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The Pemberley Chronicles The Women of Pemberley Netherfield Park Revisited The Ladies of Longbourn Mr. Darcy's Daughter My Cousin Caroline Postscript from Pemberley Recollections of Rosings A Woman of Influence The Legacy of Pemberley 
NEW!
The Pemberley Series Finale!
(see what's new page for info)
The weddings are over. The guests - including millions of readers and viewers - wish the two happy couples health and happiness. As the music swells and the credits roll, only one things has been decided, Elizabeth and Darcy are to be the happiest couple in the world and Jane and Bingley will want for nothing.But few people want to believe that this is the end of the story. As they drive away into one of the most dynamic periods of English social and political history, Rebecca Ann Collins follows them. She observes and chronicles their passage through the landscapes of 19th century England, noting how they cope with change, triumph and tragedy in their lives.
Their personal stories - the usual concerns of love, marriage, money and children - are woven together with the threads of social and political history.
No Regency soap opera, but a work true to the spirit of Jane Austen's characters, The Pemberley Chronicles are an intriguing, moving and unprentious narrative, which follows the stories of the "Pemberley families" with affection and humour.
Fans of Miss Austen and especially of Pride and Prejudice - who loved the brilliant BBC/TV production - will enjoy this delightful copmanion vollume.
The Pemberley characters have captured the hearts and imaginations of readers. In The Women of Pemberley, Rebecca Ann Collins - a lifelong Austen fan, follows the lives of five women into a new era of post industrial revolution England, at the start of the Victorian Age. Vast changes are in motion, as they were throughout this dynamic century. They are woven deftly into the rich texture of the fabric of nineteenth century England, forming not just a backcloth, but the very warp and weft of the characters' lives.The women, like many of Jane Austen's heroines are strong, intelligent individuals and the author's affection for them ensures that their stories are told with understanding and humour.
As in The Pemberley Chronicles, Collins has used the depth and variety of the original characters, to develop a series of episodes linked together by their relationship to each other and to Pemberley, which is the heart of their community.
The central themes of love, friendship, marriage and a sense of social obligation remain as do the great political and social issues of the age. Consistent, clear characterization, lively, unpretentious narrative together with an endearing strand of gentle humour, make for a believable continuation of The Pemberley Chronicles.
The many fans of Pride and Prejudice will enjoy this charming companion volume. The delicious irony of the final chapter would surely have caused Miss Austen herself to smile.
Netherfield Park Revisited draws upon the background and characters of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, but they are not the main event. Elizabeth, Jane, Darcy and Bingley are observers and commentators, whose values and opinions are important elements of the drama, but not the whole of it.For it is the unfolding story of Jonathan Bingley, son of Charles and Jane Bingley, the new master of Netherfield Park. Though he is in many ways a remarkably Austenian hero, Jonathan is an original creation of Rebecca Ann Collins. Clever, handsome and more politically active than his easy-going father, Jonathan is a deeply passionate man, who faces a major crisis in his life and that of his young family. His own strength and the inner resources of several other characters are sorely tested by a series of intractable events.
He purchases Netherfield Park, once his parents' home, hoping it will solve his problems, but finds they have been exacerbated. The malign influence of an embittered Miss Bingley, only makes matters worse.
Into this situation comes Anna Faulkner - an accomplished young woman of elegance and sensibility - a target for envy and gossip in provincial Meryton. Jonathan Bingley's efforts to deal with the consequences of his and other people's actions, lie at the heart of this third book in the popular Pemberley series.
It is also a love story. Set in mid-Victorian England, at at time of great political and social reform, the novel traces with honesty and wit, the unraveling of an unfortunate marriage and the making of another passionate, more enduring union.
Ms. Collins' strong, consistent characters, lively dialogue and strikingly visual narrative style, make this charming novel a most enjoyable companion volume to the others in the series. Readers who enjoyed The Pemberley Chronicles and The Women of Pemberley will not be dissapointed.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2000She claims that she is as much a captive of the Pemberley characters herself, as she is a lifelong devotee of Jane Austen. Her readers, who have taken the popular Pemberley series to their hearts, cannot get enough of them, which is no surprise since her stories combine the tradition of strong, consistent characters, interesting, credible plot lines and lively dialogue, with a vivid, narrative style.The Ladies of Longbourn is no exception. Continuing from Netherfield Park Revisited, Ms. Collins helps us explore the lives of the family of Jonathan Bingley, now the owner of Longbourn - the Bennet family estate in Austen's Pride and Prejudice. His wife and daughter, together with Charlotte Collins, widow of the infamous Mr. Collins, are the Ladies of Longbourn, who lives are intertwined against the fascinating background of social and political change in Victorian England.
