Mr. Darcy, Vampyre

August 3, 2009
Grange (Mr. Darcy's Diary) continues Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, beginning on Darcy and Elizabeth's wedding day and follows the two on their honeymoon trip to Paris, the Alps and Venice during a lull in the Napoleonic Wars. Told from Elizabeth's point of view, the story is about her expanding horizons as she leaves the sheltered life she led at Netherfield for her new world as a wife and a traveler outside England. Darcy's continued lack of physical attention to Elizabeth makes her realize that something isn't quite right, but the clues provided in the text are too subtle for her to figure out his secret. By the time Darcy reveals his true nature, more than two thirds of the way through the book, Elizabeth is able to accept his announcement (which she sees as less disturbing than her more mundane fears), but its impact on the reader is greatly diluted by the revealing title. Grange manages to capture the period in a manner that will appeal to Austen fans, but vampire fans are likely to be disappointed.

August 1, 2009
The sequels and continuations of Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice are almost too numerous to count, but 2009 has offered ghoulish spins on the beloved novel, first with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and now with this entry, which reimagines Elizabeth Bennets beloved Mr. Darcy as a noble bloodsucker. Elizabeths wedding is everything she hoped for, but after theyre married Darcy opts for the Continent instead of the Lake District for their honeymoon. More troubling: though hes as affectionate as ever to Elizabeth during the day, he parts ways from her at night, and the marriage remains unconsummated. Making their way through France, into the Alps, and Italy, Elizabeth starts to wonder about her husbands mysterious friendsand questions his love for her. Though Elizabeth is uncharacteristically and frustratingly placid and incurious about her husbands reserve and his determination to drag her all around Europe, theres some novelty to be found in the idea that Mr. Darcys forbidding nature has to do with a dark secret hes keeping. Vampires are all the rage now, so expect interest.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)