Of Jeopardy and Joy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation

by Jae George

There is no Hunsford proposal in this sweet and clean version of Darcy’s and Elizabeth’s story. There is very little of the usual villains. Instead our two protagonists take turns rescuing each other. Lizzy rescues Georgiana, Darcy rescues Elizabeth, she rescues him back. You get it.


Elizabeth gasped for a breath of air as her head breached the water’s surface. Her feet paddled madly to keep her afloat as she tried to understand how she had come to be bobbing in the ship’s wake as it sailed away. As her mind began to clear she remembered that she had been alone on the deck and panicked as she now realized that no one would have seen her tumble into the water. No one will even notice that I am missing until I fail to arrive in the dining room.

Dear God, what do I do now?

197 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 21, 2025

Reviews

[lori huff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice

Elizabeth meets Georgiana Darcy in Ramsgate while staying there on holiday with the Gardiners. When Wickham shows up she immediately senses trouble, and eventually secretly notifies Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam about Georgiana's improper activities. They both hurry to Ramsgate, are very thankful for Elizabeth's intervention, and Elizabeth and Darcy have some hair raising experiences during which they each rescue the other from danger.

This is a low angst and romantic story. The development of the relationship of ODC is fairly straightforward, with no acrimony. There are the usual villains, but they're dealt with in satisfying ways. This is a swoon worthy Darcy, and a brave and resourceful Elizabeth who, thankfully, falls for Darcy pretty quickly. The author clearly is a Christian writer, and the book almost crosses the line into preachiness, sort of like Mary Bennett's tendency to want to quote scriptures wherever she can. It was just a bit much.

I deducted a star for the many editing errors, missing words, extra words, words used incorrectly, changes of tense within the same sentence, etc. Although it needs some cleaning up, I enjoyed the book, and recommend it.

[Jen B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Low angst with a slightly self deprecating, yet stubborn Lizzy and a gallant Darcy.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a lovely, fairly low-angst story! There is a completely different meeting of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. In Ramsgate with her aunt and uncle Gardiner, she befriends Georgiana Darcy, who is going by the alias Georgiana Williams. Uneasy with the behavior of Mrs. Younge and Mr. Wickham, she discusses it with her relatives. Having once overheard a reference to Darcy house in London, she and her uncle send an express to Darcy house. Colonel Fitzwilliam sees it, then sends for Darcy before rushing to Ramsgate to rescue Georgiana and send Wickham to the Navy. Darcy arrives the next day, relieved that things are fine, other than Georgiana's mortification that she almost fell for Wickham's honeyed false words.

Then the real adventure begins! On a sightseeing trip in the ocean, Elizabeth accidentally falls overboard. Darcy hears her scream and saves her, but in the process he himself almost drowns and she saves him. While he is insensible she figures out which direction she should row to get to land. She manages to keep them alive for 2 days until they are rescued by her uncle Gardiner and his friends in the shipping industry.

Refusing to force Mr. Darcy into a marriage she is sure he wouldn't want, he begins to court her secretly, with Mr. Bennet's approval.

At the Netherfield ball, an angry and jealous Miss Bingley attempts to compromise Elizabeth with Mr. Collins, but she is too smart to fall for that and Caroline only manages to lock Mr. Collins in the library alone. That's all we hear about Miss Bingley, thankfully. After Lady Catherine de Bourgh receives a letter from Mr. Collins reporting Darcy's attentions to Elizabeth, she arrives at Longbourn, unsuccessfully berates Elizabeth to get her to give up Mr. Darcy. In her anger, she orders Mr. Collins to compromise Elizabeth, which he attempts with a disgusting sloppy kiss just as Darcy arrives to set the record straight. Collins is thrown out of Longbourn and returns with his patroness. Once there, they find that the Earl has arrived with solicitors and backup to send Lady Catherine to the dower house at Rosings. So she gets what she deserves and Collins realizes that he was wrong to follow her orders.

I loved the interactions between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. I laughed with his gentle teasing way of helping her to overcome her fear of horses, and their love was clearly shown with their interactions. The epilogue was very sweet. While this isn't my favorite of this author's works, it is not far from it, and I would recommend this to any JAFF lover.

[Emily Bowman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another pleasant read

I enjoyed this story by Jae George. I love that the villains were barely mentioned and how Darcy and Elizabeth fell in love. This isn't my favorite Jae George novel but it's certainly another delightful edition to her many works. It's one I'd borrow again from kindle unlimited. It's a clean romance with hints of post martial intimacy.

[Teresita · Rating 5 out of 5]

So different

But still keeping to the main traits of our beloved characters. A great variation filled with an enchanting relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy that it's wonderful to read.

[Michelle David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely

Another low angst and lovely variation inspired by Jane Austen’s classic novel Pride and Prejudice by Jae George. I liked it.

[Terri Conley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

As usual, another excellent story well written and very unique. I really enjoyed this story. Ms George is always worth my time IMO.