BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--GUEST AUTHOR GINGER MONETTE

Award-winning author Ginger Monette enjoys dancing on the treadmill, watching period dramas, public speaking, and reading—a full-length novel every Sunday afternoon. Learn more about her and her books at her website.

Is Downton Abbey a Copycat of Pride & Prejudice?

One Sunday night while watching season 2 of Downton Abbey, it dawned on me: Downton Abbey is a copycat of Pride & Prejudice! Now, whether Julian Fellowes really did look to Jane Austen's classic as inspiration, I cannot say, but let's look at some of the similarities.

A houseful of daughters with no heir

Both storylines are built on the premise of impending doom due to the family's misgivings about the unfamiliar heir. In Pride & Prejudice, Austen placed a cast of five daughters at risk of being “thrown to the hedgerows” should their father die before they are wed. Julian Fellowes chose three sisters for Downton Abbey's cast, although they seem more concerned for the future of their physical home and the general uncertainty brought about by the new heir rather than their personal futures.

Similar characters

Both Austen and Fellowes chose a heroine who is an “obstinate, headstrong girl.” Downton Abbey's Lady Mary Crawley was never one to hold her tongue. And certainly Austen's Elizabeth Bennet never hesitated to voice her opinion on everyone and everything!

Perhaps the most similar characters in the two stories is a domineering matriarch. The outspoken dowager Lady Grantham is one of Downton Abbey's most colorful characters. But I believe Fitzwilliam Darcy's imperious aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, could have given even Violet Crawley a run for her money!

An attempted elopement

Both dramas include an attempted elopement that spawns uproar in the respective families. Readers are aghast when Austen's rogue, George Wickham, runs off with Elizabeth's younger sister, nearly ruining the Bennet family's reputation. Conversely, Downton Abbey fans cheered when daughter-of-the-manor Lady Sybil and chauffeur-servant Branson finally kissed. But their pairing and attempted elopement was scandalous nonetheless, and sent Sybil's sisters hurrying after her and their father into a thunderous outage.

Both Austen and Fellowes used the scandalous union as a clever plot device to not only create drama, but to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. Would the scandalous pair remain together? How would the scandal drive future storylines and affect the other characters?

A grand estate

In both Pride & Prejudice and Downton Abbey, a grand house is a silent, yet central character. For nearly 200 years women have been swooning over Pemberley, the estate of Austen's heartthrob Fitzwilliam Darcy. And Highclere Castle's gold rectangular structure topped with corner towers and spires is instantly recognizable as the Crawley's beloved family home on Downton Abbey.

These lavish homes set our hearts to dreaming and become a beloved character in and of themselves. But the Austen/Fellowes parallels don't stop there. It is worth noting that the name Downton Abbey is suspiciously similar to Donwell Abbey, the name Austen chose for George Knightley's estate in her classic work, Emma.

An entailed estate with an “unsuitable” heir

In Pride & Prejudice, the unsuitable heir is the obnoxious rector William Collins, whose marriage proposal to Elizabeth Bennet is flatly refused. In Downton Abbey, Matthew Crawley is a dashing, but lowly solicitor. And although both “unsuitable heirs” go on to propose to other women, in the case of Downton Abbey, viewers are thrilled when the love struck hero and heroine eventually marry.

High society characters falling in love with, well, those not so high society

Fitzwilliam Darcy is downright disgusted with himself for falling in love with Elizabeth Bennet, a woman so decidedly beneath him. And in Downton Abbey, Lady Mary Crawley is incensed that a man in trade will inherit her family home. But in the end, fans are delighted when love wins out for both couples.

We may never know if Julian Fellowes was inspired by Jane Austen, but certainly in both cases, the premise has enchanted millions and proven to be a blockbuster success in both literature and film.

Darcy's Hope ~ Beauty from Ashes

A Pride & Prejudice Great War Romance (Volume 1)

Escape to the era of Downton Abbey and experience all the drama of World War 1 alongside literature's iconic Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy. You'll watch their tender love unfold as they learn to work together and reconcile their differences at a field hospital only miles from the Front.

