Abigail Reynolds (writer)

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Abigail Reynolds
Abigail Reynolds.jpg
Abigail Reynolds
Born Upstate New York, US
OccupationWriter, physician
LanguageEnglish language
Alma mater Bryn Mawr College
Period2001–present
Genre Romance novel
Notable works To Conquer Mr. Darcy, The Man Who Loved Pride & Prejudice
Website
pemberleyvariations.com

Abigail Reynolds is an American author and physician. She is best known as the author of Jane Austen-inspired novels in the Pemberley Variations series as well as modern novels set on Cape Cod. [1]

Contents

Biography

Abigail Reynolds was raised in upstate New York. She studied Russian and theater at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania and marine biology at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. After working in performing arts administration, she attended medical school. She took up writing as a hobby during her years as a physician in private practice. She lives in Falmouth, Massachusetts, with her husband and son. [2]

She began her writing career in 2001 [3] by posting her novels on Jane Austen fan fiction sites on the internet, and later self-publishing them. Her works were discovered by an editor at Sourcebooks who purchased the rights to her first six books. [4] Her earliest writings were variations on Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, focusing on different plot developments that might change the course of the original story, but always with the same resolution of Elizabeth Bennet marrying Mr. Darcy, a series which she later titled The Pemberley Variations. Her modern adaptation, The Man Who Loved Pride & Prejudice, features a female marine biologist who teaches at the Marine Biological Laboratory and Haverford College. [5] Her 11 books have sold over 180,000 copies. [6]

The Pemberley Variations

The Pemberley Variations is a series of novels exploring the roads not taken in Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy journey through new challenges to reach a satisfying conclusion. Set during the Regency, these historical novels provide a heartwarming and satisfying opportunity for lovers of Pride & Prejudice to return to visit with beloved characters and new ones as well. [7]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<i>Pride and Prejudice</i> 1813 novel by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice is the second novel by English author Jane Austen, published in 1813. A novel of manners, it follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the protagonist of the book, who learns about the repercussions of hasty judgments and comes to appreciate the difference between superficial goodness and actual goodness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pemberley</span> Fictional place in Pride and Prejudice

Pemberley is the fictional country estate owned by Fitzwilliam Darcy, the male protagonist in Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. It is located near the fictional town of Lambton, and believed by some to be based on Lyme Park, south of Disley in Cheshire.

<i>Pride and Prejudice</i> (1995 TV series) 1995 British television drama series

Pride and Prejudice is a six-episode 1995 British television drama, adapted by Andrew Davies from Jane Austen's 1813 novel of the same name. Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth starred as Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy, respectively. Produced by Sue Birtwistle and directed by Simon Langton, the serial was a BBC production with additional funding from the American A&E Network. BBC1 originally broadcast the 55-minute episodes from 24 September to 29 October 1995. The A&E Network aired the series in double episodes on three consecutive nights beginning 14 January 1996.

<i>Pride & Prejudice</i> (2005 film) 2005 film by Joe Wright

Pride & Prejudice is a 2005 romantic drama directed by Joe Wright, in his feature directorial debut, and based on Jane Austen's 1813 novel of the same name. The film features five sisters from an English family of landed gentry as they deal with issues of marriage, morality and misconceptions. Keira Knightley stars as Elizabeth Bennet, while Matthew Macfadyen plays her romantic interest Mr Darcy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Bennet</span> Fictional character from Pride and Prejudice

Elizabeth Bennet is the protagonist in the 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She is often referred to as Eliza or Lizzy by her friends and family. Elizabeth is the second child in a family of five daughters. Though the circumstances of the time and environment push her to seek a marriage of convenience for economic security, Elizabeth wishes to marry for love.

<i>Pride and Prejudice</i> (1940 film) 1940 film by Robert Zigler Leonard

Pride and Prejudice is a 1940 American film adaptation of Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice, starring Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier. Directed by Robert Z. Leonard, the screenplay was written by Aldous Huxley and Jane Murfin, adapted specifically from the stage adaptation by Helen Jerome, in addition to Jane Austen's novel. The story is about five sisters from an English family of landed gentry who must deal with issues of marriage, morality and misconceptions. The film was released on July 26, 1940 in the United States by MGM and was critically well received. The New York Times film critic praised the film as "the most deliciously pert comedy of old manners, the most crisp and crackling satire in costume that we in this corner can remember ever having seen on the screen."

<i>Pride & Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy</i> 2003 film

Pride & Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy is a 2003 independent romantic comedy film directed by Andrew Black and produced by Jason Faller. The screenplay, by Anne Black, Jason Faller, and Katherine Swigert, is an adaptation of Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Provo, Utah. The film stars Kam Heskin as college student Elizabeth Bennet whose dreams of becoming an author supersede the cultural and societal pressures to be married. Elizabeth tries to escape the advances of several bachelors, including handsome but haughty businessman Will Darcy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mr. Darcy</span> Literary character

Fitzwilliam Darcy Esquire, generally referred to as Mr. Darcy, is one of the two central characters in Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. He is an archetype of the aloof romantic hero, and a romantic interest of Elizabeth Bennet, the novel's protagonist. The story's narration is almost exclusively from Elizabeth's perspective; the reader is given a one-sided view of Darcy for much of the novel, but hints are given throughout that there is much more to his character than meets the eye. The reader gets a healthy dose of dramatic irony as Elizabeth continually censures Mr. Darcy's character despite the aforementioned hints that Mr. Darcy is really a noble character at heart, albeit somewhat prideful. Usually referred to only as "Mr. Darcy" or "Darcy" by characters and the narrator, his first name is mentioned twice in the novel.

