As you can see I am very happy with reading books by Mrs. Aston. She has a great way of bringing her characters to life while not traveling far from the Darcy’s. This was my third book in the Everything Austen Challenge.
Octavia Darcy was Mr. Darcy’s second wife – Christopher Darcy – a cousin of The Darcy’s. Upon his death she decides to head back to
ded. In
Just when it seems her future is looking up, a snag in her hopes becomes known. We are revisited by the spiteful George Warren (From the Exploits and Adventures of Miss Alethea Darcy), who is out to make Octavia’s life miserable while increasing his fortune. Luckily she has a very important man on her side, Lord Rutherford. Though they met on some very unreasonable and not so nice terms, he helps her through this match with
Again, the ending was expected but the twists and turns made it well worth the read. I was very satisfied with this book and would love to make it part of my home collection.
This was my second book in the Everything Austen challenge. In Pride and Prejudice,
to accompany her sister to
As with most of the novels I have read my Mrs. Aston, the endings are very nearly the same but it’s the meat of the book that makes it so interesting. I knew what would happen but there are always some twists and turns that keep you guessing if it really WILL happen or if you will be left startled that something else did.
I was very happy with the ending if this book and looked forward to reading the next one on my list for this challenge.
This was my first book in the Civil War Challenge (remember I modified it since I started it 6 months behind schedule). I have mixed feelings about the book as of now. I certainly enjoyed reading about the American solider in battle and what he feels and thinks, but at the same time I had a hard time really getting into it. 
This was my first book in the Everything Austen Challenge. It was a great book! I had previously read Elizabeth Ashton's book "Mr. Darcy's Daughters" and loved it. Though I found that one to be a bit difficult to get into, this one hooked me with page one. I had found Alethea to be rather vibrant and appealing in the first novel and was eager to read all about her in a book dedicated entirely to herself.
I was excited for this book until I saw that it was a bibliography. I am not a fan of them but decided I would give it a go. At first it was great reading; I was intrigued and excited to learn about Isabella Medici. However, as the book wore on it became less about her and more about her male relatives. Mainly her husband Paolo Giordano Orsini and her eldest brother Francesco Medici.Isabella as a person also intrigued me. She maintained her independence even though she was married to a prince from
As you can see the beginning of the book delighted me. However, after her father’s death, my interest began to waver. There was a lot of talk about battles and wars and diplomacy. The book needs these particulars in order to allow the reader to understand the world in which Isabella lived in, but they did not keep my attention. I struggled to finish and skipped over many parts that did not catch my eye.
Towards the end it picks back up as the deaths of Isabella and her best friend, and sister in law, Leonora are discussed. Both were murdered (hence the title of the book), though the exact details are not known.
All in all it was a fairly good book and I give it 3 pens.
