TEN DARCY QUESTIONS FOR MONICA FAIRVIEW + GIVEAWAY

Monica Fairview's new Mr Darcy tale is out: Mr. Darcy's Pride and Joy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation (The Darcy Novels Book 3).

A Jane Austen “what-if” novel. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet are engaged at last, and Mr. Darcy is preparing to take out a special license to get married quickly. But, just when everything seems to be going just right, he encounters opposition from an unexpected quarter. Then, when his engagement is announced – to someone else – Elizabeth, understandably, begins to doubt his sincerity. 

Perhaps their love is doomed after all…  

You'll find out more reading this third part of the Darcy Novels series.

Meanwhile, let's discover more of what Monica thinks of her favourite Austen hero, Fitzwilliam Darcy. 

TEN DARCY QUESTIONS FOR MONICA FAIRVIEW 

After writing several books featuring Mr Darcy as the protagonist, Monica, I’ve thought you must have got to know him very,very well. Would you mind answering a few questions about our beloved Fitzwilliam? It’s a quick “either …or …”  game.   Just choose one of the following alternatives.

Thank you, Maria, for this opportunity to visit your blog on my Mr. Darcy’s Pledge blog tour, and for the chance to play this fun Darcy game. I do think you’ve captured the questions that are on the mind of every Darcy fan.

 Thank you, Monica.  Let's start, then. To you Mr Darcy is …

1.    Proud or prejudiced?

Both. I think he’s prejudiced against the people of Meryton, whom he regards as country bumpkins/rustics. We can see this both at the Meryton Assembly where he only dances with he members of his own party and refuses to be introduced to any other young ladies. Mrs. Bennet challenges him on his perception of the country when she visits Netherfield after Jane’s illness. He’s also prejudiced against the Bennets, and judges them harshly, making Lizzy feel ashamed to be part of the family.

I’d definitely say he’s proud in various ways. He’s too proud to counter the rumours Wickham is spreading against him. He definitely believes himself superior to others.  In his proposal he is arrogant enough to assume he does not need to make any effort to convince Lizzy to marry him, and goes about it quite rudely.

2.    Conceited or cautious?

I don’t think he’s cautious. He claims that he is unlike Bingley but he does several impulsive things. The proposal itself, inviting the Gardiners to Pemberley, and rushing off to find Wickham without informing Elizabeth, among other things. There is no doubt he is conceited at the beginning. If he wasn’t, what would be the fun of the novel? He has to learn to humble himself. The fact that he admits to Elizabeth that his parents taught him to think himself above everyone else is an acknowledgment of the transformation he goes through.

3.    Brooding and moody or shy and reserved?

I’m not an advocate of Darcy being shy. I think he’s reserved, because that was what upper class Englishmen were trained to be in boarding school at the time. Brooding? Yes, unquestionably. Darcy is a very emotional person, though it took Elizabeth to bring out that aspect of his character. Moody? No. When I think moody, I think Rochester or Heathcliff. Darcy is nothing like them, thank goodness!

4.    In love at first sight but fighting his own feelings or immediately attracted by Elizabeth but slowly falling for her after discovering her inner qualities?

I don’t think it’s love at first sight. He’s fascinated by Lizzy’s eyes and he loves the life and sparkle in them. I think he appreciates her for her quick repartee, her intelligence and her laughter. He loves her after he observes her interaction with others.

5.    Bothered by the Bennets’ improprieties or worried about his aunt’s reaction?

He’s definitely bothered by the Bennets’ improprieties. He observes them first hand on more than one occasion and is aware that they Bennets would have a hard time fitting into his social sphere. They are too noisy, vulgar and unconventional.  Between Mrs. Bennet’s ignorance and their father’s indifference, the Bennet girls have never really learned “proper” behaviour.

6.    Sexy and attractive or wealthy and a good match?

Sexy and attractive. How can we doubt that? With all that passion simmering under the surface? Though, naturally, being wealthy is an added bonus!

7.    Better to have as a husband or better to have as a brother?

If you’re into platonic relationships, then of course he’s good as a brother. Certainly Georgiana seems to think so. But as one of the sexiest men in English literature, that sounds like a bit of a waste to me.

8. The hero who ruins many a woman’s expectations of men or the one who helps many a woman to escape disappointing everyday lives?

He’s a fantasy, a figment of our collective imagination, so, like many romance heroes, he’s a yummy escape.

9. The best Austen hero of all or awesome but second to ……………………. ?

I think he’s Austen’s best hero. I like Henry Tilney a lot, and I do think Captain Wentworth is swoon-worthy, but they don’t hold a candle to Mr. Darcy. 

    10.  More like Colin Firth or Matthew MacFadyen?

I used to think he was like Colin Firth, but recently I’ve reached the conclusion that he’s more real as Matthew MacFadyen. However, Colin Firth does the smouldering, stiff and arrogant aristocrat to perfection. 

Author Bio

Monica Fairview is a long-time admirer of Jane Austen's wit. She loves to laugh, and she is convinced that her cats can understand everything she says. She is the author of several Austenesque novels: two traditional Jane Austen sequels, one post-apocalyptic tongue-in-cheek Jane Austen spin-off, one multi-author novel THE DARCY BROTHERS, featuring Mr. Darcy’s rakish brother Theo, and now the trilogy, THE DARCY NOVELS. She has also written a Regency Christmas novel, A VERY MERRY CHASE, which was published as part of The Regency Quintet anthology and will be coming out soon on Amazon. 

Monica Fairview’s real claim to fame is that she lived in Elizabeth Gaskell’s house in Manchester as a teenager, in the days when it was faded and neglected, so you could say she has the smog of NORTH & SOUTH in her blood. 

Monica lived in the USA for many years, where she taught literature to captive victims. She has lived in Illinois, Texas, Colorado, California, Washington State, Oregon, and Massachusetts. By some quirk of fate, she now lives in Surrey within the Greater London area, within a stone's throw of Jane Austen's picnic spot in EMMA, Box Hill. She loves visiting historical properties when it isn’t raining.

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