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In summer, the Bennet family goes on vacation to the English resort town Salcombe. The older daughters Jane and Lizzy love listening to their I-Pods, surfing, and seeing the latest fashion. The matriarch is ecstatic to learn that the house next door Netherpollock is owned by a rich single male Mr. Bingley who falls for Jane at first sight. Bingley is friends with William Darcy, owner of the luxurious yacht Pemberley.

Mr. Wickham tells Lizzy awful things about Mr. Darcy. She believes him because he speaks like a cultured gentleman while Darcy is surly and withdrawn, but is attracted to Lizzy. When he shows his feelings for her, she rejects him; Lizzy soon learns that Darcy is the gentleman and Wickham is the cad. Mrs. Bennet hopes Lizzy changes her mind because she wants the prestige of her daughters marrying wealth. When Darcy and Bingley leave, Jane and Lizzy are depressed believing they will never see their respective man again.

Although this is another of the zillion Jane Austen offspring, Pride and Prejudice in the twenty-first century is a whimsical amusing tale of misconceptions as the Bennet females learn to not judge a book by only its cover. The modern gizmos do not intrude on the classic theme of people concealing their feelings behind facades as the essence of the key cast remains consistent with the original intended characterization. Except for purists, Jane Austen fans will enjoy this contemporary rendition of timeless Pride and Prejudice.

A fun retelling of Pride & Prejudice that is aimed for more of a young to middle teen audience although it does hold amusement for adult readers, especially Pride & Prejudice addicts. I liked the fact that this book is geared for teens; I hope that this book will introduce a new generation to the works of Jane Austen. The characters actions and behavior remained true to what Miss Austen created, yet they held a modern air.

As I said before the characters as well as the plot, stays true to the original fashion of Miss Austen making the book have to feel of visiting old friends in a new setting. I still feel exceedingly sorry for Mr. Bennet, as Mrs. Bennet is still overly active and vocal. Elizabeth, or Lizzy, is still loveable. Darcy is still a bit snooty, and Bingley is still a bit daft in his own loveable way. The usual suspects are still all make appearances where you would expect them.

A fast-paced read, that will keep you hooked to the end. I found that I could not put this book down.

I would have liked to give this book a higher rating, although the events that took place in chapter 58, with Darcy pulling out a copy of P&P, made the book feel a bit off kilter. Other than that, I found this book to be perfectly enjoyable.

I do have to say that this was a hilarious novel. I found myself laughing out loud many times and the bits with Mr. Collins were almost to much to handle.

Who would I recommend this book to?
Teen or tweens who have not yet discovered Pride & Prejudice.
Pride & Prejudice addicts.
Readers who are looking for the perfect beach read.

If you are like me and love to go to the beach but prefer not to get in the water, then Mr. Darcy Goes Overboard, A Tale of Tide & Prejudice is the prefect book to bring along with them.

I just have to add that I love the beginning:

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a yacht must be in want of a female crew.”

The iconic opening from Pride & Prejudice has been revised many time, yet I believe that the one above has to be one of my favorites.

I would like to thank Belinda Roberts for this guest post!

What inspired you to turn Pride & Prejudice into Tide & Prejudice?

As a family we have spent many happy holidays in the English seaside town of Salcombe and the thought that it would be just the place where a modern day Bennet family would go on holiday grew and grew. Salcombe is fashionable, sociable, the place to be seen and perfect for any mother on the hunt for a young Darcy for her daughters. In my mind the ballgowns of Pride and Prejudice started to be replaced by bikinis, Pemberley became a sixty-two foot yacht, the famous Netherfield ball the equally famous Salcombe Estuary Swim, the militia the lifeguards - the links seemed perfect and I couldn’t wait to start. My opportunity came when I went down to Salcombe to accompany my eldest daughter, Sophie, who needed some peace and quiet to write her dissertation on Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande. This was a serious endeavour. We both sat at the little kitchen table of our terraced house in Island Street Salcombe, set up our laptops and started to write. I was keen that my book should follow Jane Austen’s original chapter for chapter in plot and characterisation as best I could. The combination of reading Pride and Prejudice, translating it into a modern seaside setting and trying to keep quiet was too much and I kept bursting out laughing - which was not helpful to poor Sophie! The hardest part was ‘modernising’ Lydia’s disgraceful behaviour, which of course, would hardly be noticed these days. I hope I came up with a suitably sensational solution!





