Book Review #18 - Edenbrooke

Regency romance is not my thing. Jane Austen copy cat books are not my thing. I was sure Edenbrooke, where a young lady named Marianne Daventry is invited to visit the title's namesake estate with her twin sister and become entangled in the inevitable drama of suitors and advantageous marriages, would not be my thing.

I was totally wrong. I found this book to be absolutely delightful.

So delightful, in fact, that I read it again the very next day. I had heard from other admirers that it reminded them of Pride and Prejudice and I knew that didn't feel right to me. Still, I loved it and wanted to know why the romantic tension felt so familiar and interesting if it wasn't for its resemblance to Austen's beloved romance between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy.

I think it has more in common with some John Hughes films like "Some Kind of Wonderful" or the relationship between Jim and Pam in the early days of "The Office" than the buttoned up courtship of actual 19th century fictional figures. Not that this has much unbuttoning. It is very PG and refreshingly clean. And I don't mean that Edenbrooke's plot follows the same storyline as either of the above fictional romances.  They evoke similar feelings.  All three involve a seemingly insurmountable obstacle in the mind of one of the characters that prevents them from being with the person they really, really want to be with.   Just like The Office was better before Jim and Pam got together, romantic tension in this form is enjoyable to me. When it releases, with declarations and understanding, I find it all very satisfying. More stories should follow this formula! It's definitely my kind of thing:)

The ensuing story includes lots of flirting, a bit too many mentions of Marianne blushing for my liking but, oh well, and some predictable conflicts when her more glamorous sister is determined to have the guy Marianne wants (but will never admit wanting) as well as some surprising action involving guns and kidnapping.  There is a letter writing scene that I read over at least five times!  Swoon!  Marianne is an every-day woman's heroine.  Pretty in a non-obvious way and better known for her wit, selflessness and love of nature, she can live a more genuine life as she has no aspirations to belong to the fast and beautiful crowd, unlike her not-identical twin sister. Of course, that kind of realness only makes her become more attractive to those who get to know her and when they do, they can't help but fall in love with her,  the beautiful people included. I don't know how realistic that is, but being of average attractiveness myself, I loved the possibility.

I understand the comparison to Pride and Prejudice.  Although the plot points are quite different, the author places her story in the same time and setting and includes many of the same supporting characters: snobby rivals made worse by their jealousy, a villain disguised as a gentleman and a loving but distracted and absent father.  Additionally, there are the same sorts of rules and obstacles to overcome in regard to marriage, money and titles although the characters seem a lot closer to having our 21st century sensibilities than the class and gender restricting ones they would have actually had. There are also several scenes straight out of Pride and Prejudice. There is a reversed and much more funny wet-from-the-pond scene.  There is also some passionate practice fencing to rid a certain gentleman of his romantic frustration.  And you can't forget the balls.  It wouldn't be a period romance without the descriptions of balls and smoldering glances.

All of this is fine and good but what really connected me to the story was the story of friendship.  Simplified, yes, but it was so nice to read about a budding romance that was based much less on physical attraction and more on common goals and values, interest in the other person's talents and abilities and, super cheesy here, wholesome recreational activities.  I actually believed that these characters could and did fall in love.  So fun.  Probably my favorite book of the summer.