The Novels of Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman

[kerravonsen]

I have to rave on about the trilogy I just finished reading, the "Novels of Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman" by Pamela Aidan. The three books re-tell the events of "Pride and Prejudice" from Darcy's point of view. And it works, it really works. I especially loved the third book, where the events come to a head.

1) An Assembly Such As This
2) Duty and Desire
3) These Three Remain

Comments

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

The links are not pointing wherever you intended them to point.

[kerravonsen]

Gah! Fixed.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Ah. I'm glad to see that you found some books that satisfied your particulars in the romance department. I haven't cared for Austen much, but wouldn't turn up my nose at somebody writing a good series of novels about Colonel Brandon's backstory. :D

[kerravonsen]

8-)

[watervole.livejournal.com]

I do love the gentle Colonel Brandon. both on paper and on screen.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I'm just rereading P&P! I'll have to see if my library has these. And it does! I've ordered the first one. Thank you!

[kerravonsen]

I love to spread the love. 8-)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Such a pity I don't write fanfic for a fandom that's legal. :-)

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Ack! Don't say that, or I shall be forced to rant at you voluminously. Fanfiction is not automatically illegal; at least in the US, the legality would have to be decided on a case-by-case basis for each story, and I suspect it's much the same where you are. (And it's my understanding that in the UK there may be even more leeway, as the characters aren't copyrightable.)

[kerravonsen]

Seconded. Fan fiction is legal. It is Fair Use, because it is transformative, and not-for-profit.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I didn't mean that! What I really meant was something I could legally publish, like Shakespeare, Austen, or for that matter, Doctor Who or Star Trek.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank goodness! I get pretty concerned when I hear a fanwriter say that fanfiction is illegal; there's no reason that we should help the copyright owners by squashing our own freedoms for them. :D

What you need to do, then, is file the serial numbers off: write Avatar fic. I suspect that's what I may do, if I ever get around to it.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I am considering that.

And sorry if it wasn't obvious; I saw on the link that the books started as fanfic.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Not at all; I probably overreacted. Legality of fanfic is one of the very few issues I care enough about to, er, rush in where angels fear to tread, so to speak.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Have you read "Northanger Abbey"? It muxt be the first novel ever to have a fangirl as its heroine (her fandom being the gothic romances of the period).

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

As a teenager I have to renew my acquaintance with it (I have all the novels) as I recorded several British films over the holidays and that was one.

Don Quixote was also a huge fanboy, and that precedes it. :-)

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

True. But I can pedantically point out that I said "first fangirl". :)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Also true!

[pinkdormouse.livejournal.com]

Shall look out for those. Thanks for the rec.

[reveilles.livejournal.com]

Yes, I read these online as she was writing them, and I bought them as soon as they were available. Great depth and original characters!

[kerravonsen]

I read these online as she was writing them
Really? Lucky you! So can you tell me where the Austen-fic writers hang out?
And do you know if she is writing any sequels?

[reveilles.livejournal.com]

The two that I had found were Pamela Aidan's website, Austenesque, and The Republic of Pemberley. I didn't get that deep into the fandom, since once I'd found her series, my itched was well scratched. :)

[kerravonsen]

Thanks!

[reveilles.livejournal.com]

I also recommend The Jane Austen Book Club. It's got a wonderful sense of humour and a deep love of Austen. Even jcobleigh liked it, and he's not nearly as into Austen as I am. (I haven't seen the movie, though, and it doesn't look like a very faithful adaption of the book.)

[kerravonsen]

Noted.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I am now part-way through the first book. It's very well-written, save for the said-phobia of so many American writers (didn't she notice that Austen had no problem with that innocent little word, and would never have used "intoned" or "offered"?) and poor editing, if any at all (apostrophes in random plurals, and other typos). Nevertheless, I am very much enjoying Darcy and his reaction to the appalling Bingley sisters. I'd wondered why he didn't reprove their rudeness, but that he felt constrained not to as a guest makes a lot of sense.

My library has the other two, so I shall work my way through them. I'm especially looking forward to the middle one when he's so absent in P&P, so will be able to do strike off in unexpected directions.

[kerravonsen]

Some people disliked the middle book, and in some ways it is the weakest of the three, but I still enjoyed it.