Category: Geographically Specific

*SFN* | Feature: Diary of a Nu-Whovian! Week One!

Posted Saturday, 2 November, 2013 by jorielov 10 Comments

SFN Feature badge created by Jorie in Canva

The music explodes you into this wonderful place where your itching with excitement, ready to brace yourself for anything that might alight in front of your eyes, except for exactly what emerges on screen! The Doctor and the content of the series is well-written, bang-on Brit(!), quirky, humour with a dose of heart, with a good dash of otherworldly charm to endear you to watch it! You adjust your sensory perceptions to allow for the pace of the series to settle into you, rather than fight the progress of how the story is being told, and somewhere between the opening sequences before the TARDIS jumps through the wormhole to the concluding scenes,… you realise, I AM A WHOVIAN! Who knew!? Seriously, WHO knew!? :)

Randomly Becoming Acquainted with a bloke called: The Doctor

I knew I wouldn’t have enough hours in the day to fashion myself a true Whovian, as I didn’t want to rush through the series, but rather take my time to soak into them! Absorb the characters, the setting, and the quirky TARDIS at a rate that befits the series and pays homage to the creatives behind the project! This is a series that has had such a well-established fan base that it revivals all the ones I have been a part of myself! :) Therefore, with Rinn’s quick-thinking to contact a few Whovians who could pick out at least 5 episodes that they deemed fit to help a person become acquainted with the series, I took up the challenge to accomplish the impossible: ILL (inter-library) loan the series in 5 dvd set increments!

These are the Who episodes as I watched them for the first time and the impressions they left me with afterwards! Consider this the Wide-Eyed Girl’s Diary of Doctor Who! And, for those who are curious how I came to settle on ‘how’ to watch the recommended episodes!? I compiled the list by ‘series’ and then made a bit of a haphazard erring on not always getting the ‘episodes’ in order of proper sequence! I felt The Doctor might smirk knowing that, considering he cannot sort out the difference between 5 minutes (of being gone!) to 12 years!! Time is temporal and is in a state of flux!

NOTE: There are SPOILERS in this post because its a reflection of my thoughts as I watched the series!

| Doctor Who – Series 5 |

1. Vincent and the Doctor

Overview Images on the DVD Menu: A sci-fi series that reminds me of Quantum Leap (for time travel), Star Trek (for alien creatures & citizens), most BBC mystery series; Alien Nation. Gadgets: James Bond, Babylon 5, etc. I could dig this! I really, seriously could see myself digging this! I don’t know why that lizard is extending its tongue but then again, maybe its weapon or warning device!? Everything I’ve seen in Star Wars & Trek make me aware of numerous possibilities! This is going to ROCK! :)

Impression of the Music: upbeat, adventurous, exciting, exploding with curious perplexities, possibilities that lie in the impossible, a gearing up for the unknown. I wonder if the music and score is put to soundtrack!? Ooh, boy! Wait. IF I seek out if this is true I just might have on my hands a whole new realm of soundtrack music to collect! Afterall, most of the music I listened to growing up (aside from the 50s-70s, classical, and contemporary singer-songwriters) came from sound for motion picture!

Opened with Vincent van Gogh in a cornfield painting which flicks back to Museé d’ Orsay in Paris. (clever imagery!) The Doctor finds an anomaly in the church painting with a monstrous face in the window. (reminds me of watching series on SciFi Channel – Dark Shadows? Night Gallery? One of them!) The curator tells the Doctor that Vincent painted the painting of the church approx. 1-3 June, 1890. Vincent actor looks a lot like the artist and takes his role seriously. Cottage full of his paintings. Vincent shares his philosophy of the wonders of the universe, including his view of how colours dictate the paintings. Creature with a tail comes out of nowhere to attack Amy, the Doctor, and Vincent in the courtyard garden. (okay this is SERIOUSLY reminding me of “The Land of the Lost” now!) First look at the TARDIS. I *love!* the typewriter! (scanner, printer, uploader of information – Sam’s Ziggy would be impressed!) The creature sequences reminded me of “The Land of the Lost”. Finally learnt the girl’s name is Amy as I didn’t catch it at first.

The creature was a “Graface” or such (did not understand the term) of a brutal race that solitary was left behind when the rest of its kind left the planet. Reminded me of being trapped in Jurassic Park when they were in the confessional vs the freezer/fridge. In the death of the creature Vincent felt remorse as he was not seeking to kill it. The creature died afraid, alone, and blind. He could relate to the desolation the creature felt due to how he was treated in towne. Whilst they were entwined with hands in circle on the ground whilst watching the heavens parade before them Vincent started to narrate what would shape his painting “Starry, Starry Night” for all to see. The TARDIS takes all 3 back to Paris and the Museum so that Vincent can see that he has worth and that people adore his art. Its nearly too much for him to take in, and I guess this universe with the TARDIS doesn’t mind going against the rules of not revealing too much too soon!? Amy was eager to get back to Paris to see if there were more paintings painted before he died, as she was certain he would not exit the world at age 37 now that she had interacted with him. The Doctor had to reassure her that every life is a mixture of good and bad and each part doesn’t erase the whole. A lot of heart in this episode, can see why it was recommended! Sunflowers was enscribed “For Amy” which made her feel better inside, but she felt so deeply for Vincent I know a part of her grieved.

Parting Thoughts:

Clearly this was not what I was thinking it was going to be like and these were the quick notes I took *whilst watching the episode!*, as I wasn’t keen on hitting the pause button the whole time! It was a mad dash to get the notes jotted down and not have my eyes off the screen for more than seconds at a time! By George, I did well, eh!? Seriously though, when I saw that mutant (& larger version!) of the rooster-bird, I knew right then and there I was going to be ‘in for it!’ Meaning that I have a sensitive heart, scare easily when it comes to freaky creatures who come at you from the shadows (i.e. Harry Potter (the motion pictures) pushed my limits tenfold!), to where I get freaked out of my skull very easily! Hence the reason I do not watch horror movies!! Ooh, my dear ghouls — no! Exception only applies to a limited filmography of Hitchcock (big Hitch fan!), and of course, classic film noir and psychological suspense from the 1920s-1960s which is truly called: classic horror, who knew!? (no pun intended that time! laughs)

Joking aside, this was an emotional episode because I felt for Vincent as much as I felt for Amy,… tears were surely welling because you could get inside the mind & heart of the artist of Vincent rather than perceiving him as his peers left him to be known. History I think has always been decidedly harsh on Vincent, enso, it was nice to see he was treated better in this retrospective piece! Definitely recommend you have a tissue box handy to watch this episode’s concluding scenes! The Museum scene when they take him to see the Gallery featuring his paintings!? Ooh, my dear ghouls — gutting!

Makes you wonder if everyone who struggled as much as he did in life could have had someone intercede on his behalf and turned around the ending of which we all know happened!? The episode pointed out a few things to this regard, and its always true that a person who has a friend is a person who is in better spirit and health! There was so much heart in this episode! My heart was warm and overflowing with emotion! Its a brilliant one to start with I can tell you that!

Mum saw most of this episode with me but she didn’t get to see the others except for a brief viewing of the next one.

2. The Eleventh Hour

Dangling outside the TARDIS over London (I think!?) and TARDIS is on fire, appears to be self-destructing. (now there is an opening sequence for you!) Decidedly British. Slingshots through space. Crashed at a house of a young girl who bore the striking resemblance to Amy! The Doctor was soaked straight through because he was in the pool which was placed in the library of which he had to climb out of to get to the surface on the rope! She needed help with a crack in the fissure of time that was in her bedroom wall! The TARDIS meanwhile spilt into two. Bubble of light came out of the Doctor and his fingertips glowed bright gold. (is this an indication of his regeneration/reincarnation?) Started to crave apples. Then, yoghurt, bacon, beans, bread & butter, and finally settled on fish fingers & custard which reminded me of a woman who was withchild and experiencing cravings of her own! Laughs. The same repetitive message said “Prisoner Zero Has Escaped”. Giant eye in crack flicked a card out into the world where the Doctor caught it and read the same message. Highly eccentric Doctor and disheveled. (love it!) TARDIS starts to work again. Amelia packed her suitcase and waited outside in the garden for the Doctor to return. Which he did, but he thought it was only 5 minutes when it had been 12 years! She hand-chuffed him to the radiator which made me smirk to no end! I had a feeling she wasn’t a bobby too! :) Prior to this, I knew there was something to ‘do’ with the extra door opening and closing but I was not quite prepared for what emerged! :( (remember: sensitive heart!? creatures from the depths of the ocean do not bode well either!)

