When Darcy Listens to His Head and Not His Heart

by Mary Lydon Simonsen, guest blogger and author of A Wife for Mr. Darcy

Hi Keira and LRP readers! It’s nice to be back at Love Romance and Passion. You have asked me to write about my latest novel, A Wife for Mr. Darcy, and the fact that Darcy initially listens to his head and not his heart. Here is a brief summary of the book.

Darcy, who is nearing 30, decides that now is the time to think about finding a wife so that he might produce an heir, and he has settled on a young woman, Letitia Montford. Even though Letitia is everything an accomplished woman of the Regency Era should be, she does not engage his heart, and once Darcy goes to Hertfordshire and meets Elizabeth Bennet, he realizes that he has made a big mistake. But the damage has been done. Because Darcy has paid sufficient attention to Miss Montford during the London Season, there is speculation that this handsome bachelor will make an offer to the lady. One of those making such an assumption is Letitia’s social-climbing father. Although they are not engaged, there are expectations.

Although I love writing Jane Austen re-imaginings, my first love is history, and I try to be accurate in all my books (except the parodies—and then all bets are off). During the Regency Era, Darcy would have been in a real predicament because Letitia’s father wants the marriage and feels Darcy’s intentions were implicit if not explicit. Darcy, being an honorable man, feels pressure to make Letitia an offer. Fortunately, there are busy-bodies working on their behalf. But as for our lovers, Darcy and Elizabeth, social mores of the time pretty much have them hog-tied, and they can only hope that the behind-the-scenes maneuvering of their friends and families will achieve the desired result.

This is not an unfamiliar situation to readers of Jane Austen. When Charles Bingley returns to London without writing so much as a word of explanation about his reasons for leaving Hertfordshire, Jane Bennet cannot write to him. The best she can do is to go to London and hope that their paths cross. In Sense And Sensibility, Edward Ferrars faces an even more difficult predicament. Although he loves Elinor Dashwood, he is secretly engaged to Lucy Steele, and only Miss Steele can break the engagement. Unfortunately, for Elinor and Edward, she is not inclined to do so. In Persuasion, Anne Elliot suspects that Captain Wentworth has come to Bath to see her, but she must remain silent even though he keeps jumping to the wrong conclusions and very nearly ruins everything.

A modern woman would find it difficult just to sit tight while events came to her. She would phone, text, hop in the car, rent a billboard, hire a detective. But middle- and upper-class women of the Regency Era were prevented from doing anything because of social conventions. Although the path to Darcy and Elizabeth’s happily-ever-after ending is rocky—it has to be or it would make for a very short novel—in the end, the lovers walk/ride off into the sunset holding hands.

What do you think about these social conventions? Would you have been able to hold your tongue as Elizabeth, Elinor, and Anne had to do? I’d enjoy hearing from you.

Thanks you, Keira, for having me. It’s been a pleasure.

Buy: A Wife for Mr. Darcy, A Wife for Mr. Darcy (UK)

Tagged as: elizabeth bennet, fitzwilliam darcy, Mary Lydon Simonsen, pride and prejudice, Pride and Prejudice Variation, Regency

This post was written by...

Keira – who has written 1066 posts on Love Romance Passion.

Keira's favorite type of heroes are blind, scarred, and tortured... yes, she understands those should be separate, but all 3 at once is also nice! She enjoys historical romances best and adores audio books because great narrators turn books into auditory/mental movies (and she loves her romantic dramas like Pride and Prejudice/North and South!) Learn more about Keira in My Instant Turn Ons, Offs, and Ifs.