Conundrums & Coincidences by J Marie Croft

To suffer my second is the doom of my first; And of all of my seconds, my whole is the worst.

AFTER TWO MONTHS OF SUFFERING the heartache of Elizabeth Bennet’s rejection of his marriage proposal, Fitzwilliam Darcy unexpectedly encounters the lady at Oakwood Manor the estate of the late Miss Phoebe Armstrong. The dearly departed Miss Armstrong has disposed of her worldly goods in an uncommon manner: she has called together five young people, including Darcy and Elizabeth, to vie for a legacy—the manor itself and a substantial fortune. For Darcy, however, the true prize is a second chance at winning Elizabeth’s hand.

WITH SUCH A COVETED PRIZE AT STAKE, not all of the participants are willing to play fair but both Darcy and Elizabeth prove worthy competitors, their turn of their minds putting them both ahead in the contest where cleverness and wit are required. Darcy and Elizabeth not only persevere, but triumph, through a madcap se’nnight of charades and conundrums, a week where friends become enemies, and enemies turn into lovers.

BY THE TIME THEY LEAVE OAKWOOD, Darcy and Elizabeth have resolved their prior differences and are on the brink of an understanding. Alas that is just when they face another, very important, conundrum: Mr Bennet adamantly refuses to consent to an engagement between his favourite daughter and Darcy. With her twenty-first birthday fast approaching, Elizabeth is put in the unhappy position of having to decide between the two gentlemen she loves most. In both battles of wills, who wins?

CONUNDRUMS & COINCIDENCES is a variation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. It is a second chance, trapped together, enemies to lovers romance with clean/closed-door content and little angst.