“Nana, you’ve spoiled me for any other woman. There are no Elizabeths in this century. You’re the last of the breed.”
“You haven’t tried to find one,” she answered, a little sharply.
“I have. You know that I’ve dated quite a bit. I just don’t see the point in a second date when I know a girl isn’t right for me from the very beginning. It’s not fair to either of us to continue building a relationship that I’m already sure won’t work,” he replied firmly.
“Elizabeth is fictional, Will, and even she wasn’t perfect, you know,” Nana said, resting her hand on his.
(from Accidentally Yours)
Quick summary: Accidentally Yours is the first book in Robin M. Helm’s Yours by Design trilogy, in which Will Darcy from 2013 Atlanta swaps places with Fitzwilliam Darcy in 1795 England after each suffer an accident. Will and his grandmother shared a love for Pride and Prejudice, both the book and the BBC miniseries, so waking up in the body of Mr. Darcy gives him a chance to make up for that man’s wrongs and win over Elizabeth Bennet, the not-so-fictional woman he has loved for so long. Meanwhile, the last thing Fitzwilliam remembers is giving Elizabeth the letter explaining the faults she’d found in his disastrous proposal, then riding his horse into a tree, so waking up in a barely there hospital gown in the present day is a big shock, to say the least. Both men must learn to live in their new bodies and new worlds and figure out God’s plan for their lives, Will with the help of Colonel Fitzwilliam, and Fitzwilliam with the help of Will’s housekeeper, Mrs. Thomas.
Why I wanted to read it: I’ve read and enjoyed several Pride and Prejudice retellings with a time travel element but never one where Mr. Darcy swaps bodies with one of his descendants.
What I liked: Will’s character is endearing, a man who loves Pride and Prejudice and wants to find his own Elizabeth, a man who truly loved his Nana Rose and shared her love of all things Austen. He is the Mr. Darcy who is good enough for Elizabeth, a man not too proud to do business with a tradesman or flout the style of the time to suit his own tastes. He uses his knowledge of Regency England and Austen’s novel to take charge of Fitzwilliam’s affairs, even if it means being too quick to believe people he has only just met in the days since waking up in Fitzwilliam’s body. But what was most entertaining was Fitzwilliam’s struggles to come to terms with modern society, from female nurses to dental hygiene to Southern BBQ. The scenes where he watched the BBC miniseries with Mrs. Thomas and commented on the difference between himself and “Firth” were hilarious!
What I disliked: It took some time before the story really started going somewhere, but in a way that was good because I felt like I really got to know Will and Fitzwilliam. However, it seemed like Colonel Fitzwilliam, Darcy’s valet Austen, and Mrs. Thomas, for instance, were too easily accepting of their claims of being a Darcy from another time. Moreover (and this didn’t affect my feelings about the novel itself), I really disliked Fitzwilliam, the real Mr. Darcy, whose arrogance goes above and beyond any portrayal I’ve read so far. Some of the things he thought about Elizabeth were actually horrifying! While I understand that he is supposed to be the polar opposite of Will, it was still difficult for me to imagine a different Darcy winning over Elizabeth, even if Will is the better Darcy at the moment. It certainly makes me wonder what Helm has planned for them in the next installment.
Final thoughts: Accidentally Yours incorporates both time travel and Christian elements into a story about recognizing your flaws, actively trying to change them, and being open to God’s plan for your life. Although Fitzwilliam seems to be the Darcy most in need of change, there is plenty of room for growth in Will’s character as well. Helm’s take on Pride and Prejudice is creative and humorous, with some deeper moments of grief and despair to round things out. With the accident and Mr. Darcy’s abrupt and significant personality change altering the course of events, I am dying to know which Darcy will ultimately earn Elizabeth’s love…and Mr. Bingley even has some competition when it comes to Jane! I can’t fathom how this will all be ironed out in the end, so I can’t wait to read more.
Disclosure: I received Accidentally Yours from Indie Jane for review.
© 2015 Anna Horner of Diary of an Eccentric. All Rights Reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish content without permission.
This is really very intriguing to me – time travel and Pride & Prejudice and two
generations of Darcy!
Thank you for this giveaway.
LikeLike
I’m a sci-fi geek, so combining Austen and sci-fi gives me a taste of both of my favorite genres. You won’t like Fitzwilliam in Accidentally Yours, but I assure you that you’ll love him by the end of the series.
Thanks, ladysusanpdx!
LikeLike
That aspect of the novel intrigued me as well!
LikeLike
I haven’t read too many stories that incorporate time travel with P&P; that’s interesting, but also the idea that Mr. Darcy is more arrogant…how is that possible.
LikeLike
In my mind, he isn’t more arrogant. You just get to know him better because you can “hear” his thoughts. We never knew what he was thinking in the original.
Thanks, sagustocox!
LikeLike
I agree with Robin that it’s probably because we see things from his POV. But of course, we like to imagine that his thoughts in the original weren’t that bad, but who knows?
LikeLike
I do not know, I want WIll to stay there now
LikeLike
I don’t think I’m giving anything away by letting you know that the Darcys will stay switched. That’s not much of a mystery by the end of the first book. I couldn’t hurt the Darcys or the Elizabeths by switching the men back. I love my happy endings.
Thanks, blodeuedd.
LikeLike
At this point, I agree!
