Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld ~ Review

Title: Eligible (The Austen Project #4)

Author: Curtis Sittenfeld
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Classic Re-Telling
Length: 492 pages
Publisher: Random House
Release Date: April 19, 2016
Source: Self-Purchased
Rating: 5
Heat Rating: 3
Reviewed by: Jasmyn

This version of the Bennet family—and Mr. Darcy—is one that you have and haven’t met before: Liz is a magazine writer in her late thirties who, like her yoga instructor older sister, Jane, lives in New York City. When their father has a health scare, they return to their childhood home in Cincinnati to help—and discover that the sprawling Tudor they grew up in is crumbling and the family is in disarray.

Youngest sisters Kitty and Lydia are too busy with their CrossFit workouts and Paleo diets to get jobs. Mary, the middle sister, is earning her third online master’s degree and barely leaves her room, except for those mysterious Tuesday-night outings she won’t discuss. And Mrs. Bennet has one thing on her mind: how to marry off her daughters, especially as Jane’s fortieth birthday fast approaches.

Enter Chip Bingley, a handsome new-in-town doctor who recently appeared on the juggernaut reality TV dating show Eligible. At a Fourth of July barbecue, Chip takes an immediate interest in Jane, but Chip’s friend neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy reveals himself to Liz to be much less charming. . . .

And yet, first impressions can be deceiving.

This has to be one of the best Pride and Prejudice re-tellings I've read. The Bennet family is perfect, set in their ways and determined to go about as usual. Mr. Bennet is priceless. His dry wit and off-hand humor was amazing and spot on. In fact, all the characters were portrayed in a way that kept true to the original, but still updated them to our contemporary time.

Liz and Mr. Darcy - the classic romance - can definitely hold its own in a contemporary settings. The tension, the fights, the misunderstandings, all laid out perfectly for the modern times. I loved their interactions and banter. The "hate sex" was a great addition that really portrayed their relationship well.

I think I desperately need to go and read the rest of The Austen Project series. If they are as good as this one, I know I'll be in for a good time.

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