The quick switch to the coma patients threw me off a bit, but I resettled into the pacing of Who, as it takes a bit of adjusting to learn the series quirks, trades of mannerisms, fade ins/outs, and the pacing of the stories as their told. Once you get the hang of it, it glides rather easily and you can just soak up the stories! Amelia Pond became Amy Pond. I liked how she said she went through several shrinks. Of which is how I presume she put her ‘fantasy’ of the Doctor to bed once she created the cartoon and stories of him!? Loved how they had 20 minutes to the end of the world due to a misunderstanding of the statement by the aliens wanting to collect the errant prisoner. He keeps collapsing and grabbing his chest, but I cannot fathom as to why!? Is that the key that speaks to him in such a physical manner or can his own race communicate with him internally through pain!? Lost on that note! Revealed he’s not just a time traveler but a time lord!

A hint of the back-story! I picked up on the psychic link for a dormant mind bit. The freaky scary images I had to get used too  but I think I’m in for a long ride of them! Laughs. The eye ship for sure was less intense than the prisoner which was too much like a creature that lives in the bottom depths of the sea with those bone sharp scary teeth that gives me chills! :( Loved the firetruck that went through the hospital! Two years later from the date he left Amy he finally returns! I oft wonder how he loses track of time so easily!? Offers Amy to go with him which she does! Loved seeing the inside of the TARDIS again even though I have yet to know why its called a “TARDIS” which I know is an acronym!?

Parting Thoughts:

What I appreciated about this episode is that it shows the way in which the Doctor met Amy and how she came to travel with him in the TARDIS! I loved the interplay between the two of them, and can we just say that the Doctor has some of the best facial expressions for an actor that I have ever seen!? I didn’t catch his name, but he is fast becoming my ‘favourite’ Doctor,… is he the 5th Doctor because this was the 5th series!? Or, am I making the wrong presumption!? I just loved how he put his whole being into playing the part, giving me the impression that he loved it dearly! I liked how Amy was meant to travel with him, and I had a feeling that the crack in time meant more than they were saying, because I distinctly remembered a ST: TNG episode where a similar crack in time caused a LOT of havoc! I cannot think of what else to say, because I was so enthused about watching it!!

Except to say, I thought it was hysterical how he kept saying he had a new face and with it comes a whole new palette for food! I was wondering, truly, if I was starting to see glimpses of who the Doctor is on a personal level and how he is able to be seen as he is. I suspected he was not of Earth but rather a traveler from another place in the universe but I wasn’t confirmed on this note until I saw the Weeping Angels episodes that made me have shivers and chills up my spine! Oyy.

3. The Time of Angels

Gun is a laser to open a safe to get a message to the Doctor by having an object called a home box placed in a Museum. The box was stolen 12,000 years prior to when the Doctor would find it! Love the wide shifts in time continuum! (even if I could not sort out where ‘time’ began for Amy and where it had taken them both next?) I liked the opposite of the black box is the home box. Clever. Timens!? Professor Riversalt, no Riversoul? no Riversong! She looked so familiar to me! I kept thinking is that Beatrice!? (only to google her name and realise that it is actually Dr. Corday from ER! apparently my memory took a hiatus!) (Alex Kingston) (Corday by the by was always a favourite of mine, hence the familiar recognition even if this is one time I couldn’t place where I knew the actress!) Wicked exit and entrance to the TARDiS in space. Diary of her past and his future. (now that is a juicy tidbit to hear!) The troops arrive which I thought was interesting as they were led by Father Octavian and Clerics serving under him instead of a traditional army — did I catch the Doctor say 51st Century!? The Weeping Angels were what led them to where they were on a planet I barely caught the name of! Amy & the Angel on the tv was a close call but even I knew that was a foreshadow for a greater problem down the road! When I saw Amy had the itch in her eye I knew I was right! There was a rumouring of what the Doctor doesn’t know but should know but can’t know at the same time. The Angel in question was hidden in a catacomb of statues. Although those statues turned to be an army of Weeping Angels and the crash of the ship was not an accident but a rescue attempt as they needed an energy source! (reminded me of several Trek episodes!) When Amy’s hand turned to stone I feared which direction this would take me next!?

Parting Thoughts:

Honestly, I now understand why everyone thought I’d dig this series due to my passion for Trek! Its so blatantly obvious to me now that its laughable to consider that I held off so long in watching it! Oyy vie. I think the reason I couldn’t pull forward where I knew Alex Kingston from is because I have sort of shelved my memories of ER over the years to where all the lovely memories of those episodes are slowly erasing a bit in my memory. I had to let them go because it was too difficult for me to keep them after what happened after Season 5.

The Weeping Angels were some of the most intense villains I have ever come across!!! Although I haven’t seen a lot of Who I would have to imagine that for Whovians, they might agree with me that the Angels are the most intense!? I tried not to think about some of the more shuddering bits of this episode but reflect more on Riversong’s presence and her affect on the Doctor!? He revealed more bits about himself in this episode and for every random fact given, I had a swirling of questions floating inside me! This is a series that makes you want to ask ‘questions’ but without SFN I wouldn’t have the option to ask!

4. Flesh & Stone

They find the oxygen factory-forest in the ship. Crack in the wall of Amy’s room apparently meant more than they let on previously as it re-appeared on the ship. An angel grabbed the Doctor but failed to capture him. As Amy started to die in the forest, they had her close her eyes so that the angel inside her couldn’t see and therefore would delay the reaction of being consumed by death. She was supposed to remember what the Doctor told her at the age of 7, but even I struggled to remember which specific thing he said that had the impact he was looking for in that moment!? Mind you, being so new to Who I was trying to absorb everything in one night as the set was due back the next day! :( Stonecage is a prison where Riversong was kept after killing a good man, which made me think she killed the Doctor in a future timestream. Not sure why I felt that but I did. The time crack was still happening despite the Angels being cast into it to seal. Amy had to walk with closed eyes through the forest before being transported the rest of the way. The Doctor thought at first he had to go into the time crack but released the gravity instead to send the angels. Amy learns that she’s a time traveler now officially and that it alters her perception and memory of everything she experiences. The Doctor felt good about realising that time can be re-written which lends to reason he wants to know that for a future time. Amy kisses the Doctor who is completely gobsmacked by her attentions after learning she was meant to wed another in the morning! (I thought for sure she intended to wed him!) He told her he was 907 years old and that he wouldn’t age anymore but she would. She kept trying to engage him romantically but he finally realised that he had to address the other matter of the time crack, the fact that it was referencing Amy Time as the base code of the universe. And off they went in the TARDIS and I wished I had had more time to watch more episodes!

Parting Thoughts:

This one brought up a lot of questions in regards to the Doctor himself and his position in the life of Riversong! There is something ‘there’ but I am not sure what ‘it’ is! The crack in time also reminded me of ST: Generations (film) by the by! Mostly due to the emotional keel of this episode I was a bit disappointed I had not an extra one to see that might have been a bit lighter in tone as getting through two episodes with those Angels was trying! :( On the level of production, I loved how they created the ‘effect’ of the Angels, especially in how they were portrayed and how they kept increasing towards the actors!

| Doctor Who – Series 5 | Concluding Remarks

Ooh, my dear ghouls why did I not watch this series SOONER!? No, seriously, I am wayy over the moon in happiness for being in a position to watch Doctor Who!! The humour is bang-on Brit and the methodology of the production is very British too which is an asset because the Brits know how to make motion pictures & tv serials like this one shine and rock! I like the fact that everything in our known reality and universe is simply suspended! Including, some of the ethical choices from other series (i.e. Star Trek, Quantum Leap, etc) where there was always a borderline knowing of when to cross the line and when not to cross the line. I was highly surprised to see Vincent walk into the Museum in other words! Happy, overjoyed, but surprised!

I spied titles of other episodes as part of the Series 5 set, but I promised myself I’d limit myself this month during SFN to ‘stick to the plan’ by watching *ONLY!* those episodes that were sent to me in a list by Rinn! I can always resume where I left off by re-attempting to get all of them back afterwards!! :) I am sure my local library will think I jumped straight to the moon at that point, but perhaps, one day they will get the Whovian Universe in the catalogue!? One can hope!!

I’m itching to see more Who, and I have to be patient because between my posting schedule + my ensuing book tours, I have to balance the time I have to give to SFN + to my blog! Therefore, through patience and persistence I shall be watching the rest of the Who sets that arrive!! I have a heart full of gratitude to Maria & Rinn, as well as the 2 others who tweated about my foray into the world of Doctor Who based on my previous post! Warmed my heart, you all! I’m not in the social media realms (aside from the bookish blogosphere of course!) due to time constraints, but my appreciation for those who are active and think of others whilst they are tweating or Facebooking is limitless! Bless you for spreading the word! :)

Will I make it!? There is only one way to find out! Come back each *Saturday!* to see my progress!

