Helpful Score: 2
Originally posted at: http://theirishbanana.blogspot.com/
I know Im totally going against the grain here, but I truly did not like this book. I desperately wanted to, but I just couldnt. I will admit that Ive never read Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice, but I am familiar with the storyline. And honestly, I feel like now Ive read it.
Heres what I did like: I liked the way Eulberg managed to weave all the characters from Austens novel into this. Her ability to keep the original names of the characters in her updated version amused me (Mr. Collins is now Colin, a drab but sweet boy who is mostly clueless). The idea of the storyline itself is golden, and I love the idea of a modern retelling of a class April Lindners Jane was one of my favorite reads this year. However, I felt Eulberg fell short when it came to executing the dialogue and setting the scene.
It was apparent within the first few chapters that this wasnt your typical YA book because of the lines the characters spoke. I have never known a teenage girl to ever use the word daft in everyday speech unless reading from a book aloud in class. The characters spoke like they had been transplanted from the 1800s into the modern age. I have a very hard time finding a book enjoyable when I know that this isnt how teenagers talk (and I dont mean in a Dawsons Creek kind of way). Eulberg also didnt take the time to explain her settings. Characters walked through blank rooms, speaking contrived lines that, quite frankly, got annoying after a while. I also am not a fan of the insta-romance. It seemed like Elizabeth and Darcy fell for each other in the span of 20 pages. There were mentionings of them taking walks together, but that was it. The reader isnt privy to these chats, so it makes their love seem abrupt and disjointed.
In all, it almost felt like a high school creative writing assignment. Like a teacher handed a student a classic and said, Here. Read this and rewrite it for your generation. The potential was there, and despite the lack of setting and weak dialogue, Eulberg is a good writer. But think this story would have benefitted from another 100-200 pages more to flesh out the story.
I know Im totally going against the grain here, but I truly did not like this book. I desperately wanted to, but I just couldnt. I will admit that Ive never read Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice, but I am familiar with the storyline. And honestly, I feel like now Ive read it.
Heres what I did like: I liked the way Eulberg managed to weave all the characters from Austens novel into this. Her ability to keep the original names of the characters in her updated version amused me (Mr. Collins is now Colin, a drab but sweet boy who is mostly clueless). The idea of the storyline itself is golden, and I love the idea of a modern retelling of a class April Lindners Jane was one of my favorite reads this year. However, I felt Eulberg fell short when it came to executing the dialogue and setting the scene.
It was apparent within the first few chapters that this wasnt your typical YA book because of the lines the characters spoke. I have never known a teenage girl to ever use the word daft in everyday speech unless reading from a book aloud in class. The characters spoke like they had been transplanted from the 1800s into the modern age. I have a very hard time finding a book enjoyable when I know that this isnt how teenagers talk (and I dont mean in a Dawsons Creek kind of way). Eulberg also didnt take the time to explain her settings. Characters walked through blank rooms, speaking contrived lines that, quite frankly, got annoying after a while. I also am not a fan of the insta-romance. It seemed like Elizabeth and Darcy fell for each other in the span of 20 pages. There were mentionings of them taking walks together, but that was it. The reader isnt privy to these chats, so it makes their love seem abrupt and disjointed.
In all, it almost felt like a high school creative writing assignment. Like a teacher handed a student a classic and said, Here. Read this and rewrite it for your generation. The potential was there, and despite the lack of setting and weak dialogue, Eulberg is a good writer. But think this story would have benefitted from another 100-200 pages more to flesh out the story.
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