Dreaming of Mr. Darcy by Victoria Connelly (Book Review)

Title: Dreaming of Mr. Darcy (Jane Austen Addicts #2)
Author: Victoria Connelly
Release Date: January 1, 2012
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Format: Unedited electronic advance reader's copy.
Source: Netgalley
Buy It: Amazon
Add It: Goodreads

(While this is book #2 in a series, I contacted the author and she said each novel is a standalone, and they can be read out of order.)

Fledging illustrator and Darcy fanatic, Kay Ashton settles in the seaside town of Lyme to finish her book, The Illustrated Darcy, when a film company arrives to make a new adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Kay is soon falling for the handsome bad boy actor playing Captain Wentworth, but it's the quiet screenwriter Adam Craig who has more in common with her beloved Mr. Darcy. Though still healing from a broken heart, Adam finds himself unexpectedly in love with Kay. But it will take more than good intentions to convince her that her real happy ending is with him.

Kay lives in landlocked Hertforshire, and dreams of living by the sea. When a close friend dies, and leaves Kay everything, with the instruction to "follow her dreams," she quits her job and buys a bed and breakfast in Lyme Regis. Her first guests are part of the cast of the upcoming movie, Persuasion, who are there filming on scene. Kay makes close friends with a few of the actresses, falls head over heels for the leading man, and is completely clueless that someone else has fallen for her.

I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I loved the little town of Lyme. It sounds breathtaking, and I have always thought it would be fun to own a B&B by the sea. Kay's sounds very cute and old-fashioned, with lots of character and charm. I liked the two actresses, Sophie and Gemma. They are very sweet and caring, and end up being great friends to Kay. I like Adam a lot, and think he's a saint for putting up with Kay's antics. He's hopelessly in love with her, while she is trying to set him up with someone else (like Emma Woodhouse would). She's completely clueless! The smartest person in this book is Adam's eccentric Nana, who tells it like it is. She totally knows what's going on, and is perfectly willing to voice her opinions. I liked her!

I had a hard time with the insta-love. Everyone falls in love with everyone really fast! With Adam, it's love at first sight. He falls for Kay, the girl with the "toffee-colored hair" before he even knows her name. (By the way, you'll get really tired of the phrase "toffee-colored hair". It is used a LOT in this book.) Kay falls in love with Oli (the male lead in the movie) really fast. She's planning their wedding and naming their children, and he hasn't even kissed her yet. He hasn't even told her he likes her yet! Gemma's love interest takes a little more time, but again it's love at first sight for him and love at first realization that he loves her for her. This is just not realistic! These characters are not junior high schoolers who think they are in love because they've never felt it before! And why is everyone so clueless? Kay is clueless about everything, Adam is spineless and won't tell Kay that he likes her and not the girl she's trying to match him with, Gemma is clueless and can't figure out why a guy is being nice to her. People are not this dumb! Really, it felt like high school and all the he-said-she-said drama. These people are too old for this. I think this is the reason that I didn't really connect with any of them. I just kept wanting to smack them.

Kay has conversations with herself, which are just weird to me. I don't sit and actually have a conversation with myself, especially out loud. I guess I just don't like it when characters have conversations with themselves, because I had the same complaint with Midnight in Austenland. Also... the title led me to believe I was going to be reading a Pride and Prejudice spin-off. This book is all centered around Persuasion, though, so you'll be hearing much more about Captain Wentworth than Mr. Darcy. I'm not complaining or anything, and I really enjoyed reading about the romantic story of Persuasion. I just thought it was worth mentioning for those who are on the look-out for P&P retellings or spin-offs. This isn't one.

My favorite part was when two characters get completely drenched in a downpour and have to make due with borrowed clothes. The guy has no pants, a bright yellow raincoat, and a t-shirt. The girl is wearing granny clothes that are too big. That was funny. And I really enjoyed the descriptions of the Cobb and the surrounding area. I've always really wanted to go to England, so any book that describes it to me is a book I appreciate. I really liked the idea of the novel as well. There were just a few parts that kept me from liking it as much as I could have, and expected to. 

I'm glad I read Dreaming of Mr. Darcy. I was really excited for it, and it was a nice change from all the dark dystopias I've been reading lately. I just had higher expectations. Like all romances, everyone ends up with who you want/expect them to. I still plan to read the other stories in this series, and hope to connect with them more. :)

★★★