Enthralling variation and awesome narration

This second instalment of Maria Grace’s variation on Pride and Prejudice, ‘Longbourn: Dragon Entail’, is just as enthralling as the first book. The descriptions of the dragons’ characters, their individual quirks and their behaviour towards each other as well as towards the various humans are so delightfully vivid. I particularly had a strong urge to hug Pemberley as much as possible and to wish that something very nasty would befall Longbourn, the selfish, self-centred, overbearing and bullying brute.

Whilst the loose framework of Pride & Prejudice is there, as are the various characters, Grace embellishes it so fantastically with the additions of the dragons and dragon lore that she creates her own masterpiece. Various original characters take on larger roles in this alternative universe and we see a lot more interaction between Elizabeth and Darcy because of the need for both of them to care for Pemberley. Some of the P&P dialogue I love so well is reassigned to other characters but it makes total sense because of the way that the alternative plot develops.

Once again, Benjamin Fife does an awesome job with the narration of the Audible book. His vocal repertoire is superb and brings all the characters to life – dragons and humans alike. I’ve listened to this and the first book twice over already, they are so entertaining. I am eager to hear the third and final instalment, ‘Netherfield: Rogue Dragon’.

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Another outstanding installment.

Another wonderfully narrated story from Maria Grace. I'm starting to believe that Benjamin Fife is part dragon as he brings to life the dozens of dragonkin we have encountered in this story!

It is well written and each chapter will leave you wanting 5 more minutes. Can't wait for book 3!

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The series continues with a strong book

So the series continues with a slightly less strong book than the first, but very strong still. In this one we get to see more of the dragon world (which I find fascinating) and a lot more of baby Pemberley (which I aprecciated a lot, even if it is sad that the narrator makes her sound like a scary creature from an horror movie). The timeline starts to diverge from the original and I found it a little confusing and also felt that Darcy's feelings appeared out of nowhere (was I the one who wasn't paying attention? Maybe..).
The narrator became less irritating when I listened at 1.5 time but I still didn't like the narration.

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Heartmelting & vibrantly enticing dragon fun!!

I am really enjoying this mash-up of Pride and Prejudice with all it's fascinating intrigue, intricate imaginings, engaging plotline and endearing draconic shenanigans.
A lingering air of mischief, threat and scheming soaks the air, while secrets, misunderstandings, revelations and betrayals emerge as each new and familiar scaly-feathered beasty burrows deeper into my affection, touches a chord and - dare I say - comes alive to such a personified degree they seem believable, easy to relate to and effective at pulling at my emotions, like beloved family pets, with all their whims, antics and distinctive characteristics and mannerisms. I found my self chuckling, smiling, harumphing (yes, harumphing) in frustration and indignation and even shedding tears!

Following on directly from where book 1 (Pemberley: Mr Darcy's Dragon) left off, Elizabeth is moving ever closer to sacrificing her future happiness for the good of Longbourn by marrying the 'dragon-deaf' Collins. I'm delighted to say Grace deliciously sashays further away from the distinctive framework of P&P in this book, while still retaining it's spirit, with unpredictable and compelling results. I must admit I loved each added surprise and subtle change especially the major one pertaining to Mary. Hearing the many recognisable quotes really put a smile on my face. I just loved how Grace played with their deliverance and took delightful liberty with who says them and when.
The second half of the book was the most enjoyable for me as the pace quickens, emotions heighten and rollercoaster and tensions charge the air as Darcy and Elizabeth are finally reunitied.
As Elizabeth struggles with the confusing enigma that is Darcy, the musings, reflections and wit infused banter entwined in their shared journey, and her desire to free herself of her prideful blindnesses and prejudices, delightfully becomes more highly addictive in it's hearing and emotionally ensnaring to experience. Especially as Darcy increasingly becomes more and more enamored and admiring of Elizabeth to the point of ardent yearning.

Truly heart warming read that effortlessly sweeps you along and hooks it's talons into you until you become wholeheartedly invested. Helped further by Fife's consistency as a narrator and ability to make the words leap and swirl into life. Loved it - now straight onto it's conclusion in book 3, can't wait!!

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Longbourn the dragon is such a grumpy old Dragon.

I definitely enjoy dragon stories, where the dragons actually have character rather than just being a bunch of evil, magical creatures with foul tempers and not much else to them.

I have enjoyed listening to little Pemberley so much. She is so cute, granted I think she may have picked up a bit of Longbourn's petulence and entitled attitude while in his liar just after she hatched, but then again it could have been picked up from a variety of characters including Lady Cathrine and her daughter Ann.
At least she is not as prone to temper tantrums as either of the afore mentioned characters; and if she were, she is still just a baby.

I can wait to find out what happens in the next book with the Rogue dragon, and if Mr. Darcy and his cousin can find Lydia before something terrible happens.