I yield to the Whovians who are participating in SFN to help me understand better the bits of Who that befuddle me and of the pieces of which I might understand if I had had the time to watch each serial straight-through rather than in the bobblements that I am choosing to do! I look forward to seeing your comments! I like how this is taking shape as its seriously a “as I watch Who, I am writing about Who” diary! My eyes are WIDE OPEN! Cheers!

This feature is brought to you by:

Sci-Fi November | Hosted by Rinn ReadsIn conjuction with: A Wide-Eyed Girl Slips into the Whovian Universe!

{SOURCES: Sci-Fi November Badge provided by Rinn Reads for participants to advert the month long event and to encourage people to follow along with those of us who are contributing! SFN Feature badge created by Jorie in Canva. Post lovely provided by Shabby Blogs with edits by Jorie in Fotoflexer.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

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Posted Saturday, 2 November, 2013 by jorielov in #SciFiMonth, Alternative History, Britian, Doctor Who, Library Love, Sci-Fi November, Science Fiction, TARDIS, Time Travel, TV Serials & Motion Pictures, Typewriter Culture

*SFN* | Feature: A Wide-Eyed Girl Slips Into the Whovian Universe

Posted Saturday, 2 November, 2013 by jorielov 20 Comments

SFN Feature badge created by Jorie in Canva

Did the Whovians get back with you in regards to which “Doctor Who” episodes/series, I should attempt to watch!? I only ask as my time window to watch them is greatly reduced from a few weeks ago, and if I could start to watch them as soon as I can, it would be quite helpful! :) A general overview of their Top 5s and your ‘go to’ Who, would be extremely helpful…

And, so began this seemingly innocent introduction into “Doctor Who” as I decided it was high time that I get my tail into gear and sink into a tv serial that has consistently been recommended to me over the years! I remember that some of the interested parties attempting to convince me when the ‘right moment’ to watch ‘Who’ would be (generally it was ALWAYS a right now, don’t wait kind of talk!) engaged in such a lengthy discussion of who “the Doctor” is but without giving me anything truly tangible to hold onto! I would be given little curtain glimpses of who he was, what the series was about, but it was more OR less a conversation that frittered around certain terminological Whovian codes: TARDIS, time lord, screwdriver (that was a unique tidbit!), time slips and time travel, and other words I have long since forgotten but as I watch the episodes some of what I learnt over the years is coming back to me!

I never wanted to read too much about the series, as I kind of like the idea of getting to know a character (especially one of this particular nature!) through watching their growth over the score of a serial! I started to ILL (inter-library loan) BBC dramas and comedies (i.e. As Times Goes By, The Good Life, Rosemary & Thyme, Monarch of the Glen, etc) a little over three years ago when my local library was encouraging us to ILL the series that were not yet in our collection! I’ll never forgot how they ordered the Complete Serial of “As Times Go By”, including the Anniversary Specials whilst we were unable to fetch them through ILL channels! That simply rocked our (my parents & I) world! I had it in the back of my mind to start to fetch “Who” but I simply shrugged it off.

The few times I pitched the idea, I noticed that my Mum & Da simply weren’t into seeing ‘Who’ as much as I was, so I let it slide a bit, as we were starting to get into Downtown Abbey, Sherlock (with Benedict Cumberbach), and finishing through Monarch of the Glen! (in 2012) When SFN started to come together, I knew it was time for ‘Who’ once and for all! I mean, all those years of people referring me to this serial (who knew my heart lie with Roddenberry’s Starfleet and Lucas’ Star Wars) must have been a recommendation that I could trust! I decided that even though I am going to post ‘diary entries’ for the episodes and series I watch for SFN, I wanted to make this a family affair! Therefore, with the exception of All Saint’s Day, my Mum & Da are watching ‘Who’ alongside me! They were the original inspiration behind why I have a sci-fi heart which is why it makes sense that on the brink of discovering a ‘new serial’ we engage in it together!

The fascinating bit to watching BBC tv serials on serial dvd, is that for the most part my local library has grown their own catalogue of resources to this end at least tenfold since 2009! However, the few that are not yet available I must say that the consortium by which my local library is a member of is a great one to get ‘complete and whole sets’ through ILL!! I realise that dvds and most media materials are ‘not’ available at all local libraries for ILL. (the reasons vary, but generally its because they do not loan out the same materials themselves) For this one reason, I am extra thankful that despite an initial hiccup, our second attempts to get ‘Who’ in time for SFN has been successful! Ooh, I had forgotten to say, that the most fascinating bit to watching the BBC in this fashion is that you never know what your in for as you slip in the disc, sit back on your couch and settle into,… the unexpected!

When I first heard the ‘music’ of Doctor Who I was simply transfixed! You see, this is not the first time traveler I have come across as although I had limited feeds for “Time Trax” I always was endeared to the character and his quirky sense of humour! Dr. Beckett was my mainstay for time traveling which I touched on yesterday in my feature “Seventeen to Seven“. And, lest I forget to mention “The Traveler” from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” who had the greatest impact on Wesley Crusher!? Yet. My fascination and concentration of time bending characters doesn’t stop there! Ooh, no! There was the young boy in “Flight of the Navigator“, the curious hovering ships in “Batteries Not Included“, the quirky adventures of Doc Brown & Marty McFly in “Back to the Future“, as much as trying to keep up with my favourite Starfleet Captains in the original five series of Trek!

The music brought back an inertia of happy memories of my ENTIRE EXPERIENCE in the science fiction universe which is not even limited to the few serials I have already mentioned! At some point, they all start to blur a bit in my mind’s eye, because I have literally watched a science fiction or fantasy tv serial as long as I have been watching murder mystery serials! Between the two, I could fill a voluminous tome of a journal! Here were my first tick-tocking reflections as a bit of a beat of a clock was present in the overtures: upbeat, adventurous, exciting, exploding with curious perplexities, possibilities that lie in the impossible, and a gearing up for the unknown!

I’m a wide-eyed adventurous girl slipping herself into the Whovian universe, geared up for excitingly curious escapades spent traveling with a quirky Professor-like Doctor, whose as mysterious as any person she’s ever greeted in a sci-fi series! Let these first adventures be the start of many more to come in the near future! As time is temporal and constantly in flux!

And, without further adieu here are the select episodes I will be viewing in order to achieve:

| A Crash-Course in Doctor Who |

[by order of suggested viewing]

[list complied by: Emma, Annie, Charlene, Rebekah, Rinn, Lianne, & Christine]

[anything in bold was cross-suggested by the Whovians!]

(Series One) Episodes: Rose, The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances, Dalek, Father’s Day

(Series Two) Episodes: The Christmas Invasion, The Impossible Planet / Satan’s Pit, Tooth & Claw, Army of Ghosts, Doomsday, School Reunion,  The Girl in the Fireplace, New Earth

(Series Three) Journey’s End, Human Nature / Family of Blood, Blink, The Runaway Bride, The Shakespeare Code

(Series Four) Turn Left, Midnight, Silence in the Library / The Forest of the Dead, The Fires of Pompeii, The Unicorn & the Wasp

(Series Five) Vincent & the Doctor, The Eleventh Hour, The Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone (to be seen with Blink)

(Series Six) The Doctor’s Wife

(Series Seven) Nightmare in Silver

How far will I reach into the Doctor Who universe!? How much of his world and life will I understand when November starts to fade from view and the Christmas holiday season enters into view!? What beautiful things will I learn from the Whovians taking part in SFN?! Where will the conversations and discussions lead me next!? And, just how fast can I re-Que the entire series in order to watch each set in its entirety!? Join me on *Saturdays* during November to find out!!

Meanwhile, I am going to open up my first-ever discussion thread here on JLAS!

