REVIEW: Pemberley Remembered by Mary Simonsen
Review by MJRyan
The premise of this book sounded intriguing - a young American woman in post-World War II England discovers that the story of Pride and Prejudice was based on a real couple. With the allure of such a romantic reality she begins investigating during her infrequent leaves from her job with the Army Exchange Service. What unfurls is so detailed a fictional history of fictional characters that it left this reader quite uninterested.
But this doesn’t even touch on my biggest issue with the book. By implying that Austen cribbed each and every character from real people, the author minimizes Austen’s genius at creating compelling characters from her imagination. I have no doubt that Austen’s characters were amalgams of people she knew in the course of her life; “write what you know” is a tenet for a reason. But, to write so blatantly of people she knew in real life would have not only cause offense but could have also exposed her as the anonymous authoress.
The history that the author creates is not without merit. It is obvious that she put a great deal of research and thought into the story. However, this detail doesn’t work in the framework of this book. Too much information is passed down through generations, minutia that would inevitably be lost in translation through years and ears. I feel the story would have been better served if it had been presented as a straight forward sequel to Pride and Prejudice. Not only would the slight, surely unintentional, insult to Austen’s creativity be avoided but the impact of the story would have been greater by being a first hand account.
The current day characters failed to capture my imagination which was disappointing since WWII England is a subject that fascinates me. There were quite a few nuggets of interesting historical information about post war England. But again, they were buried so deeply in details that had no impact on the story or character that their impact was quite lost.
I think there are two interesting, compelling stories in this book. One would be a sequel to Pride and Prejudice that would allow the author’s imagination the latitude to run free. The other is an original story about a woman and her journey to discover herself. In Pemberley Remembered, the two together are too much.
April 5th, 2008 at 11:02 am
Although I see the justice of much of your criticism, I have to say that I did enjoy this book very much. Yes, the author tried to cram too many threads into one book, and yes, the thread about Pride and Prejudice being based on a real family made it hard for me to suspend my disbelief. But somehow it all turned into an enjoyable read for me. Once I became engrossed in it, I could hardly put it down. The author leaves an opening for a sequel, and I will read it if and when it appears.
April 5th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Hi Marlene,
I am the author of PR, and I appreciate your comments. This is my first novel, and it has definitely been a learning process. As you guessed, I am writing a sequel, and I will be reading everyone’s comments as part of that learning process. Thank you for taking the time to post. Mary
April 6th, 2008 at 9:37 am
Hi Mary,
Thanks for your thanks, and good luck with the sequel. I will look forward to reading it.
Marlene
April 8th, 2008 at 11:36 am
I enjoyed this novel. I was interested in the World War II history and what it was like to live in postwar England. I didn’t realize that rationing in Britain went on for years after the war. I liked the main character, Maggie Joyce, and there’s definitely a sequel in the works because there are two love interests. The P&P thread was interesting. I didn’t have a problem with the premise that Jane Austen used real people. Everyone knows that she was a genius.
April 14th, 2008 at 11:11 pm
I too have read Pemberley Remembered and found it to be quite believable that Austen could have based the characters of Pride & Prejudice on real people. Doing so would in no way take away from the genius we know her to be. I think the way Mrs. Simonsen approached her story was very well done. Threading the past and the present together by relating the similarities of the lives of the fictional Darcy family with those of the Laceys was an interesting way to go. Add on the love stories of not only Beth and Jack, but Maggie and Rob and you have the perfect recipie for a sequel. Looking forward to reading more of Mrs. Simonsen’s work.