Yuletide: A Jane Austen-Inspired Collection of Stories (The Quill Collective) Kindle Edition

It truly is difficult to decide what I love most about Yuletide: A Jane Austen Inspired Collection of Stories. Is it the fact that it’s a 7-in-1 Jane Austen/Christmas inspired collection? Is it the diverse slants of each story that are written in both the Regency period and modern times? Is it the continued collaboration of favorite authors and a most talented editor? Is it knowing that the proceeds from this anthology are being generously donated to Chawton Great House. Or is it for all these reasons combined together?!? Yep, going with that last one!Since there were only 7 stories, I thought I’d give a little breakdown. I hope you find it helpful:THE FORFEIT – Caitlin Williams (variation)- The Premise: Mr. Darcy is snowbound in Meryton and Elizabeth begrudgingly invites him to stay at Longbourn until the snow clears.- What I Loved: Seeing Mr. Darcy interact with the Bennets in close quarters for long periods of time! LOL! And also: the wager made between Elizabeth and Darcy, their new understandings, and Mrs. Bennet’s erroneous assumptions! One of my faves!AND EVERMORE BE MERRY – Joana Starnes (sequel)- The Premise: From Georgiana’s prospective we witness the Christmas celebrations at Pemberley several years after the close of Pride and Prejudice.- What I Loved: Seeing such festive joy at Pemberley – snowball fights, bullet pudding, snap dragon, and singing. Such warmth and merriment! But also brilliantly tempered with some past reflections on a period of discord and how it resolved.THE WISHING BALL – Amy D’Orzaio (modern)- The Premise: Through some inexplicable Christmas magic Will Darcy sees various scenes of a possible future.- What I Loved: Christmas magic!!! The scenes and “memories” Will sees are so moving and beautifully described. I loved seeing his reaction when he meets Elizabeth, how the Wishing Ball knew all, and how the Wishing Ball continued to play an important role in their lives. One of my faves!BY A LADY – Lona Manning (sequel)- The Premise: The Darcys visit Rosings for Christmastide and Elizabeth is determined to befriend Anne de Bourgh.- What I Loved: That Elizabeth reflected on her past behavior towards Anne de Bourgh and wished to rectify it. I also loved that Anne has a secret – and such an interesting one too! This story ended with a promise of something more, and I like to imagine the new possibilities for Anne!HOMESPUN FOR THE HOLIDAYS – J. Marie Croft (modern)- The Premise: F. William Darcy has some difficulties with the locals of Meryton as he tries to buy a one-of-a-kind homemade item his sister desperately wants.- What I Loved: Homespun and Meryton! I want to visit/live there! Ms. Croft created such an endearing yet authentic atmosphere with this tale. I loved all the descriptions of the characters, décor, and various homespun items. Not to mention the simmering attraction between Darcy and Elizabeth and the puns!! So clever! One of my faves!THE SEASON OF FRIENDLY MEETINGS – Anngela Schroeder (variation)- The Premise: Elizabeth makes the acquaintance of Colonel Fitzwilliam while spending Christmastide with Mrs. Long and her nieces in Yorkshire.- What I Loved: The frank conversations between Elizabeth and Colonel Fitzwilliam, and how very adept he is at steering their conversation and strategically forcing Elizabeth to analyze her previous judgments! Clever, smooth, and sympathetic Colonel Fitzwilliam is the hero of this story for sure!MISTLETOE MANAGEMENT – Elizabeth Adams (sequel)- The Premise: Married just one month, the Darcys host some of Mr. Darcy’s family (no Lady C) for the holidays where some matchmaking and mischief ensue!- What I Loved: Seeing Elizabeth employ some matchmaking manipulations like her mother…lol! And speaking of manipulations…it was hilarious to see Darcy and Elizabeth with their hands full of misbehaving guests! Also, I loved how, even though this story is brief in page count, so much happens and it never felt underdeveloped or rushed.CONCLUSION:With seven short stories inspired by the same novel, involving many of the same characters, and featuring the same holiday season, you may expect these stories to blend together or feel a tad similar. But they do just the opposite – like snowflakes, each story of this collection is wonderfully unique and distinctly beautiful! And the whole collection together is an enchanting and exquisite Christmas scene that truly is a generous gift to all!*All proceeds to benefit Chawton Great House in Hampshire, former manor of Jane Austen’s brother Edward Austen Knight and now the Centre for the Study of Early Women’s Writing, 1600-1830.Austenesque Reviews