You have the option of sharing in your own blog post about how you came to know Doctor Who, which series stood out to you thus far, and/or you can focus on one or more of the episodes I will be watching from the above list speaking about why you are captivated by it yourself! Be sure to come back to this post to attach the link of your post in the comments! ONLY link directly to the post you created on this topic, DO NOT link to the main page of your blog! I will be checking! Thank you! I cannot wait to see what everyone’s post!! :)

This feature is brought to you by:

Sci-Fi November | Hosted by Rinn Reads{SOURCES: Sci-Fi November Badge provided by Rinn Reads for participants to advert the month long event and to encourage people to follow along with those of us who are contributing! SFN badge used with permission. SFN Feature badge created by Jorie in Canva.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

Related Articles:

Doctor Who – (en.wikipedia.org)

TARDIS – (en.wikipedia.org)

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Posted Saturday, 2 November, 2013 by jorielov in Alternative History, Bookish Discussions, Britian, Doctor Who, Library Love, Sci-Fi November, Science Fiction, TARDIS, Time Travel, TV Serials & Motion Pictures, Typewriter Culture

*Review* The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie

Posted Sunday, 27 October, 2013 by jorielov , , , 7 Comments

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The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie
[Book Three in the Muirteach MacPhee mystery series]

The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie

[Book One: A Mass for the Dead]
[Book Two: The Fairie Hills]

Published By: Five Star Publishing, an imprint of Gale Group, September 2013
Page Count: 264
Available Formats: Softcover and E-Book

Blog Book Tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
was scheduled 16th of September – 25th of September 2013

Acquired Book By: Whilst following the said book tour for The Study of Murder, I had the honour of interacting with Ms. McDuffie on Unabridged Chick’s blog. That conversation moved off-blog, as I had a bit more to say about how lovely it was to find an author who was as dedicated to research as she happens to be! The author contacted me and asked if I would be interested in reviewing her book. I received a complimentary copy of The Study of Murder direct from the author herself [Susan McDuffie] in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

What implored me to read The Study of Murder: I was originally intrigued with the title itself, as I was looking over the upcoming book tours on the HFVBT website, and I thought to myself, “This one sounds interesting!”. Yet, I wasn’t sure if it fell under ‘cosy’ or ‘hard-boiled’ which is why I hesitated to find a copy through my local library! Laughs. Mostly as I tend to read more mysteries on the cosy side of the ledger, being that I have a sensitive heart! When the review posted on Unabridged Chick I started to see the story as a whole, and realised that I not only could read the book, but that I might find myself curiously entranced by the setting by which the story takes place!! There was a direct line of interest for me, as I have become an appreciator of the “Inspector Morse” and “Inspector Lewis” mysteries from the BBC! I borrowed the first two seasons of Morse, before realising that the harder hitting story-lines were a bit too unsettling for me at the time I was watching them! (Spring 2012) Which is why I decided to seek out Lewis instead, as I had a feeling his spin-off series might be a bit lighter or at the very least, easier to watch! I was quite chuffed to find that I was right! 

I had mentioned my knowledge of Morse and Lewis whilst interacting on Unabridged Chick‘s blog as I had a bit of a footing of the historical aspects of Oxford, simply based on the observations I had made whilst watching the series! There is such a large presence of historical artifacts as far as structures and buildings are concerned, that you can get a good sense of the depth of history and of time, that Oxford can afford! I was also encouraged by this review to read The Study of Murder because it’s not quite as hard-boiled as I had feared!

All of this combined with the fact the central character is of Scottish decent implored me to find out more about this lovely three book series and the author who penned it! The way in which I concluded my thoughts on Unabridged Chick‘s blog were as follows:

Prior to seeing the series, I always mistook Oxford for a quaint University towne, where scholarly pursuits were the center-focus! However, it’s also a hub for the arts, theatre, and has a youthful vibe set against the backdrop of a rather ancient site of University grounds! There is history leaping out off the screen, and inside the suspense of the story-lines, I always get a proper sense that ‘there is something more’ ‘something left unsaid’ that is just awaiting my discovery! I love old architecture and places like Oxford, who have an enriched history that is still viable and visible!

Combined with all of this I said tonight + the other day, you can see why I was properly fascinated by “The Study of Murder”!!! I completely concur with you, the characters that stay a bit in your mind’s eye and heart, are the ones who have broached into that special remembrance place all readers aspire to keep their most beloved reads!

Susan McDuffie

Author Biography:

Susan McDuffie has been a devotee of historical fiction since her childhood, when she believed she had been born in the wrong century.  She now writes historical mysteries set in medieval Scotland.  The Muirteach MacPhee Mysteries include A MASS FOR THE DEAD (2006), THE FAERIE HILLS (2011–  Winner of NM Book Award “Best Historical Novel” 2011) and THE STUDY OF MURDER (September 2013). Additional information can be found at www.SusanMcDuffie.net  or facebook.com/SusanMcDuffieAuthor.

Setting into a Muirteach MacPhee mystery:

One of the gifts of having an author whose passion for research is clearly evident from the first moment you pick up their novel to the very last page your fingers touch as you watch the story resolve at its conclusion, is that your mind never falters out of the timescape by which the story is set! You’re instantly intrigued by the uniqueness of the era by which the story is unfolding inside, due to the distance between the 1300’s and the 2000’s! It’s not as though we have a semblance of a working knowledge of what life led ‘then’ would involve as compared to how we might be acquainted through living (family) histories with the 1800’s and 1900’s!

The author provides a brilliant resources page to help readers sort through the Gaelic pronunciations! Although, I have learnt how to properly say “Muirteach”, I must confess, part of what I love about reading is how I attach certain ‘endearing names’ to the characters that I discover whilst I walk through stories!

Your introduction to Oxford comes through a travelogue of notations as a young son of the Lord of the Isles is sent to Oxford to study, and I would presume, to gain a breath of the world to enlighten his path towards maturity! You’re with the MacPhee’s as they first enter Oxford, and whilst they start to settle into village life. Including becoming regulars at the alehouse, booksellers, market, and other little odd nooks around the village that bespoke to life during that time! I was mirroring my dismay with Mariota (Muirteach’s wife) at how close-minded and cold-hearted the institutions of school were towards women. Although, I have oft known of this particular issue in the folds of history, as it creeps into view whilst I read certain stories set during certain times in our histories.

One of the opening revelations that spoke to my sense of suspense and curiosity are of the parchments that young Donald was given to use for his schoolwork!? I was fascinated by how you were never quite certain where the parchments had come from originally OR even what their direct purpose was prior to being in your possession! I was quite curious how the drawings were attached to the mystery, or if in effect, they were a secondary branch of mystery!

I like that Muirteach’s wife, Mariota is painted as a formidable and independent woman! She has a strong head on her shoulders, and she’s determined to follow her will without being told what she aims to do is impossible or ill received for the time she is living! I always latch on to strong women in stories, because they give us such a hearty glimpse of the strength it takes to pursue your dreams and to be able to push through an obstacles that might arise in your life as you walk towards your destiny.

Transportation is limited in this part of Oxford, as most of it is by foot! Being that I have advanced my stamina in recent years to walking a handful of miles whilst enjoying the natural world, I can attest, that walking has its wellness attributes! Yet, I am not sure if I could get used to always having to walk to reach each destination that is needed to be visited! I think that takes more energy than I have stored to have within me! In this way, I noticed that the pace of life is set differently than our time of day now. Being a University towne, everything of course, runs in counterpart to the lectures and the lives of the students, which I discerned is not always acceptable to the townesfolk who live there. Much in the same way I think modern University townes get a bit of a bad reputation, as the ‘hobby of the hour’ is drinking ale or wine to the brink of being drunk!

The manner is which Muirteach deduces his investigations is quite unlike another I have come across since, because he has such a quiet manner about him! He calmly asks questions and investigates in a way that is befit a man who enjoys the duties of detecting but perhaps, does not fully want to explore detection. He stumbles a bit in finding the connections, but given the people he has to interact with, I do not find them to be easily questioned due to their preference for hostility.

I like the interactions he has with his wife, because it shows a marriage of equality at a time when men had more ruling over women. I like finding distinctive differences to the norm in literature, as it begs the question that despite the society norms, you will always have a few who adhere to a rhythm that extends outside society’s reach. In this way, we always shift forward and away from the darker days without liberties and move into a time of equal pursuits and stations. I think I would enjoy getting to know Mariota a bit more in the previous stories, as I was appreciative of her knowledge of natural medicine and tinctures!

These mysteries unfold gently, (which endears them to cosy) yet they provide you with a gritty sense of reality once the murders and/or violence start to unfold, (this would be the slightly bent towards hard-boiled bits) in such a way that it’s possible to read them if you enjoy either branch of mystery! For me, I was thankful the death scenes were not too elaborate and that the heart of the story was consumed by the investigation rather than the macabre of the deaths.

