The Barrister's Bride

By: Suzan Lauder

Narrated by: Scott Fleming

A pact that will change their lives forever….

Fitzwilliam Darcy is a successful young barrister with a bright future. His late uncle has guided his career, made him his heir, and even selected a bride for him—sight unseen—whom he’ll meet and marry upon her majority. Who could have predicted that making the acquaintance of Miss Elizabeth Bennet in Meryton would throw those careful plans into disarray?

Elizabeth Bennet doesn’t know what to make of “Fitz” Darcy, who intrigues and draws her notice like no other. Despite Fitzwilliam’s warnings, she allows Mr. George Darcy, Fitzwilliam’s older brother and master of Pemberley, to charm her. Little does she know that she, too, has been promised in marriage by her late father—to an unknown barrister, no less. What is she to do when her hopes to marry for love disappear in the blink of an eye?

Is George Darcy’s suit in earnest? Can this mysterious bridegroom of her father’s choosing become the husband of her dreams? With the danger of duels and deceits, what will come of the initial attraction between her and Fitzwilliam? Will she become the barrister’s bride?

Note: Contains scenes with adult content.

©2022 Suzan Lauder (P)2022 Suzan Lauder

Good “Second Son” Trope

Scott Fleming is a new-to-me narrator. I love his voice and I thought is performance was very well done. I wouldn’t hesitate to listen to another by him. My initial Goodreads/Amazon book review thoughts and impressions remain the same for the audiobook.

Book Review:
I like the “second son” trope, so was very anxious to read this book. For the most part, I wasn’t disappointed, as without a doubt Suzan Lauder is a great writer and I have enjoyed her books. This one is no exception. I thought it was a good story, and started out great, but as it proceeded, I found it became a bit wordy and lagged some at times.

The portrayals of scoundrels was very well done. I loved to hate them.

Alas, this Elizabeth really annoyed me at times. For example, I didn’t like her air of pretense with her great entrance down the stairs at the Gardiners. Elizabeth’s character has never struck me as being “fake”, but this little episode struck me as just that. Moreover, while I admit she lacked all the details of his past wrongs, I couldn’t quite get past her gullibility toward Wickham, especially once she was betrothed and was aware of Darcy’s dislike for him. I don’t like a “stupid” Elizabeth and some of her actions with both Georges made me think she was, and, primarily in view of the fact that she’d been given plenty of warning with respect to their characters.

I did love this Darcy. I wished he would just tell Elizabeth all about Wickham instead of putting it off, but then we wouldn’t have been treated to certain facer he had the privilege of awarding the reprobate! I loved the early passion Darcy had for Elizabeth. Oh, the struggle he had knowing he was already betrothed and falling for a woman he could never have. Poor man! What a lovely surprise the future held. The mature content was well expressed.

Great saga

This was a very interesting take on Pride and Prejudice. How the circumstances was so different for both of them. Great Jaff.

My Toes Were Curling Inside My Slippers

Although I'm not a huge fan of this genre, the rich language & intricate storyline mesmerized me.

Characters not true to Austen. Atrocious narrator.

The storyline is farfetched and veers miles away from P and P. The narration makes Darcy sound like a flamboyant fop and Elizabeth a missish mouse. I think someone took all of the characters and a few extra, placed them in a sack, pulled them out randomly, and then "Frankensteined" them into a plot.