An anthology of holiday short stories featuring ODC, what's not to love? It's a festive mix of regency and contemporary, so there's a good variety of Christmas traditions, both old and new. It was fascinating, also, seeing a contrast between American and British festivities in certain stories. Very educational.My particular favorite was "The Wishing Ball" (contemporary) in which Darcy receives a mysterious ornament from his sister who insists that it will grant his wish (not that he remembers making one). That night, lonely and unable to sleep, he gets a glimpse of his future via some very strange additions to his rarely used Facebook page; two children that look like him... family vacations he can't remember taking...a beautiful wife with the most intriguing eyes. The problem? He's never met this woman or half of the people now flooding his profile. Is she his future? I thought that this story was imaginative, inspired and it generally blew my mind. It had a little flavor of A Christmas Carol (ie, a haunting vision of a possible future) or It's a Wonderful Life (again, things that could be), yet wasn't truly like either of them. Not only have I not seen this plot used in JAFF, I haven't seen it's like anywhere. The longing that Darcy feels for a future he can't hardly imagine creates an ache inside of you while you read it. He spends months afterwards looking for his Elizabeth everywhere until he finds her by accident and everything else slides into place. I think this would be a wonderful idea to expand upon, particularly if Elizabeth is somehow included in the magic, but the story as it is is quite perfect. Excellent storytelling.My other favorite, "Homespun," also happened to be contemporary, though I really loved almost all of them regardless of the setting. In this one, we get to see a very British Darcy stuck in the small New England (hah, see what you did there; he's in the wrong England!) town of "Merryton" (extra R added for the Christmas season) on Christmas Eve when his plane is grounded due to a winter storm. He, naturally, ends up in the hospitality of the Bennets and they have their ups and downs. What makes the story fun, however, is the twist of humor utilized by the author. Anyone who has read her works before knows that she's fond of puns, almost to a painful degree, but here it's reigned in (hah, Christmas pun ftw) by primarily appearing on ugly Christmas sweaters. I can't really get behind that fad, but it's used marvellously here for a subtle comedic effect. Also, the premise of these ugly sweaters being more popular than anticipated and being a viable business opportunity for Elizabeth is both clever and realistic. My only complaint is that this story would be better as a novella or longer so that their relationship can be stretched out to a more reasonable length since it's hard to imagine two people who meet under stressful and insulting circumstances AND live an ocean away from one another essentially falling in love and agreeing to a super long distance relationship within a 24 hour span. It strains credulity. Also, though I thought it was pretty fun to figure out Darcy's British slang through the magic of context clues, I guess that could annoy someone else. I thought it was a funny challenge, tho.There was only one story I didn't like, but I won't expound upon it much here since it didn't make me regret purchasing the collection. I found it shallow and not especially Christmas-y considering that, though it took place at a Christmas ball, it really could have been set at any time of year. The premise itself was fine, but...eh. like I said, I liked all the other stories and I will likely just skip the one I didn't next time I read.I recommend. Great price, put me in the holiday mood today.

"Good tidings we bring to you and your kin."Good tidings and a worthy cause was the impetus for this heartwarming, poignant, sweet and funny Pride and Prejudice anthology of short stories which I absolutely loved! The line-up of talented authors and the accomplished editor, Christina Boyd, have created a delightful mix of Regency and modern stories that hit just the right chord at this time of year. Each story is lovingly written so grab your favourite cuppa, put your feet up and unwind with a story or two or three to help you re-charge your batteries at this busy time of year and know you are helping to contribute to the Chawton Great House which is now the Centre for the Study of Early Women's Writing, 1600-1830, the former manor of Jane Austen's brother Edward Austen Knight.1. The Forfeit - Caitlin Williams (Regency)"The stars knew nothing." (quote from the story)Snowballs, treasure hunt, a sleigh ride and dancing...this is one short story I was thrilled to see included in this anthology.2. And Evermore Be Merry - Joana Starnes (Regency)"But all of us should be permitted to grasp love with both hands if we are fortunate enough to find it." (quote from the story)A view of the Darcy's family life through the eyes of Georgiana. Ms. Starnes has captured it perfectly.3. The Wishing Ball - Amy d'Orazio (Modern)"Fate is coming after you." (quote from the story)Now this fantastical story was pure modern magic!4. By A Lady - Lona Manning (Regency)"We are speaking of happiness." (quote from the story)This is a poignant tale that had me in tears. I was so deeply moved, that I did not want it to end...I wanted more.5. Homespun for the Holidays - J. Marie Croft (Modern)"Too late. I'm already falling for you." (quote from the story)Oh, yes, the falling was hard and there was plenty of humble pie! This one had me laughing out loud.6. The Season for Friendly Meetings - Anngela Schroeder (Regency)"You must never judge the character of others without first looking at your own faults." (quote from the story)I just loved Colonel Fitzwilliam in this one and his approach to solving gossip in a ballroom. This one was short but sweet!7. Mistletoe Mismanagement - Elizabeth Adams (Regency)"Everything was in place and she was fully prepared for any eventuality." (quote from the story)I just don't think Elizabeth realized what that eventuality would be...nor did Darcy. It's all in a name and who your neighbours are!I highly recommend each and every one of these stories. They will wrap around your heart and linger like a cozy blanket.

Christmas is a time when magic and miracles seem to happen and Christina Boyd worked some magic and not a few miracles to bring this anthology of Pride and Prejudice-inspired seasonal stories together in a matter of a few weeks. All involved, both writing and editing, donated their time and talent free of charge so that all of the proceeds from sales of this fantastic collection can go to Chawton House Library, a charity that houses a remarkable collection of early women's writing. It's a place Jane Austen, the inspiration at the root of these stories, knew well as it was owned by her brother.The seven authors are all well known and highly thought of in the genre of Austenesque fiction. Two are set in modern times, the rest are Regency-set. Some are sequels, some take an alternative path for one of our favourite romantic couples. There is even a sprinkling of Christmas magic in one of them. All, without fail, are absolutely wonderful!I won't say any more, as others who are far more eloquent than myself, have already done so - see the reviews on Amazon.com and you'll get what I mean. If you need an extra Christmas treat that'll leave you feeling warm and fuzzy all over, then why are you still reading my waffle? Go and get a copy for yourself!

Good variety of interesting material

This collection of Christmas stories is a wonderful read. Their length is just right for a sweet little break from the sometimes overwhelming activities of Christmas time. I enjoyed each and every story.

Christmas anthology with lively Pride & Prejudice variations. The audiobook is fantastic!