Without the beauty and wit of the older Bennet sisters or the liveliness of the younger, Mary is the Bennet sister most often overlooked. She has resigned herself to a life of loneliness, alleviated only by music and the occasional book of military history.
Colonel Fitzwilliam finds himself envying his friends who are marrying wonderful women while he only attracts empty-headed flirts. He longs for a caring, well-informed woman who will see the man beneath the uniform.
A chance meeting in Longbourn’s garden during Darcy and Elizabeth’s wedding breakfast kindles an attraction between Mary and the Colonel. However, the Colonel cannot act on these feelings since he must wed an heiress. He returns to war, although Mary finds she cannot easily forget him.
Is happily ever after possible after Mary meets the Colonel?
When Mary Met the Colonel is a novella set after the events of Pride and Prejudice. From the title, I’m sure you can figure out that it is about Mary Bennet and Colonel Fitzwilliam. I love Jane Austen. I don’t care for sequels written about her classics, but there are a few that I at least try to read (A Death Comes to Pemberley is one. BBC miniseries was better). What intrigued me more about this one is that it is about Mary, a character the reader doesn’t really know too much aside from her constant pianoforte playing and sermon quoting.
Kincaid’s version of Mary was interesting. She is the wallflower of the family. No one knows that she hides books that aren’t ladylike within her sermon books. She may quote the sermons, but she is actually very smart. Not witty or sweet like Jane and Elizabeth, but she does show that she stands on her own. Mary is very much like a typical middle child.
Now, I won’t go in depth with the story because it is very short; roughly seventy-eight pages. The writing was similar to Jane Austen, but different. It wasn’t someone trying to fit with the style. This book is written by a fan for fans with the idea of a little cared for character needing her happily ever after. I was able to finish the book in one night and I did enjoy it. I might have wanted it longer, but I did like it.
Casia's Corner 