Yes I am back with another P&P variation, what more can you all expect from me. I am hopelessly addicted.

This one is set at a little fashionable town near the sea. The players are all the same, the story is the same (with exceptions of course, this being a variation and all.) Lizzy still feels hurt by Mr Darcy’s remark, Bingley is still very much in love with Jane, Charlotte still does the reasonable thing and Mr Collins is still a creep. But there are no soldiers, instead there are lifeguards and instead of parties they attend different festivities and sail a lot.

The book is fairly silly, though in a good way. It’s an amusing story in a different setting and everyone is very young and hip. It’s a good book to take to the beach. You will read it fast and be a bit amused during it.

Sure there were things I thought were a bit too strange. Lydia’s change of heart, now that was the freakiest thing ever. And why Mrs Bennet was so set on them getting married, in this age they are all kids still. But like I said, it’s meant to be funny and not taken too seriously. I also noticed that the author has written plays before, and yes I could see this story as some kind of farce. Especially Mr Collins would do well on the scene ;) Don’t think too much, some books you just read.

This is a very quick Pride and Prejudice variation. You can knock it out pretty fast. It’s fun like Clueless (which is a high school version of Emma) and set in Salcombe (a beachy home to vacationing Brits). To quote the back blurb: Mr. Darcy Goes Overboard replaces ballgowns with bikinis, country mansions with luxury yachts and the militia with a fiercely competitive squad of local lifeguards...

You really get the flavor of Salcombe in the novel. There are beach trips, boating excursions, and a swim across the estuary, a greased pole competition, a sandcastle competition, and more. I totally want to vacation there. It sounds like so much fun!

Bingley is a silly man in this book. He’s charming like in the original, no question, but he makes some funny dumb remarks to Mr. Bennet about finances. He rents Netherpollock with his three sisters.

Darcy swings by on his luxury yacht, the Pemberley, all sexy in his swim trunks. He doesn’t take to Elizabeth at first, but soon finds himself transfixed by her (doesn’t he always?). Catherine de Brrr (not a typo) is not happy with this development and even less so when she loses the sandcastle contest.

I didn’t make the reference to Clueless lightly. The story is full of phrases and word choices you’d find in a "Clueless" Pride and Prejudice. There’s not a lot of character development as Belinda Roberts relies heavily on readers understanding of events and background of the original novel. That said, it’s still one of the funniest, cutest, P&P versions I’ve read. You’ll love it!

When’s the movie version coming out? That’s what I want to know!

Mr Darcy Goes Overboard is a comical chick-lit rendition of Pride and Prejudice. It’s light and fluffy, perfect for the beach this summer. The story follows the original P&P closely but summarizes and condenses the scenes and makes for a quick, short read that resembles a slap-stick comedy movie—you know, the exaggerated humour, bumbling mishaps and frolicking good fun.

Roberts cleverly uses the exact situations but with a contemporary seaside holiday setting, making me smile when she includes some of the same famous lines from the Jane Austen version. For some readers this may backfire, though, as the problems and issues of the 18th century are transferred to the 20th century, and of course, could not hold the same relevance, like when Mr Collins came on the scene as Mr Bennett’s cousin who would inherit everything and leave the family penniless when surely Mr Bennett worked in his lifetime. However, because of the genre, it still works, even the formal dialogue and the young people addressing each other as Mr or Miss. Kitty and Lydia were the most authentic with their teen talk and behaviours. Mr and Mrs Bennett were a riot as well as Mr Collins.

The narrative was filled with British expressions, some of which were lost to the Canadian in me, but others, such as the author’s use of witty puns and hilarious exclamations in some of the dialogue, perfectly reflected the British culture.

In this way it differs greatly from Austen’s depth of character development and serious topics, but it’s well understood that this is what Roberts was aiming for—a funny, fresh version of a much-exploited story. It reminded me of the exaggerated humour in The Princess Bride. Actually, this novel would make a really funny summer movie!