1916. World War 1 has turned French chateaux into bloody field hospitals, British gentlemen into lice-infested soldiers, and left Elizabeth Bennet's life in tatters. Her father is dead and her home destroyed. Never again will Elizabeth depend on a man to secure her future! But when an opportunity arises to advance her dreams of becoming a doctor, she is elated--until HE arrives....

Heartbroken. Devastated. Captain Fitzwilliam Darcy is left rejected by the woman he loved and reeling from the slaughter of his men on the battlefield. "Enough!" Darcy vows. "No more sentimental attachments!" But arriving at a field hospital to pursue a covert investigation, Darcy discovers his beloved Elizabeth training with a dashing American doctor and embroiled in an espionage conspiracy. With only a few months to expose the plot, Darcy is forced to grapple with his feelings for Elizabeth while uncovering the truth. Is she indeed innocent? Darcy can only hope....

Note: Darcy's Hope has a happy ending but continues in Darcy's Hope at Donwell Abbey.  In the sequel, readers will experience the full resolution of the mystery, and our beloved couple's love will face a new, tragic test.

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TRAVEL WITH SERENA--GUEST AUTHOR SUZI LOVE ON 1840'S ENGLISH TRAIN TRAVEL

Author Suzi Love lives in Australia after spending many years in developing countries in the South Pacific. She adore history, especially the many-layered societies of the late Regency to early Victorian eras, and has used this time period in her writing. She not only portrays the privileged lives of her heroes and heroines but also the grittier and seamier levels of British life. Learn more about Suzi and her books at her website. 

Hi, I'm Suzi Love and the year is 1843. I'm thrilled to be taking you on a train journey through the English countryside with the heroine of Embracing Scandal, the first book in my Scandalous Siblings Series.  

Lady Rebecca Jamison is travelling with her sisters to the country estate of Lord and Lady Hetherington, and though Becca doesn't know it yet, she is about to place herself within the grasp of her enemy. But for now, Becca and her family are enjoying the novelty of traveling to the country by train, in contrast with past years when the only way to travel was by carriage over dreadful roads.

Paddington Station

The family departs from one of the new and bustling rail stations in London.

Then the steam train cuts across large tracts of country that Becca had never traveled before, because this land has always been private and many of the landowners are angry that the new railways dissect their estates.

Crowds watching the train pass

Along the way, Becca sees crowds of onlookers who come to watch every train pass as it is still such a novelty. But often the people stand too close to the tracks and Becca and her sisters are terrified that one of them will be knocked over when the steam blasts out of the train's furnaces. The engine driver pulls hard on his whistle to warn them to stand back and the train chugs out of the country station. 

  

Becca's train passes slowly over one of the new high viaducts and she can look down on the river they are crossing. All these new railway bridges make the trip to the country much shorter than it used to be.

Train viaduct

Along the way, there is plenty of room on the train to move about and talk to the other passengers that Becca knows, including the Duke of Sherwyn, who Becca has coerced into helping her find enough proof about an illegal investment syndicate so she can go to Scotland Yard and demand justice be done. 

Becca and her family are pleased to finally arrive at Lord Hetherington's estate for a weekend of country pleasures, including horse riding and archery.   

I hope you enjoyed this country train journey with my heroine and hero. 

Embracing Scandal 

The first in my scandal series with heroines whose scientific knowledge and intellect are an affront to increasingly prudish early Victorian society. A lady, a mathematical genius, saves her family from financial ruin by dabbling in the London stock exchange. When a greedy syndicate threatens them, she begs help from her nemesis, the duke, her lifelong friend before a scandal involving her cousin. 

As the duke and his lady rekindle old passions, he uses old skills as a spy to protect her. After beating the illegal consortium, he faces the even greater challenge of convincing this self-sufficient spinster of the benefits of becoming his duchess.

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