Product Description

The third book in the bestselling Pride and Prejudice sequel series from Australia.

"A very readable and believable tale for readers who like their romance with a historical flavor."
Book News

Love, betrayal, and changing times for the Darcys and the Bingleys

Three generations of the Darcy and the Bingley families evolve against a backdrop of the political ideals and social reforms of the mid-Victorian era.

Jonathan Bingley, the handsome, distinguished son of Charles and Jane Bingley, takes center stage, returning to Hertfordshire as master of Netherfield Park. A deeply passionate and committed man, Jonathan is immersed in the joys and heartbreaks of his friends and family and his own challenging marriage. At the same time, he is swept up in the changes of the world around him.

Netherfield Park Revisited combines captivating details of life in mid-Victorian England with the ongoing saga of Jane Austen's beloved Pride and Prejudice characters.

"Ms. Collins has done it again!"
- Beverly Wong, author of Pride & Prejudice Prudence

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #59233 in Books
• Published on: 2008-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781402211553
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Booklist
It’s hard to keep track of all the various Jane Austen knockoffs and sequels. This one is part 3 of the Pemberley Chronicles, which follow the Bennet sisters post–Pride and Prejudice. The focus here is on Jane’s son Jonathan, now 42 years old and married to Amanda-Jane, daughter of Elizabeth’s old friend Charlotte Collins. Jonathan wants to pursue a career in politics, but Amanda-Jane feels neglected, and matters are made worse when she objects to his purchase of Netherfield Park, the house that brought Misters Bingley and Darcy into the Bennet sisters’ orbit so many years ago. Meanwhile, Jonathan finds himself drawn to the artistic and attractive Anna Faulkner. Readers looking for the sparkle of Pride and Prejudice will find instead a Victorian earnestness, but Collins deserves credit for not straying too far from the original characters and story. Buy for readers who love the Austen continuation subgenre. --Mary Ellen Quinn

About the Author
Rebecca Ann Collins is the pen name of a lady in Australia who loves Jane Austen's work so much that she has written a series of 10 sequels to Pride and Prejudice, following Austen's beloved characters, introducing new ones and bringing the characters into a new historical era. Thoroughly researched and beautifully written, this series has been extremely successful in Australia with over 80,000 books sold.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from Part One

1859

IF JONATHAN BINGLEY HAD not previously recognised that there was developing a serious problem that threatened his happiness and the stability of his marriage, he was certainly made aware of it as they returned to Rosings Park.

Throughout the journey, Amelia-Jane remained seated on the opposite side of the carriage to her husband, rather pointedly placing their youngest daughter Cathy, who was nine, and her lady's maid between them. She also insisted that the blinds be drawn down on her side of the vehicle, so as to preserve her, she claimed, from suffering another severe headache on account of the glare.

Their two eldest children, Charles and Anne-Marie, had already returned to their respective educational establishments on the previous day. Jonathan knew that they, like him, were uneasy about their mother's changing moods and uneven temper, for indeed, of late, she had changed greatly from the vivacious, light-hearted girl he had married and the easy-going, compliant mother they had known.

Jonathan was very troubled indeed; troubled and grieved. He had, at first, attributed the change to the loss of their two little boys, Francis and Thomas, born two years apart, both of whom had not survived longer than a year after birth. The terrible trauma of their deaths had affected all of them, but it had affected his wife more deeply and for a longer period because, with her elder children away from home and his own work keeping him busy, she seemed to find no solace at all.

Understanding the weight of the blow she had suffered, Jonathan had tried to reach and console her, but had failed repeatedly. Each time he tried to comfort her, she seemed to retreat even further into her own grief or break into heart-wrenching sobs. She was reluctant to talk of the children to anyone and, if pressed, would take ill and retire to bed.

Jonathan was too loyal a husband to breathe a word of this to his mother, who knew only that Amelia was still deeply distressed following the death of their sons.

The problem, however, continued to plague them and had recently worsened. Though devoted to his wife and family, Jonathan found it increasingly difficult to keep it to himself and finally sought his sister Emma's advice.

The opportunity to do so presented itself quite fortuitously, when some weeks later, his brother-in-law James Wilson, a long-standing and dedicated member of the Reform Group in Parliament, wrote inviting Jonathan to dine with him at his club in London. He had, he wrote, an interesting political proposition to put to him.

Jonathan, who had spent some twelve years in Parliament representing a constituency in the Midlands, had left the House of Commons some seven years ago, tired and bored with the bickering and dissension that had, in his opinion, opened the way for the Tories and set back Parliamentary Reform for a decade.

Thanks to the recommendation of Mr Darcy, he had been appointed by Lady Catherine de Bourgh to take over the management of her vast estate and business affairs - a prestigious position which included a very pleasant house in Rosings Park.

Others may have felt that the task of reporting regularly to Lady Catherine and being on hand whenever she felt the need for congenial company was too high a price to pay for the modest remuneration offered, but Jonathan, being an amiable and easy-going young man, had not been unduly troubled by Her Ladyship's demands upon his time.

The move to Kent had meant that Amelia-Jane, who had felt very isolated in Derbyshire, had found herself drawn into a new social circle, in which she seemed to find some enjoyment. There was also the very great advantage of being settled near Hunsford, the parsonage where her sister Mrs Catherine Harrison lived. Catherine provided invaluable support to Amelia-Jane when she needed help with the children, and, more than her mother or her husband, it was to Catherine that Amelia-Jane had turned for comfort following the loss of her sons.