Review of The Study of Murder:

The story opens benignly enough with the quest to partake of life in Oxford, to seek the education of the Lord’s son, by which Muirteach MacPhee and his wife, Mariota were entrusted to achieve. I realised it could not stay this uncomplicated, but what I appreciated in the telling of the unfolding story, is the historical details that differentiate the classes and casts. As much as the inability of women to study at their choosing the subjects and topics that interest them, merely due to the inability to have the right to study such as they gained in generations past the 14th Century; in the mid to late 1800’s from what I can gather. I found it curious how industrious Mariota MacPhee became in this installment of the Muirteach MacPhee mysteries, to not only succeed at pursuing her studies but in having gained the insightful knowledge of natural medicine by being attune to her father’s work previously!

At first, it felt as though there was a simple matter of a missing girl, presumed dead that curtailed into the brutal murder of a Master at the University itself! This was followed by a second murder, which although presumed interconnected to the first murder, I was still curious how the disappearance of the first girl fit into the timeline! I started to sort out the meaning of the mysterious parchments, but what held my interest was an attempt to unearth the connecting dots that would place each of the events in line and construct the picture into a larger scope.

One thing that always struck me about living during the earlier centuries, is that oft-times the conditions of the townes were quite amuck of filth and sewage! I have always heard of the stories of Venice, Italy, being that the canal streets and close proximity of the waterways always prove to be a disadvantage in keeping the city clean: both in sight and smell. It did not surprise me in the least that Oxford, at this point in history, suffered under the same issues of Venice of today. Honestly, I do not know how one could handle the enormity of stench whilst walking down the streets! Especially as depicted if it were true that the townesfolk would simply dump out their sewage into the very streets themselves!

The mystery ended up being compounded by the delusions of a madman who felt compelled to a calling that only he was aware of existing. In this way, I nearly pitied the villain in the story, but only nearly, because what he did to secure his calling was outside the scope of God’s and Man’s Law of Order. I was still curious at the ending about the parchments, as if they were of an origin that was not yet known at the time or if they were simply not as important as I first thought they would be revealed as being!?

Thankful that I stumbled across this book on tour with HFVBT:

If I hadn’t started to seek out the books going on tour with HFVBT at the time in which I stumbled across this one, I might not have had the pleasure to interact with the author, Ms. McDuffie! I never would have suspected a conversation or a passion for research and writing would have led to my opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review! Therefore, I can only attest, that if you see a book going on tour that piques your interest, do follow the tour routes and leave messages for the authors’ and bloggers’ who are participating! You simply might find a new book to read, an author to engage in conversation, and perhaps, even, win one of the books that are given away! I celebrate the beauty of the bookish culture online, for it provides all of us a chance to interact with those who write the stories that interest us to discover!

IF you are familiar with the book tours HFVBT organises, I am most curious, which tours stand out in your mind as being amongst your favourites!? Did you get the chance to converse with one of the authors? Do you seek out books that are touring (on blogs) through all the lovely book tour companies!?

{SOURCES: Author biography, Book Cover, and Author photograph were given to me by the author herself, (Susan McDuffie) and are used with permission. Book Review badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. }

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

Related Articles:

The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie – (unabridged-expression.blogspot.com)

Interview with Susan McDuffie – (unabridged-expression.blogspot.com)

Guest Post: Susan McDuffie’s The Study of Murder – (hf-connection.com)

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Posted Sunday, 27 October, 2013 by jorielov in 14th Century, Amateur Detective, Blog Book Tour Find, Book Review (non-blog tour), England, Indie Author, Late Middle Ages (1300-1500), Oxford

*Forthcoming Review* | The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie

Posted Tuesday, 8 October, 2013 by jorielov , , 2 Comments

The Study of Murder by Susan McDuffie
An exciting announcement to make today, here on Jorie Loves A Story, as I have a forthcoming review for The Study of Murder, 12th of October!! My review of this lovely book was made possible when my path crossed with the authors’ through her book tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours! Whereupon, I was responding to one of the reviews that had been given on the book’s behalf, and started to talk about my appreciation for Oxford, as seen through the BBC serial “Inspector Morse” and “Inspector Lewis”. Lo and behold to my delight I heard back from the author, as I was appreciative of her dedication to research on the novel itself, as that is one of the things that I am always fond of finding on behalf of the historical fiction novels that I read! I was offered to read this book in exchange for an honest review and I am most esteemed to be given that chance!
What first captivated my attention for this story, is the unique voice of the main character combined with the setting [in and around Oxford University in England], as much as the time of the story, as its the 14th Century, of the 1300s! Its not oft you discover a wholly true and realistic mystery set at such a precise time in our history, that has a way to captivate you to read it, due to the nature of how it was written! Although this is the third book in the series, I was captivated by the reviewer’s lament that this is a series which can be jumped into at book three, and give the reader plenty of insight to where going back to the beginning would nearly be savoured a bit more than if you had read them in order! Due to this, I decided to trust that observation, and will not be ILL’ing books one & two of the Muirteach MacPhee mysteries until after I complete “The Study of Murder”!!!
As you can read more about the story’s premise on the author’s website!

Official Site for Susan McDuffie

Official Facebook Page for Susan McDuffie

The Blog Book Tour via Historical Fiction Book Tours was held between16-25th of September, 2013!

Be sure to mark your calendars to drop back here on:
12th of October 2013!!
Be sure to loop back through the tour prior to reading my review!
Remember, to always keep a keen eye on my sidebar, for current & future Bookish Events Featured on JLAS! For a full listing of each book that has either been reviewed OR a stop via a tour on Jorie Loves A Story, please consult: Bookish Events Featured on JLAS!

{SOURCE: The author, Susan McDuffie provided me with the book cover and it is used with permission.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

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Posted Tuesday, 8 October, 2013 by jorielov in 14th Century, Amateur Detective, Blog Book Tour Find, Late Middle Ages (1300-1500), Oxford

Walking in Miss Elizabeth Bennett’s shoes,…my thoughts on “Pride & Prejudice” by Jane Austen

Posted Monday, 16 September, 2013 by jorielov , , 8 Comments

Parajunkee DesignsPride and Prejudice by Jane Austen | originally entitled: First Impressions, written approx. during October 1796 – August 1797, at age one and twenty| Austen herself re-titled the manuscript, having made revisions to the story in 1811 and 1812. |originally enscribed as written: By the Author of “Sense and Sensibility”

Published by: Whitehall , in January 1813 | originally published in America as Elizabeth Bennett or Pride & Prejudice in 1832

Page Count: 490 | originally spilt into three volumes of a whole [based on the edition I am reading: Barnes & Noble Collector’s Library: pocket-sized unabridged edition]

[side note: I wish I could have collected more of these at the time! As I only was able to pick up the pocket edition of Dickens Oliver Twist, before they pulled these from the shelves!]

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Acquired Book By: This is quite a good question, as I know I purchased it at Barnes & Noble at some point, but as to when and how or why, I yield that my memory is a bit fragmented! I only remember taking it off my shelf originally to read ahead of the [2005] adaptation that was soon in theaters, and I feared I would not finish it in time!

On why I choose this to be my first reading, for Austen in August an annual reading challenge hosted by Roof Beam Reader: I wanted to begin at the beginning of my experience with Ms. Austen, and that meant going back to my original choice of Pride and Prejudice, as I was thoroughly enchanted by the notion of the story, long before it ever populated in my mind! You will find that this is a ready experience that repeats itself in my reading adventures! Books and motion pictures walk hand-in-hand in my life, despite the fact that I am generally a purist, in wanting to read the book prior to watching the motion picture and/or limiting myself to which sequel authors I want to become engaged in reading, as I always feel they should honour the canon.

I originally planned to read my coveted collection of Austen novels, as I had purchased the full set of her works out of a book club I have long since forgotten which I was a member of [this goes back to when mail-order book clubs were all the rage in the mid-to-late ’90s], as they had such wonderful cover art featured on each volume! It was a gift to myself to celebrate my birthday one year in my twenties, and I wanted it as a counter-balance to the lovely set of Sense and Sensibility books my Mum had gifted to me around the same time frame! She had found an exclusively lovely edition of the novel, as well as the full screenplay and story of how the adaptation of 1995 had been produced. It was my intent to read the book, then the screenplay, and lead into watching the motion picture! Alas! I had to give in to the fact that my mind couldn’t yet settle into Austen’s brilliant prose, and I tabled the idea for awhile. Then, a few years went past, and in 2005 on the foot heels of Keira Knightley’s version of Pride about to hit theaters, I was quite determined to get into Jane Austen! I picked up this lovely pocket edition from Barnes & Noble, [as much as I prefer indies, my area has none!] as I am forever attached to the original cloth-bound pocket editions of centuries past! I love the comfortable ease to hold the tomes, as much as it feels like I am reading as readers read in a different age than the one I am living in myself! Therefore, with this new version in hand [daresay, how many editions do most end up collecting?], I embarked on completing the novel before the motion picture left the theater! A full fortnight passed, and I was anxiously worried that the film might leave our cineplex, only to be relieved that it hadn’t and I promptly found myself elated by what was unfolding in front of me! As it began, I noted the creative liberties, but I also had the re-collective memories of what I had read, as it nearly felt for the first half of the film, that I was both reading a subtext of narration alongside the live action!

