Karen V. Wasylowski: Death at a funeral, Emma Thompson

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Death at a funeral, Emma Thompson

Well, some people have received their books in the mail by now. I got a message on facebook from someone who said she thought she'd check out the Prologue at the dinner table and was at Chapter 11 before she realized it - her supper got cold. I don't think I could have a better compliment. I get ten free copies, four of which are promised to family and friends and the others I better keep for all these give aways that seem to take place.

I love this next video of Emma Thompson accepting the Golden Globe for writing the screenplay for Sense and Sensibility. I like her tremendously and her mother too. That was a wonderful movie, but I wish it had been done with someone other than Hugh Grant. He always seemed like his shoes were too tight in that movie, or he was walking on eggs or something.

I got news of another book signing that will go along with the one at the Savannah Book Fair. This will be at the Barnes & Nobel in Savannah. Thank god for Regina Jeffers - her name is getting us these book signings. I told her I will be table serf to her.

I heard from someone that CF's wife is 43, and isn't she a producer or director or something? My god she's something else. I liked her face - really sweet and lovely. I hate her. Unless she buys my book.

And last but not least, Lucy what did you mean by the Nacho's site? Watch this video - you'll love it.

1 comment:

LucyParker said...: I got it! My book is here! It's thick, too, not one of those namby-pamby almost a story books. Beautiful, enticing cover. And there's supposed to be a blizzard tomorrow, so hopefully I won't even have to get dressed and can stay in bed with "Darcy and Fitzwilliam." Joy!

Are you reading my mind about S&S? Emma T is one of my top five brainy/beautiful actress choices. I thought the movie was spectacular, but thought Hugh Grant a mistake. LOL- walking on eggs.

Nacho Figueras, my Argentine polo player. Miss Betty's seen him in real life and agrees that he's very much a Darcy. I put some photos of him in the AHA gallery, just to balance out some of those other stiffs they've got there.

Livia Firth is no slouch. She's got an Italian doctorate in something, has started her own eco-goods store, and is very much her own person. I thought that she's 10 years younger than Colin, but could be wrong. If he can't have me, then I guess she'll do.

Gotta read! Oh, wait, gotta get dog food first.; January 19, 2011 at 5:29 PM

REVIEW BY DEE SWIFT OF DARCY AND FITZWILLIAM

Darcy and Fitzwilliam by Karen Wasylowski

I am not a particularly fanatical Austen fan, certainly not a purist, but I do like the wit of Jane Austen, and so was ready to embrace the tale of Darcy and his cousin with open arms. I was not disappointed. What impressed me most about this book was that it was the feel of Austen, but updated. It is very difficult to be funny in an Austen-esque way and still be fresh. Too often the humour doesn't properly succeed. But the impact that Austen must have had in her day is all here, in this laugh-out-loud romp through Darcy's post wedding adventures, and those of his irrepressible "brother".

I was unprepared for just how funny the book would be. The scene where Lizzie is giving birth, with Amanda's small, curious, stiffly-educated son looking on, is hilarious, and had my husband wondering why I was laughing so much. Even the servants have been wittily expanded, and the book is funny because it is so well-observed. It pokes fun at regency attitudes to women, and gently lampoons the mores and morals of the time. There is also a sense in which the English themselves are satirized, and this is refreshing, but not at all offensive.

After the initial forty or so pages of set-up the book fairly sweeps along with misunderstandings aplenty, and it is no slight volume. The characters have to be impeccably constructed for the situation comedy to work, and Karen Wasylowski has done this thoroughly, also the research on her period and The Peninsula War gives the reader just the right amount of setting.
A great read, that works whether you have read any Austen or not.

THE CALICO CRITIC

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Karen Wasylowski has done a fine job with these Austenian characters. She has stayed true to the original vision of their temperaments, yet brings new aspects of who they are to light. Their witty repartee is always fun, as they regularly jab at each other in non-cynical brotherly ways. Darcy and the Colonel passionately love their women, sometimes going to extremes to protect them and those they love. There is much drama in this narrative, although it doesn’t cross over into melodrama in the least.

There was more than one night when I had trouble putting the book down to go to bed!Being the men who they are, there are a few moments that are a bit PG-13 as far as language and sexual content. I mention this only for those who are particular about these issues or are considering this for young readers. Most of the bedroom material is within the confines of marriage, and Wasylowski doesn’t go overboard with frequent gratuitous moments of intimacy or colorful tirades.

Thank heavens this isn’t some tawdry bodice-ripper with blue dialog every other minute.

Darcy and Fitzwilliam was an enjoyable read. Karen provides a epilogue that occurs decades after the main story, and I think she could easily draft a sequel in the future. I readily enjoyed her treatment of these characters and hope she continues to revisit this world. Her work is page turning, humorous, maddening (Caroline!!) and touching.

This is a fine edition to the ever-growing library of Austenesque novels. It’s definitely a “bromance” worth an Austen fan’s consideration.

LINDA BANCHE REVIEW

Review: DARCY AND FITZWILLIAM: A TALE OF A GENTLEMAN AND AN OFFICER by Karen V. Wasylowski

Laugh until your sides ache and then laugh some more with Karen V. Wasylowski's delicious Darcy and Fitzwilliam: A Tale of a Gentleman and an Officer. This absorbing, fast-moving romp of a book catalogues the often hilarious ups and downs in the enduring affectionate friendship of those brothers-in-spirit, cousins Fitzwilliam Darcy and Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam.

I read this entire 481 page book in one day, laughing all the way. Ms. Wasylowski has a good ear for realistic male banter, most of it uproariously funny. The best two lines in the whole novel occur when Darcy and Fitzwilliam reminisce about their youth and the hilariously disgusting things young boys do to each other. I still laugh when I think of those lines.A truly wonderful and original take on Pride and Prejudice. I can't wait for Ms. Wasylowski's next book.

JANE AUSTEN EXAMINER

This book was a delight to read. I found the character development of Colonel Fitzwilliam particularly fascinating. Men who have seen war, especially at the grand level Wasylowski has laid out her Fitzwilliam, are hardly ever unaffected. Her portrayal of his issues and struggles are heartfelt and poignant.

It was a little heart-wrenching for me to read about Darcy’s past lover and for Elizabeth to have to deal with the reality of marrying an older man more experienced than her. I was almost angry at the author at first, but I realized what a great job she did of involving me in the storyline. I was fairly sucked in.

HISTORICAL BOOKS REVIEW

SUITE101.C0M Review

Jane Austen Books Get a Dose of Karen V. Wasylowski

Though this is only Karen V. Wasylowski's first book, it is safe to say this author has found her voice in sequels to Jane Austen classics. One of the better additions being Karen V. Wasylowski's wit and humor. I never expected to laugh so hard as I did with Darcy and Fitzwilliam. The storyline was so engaging, the plot so thick with intensity and literary genius that I was immediately roped into the novel and ultimately emotionally invested in its outcome.

Karen V. Wasylowski

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Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Death at a funeral, Emma Thompson

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HISTORICAL BOOKS REVIEW

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