A Lasting Love Affair by P. O. Dixon

This was a fun read and great to get a quick fix of Darcy and Lizzy!

"Darcy was not looking to fall in love. He thought he had it all: wealth, privilege, and ardent passion for his sport. Then he meets Miss Elizabeth Bennet, and soon thereafter he knows that she is the woman with whom he is destined to spend his life.
Having suffered a traumatic loss, Elizabeth knows the pain of heartache. She is determined to shield herself against forming strong attachments so she might never feel that way again. Then Mr. Darcy comes along, and he has a way of melting all her defences."

The premise of this story was... brave! The idea of having her most beloved sister die (sorry if you consider that a spoiler, but you find it out pretty quickly when you start reading anyway!) was a very interesting path to go down as well as being very shocking and surprising, and original for I haven’t read one before where Jane dies. The way in which she dies is actually very clever, however I will not give that away! 

Darcy and Lizzy were as cute as ever in this tale. Unlike what we are used to, they become good friends very quickly, and they are really sweet.  Lizzy finds in him someone to confide as Darcy is much more agreeable. It was a nice change to have her already considering Darcy a friend rather than being so prejudiced against him. As the friendship grows to something more, there are some very sweet and romantic moments.

Lizzy is quite altered in this variation, understandably, due to her loss. To help her deal with her heartache she writes letters to her deceased sister, which is a very sensible idea and one I can relate to, for writing down your feelings often makes pain easier. As well as writing to her sister, Darcy comes along and seems to be able to help her through her sadness and break the wall she has built around her heart, trying to protect herself from further heartache. But do not fear, for although Lizzy is suffering the pain of loss, it hasn't quite dampened all her spirit and there are still some wonderfully witty comments and conversations!

An interesting side we get to see to Darcy in this variation was jealousy! The addition of the dashing Lord Holland made for some competition, which was fun to read. Even though he was jealous, it was nice to see Darcy so sure of his affection and willing to go against his family straight away.

A few fun additional characters were, as already mentioned, Lord Hollond and also the lovely Miss Lancaster, who become a good friend to Lizzy. The conversations between the four of them were fun, even if Holland isn't at all pleased with the attentions Darcy is showing Lizzy!

Another character was Lizzy's estranged Aunt, Lady Vanessa. She reminded me a little of Lady Catherine, but luckily she is much nicer than Lady Catherine! As we know, it was Aunt Gardiner who was the means of uniting Darcy and Lizzy, but it was fun to have a different aunt responsible for the being the means of uniting Darcy and Lizzy.

The writing in the story was very good. While the story was very fast moving, it flowed well and the language was very appropriate to the time, very much in the style of Jane Austen.  This was a fun, quick, easy read, not without its angst, but also with touches of humour and romance. 

Your affectionate friend,