I wanted Pride to serve as a proper starting off point to entertain sequel authors for the first time in my reading life! I sought out everything that my local library could give me, and came to appreciate the offerings long before I ever could read them! As soon as I checked them out, one by one, I would love over their covers, inlets, and read the synopsis, awaiting the day where I could dive into the heart of their stories! Except to say, that August played out a bit differently than I forethought it would:

Whilst I launched JLAS, I undertook Austen in August, declared my intent to read Books of Eyre, contributed a piece to The Clockwork Carnival, settled into Bout of Books, 8.0, participated in the first Blog Pen Pal Exchange, encountered an illness, a 4-day migraine, technical difficulties during the Bout & afterwards [more than half the Bout’er blogs wouldn’t load – who knew I needed to switch browsers!? I *love!* SeaMonkey now!], waylaid by fierce lightning and thunderstorms, AND just when I was thrilled to bits about all the lovelies I am reading, the hours ticked off the clock and I arrived at September before I could make a backwards glance and wonder, “Where did dear August go off too!?” I even found time to sort out which weekly memes I want to contribute too: Sunday Showcase (#1, #2) and Library Loot being two I felt best to start on, prior to finding WWW Wednesdays! September started with a surge of excitement, as I participated in my first Book Cover Reveal [Love at First Slight by J. Marie Croft] and my first Blog Book Tour Stop [The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate]!! All the while attempting to make headway on the list of books I had garnished to read throughout the month! In the end, I learnt a hard lesson: there are only so many hours by which you have to find the balance to accomplish everything you set out to do!

I decided that I would take a step back in September, arranging my goals into my day planner journal, and giving myself the freedom to have a bit more flexibility to truly enjoy the blogosphere events as they alight in my life! I feel like I couldn’t give as much of my heart to Austen in August, nor could I complete the Bout properly either! I need to compose my Wrap-Up Posts to where I can put it all in a better light and scope! There is, of course, the addition of wanting to get back to my pen, ferret off dearly owed letters and correspondences to the most patient friends a girl could ever hope to know, and knit my UFOs into finished objects I can be proud of!

One measure of gratitude in knowing that I wasn’t the only one who fell a bit short on their reading goals this past month, was the lovely PM I received from our Host Adam! I am not sure if he realised it or not, but he encouraged me to know that all of us run into issues or difficulties time to time, and if the overall reading experience trumps the stress of the insanity that came up whilst we endeavoured to complete our goals!? Then, we succeeded triumphantly! In this way, I feel more encouraged than ever in my next goal that is attached to Austen in August, is Classics Re-Told! A collective reading challenge, where each of us picked a ‘team’ to be on, and which ‘work’ we wanted to explore via the canon and after canons! Being that I had already chosen mine for “Pride and Prejudice”, I attached myself to 19th Century & Gothic Classics, hosted by Charlene @ Bookish Whimsy! I am going to read “Persuasion”, the few after canons, and Sandition to participate in Author of the Month hosted by The Joyful Bookcase, December’s selective author! In this way, I will be accomplishing the original goals I set forth to attempt!

English: "Reading Jane's letters" - ...
English: “Reading Jane’s letters” – Elizabeth reading Jane’s letters – Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. London: George Allen, 1894, frontispiece. (Photo credit: Hugh Thomson (1860-1920) (Lilly Library, Indiana University) [Public domain, PD-1923],
via Wikimedia Commons)

The ready exchangement of letters and correspondences warms my heart evermore: One of the best instances of the merits of immediate and intimate conversations to be freely conversed by way of letters and correspondences, is the inter-relation of characters in “Pride and Prejudice”. Theirs was a life that would never have superseded their own home front news, if not for the passages of letters by way of footman. In our own century {the 20th and 21st}, some of us still rely on news reaching our loved ones and friends alike by the same vein as Elizabeth and Jane Bennett!

And, what is humbling to denote, is that such a letter that was dispatched between Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennett, is one that I can readily attest as to have happening to a couple I know whose union was nearly thus disrupted had the man not had the fortitude as Darcy, to spilt his heart into the pen of his hand, and give way, to the felicities of the heart by which his companion had not yet expressed or were readily known unto herself! It’s not everyday you strike up a direct connection with a portraiture of literature, that has had such an affection placed inside your own life, by the story of another!

You’ll find that letter writing and correspondences shall become a bit of a mainstay on Jorie Loves A Story, as I am seeking out ways to bring to light this beautiful exchangement of lives, that some might readily dismiss as having ‘long since lived its proper due’. In my left sidebar, there is a particular section that lays to mind my attachment for envelopes, letters, stationeries, stamps, and the various minutiae of what any correspondent could ever possibly hope to find amongst their cherished supplies! Thus, time to time, due take a bit of a ganderment at my cross-referenced ‘topics’, curiously attuned to the category of: Epistolary Novel for forthcoming mentionments in literature, and of Letters & Correspondences for all others!

On why Pride and Prejudice is a story that I could re-read at least once per year: Singularly, my heart is full of rejoicement and giddy enraptures of what is yet to follow the very first page, of the very first chapter! It always begins rather innocently, as Mrs. Bennett merely wants to see her five daughters well-married, to self-sufficient men who can establish their well-being long after Mr. Bennett, her husband is put to the grave! A bit macabre of a denouncement at first glance, until you realise that there is a clause in the family’s inheritances which prevents the girls from benefiting from their father’s estate; as they were bourne the wrong gender! This is what opens the story to the novice reader of Jane Austen, of whom, wants readily to become acquainted with her collective works and might have picked this as a starting point! I have noted of late, that there is a bit of a disconnect amongst Austenites & Janeites (as I identify as the latter), as to where this story fits in with their love of Austen! Some I noted are a bit disinterested in the story forthwit, whereas others might lean more towards one of the other stories, but not as readily into this one. If any of those particular readers read this, I’d be deeply encouraged to hear their point of views as to what has caused a bit of a rife or rather, a bit of a disagreement on the benefits of the story!? Perhaps it’s too strongly viewed as a classical attempt of making a fluffy modern chick-lit!? I am being presumptuous here, although a rare slight of my own character, it’s been known to happen, that it’s difficult not to make presumptions in certain instances! As for my own regards to the story, I do not view it in the same light as the modern counterparts, as there is such a hearty breath more to this story, than the agreeable notion of young girls marrying before they enter their thirties!

I get forever wrapped up in the state of the affairs of the Bennett family, from the doting father, to the impossibly repentant Mrs. Bennett, who is both vain and shallow, yet affable in her attentions to her daughters. Outspoken to a fault, and determined not to be outshined by another family in the same district, I truly always sided that somewhere in her bosom, she had the right attentions; merely went about them in the wrong manner! Jane, Elizabeth, and Mary Bennett are the sisters that I always find myself to be able to have learnt more of, as they stand out in my mind as the sisters who have more to give than Lydia and Kitty. Kitty, however, is less in reproachment than her sister!

Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy: two characters that alight in your heart: As such they should, because they have an enigmatic way about themselves, that endears you to want to see these two make it in the end! She’s blinded to her prejudicial tendencies towards the prideful Darcy, of whom, cannot overlook her class, station, and family! Each are quite the pair in their own rights, as she is fiercely independent and strong! She is fortified by having been raised in a family that believed that each daughter had the bourne right to sort out their own affairs and their own motivations of how they wished to occupy their hours from young ages. Most girls during their time, were confined to structure and lessons, on how best to be in good form to be presented to society, and never, would any other family expect that all the daughters of one, should be ‘out’ for marriage at once! Thus, Elizabeth’s life takes on a new path than most women Darcy has been meeting up until this point! He’s bemused by her, he’s perplexed by her, and he is most especially vexed, too! And, yet, he has found himself repeatedly thinking about her, and drawing himself to be curious to understand her even better than he believes he has from afar! It’s through their tribulations and their small triumphs that you start to see how they become attached to your heart!

