I have a confession to make. I've never read Jane Austin.
I've seen a few of the movies based on her books, and I love
reading Regency romances. I just never actually read the
originals. So, I can't compare author Sharon Lathan's
Austin-inspired Darcy family stories to the classic Pride
and Prejudice.
THE PASSIONS OF DR. DARCY is the latest of Lathan's books
inspired by Austin's characters. It follows the most famous
Mr. Darcy's uncle, George Darcy, as he travels abroad to
work for the East India Company. The book covers decades of
his life, including excerpts from his journals as well as
third-person narrative of his adventures, so in many ways
it's more like a series of vignettes or a travelogue rather
than a novel. The characters and situations are interesting,
the descriptions of India and of both English and Indian
medical practices of the time, fascinating. However, I never
found the book what I would call compelling -- a story I
couldn't put down in anticipation of what would happen next.
Occasionally, I had a little trouble figuring out how much
time had passed from scene to scene.
I'm not a prude when it comes to my reading choices, but I
must say I found the explicit sex scenes a bit jarring.
After all, these are books hearkening after a beloved 19th
century author, who I cannot imagine described which bit
went where when the characters went to bed.
I would recommend THE PASSIONS OF DR. DARCY to readers who
enjoy a novel that's more historical fiction than romance,
and who don't mind following the characters behind closed
doors.
George Darcy is the second son of a wealthy landowner in
Georgian Era England and, at 22, is considered to be a
brilliant, rising star in England's field of medicine. Dr.
Darcy refuses the easy, comfortable pathway and enlists as
a physician with the British East India Company, embarking
on a personal quest, where he strives to change the face of
medicine while yearning to fill the void left within his
soul at the death of his twin. His search for family,
enduring love, and lost companionship is a quest not wholly
realized until his return to England and Pemberley thirty
years later. It is there that a new generation of family
and friends will heal the physician, and to his greatest
surprise, the true love of his life awaits.
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