This is the 2nd Jane Odiwe book I've read, and I must say, it is miles above the first. In
this novel, "Lydia Bennet's Story," Jane Austen fans like myselfwill find a believable
story told in a voice that seems very much to be Lydia Bennet's. For those unfamiliar
with "Pride and Prejudice", the Austen novel that gave birth to the Bennet family of
characters, Lydia is the youngest and silliest sister, whose dilemma causes Elizabeth
Bennet, the heroine, much shame and worry. In that novel, Lydia runs offwith a George
Wickham, who happens to be a boy who grew up with Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the
character with whom Elizabeth is in love. Wickham is a devious and devilish rake, who
has already tried to seduce Darcy's sister in order to get a bite of the Darcy fortune, to
which he feels he is entitled. In the original Austen novel, it is always confusing for
readers (at least for me), why Wickham would have run away with Lydia, since her
family is not wealthy and not well placed. This novel makes the circumstances clear.
Readers of Austen would expect that Lydia would have a very unhappy life married to
such a bad man, and Odiwe shows that to be the case here, as Mr. Wickham does not stop
his spendthrift or skirt-chasing ways, much to Lydia's shame. She leaves him to spend
time with her family, when who should turn up? Wickham, dressed like a bum, being
chased by a woman who is proven to be his first and hence legal wife. Although Lydia's
discomfort should increase, since she has been living with a man who was not her
husband despite their sham wedding. Instead, she is relieved to be rid of the bum, and in
the end, it is all happily resolved, as Lydia findSa suitor (a clergyman, yet!) who loves
her untamed nature and honesty.
This was an very enjoyable book to read, and I love the way Odiwe captures Lydia's
essence by writing in diary form as well as the usual narration. It gives a real voice to
Lydia, and shows the reader how the irrepressible girl finally is humbled and matured by
the events of her life. While I was not enchanted with Odiwe's take on Willoughby and
Marianne, characters from Austen's "Sense and Sensibility," here she is pitch perfect,
and I can't imagine a better telling of Lydia's life post-marriage. In this work, she is a
match for any of the best authors writing in the post-Austen novel space, including
Amanda Grange. Entertaining and well-written. Bravo!
Submitted by Gerti
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