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The contrariness of dragons doth rile relations

An overbearing dragon's contrariness and a stifling suiter send dragon keeper, Elizabeth dashing away in fright. But where there is one overbearing dragon there are others more willing to cherish the keeper, including a smitten Mr. Darcy. This interweaving of Pride and Prejudice and dragons is truly amazing. I've gone from the first directly into the second and can't wait to continue with the third in this tale.

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part two of a great tale.

continuing the story of Elizabeth's life in dragon-infested England, there is a great balance of character development and story pace, as trouble keeps increasing and draconic law throws another spanner in everyone's plans.

narration is amazing, worth great character voices and perfect pacing, Benjamin Fife manages to really bring the characters alive and it is much easier to follow with all characters being easily seperated by voice/afflection and modification alone.

my only complaint is that the book ended sooner than i wanted and i am looking forward to book 3!

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A wonderful novel

Another superb book by this author, this novel carries on this wonderful series directly after the previous book. Again the author has done a brilliant job of capturing Jane Austen's style with the seamless addition of the dragons. This book has a slightly darker feel especially in Longbourn's and her father's treatment of Elizabeth. Narration is again perfect with some excellent new voices both for dragons and humans
I was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review

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Fantastic Second Installment

I loved the first book in this series so much that I had to immediately purchase the second one, and I was not disappointed. The standard of writing and narration are as close to perfection as the first installment. Maria Grace continues her treatise on dragons and dragon lore, using Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship as the backdrop and the Bennet family as her foil for the dragons.

As with the first novel it is a written with style and a definite sense of respect for the original work, following the story without compromising on either the dragons or the interplay between Elizabeth, Darcy and Wickham. The introduction of Pemberley was a key aspect in bringing Elizabeth and Darcy together for long enough to allow their characters the opportunity to bite and snap at each other as they do in the original novel, but also to add a twist in the tale.

I do not want to give anything away about the plots of either this story or its predecessor as I believe a reader/listener should be able to make an informed decision on their own without thinking when is that going to happen.

All I can say is the narration is once again a lovely thing, the dragon voices are so distinctive that I know who is talking as soon as I hear the voice he uses. It is not easy to provide different voices for so many characters and it is not always done perfectly, but it is close to that for me.

I am looking forward to listening to the third book in the series, which I have sitting in my library. I hope it is as good as the previous two.

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A wonderful second instalment

This is book two of Maria Grace's Jane Austen's Dragons series and follows directly on from book one Pemberley: Mr Darcy's Dragon. If you chose to listen to the entire series, the reading order should be book four, A Proper Introduction to Dragons, then books one, two and three. You need to read books one, two and three to get the entire story.
This combines a Pride and Prejudice variation, with fantasy about dragons. It will appeal to both JAFF readers and fans of fantasy.

Set in a Regency England with a large population of dragons. This book continues directly on from Pemberley: Mr Darcy's Dragon. At the end of the first book, the stolen firedrake egg is recovered. The baby dragon, Pemberley has benefited from the care of both Elizabeth and Darcy. Elizabeth is devoted to Pemberley and is devastated when Mr Darcy takes her away to the care of an adult firedrake, at Lady Catherine De Bourgh estate, Rosings.

Her distress is made worse by the presence of Mr Collins, the heir to Longbourn. Not only is her mother pushing her to marry him, her father and the dragon Longbourn are also pressuring her. Collins is dragon deaf and cannot be left in charge of the estate, without a dragon hearing keeper as his wife. It is the law, that the estate dragon has the right to arrange the marriages of keepers. Elizabeth has heard that the law may soon be changed, which gives her hope. The local dragons hate Collins because although he cannot hear dragons, he seems to have a prejudice against them and is cruel to the animals they are pretending to be. Eventually it becomes too much for Elizabeth and she flees to her aunt in London.

Meanwhile, Darcy is at Rosings, trying to look after baby Pemberley and fend off Lady Catherine and her machinations. When Pemberley becomes unwell and the De Bourghs only make things worse, Darcy has letters sent to Elizabeth to ask for help. he receives no answer, unaware that she has left Longbourn.

The main characters are Elizabeth Bennet, Fitzwilliam Darcy and Pemberley the dragon. Elizabeth and Darcy come to a closer understanding. Mr Collins is even more unpleasant than usual. Mr Wickham is typically self-serving, seeking a way to obtain money and power from knowledge about dragons. Mr Bennet continues to be an exceedingly disappointing father and Longbourn the dragon is grumpy, selfish and devious.

This is an excellent story. Complex and involved plot, with a surprising conclusion. You will be keen to move on to book three. I would recommend it to all fans of JAFF and fantasy.

This whole series is narrated by Benjamin Fife. His narration is very good, his voice warm and pleasing to listen to. His female voices are convincing and his dragon voices are excellent.

I look forward to more stories by Maria Grace.

I received a free copy of this audiobook via StoryOrigin and am voluntarily leaving a review. All views expressed are my own.

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