom without seeing each other's faces?Her dreams come true when a captivating masked gentleman sweeps her off her feet with moonlit dances, passionate conversations, and a secret ice-skating rendezvous. Unfortunately, fate separates them, but they pledge to reunite at the same ball the following year.While Elizabeth attempts to find her mysterious stranger, her efforts are frustratingly fruitless. But the real obstacle in her quest is her growing affection to a certain irksome gentleman from the north, Mr. Darcy, who, despite his vexing manners, increasingly occupies her thoughts.Things take a complicated turn when the masked stranger finds Elizabeth, forcing her to make an impossible choice between the man of her dreams and the one she can't stop thinking about. Will Elizabeth's heart lead her to the right decision, or will she forever wonder, "What if?"Yuletide Promise is a sweet and clean variation of Jane Austen’s timeless classic, Pride and Prejudice, and it’s above 60000 words long.

234 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 6, 2023

Reviews

[Sheila Majczan · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the story description tells us, Elizabeth attends a Twelfth Night Masquerade Ball in London with her aunt. (How she got a invite to a high society ball is an interesting part of this tale.) There she (dressed as Beira) meets a man (dressed as Boreas) and finds herself falling in love. Of course, the man is Darcy whose aunt and uncle hold this ball annually. Their attempt to exchange names and addresses fails but they do, each, promise to meet again next year at the same ball.

So as we have each presenting their POV we read how torn they are when they find themselves falling for each other...believing that person could not have attended the ball. Darcy actually denies attending while Elizabeth is not of high ton and so could not have been there...or so it is believed.

We have Wickham who claims to have been at that ball...as Boreas...and Lady Catherine who claims to have a connection to the woman Darcy seeks. These threads were interesting and added to the mystery for each.

The other Bennet sisters have a role, large or small, in this variation. I liked the fact that Lydia didn't get her way.

I recommend this story.

[J. W. Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

“O time, thou must untangle this, not I.
It is too hard a knot for me t’untie.”
–William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night

SPOILER ALERT: This review may contain *** SPOILERS ***

Rating: appropriate for all audiences
Angst Level: It became a bit stressful as our couple parted and the reader could only hope they would clear up the misunderstanding.
Source: Borrowed from KU 1-17-24. I volunteered to leave a review. The thoughts and opinions are my own.

“She never told her love, but let concealment, like a worm ‘I th’ bud, feed on her damask cheek. She pinned in thought; and, with a green and yellow melancholy, she sat like Patience on a monument, smiling at grief. Was not this love indeed? We men may say more, swear more;’ but indeed our shows are more than will; for we still prove much in our vows but little in our love.” –William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night

Elizabeth was in London visiting Gracechurch Street and their friends gave them their invitation to the Matlock’s Twelfth Night Masquerade Ball. It was there that Elizabeth met the man of her dreams and fell in love. She had no idea who he was as he was called away on an emergency. They promised to meet again the following year. Yeah, the reader knew the identity of the man behind the mask. We had to endure the misunderstandings and the parting of ways for ODC only to have them tempted by other people. It was a bit stressful there for a bit. There were formatting issues with my downloaded copy toward the end. Editing problems also became more prominent as the story progressed. I had a lot of continuity and probability questions. All threw me from the story. However, the golden nuggets of the love story shown through the problems and the swoon-worthy dialogue were worth it. Heavy sigh.

“Journeys end in lovers meeting,
Every wise man’s son doth know.”
–William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night

[Aly Schne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really wanted to fully enjoy this story as I think the premise is interesting. But there was just enough errors and inconsistencies to keep pulling me out of the story while reading it. This book could truly benefit from someone proofreading it so it can be edited and updated. Most of the mistakes I noticed weren't even grammatic but simply logistical. But beyond that, it's a decent book.

[Elizabeth S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner take the place of the latter's titled friend and her daughter when they are unable to attend the Matlock's annual Twelfth Night masquerade ball. Both in costume, Darcy and Elizabeth meet, dance, flirt and promise to meet the following year at the next ball. They leave, already half-way enamored. without knowing each other's identity.

When Darcy comes to Netherfield, the two get to know each other. Both Wickham and Lady Catherine use their machinations to achieve their own ends.

The meeting at the end, wondered about and highly anticipated throughout the book, seemed rushed and unsatisfactory. The tension over it built and built, with both Darcy and Elizabeth struggling with their feelings and doubts. Obstacles were thrown in the way. Finally meeting again at the much-anticipated Twelfth Night ball, they got their answers. After all that expectation, I was a little disappointed at the end. A bit more emotion would have been nice.

[Wayne Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finish-able, barely

Think cheesy Halmark. It's decent. It has moments of just too much blech, but then moments of sweat gooey goodness. The timeline is wonky, and the pacing is just as confusing. The author seems to have had favorite scenes she couldn't wait to write, and the rest were filler to get to the next favorite scene. It was good... but eh, several edits would have served her better.

[RTD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent

- A light read. The premise was cute.

- I wasn't too invested in this story. However, Darcy and Elizabeth's interaction at the masquerade ball was a delight to read.

There are a few inconsistencies.

[Allison Ripley-Duggan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!

I love this variation and the outcome for all the much beloved characters. I like the different story line - the air of mystery and secrets forging the beginning of a most passionate romance.

[Zhora · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

Elizabeth and Darcy meeting at a masquerade ball, what’s not to love? ;-) <3
Mr Darcy is feeling adventurous when, he meets Elizabeth at the 12th night masquerade ball and they have an instant connection. Of course Mr Darcy is called away, before they can reveal, who they are. So they have to wait a year to meet again.
In the mean time they meet again, when Bingley leases Netherfield. As usual it is not love at first sight, but little by little they learn to appreciate each other.
I like, that in this story Bingley has a firm character and Anne de Bourgh is a sympathetic person and not at all sickly.
Great Christmas story, though much happens in the year between the two masquerade balls.