You celebrate each small step towards their union, including seeing how everything unraveled to begin with, as it was conjecture and misconstruments that led to such a disgraceful start! She took the word of another bloke for straight-up honesty, and he misconstrued her worth by the wiles of her family! Each of them, have their fair share of faults throughout the story, and Austen does not limit her recollections of each grievance and each misunderstanding! She knits the story together through long and arduous monologues and narratives, that transport you into the living moment of each event! You barely can draw a breath as you turn the page, because your either going to be viewing this from Elizabeth’s point of view or that of Darcy’s!

Jane Bennett vs. Lydia Bennett: If such two could ever be thus compared to one another! Lydia has no common sense, much less decency of character, whereas Jane is tender-hearted, sensitive, and loving! Lydia seeks only to self-satisfy her own personal needs, and desires, whereas Jane is constantly striving towards full acceptance of all she encounters, and endeavours to resolve her mind not to make haste judgements that could lead to gross misunderstandings! I had to smile at this character attribution, because her sister, Elizabeth, is rather quick to judge, and doesn’t mind being in haste of her emotions! I think Elizabeth would rather feel the full-throttleness of life as she’s living through it, rather than to be chaste like Jane, and hold back all inclinations to give over to her human condition! Jane takes life calmly and with affirmation. She trusts in herself and has considered that there are far worse things in life than to be unattached in marriage; even if that were her first inclination to achieve once she was a certain age!

Lydia is a typical follower of the wrong influences, seeking self-gratification and never letting herself get attached to anything deeper of conviction than petty needs and forging friendships with people who can help her advance in life OR be of use to her in some other way. She doesn’t see fit to be a supporter of the family she was bourne into, because to me, she comes off as being a rather self-centered and spoilt child, who never learnt the first or proper way to live without conceited pride! I honestly do not think I can write more on her, actually! She is my least favourite of the Bennett sisters, and I oft was museful on whom Austen structured her of, if there were a real-life counterpart!?

Jane on the other hand, I enjoyed watching in close quarters, whilst she was in conference with Elizabeth! They shared such an enduring sisterhood bond, that I nearly felt as though the Bennett’s had two families in one! With the elder girls separate from the younger three! Except to say, of Mary, the one sister of whom next to Jane and Elizabeth, caught my attention forthwith! It had occurred to me that if Elizabeth hadn’t sought out the truth behind Bingley’s sudden exit at Netherfield, what pray tell would have become of Jane!? It’s quite easy to say you’ll quit the notion of love, but to walk through life without a chance of seeing it bloom!? I feared in time (if Bingley had not returned), she might become harder and less soft.

The secondary characters I questioned their loyalty for their friends &/or family: The Lucases and the Collins families were the ones I took the most angst with, as once Charlotte had married Elizabeth’s cousin (who inherits Longbourn, no less!), I noticed that his letters’ to Mr. Bennett became much more frequently, and always to absolve or rectify some grievance or instance of which he found fault with the Bennett’s! Such high piety for a man of the cloth! And, perhaps that is justly so, as I know some branches of religion are quite strict, but ooh! To have a relation that calls you out on every error, every fault, and every circumstance that might not quite go the way you had hoped!? How tolerable I found the Bennett’s and how agitating I found Mr. Collins! I was not surprised that Charlotte and Elizabeth’s friendship felt estranged and strained prior to her visit at the parsonage. It was nearly as though through marriage Charlotte had morphed into a new body and soul! Her parents, the Lucases were not much better in character, and here I shall leave their revealings for the reader to find them!

My overall review of Pride and Prejudice:

The story of Pride and Prejudice, will always be rather dear to me, because of Elizabeth Bennett. I feel as though from the very first opening chapter until the closing of the last, I am walking in Ms. Elizabeth Bennett’s shoes. Struggling at times to understand the indifference of her family, and the qualms that beseech a singleton whilst attempting to understand the opposite sex. She is bemused and befuddled by the man named Darcy, who from the onset makes no attempt to gain her attention, and has an ill-view of her family overall. She is a second daughter, in a family of five, who is deeply attached to the love and affection of her father, and is at times, more at quells with her mother, who tends to put the family in a bad light when out in public; due to the nature of her outbursts that do not always comply with the social norms of the day in which they live.
It’s a story that is full of intrigue, as far as knowing the full extent of how the unfolding events in regards to her sister Lydia will properly affect the four Bennett sisters who are left outside of matrimony, and yet, it is also a plight of a family’s survival once the provider has died, as there is a clause (or stipulation rather) in the will, that depicts the true heir is a male. In this case, a cousin named Mr. Collins, who is quite a disagreeable match for young Elizabeth! Even I, would have balked at such a choice! And, firmly would have asserted myself as much in the same vein as she did with her own father!What makes this such an endearing classic for me, is that the Bennett family rallies and bands together through thick and thin. They may have their fair share of disagreements but at the heart of the family, is simply that: their a family bond in love and do care about the happiness of each other. And, like most dysfunctional families, they at times, go about showing this affection in quite the wrong manner!It’s Elizabeth’s determination not to settle for someone less than her equal and a man of quality, that makes me endeavoured to love her! She stands firm in her beliefs, at all costs, and she isn’t quick to acknowledge a grievous mistake or misunderstanding, but her heart and spirit, does not allow her not to oblige a concession when the need arises that she has to omit a fault made on her own behalf. She lives strong and loves deeply. And, I appreciate that she is completely true to herself throughout the sequence of her life we are given to seeing her. She is a woman who is sorting out how to live and how to proceed forward in her life, by not limiting her options, nor settling for what she knows will be wrong for her heart. For in marriage, as Ms. Bennett and I both know, one must lead forward with one’s heart, and be entwined in true love for the relationship to last forevermore.

My thoughts on sequel authors: One of the key requirements I have when deciding about which sequel authors to read OR not to read, is whether or not they have written their new contribution to the story by giving proper credit to the original canon. This goes in my mind to include the proper setting of story, pace, and use of language, as there are quite a number of sequel authors who take more liberties with their contributions than I am willing to accept! Unfortunately, some spin too modern of a tale for me to be satisfied that the canon was upheld, and whenever I see colourful language eking into the dialogue and narrative I all but cringe outright! When you’re going to write a sequel to a highly well-known and beloved 19th Century story such as “Pride and Prejudice” (although you could insert ‘any’ story into this example), you must know, that for the most part, most of your potential readership is going to want to stay true to that original style!

In this way, it takes me quite awhile to sink into a sequel author’s work, as I am looking for certain ‘tells’ that this is an author who celebrates the legacy of the original writer (in this case, Ms. Jane Austen!), and yet, takes a new thread of discovery that not only embodies the original, but takes the reader on a new journey, that seamlessly shifts forward and or back, given the methodology of the writer at hand. I appreciate all sequels that bring us closer to the world by which Austen created, yet gently giving us a bit more of it, than what Austen could give us herself. I appreciate the same usage of language and turns of phrase, the older stylings of taking time to tell a story, rather than to resolve it rather quickly and make a person feel whip-lashed! I like hearty text with a hearty story, fully brought to life with characters that stay with you, and endear you to them long since the book is put back down!

I suppose in some ways, I would be considered a purist in most regards and yet adaptive in others, as most purists to the original canons will not entertain a sequel on any grounds. I think each contribution has its place, as there are as many different perspectives to come into “Pride and Prejudice” as there are readers who navigate the offerings. I think if each of us decides what she or he is willing to accept, then each sequel author will surely find the right reader for their works! If I bypass one book for another, odds are someone behind me will select it and pass on the one I that I choose in return! Such is the beauty of being individualistically unique in our reading patterns!

I am, of course, mindful that others’ might have a different approach? And, if any of them drop by my blog, I do hope they might entertain me with how they approach the sequels in the commentary!?

My thoughts on motion picture adaptations: I am not to say unyielding when it comes to motion picture adaptations, as the 2005 screen adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” did take creative liberties, and yes, did segue away from the original leanings, but there was enough included for me to pick up the story and the pace by which I have come to love! It still held the charm and the essence of what makes this story alight in my mind as a joyous memory! And, that makes the difference for me! I know too, that once I see Colin Firth as Darcy, in the 1995 adaptation by the BBC, I am most likely going to claim that as my favourite by far, yet as I haven’t yet seen it, I am at this time without an all-time favourite adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice”.

I can attest that even re-tellings in motion picture have their time and place, such is the example of “Bride and Prejudice”, which gives us a Bollywood touch and feel to the story! I am most encouraged that a story, an author, and a setting so distantly removed from our modern era, can lead to such extraordinary developments! I think this signifies that the story is universally accepted, understood, and known. It’s a story that sinks into your heart, and there are more than one way to have it properly represented. I am encouraged by the number of adaptations that are available to view, as I want to slowly work my way through each of them!