Practical and mature, Catherine had been better able to cope with her younger sister's demands. Jonathan had seen clearly the advantage of their situation. More recently though, he had begun to feel restless; irritated by the superficiality of the social round at Rosings Park, he had begun to miss the involvement in politics and the brisk jostling of ideas in the public arena of Parliament. Which was why he had accepted James Wilson's invitation; there had been a promise of something interesting to do.

James, an active member of the Reformists, had insisted that Jonathan should maintain his membership and interest in the party.

"You are far too young to give up on politics, Jonathan," he had said. "We may yet have you back in the Commons, one day." And when Jonathan had modestly pointed out that it might not be easy to get back in, James had laughed and assured him that "room could always be found for a good man." (20080901)

Customer Reviews

Better and Better, Ms. COllins!
Netherfield Park Revisited brings us back once again to the familiar haunts of Hertfordshire, Kent, London, and Derbyshire. In this volume, young Jonathan Bingley has grown into a fine man, an excellent father, and an earnest if imperfect husband. Like his mother Jane, Jonathan sees only the good in those he loves. And like Jane he strives to please everyone. Unfortunately, his ability to be all things to all people proves faulty. And we are then witnesses to a sad and crumbling marriage as well as of the concentric ripples of pain which emanate from it, engulfing his children, his parents, and even Darcy and Elizabeth.

However, before we can sink too far into melancholy, our author presents us (as she has in her previous books) with yet more proof of the remarkable resiliency of the human spirit. Despite his sadness, Jonathan never loses hope that better times will come, and he continues to seek the good in all around him. Jonathan's spirits are continually shored-up by the strong and caring women in his life, including his mother, his aunt Lizzy, his eldest daughter, Anne-Marie Bingley, and a new character - Miss Anna Faulkner - whose strength and friendship open up new worlds for him. Jonathan's reward is a second chance at happiness, and that candle, once lit, warms the souls of many.

This time our story is set not against a backdrop of political change (although it continues to take place), but rather the changing movements in European art and culture. The Impressionist painters are making their way onto the art scene. It is no surprise that the traditionalists are unable to appreciate the interpretive lines of this new school. The realism of their age is giving way to the ideas, as expressed through Impressionism, that nothing is perfect and nothing is strictly good or bad. Rather, most things are open to interpretation, and most things are as changeable as the shifting of light and shadow. Netherfield Park Revisited is a beautiful story about imperfections - even in those whose lives seem perfectly charmed. Okay, Ms. Collins... I'm hooked. What's next in the saga?

Well written, but read the Chronicles in order!
The Synopsis
Netherfield Park Revisisted takes up the story of Jonathan Bingley, the forty-two year old son of Charles Bingley and Jane Bennett. (Yes, Jane and Lizzie are grandmothers in this novel!). The time is the mid 19th-century and the winds of political change are sweeping through England. The reform movement is well underway and Jonathan is to play a pivotal role. But Jonathan's marriage is disintegrating and it is his quiet strength, so very much like his mother Jane, that will bring him through the intrigues and even betrayals that try his spirit. Through it all, many familiar Austen characters make recurring and enjoyable appearances; their lives, too, are effected by the events that take place.

By not reading the first book in the series, I missed out on the first quarter-century of Darcy and Lizzy's marriage, which was covered in The Pemberely Chronicles: A Companion Volume to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. This in itself would be of little importance were it not for the recurring references to that time period throughout the novel. The result was a frustrating reading experience as I was continually obliged to fill in the gaps with not enough information to adequately do so.

There can be no doubt, though, that author Rebecca Ann Collins has the enviable talent of writing in Jane Austen's own voice. She admirably attempts to maintain the spirit of Pride and Prejudice and by and large succeeds. The original Pride and Prejudice characters who weave their way in and out of Jonathan's life are true to character - a tribute to the respect the author accords Ms. Austen.

The sheer volume of characters, however, led me to pull out a notebook and create a pedigree chart in order to keep them all straight. The convoluted politics of the time, however, are succinctly presented and illuminating for the reader -- I enjoyed that particular facet of the novel most of all. Ms. Collins demonstrates skillful navigation of the political eddies of the times and the social changes that were sweeping through Europe.

The Recommendation
If you enjoyed the tone of Jane Austen's original works, you'll enjoy the work of Rebecca Ann Collins. I would suggest, however, that you start with Book 1 of The Pemberely Chronicles and read them in order so as to avoid the confusion and frustration I experienced by jumping into the series mid-stream. I refuse to give up on this book, however, and fully intend to read it once again after obtaining the first two books. If the previous two books of the series are as well written as Netherfield Park Revisited, it should be a much more enjoyable read.

Netherfield Park Revisited
Just love this series! As one reviewer advised take a moment before you start to read these sequels in order...can definitely understand why one
reviewer would be totally lost because Rebecca Ann Collins not only satisfies the desire for "and then what happened" but she adds tons of new
characters, various offspring and relations so in that sense it's more like Jane Austin meets The Forsythe Saga. Just love Kindle 2 because without being able to download a sample I'd have been skeptical of ordering this series...after the sample I was hooked.