LikeLike
I have read two spin-off novels of Pride and Prejudice, and loved the BBC’s Lost in Austen show where a young, modern woman swaps places with Elizabeth Bennett. I am likewise intrigued by the swapping elements of this novel, and the Christian elements.
thebookwormchronicles [at] gmail [dot] com
LikeLike
I like Lost in Austen, too. My idea for switching the men came from the idea that Fitzwilliam changed too drastically and too suddenly for credulity in the original. Then I began to think, “What if he wasn’t the same man? What if he was an entirely different man?” So, I made a modern man, a descendant of the original Darcys, who had been reared in a wealthy family of Christians. It gave him a different world-view, as well as a different way to view other people. He went back in time with a drastically different attitude than the wealthy men in Regency times, and Fitzwilliam came into a time in which women (and men) would tell him what they thought, regardless of his wealth.
The Christian aspect is stronger in Accidentally Yours than it is in the other two books of the series. Once it was established, I saw no reason to beat it to death.
Thanks, jessicabookworm.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I really need to see Lost in Austen!
LikeLike
I totally love the time-travel element present in the book. Like you, I’ve never heard of and read about Darcy swapping places with a modern man. I’m intrigue to know if the two Darcys be able to go back to their original time period.
evangelineace2020(at)yahoo(dot)com
LikeLike
Hi, Luthien84. Any thing I write will have a paranormal or sci-fi element. This plot device worked very well for me. I wanted to do justice to Austen’s work without obliterating it. I also wanted to answer some questions in my mind about her original premise. How did Darcy change so much in such a short period of time? He was a different man.
I really enjoyed putting Fitzwilliam in modern day Atlanta. I had fun writing those scenes, getting into a person’s mind who had never experienced electricity, television, modern dress, modern food, or modern medicine. In my mind, he was hilarious.
Thank you for commenting!
LikeLike
I’m always amazed by how many different ways P&P can be retold!
LikeLike
[…] Review: Accidentally Yours by Robin M. Helm (with giveaway). […]
LikeLike
I shared your review on my blog! It was great… I can’t wait for the chance to read this book!
LikeLike
Thank you so much, pemberlypebbles! I really appreciate that!
LikeLike
Thank you! Much appreciated!
LikeLike
Loving the swap & time travel elements. Sounds amazing.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
LikeLike
I’m glad that you can accept, and love, the idea of time travel in P & P. I look forward to hearing your opinion of the book.
Thank you, Mary!
LikeLike
Hope you get a chance to read it!
LikeLike
Fantastic combination time travel and P&P
LikeLike
I like it, so I’m glad you do, too! 😉
Thanks, Mystica!
LikeLike
I bet you’d enjoy it, Mystica!
LikeLike
I find this story idea to be very interesting and would love to have book one.
saganchilds (a) gmail.com
LikeLike
The premise really drove the work, and I enjoyed writing it. I hope you are as happy reading it as I was writing it.
Thank you, schild!
LikeLike
Hope you get a chance to read it!
LikeLike
I’ve always been intrigued by the possibility of time travel. It would be very interesting to see how both Will and Darcy cope in an unfamiliar world. Would love to win a copy of this book’. Thanks for the giveaway!
Pam
Pamh5230 at yahoo dot com
LikeLike
I love the paradox of time travel. For instance, Will Darcy, Fitzwilliam’s descendant, becomes Fitzwilliam’s ancestor.
Good luck!
Thanks for commenting!
LikeLike
It certainly makes you think! And Helm does a great job letting you inside their heads to see how they’re getting along.
LikeLike
I like the time travel spin on P & P. I’m curious to see how Nana Rose deals with this arrogant Darcy and how the modern world reacts to him.
I love a trilogy or a quartet, there’s the opportunity to really get to know the characters! Thanks for the giveaway!
LikeLike
Thank you, Lauren K. I start out writing thinking that it will be a stand-alone, but halfway through the first book, I realize that I can’t tell the whole story in one book.
Glad you like the time switch idea. I hope you enjoy the book!
Robin
LikeLike
I hope to read the 2nd and 3rd parts this summer. I’m dying to know how it all plays out!
LikeLike
I really liked your review–very thorough! And it sounds like an intriguing book. I’ve read other time travel P&P, but this sounds unique.
LikeLike
This is a time-swap, so there is no more time traveling after the initial switch. I haven’t read anything else like it, so I hope it’s one of a kind.
Thank you so much, victoriakincaid!
LikeLike
Thanks, Victoria!
LikeLike
Sounds like a very interesting story! I have put it on my list of books I need to read!
LikeLike
Lora, I’m going to tell you upfront that you’ll like the second and third books better than the first. I’ve lowered the kindle price of Accidentally Yours to $2.99 in hopes that people would read it and go on to read Sincerely Yours and Forever Yours. I made Fitzwilliam quite unlikable in Accidentally Yours. I wanted the changes in him to be dramatic.
Thank you so much for commenting!
LikeLike
Happy reading!
LikeLike
It’s always intriguing to see a 21st century version live in Regency time… I don’t know if I can handle not having all the hygiene and medical advancements we would deem normal today. I can’t forget the transportation too. Imagine taking a half a day’s journey to travel 40-60 miles!
LikeLike
I don’t think I could handle it either!
LikeLike
Just the small conversation is all I need to be intrigued by this book! it is no more a girl looking for her Mr Darcy, it is a boy looking for Elizabeth!! It just sounds fantastic!
ana (dot) mr (dot) 1986 (at) gmail (dot) com
LikeLike
Hope you get a chance to read it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to all who entered. The winner will be chosen randomly and notified via email.
LikeLike
Wow, this is a very different premise! I confess I love the idea and would love to read the book! I am only a little afraid about the real Mr. Darcy, if he is really that obnoxious I might not like him. And indeed it is hard to imagine Elizabeth with a different Darcy 🙂
LikeLike
I know! I can’t wait to find out which Darcy ends up being the “real” Darcy. I really need to finish this trilogy!
LikeLiked by 1 person