I suspect that even if I were to go back and watch the classic film versions, and shift forward again through modern eras, I am going to denote not only the differences of the film maker’s choices of what to include or exclude, but the changes in the perceptions of the actors and actresses who played the cast of characters that have charmed their way into our hearts! They are characters that leave an impression on you, due to their character development in the book, and the way in which they are presented to having had lived their lives. Some are wholly acceptable and curious to see in live action, whereas there are a few that leave you feeling rather vexed and anguished for their inclusions, yet they are still essential to the underlining of the story! In this, I find it most curious to see how each actor who takes each part will attribute which character traits that their character demands of their attention. I can find myself quite curious indeed as I progress through the adaptations!

On how I appreciated to be a part of *Austen in August*: There is something to be said for getting a group of like-minded and enthused readers together, to celebrate an author that they each love quite so dear! For a very long while, I was wondering if I would ever run into or get to converse with other appreciators of the 19th Century literature classics, that have intrigued me for most of my life! Books and stories that I have always wanted to take the time to delve into and alight long enough to have their impressions wash over me. These are the books that are not always readily accepted in our living generation as books that still hold merit, but I think, there are times in life when you have to seek out the right readers and the right circles, where your interests lie alongside the majority rather than the minority!

Thus, is how I felt when I stumbled across “Austen in August” and had had the high hopes of being able to read at least 10 sequels of Pride and Prejudice, after having completed reading the original text, and then, taking up Persuasion (and two of its sequels), before continuing into Sandition. My reading missteps already having been noted, I wanted to focus instead on what the month provided and how happy I am that I was able to take a glimpse into the world of ‘The Classics Club’, as well as the world of Jane Austen readers, who like me, are always eager for an opportunity to re-visit OR read her works for the first time!

Archive List of all Austen in August Posts on Roof Beam Reader – I sort of ducked in and out of the festivities as they were in progress, as I was participating in Bout, and finding that my hours were slipping faster than I could achieve everything I wanted to do! Therefore, what I appreciated the most was being introduced to the author: Sally Smith O’ Rourke, (contributed a guest post) who penned the books: Yours Affectionately, Jane Austen and The Man Who Loved Jane Austen. As much as I enjoyed the introduction to author Carol Cromlin, (contributed a guest post) who wrote the book Fitzwilliam Darcy, Such I Was. The flexibility of posts that our host gave to us throughout the month of August, is something that I appreciated very much, as he not only highlighted the finer points of Austen, but touched on the appreciation of Janeites & Austenites, as much as the endearing attachment we all have with Jane Austen!

An unexpected treat, was received by the author Ms. Cromlin, who upon the book being given to two fortunate winners, gave the rest of us the option of receiving bookmarks by Post! Her book, alongside Ms. O’ Rourke’s are two sequel authors I look forward to exploring in the future!

On how I was thankful to be included at the last minute for *Classics: Re-Told: 19th Century & Gothic Classics*: A silver lining and a bit of redemption at the same time, is how I came to view the inclusion of this wicked sweet reading challenge, which is a bookish blogosphere event to celebrate the works of the classics, but through the eyes of as many different bookish bloggers as possible! I had originally stumbled (you will notice this to be a trend; nearly everything I participate in, is ‘stumbled upon’ at rather the golden hour!) upon this event having thought it was closed for participants, but much to my absolute delight, Charlene had informed me that I could still join in if I so desired! Desire? I jumped, no! Leapt at the chance! I quickly set to mind which books to keep from ‘Austen in August’, and which books to ferret over to ‘Author of the Month’, and which, might just have to drop off completely if they didn’t cross-relate!! I even kept a few that I thought would work with the theme of what we were attempting to accomplish! In this way, I am most grateful to be a latecomer to ‘Classics Re-Told’ and look forward to seeing the rest of my contributions come to life!

An unexpected surprise discovery, art inspired by Pride and Prejudice:

| Slideshow of “Inspired by Pride & Prejudice”, the story unfolds in storyboard format,
curated by Jorie, featuring DeviantArt(ists) |

| Deviant Artists & the Titles of their Works |By Order of Appearance |

“Pride and Prejudice” by flominowa; “The Bennett Sisters” by PrimeHunter; “Elizabeth” by rynarts; “Pride and Prejudice – II” by MigraineSky; “Assembly” by gppr; “Original Regency Cloak” by Abigal709b; “Pride and Prejudice” by PatiMakowska; “Pride and Prejudice: The Ball” by EveyAmmond; “Pride and Prejudice I” by Isa-Wyrd; “Pride and Prejudice – Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth” by Madmorumotto; “Darcy’s Letter” by Kriegerin; “Pride and Prejudice” by WonderSara; “Jane’s Letter” by RaindropMaster; “Keira Knightley” by BarbaraMariaPoleszuk; “Pride and Prejudice VII” by MigraineSky; “Mr. Darcy’s Letter” by sive; “Keira Knightley” by AuroraWienhold; “Lizzie” by perselus; “Darcy and Elizabeth – detail” by gppr; “Mr. Bennett” by perselus; “Pride and Prejudice” by Pad-Mil; “A most unwilling subject” by gppr; “Mr. Darcy” by baronpluto; “Jane Bennett and Mr. Bingley by gppr; “Mr. Darcy” by manapia; “Lizzy and her Dad” by kakao-bean; “Pride and Prejudice Cover” by jessijordan; “His Pride, Her Prejudice” by hitora; “Bennett Sisters – Pride and Prejudice” by BlueFairy123; “Pride and Prejudice” by mademoisellek; “Pride and Prejudice Storyboard” by wahay; “Pride and Prejudice Bookmark” by Kitty-Grimm; “Pride, Prejudice, Markers” by Pau-Norontaus; “Pride and Prejudice I” by theancientsoul; “Pride and Prejudice” by MaryMaru; “Pride and Prejudice” by Lily-Hbp; “Pride + Prejudice: Hands” by Ladamania; “Pride and Prejudice” by Ines92; “Pride and Prejudice” by FinAngel; “Collide” by KuaKness; “Pride n’ Prej: Jane + Bingley” by flominowa; “Pride n’ Prejudice: Liz + Darcy” by flominowa; and “Pride and Prejudice” by milfei.

Jorie Loves A Story | @DeviantArt

This marks my first [& last!] contribution of participation in reading (Jane) Austen in August! I Austen in August badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Carli Jean (Public Domain : Unsplash)had been hopeful that before the close of the month [August], I could have added at least five more selections from the list I purported to being possible ahead of my blog’s launch! I fear, I have slighted myself a grievous error, in not allowing myself the proper time and attention I was attempting to give this challenge! Which is why dear hearts, I originally was going to extend the challenge, when I came upon a posting about “Classics Re-Told” via Bookish Whimsy!!

Classics Re-Told badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Cas Cornelissen (Public Domain : Unsplash).This post also serves as my first contribution piece for Classics Re-Told: 19th Century & Gothic Classics, which is hosted by Bookish Whimsy! I was fortunate to happen upon her post on 3 September, and confirmed my acceptance on the 5th of September! In this way, I shall be continuing onward and upwards with my goals! I am most appreciative that I was able to continue to give my original intentions such a hearty spotlight and not to discontinue reading the books that I discovered to include, which have become quite dear to me!

Due to a variety of circumstances, mostly of technical difficulties in nature, I have been forthwit delayed in my posting of this entry!

Pride and Prejudice
by Jane Austen
Source: Purchased | Personal Library

Genres: Classical Literature, Romance Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Published by Whitehall

on October 1796 - August 1797

Format: Portable Hardback Edition

Pages: 281

{SOURCES: “Reading Jane’s letters” illustration were provided by Zemanta, and inserted directly to the post via the related content widget. Thus providing the related content with appropriate attribution and sourcing as they are in the public domain. Book Review badge provided by Parajunkee Designs to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Jorie Loves A Story badge created by Ravven with edits by Jorie in PicMonkey for the Classics Re-told badge. Austen in August badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Carli Jean (Public Domain : Unsplash). Classics Re-Told badge created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Cas Cornelissen (Public Domain : Unsplash). The Overcoming Pride and Prejudice poster was provided with embed codes to insert into this post! I had originally found it through Zemanta as a related article!}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • Austen in August
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Posted Monday, 16 September, 2013 by jorielov in 19th Century, Austen in August, Classical Literature, Classics Re-Told: 19th Century & Gothic Classics, England, Regency Era