I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet by Kate Rorick
Narrator: Mary Kate Wiles
Published by Touchstone
Publication Date September 29, 2015
Source: Netgalley
Genres: General Fiction
Goodreads
Based on the Emmy Award-winning “genius” (The Guardian) web series, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, this is a new novel starring Lizzie’s spunky sister Lydia as she navigates the joys and pitfalls of becoming an adult in the digital age.
Before her older sister, Lizzie, started her wildly popular vlog, Lydia was just a normal twenty-year-old plotting the many ways she could get away with skipping her community college classes and finding the perfect fake ID. She may not have had much direction, but she loved her family and had plenty of fun. Then Lizzie’s vlog turned the Bennet sisters into Internet sensations, and Lydia basked in the attention as people watched, debated, tweeted, tumblr’d, and blogged about her life. But not all attention is good…
After her ex-boyfriend, George Wickham took advantage of Lydia’s newfound web-fame, betrayed her trust, and destroyed her online reputation, she’s no longer a naïve, carefree girl. Now, Lydia must work to win back her family’s trust and respect and find her place in a far more judgmental world.
Told in Lydia’s distinctive, eccentric, and endearing voice, The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet picks up right where The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet left off and “offers a fresh take on Pride and Prejudice without ruining it” (The Washington Post, on The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet). Featuring fresh twists, wonderful new characters, and scores of hilarious texts, doodles, and tweets, The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet takes you behind the webcam and into the lives of your favorite sisters in a way that’s sure to satisfy existing fans and delight new ones.
Book Review
I’d been looking forward to the continuation of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries but unfortunately, The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet by Kate Rorick left me high and dry. I liked that the story did not focus on her scandal with George Wickham and fixated more on “the after”. My pet peeve was more with Lydia, she was too much a valley girl for me and just got on my nerves. The book actually reminded me of The Princess Diaries, a nobody gets a little interesting and the wolves surround for their fifteen minutes of screen time. But sadly, that’s what The Epic Adventures of Lydia Bennet was, screen time with a bunch of wannabes. The other half was morality talks with Jane and Lizzie, that while masked with concern I felt were a little condescending. Despite my disgruntle with Lydia, the book was well written and did begin where Lizzie’s story left off which I appreciated. Although, in general Lydia Bennet did have adventures, they just weren’t epic.
Audio Review:
I was road tripping while reading The Adventures of Lydia Bennet and as I cannot read in the car decided to pass the time by listen to parts of the book. To make it short, I thought Mary Kate Wiles did an excellent job with the narration, she made the characters engaging, giving each a unique voice. My only complaint was the choice of inflection for Mrs. Bennet, Wiles decided to give her a southern bell tone and was just a little annoying to me, dumbing down an already silly character. Otherwise, it was a pleasure to listen to, and a great road trip choice.
Leave a Reply