<i>Mr. Darcys Daughters</i> 2003 novel by Elizabeth Aston

Mr. Darcy's Daughters is a 2003 novel by the English author Elizabeth Aston, published by Simon & Schuster in the United States. Set in 1818, Mr. Darcy's Daughters is written as a sequel to Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. It features the five daughters of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet – aged 21 to 16 – as they navigate London society in the absence of their parents, who have embarked on a diplomatic post to Constantinople. In London, the sisters meet new friends and find themselves in various romantic entanglements, all while learning what is acceptable behaviour among the city's elite.

Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman is the collective name given to a trilogy of historical romance novels written by Pamela Aidan. As the title suggests, they are based heavily on Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice, and feature many events of the novel as seen from the perspective of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the central male character of Austen's novel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Austen in popular culture</span> Jane Austen novels adapted to theatre, film, and television

The author Jane Austen and her works have been represented in popular culture in a variety of forms.

<i>Lost in Austen</i> 2008 British television fantasy series

Lost in Austen is a four-part 2008 British television series for the ITV network, written by Guy Andrews as a fantasy adaptation of the 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Amanda, a young woman living in modern London, enters the plot of the novel through a portal in her bathroom, to join the Bennet family and affect events, generally disastrously.

<i>Pride and Prejudice and Zombies</i> 2009 parody novel by Seth Grahame-Smith

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a 2009 parody novel by Seth Grahame-Smith. It is a mashup combining Jane Austen's classic 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice with elements of modern zombie fiction, crediting Austen as co-author. It was first published in April 2009 by Quirk Books and in October 2009 a Deluxe Edition was released, containing full-color images and additional zombie scenes. The novel was adapted into a 2016 film starring Lily James and Sam Riley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Austen fan fiction</span> Collection of copyright of Jane Austen Novels

Jane Austen fan fiction is the collection of numerous sequels and spin-offs produced by authors who have either used the plot of Austen's original novels, or have extended them, to produce new works of fiction. Austen's posthumous popularity has inspired fan fiction that runs the gamut through numerous genres, but the most concentrated medium has remained the novel. According to Pucci and Thompson in their 2003 survey on the contemporary evolution of Jane Austen's work, at the turn of the 20th century, over one hundred sequels, rewritings, and continuations of her novels had been published.

<i>Death Comes to Pemberley</i> 2011 novel by P. D. James

Death Comes to Pemberley is a 2011 mystery fiction novel by British writer P.D. James that continues Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice with a murder mystery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bennet family</span> Fictional family

The Bennet family is a fictional family created by the English novelist Jane Austen in her 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. The family consists of Mr and Mrs Bennet and their five daughters: Jane, Mary, Catherine, Lydia, and Elizabeth, who is the novel's protagonist.

<i>Death Comes to Pemberley</i> (TV series) 2013 British television series

Death Comes to Pemberley is a three-part British television drama based on the best-selling 2011 P. D. James novel of the same name. Her murder mystery was based on the style and characters of Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice.

<i>Old Friends and New Fancies</i> Unauthorized sequel to the novels of Jane Austen

Old Friends and New Fancies: An Imaginary Sequel to the Novels of Jane Austen (1913) is a novel by Sybil G. Brinton that is often acknowledged to be the first sequel to the works of Jane Austen and as such is possibly the first piece of published Austen fan fiction, although earlier examples have been described by Sarah Glosson. It incorporates characters from each of Austen's six major novels into one unified story, alongside characters of Brinton's own invention. Keeping to the spirit of the source novels, its major theme is the difficulties faced by assorted pairs of lovers placed within the class structure of early 19th century Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Wickham</span> Fictional character

George Wickham is a fictional character created by Jane Austen who appears in her 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. George Wickham is introduced as a militia officer who has a shared history with Mr. Darcy. Wickham's charming demeanour and his story of being badly treated by Darcy attracts the sympathy of the heroine, Elizabeth Bennet, to the point that she is warned by her aunt not to fall in love and marry him. It is revealed through the course of the story that George Wickham's true nature is that of a manipulative unprincipled layabout, a ne'er-do-well wastrel, compulsive liar and a degenerate, compulsive gambler, a seducer and a libertine, living the lifestyle of a rake. Lacking the finances to pay for his lifestyle, he gambles regularly and cons credit from tradesmen and shopkeepers and skips out on paying-up.

References

  1. "Pemberley Variations" . Retrieved July 26, 2012.
  2. Decatur Book Festival. "Abigail Reynolds". Archived from the original on May 25, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2012.
  3. Sourcebooks. "Abigail Reynolds". Archived from the original on February 2, 2013. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
  4. Savvy Verse and Wit. "Interview with Abigail Reynolds, Author".
  5. Lotozo, Eils (Fall 2010). "Pride & Prejudice on College Lane". Haverford Magazine: 9.
  6. Alter, Alexandra (January 25, 2013). "Austen Power". Wall Street Journal.
  7. "Abigail Reynolds". www.pemberleyvariations.com. Retrieved March 8, 2016.