Jonathan Bingley's daughter, Anne-Marie, a complex and charming young woman, has been tested to the limit of her endurance by the circumstances of a passionless marriage. She must find within herself and her loving family, the strength to overcome her trauma. Still a very young and beautiful woman, she faces a difficult choice when Colin Elliott - the new MP for the area - falls in love with her. Her rejection of the conventional role of women, who marry without love or passion, places her in the frontline of Austenian heroines, whose intelligence and strength set them apart in 19th century literature.
The original Austen characters - Darcy, Elizabeth, Bingley and Jane remain, providing the framework of solid values, that was typical of the work of Miss Austen herself. Their commentary upon the characters and unfolding events adds an extra dimension to Ms. Collins' work, as do the themes of personal and social responsibility, integrity and compassion, that were so vital a part of Miss Austen's own.
Above all, Ms. Collins tells a great story with wit and conviction. Her many readers will surely enjoy The Ladies of Longbourn.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2000
(Includes a special forward by Averil Rose to commemorate the
225th anniversary of Jane Austen's birth)In Mr. Darcy's Daughter, Ms. Collins takes the Pemberley novels to a new level of maturity.
The story of Cassy Darcy, daughter of Darcy and Elizabeth, is not the romanitc story of a young girl falling in love. Happily married, a mother of five, Mr. Darcy's daughter faces a difficult challenge, when her brother Julian falters in his role as heir to the Pemberley estate.
Grief stricken after the death of his wife, Julian Darcy turns his back on his inheritance and his young son. Their desolated parents turn to Cassy, whose world is complete with a beloved husband and family. Yet, Cassy, who had once declared she had no desire ever to be the Mistress of Pemberley, is suddenly thrust into the role of surrogate heir, managing the estate and raising her brother's son.
Exploring the difficulties she faces, Ms. Collins reveals Cassy's strength as she strives to comfort her parents and keep the tenants satisfied, while maintaining the warmth and integrity of her own family relationships. Her life is further complicated by a series of crises.
When her daughter appears to be involved in an unsuitable affair and her son is unwittingly drawn into a murder investigation, Cassy confronts the gravity of her situation. Circumstances are moving out of her control and she must act.
Mr. Darcy's Daughter is a love story of a very special kind, in which a woman struggles to balance the competiting demands of love and duty.
Rebecca Ann Collins' happy knack of telling a good story, her deft touch which characters (Cassy Darcy is one of her best) and her ability to write credible, lively dialogue, distinguish this title in the popular Austen-inspired series. The plot, characters and narrative are so well done, one could almost say Jane Austen herself would have enjoyed Mr. Darcy's Daughter. Ms. Collins' regular readers certainly will.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2001In My Cousin Caroline, Rebecca Ann Collins returns to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, to borrow two minor characters - Mr. Darcy's cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam and Caroline Gardiner.In this, her sixth novel in the popular Pemberley Series, Ms. Collins explores Caroline's development from a pretty young girl into a woman of intelligence and passion. The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, who embody some of Austen's own values, Caroline has a distinct advantage. Yet, like many Austen heroines, she has much to learn and even more to prove. Observing her progress, intricately woven through the lives of other characters in the series, Ms. Collins lets us see them from a new perspective, as we watch events unfold through different eyes.
As Elizabeth's cousin, Caroline's personal story encompasses many of the original characters. Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth, Jane, Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, the Wickams all move through the story, as Caroline falls in love, marries, raises her children and deals with the crises in her life and that of her family. Her romantic streak leads her to make some mistakes, her spirited advocacy of reformist causes poses risks that would deter Jane and Elizabeth and when she is called upon to step outside the role of wife and mother, she is in danger of arousing jealousy and gossip. Caroline's rejection of the image of the compliant Victorian woman, her passionate convictions undaunted by criticism, demonstrate her strength.
In the Pemberley series, Ms. Collins takes Jane Austen's characters on a journey through 19th Century England, without once outraging the concept of the original. This alone is evidence of her skill, but that she also creates her own remarkably credible characters, whose stories are told with conviction and humour, makes her work uniquely interesting. Strong, consistent characters, lively dialogue, totally believable, well-researched plot and narrative are her trademarks.
Her many readers who have enjoyed the early Pemberley novels, will not be disappointed in My Cousin Caroline.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2002In this her seventh novel, Rebecca Ann Collins weaves together the lives of four remarkable young people.
Using the ethos of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, she draws upon some of the original characters and extends their stories into a new era, with an enviable grasp of the period and without in any way, compromising the integrity of Jane Austen’s own characters.
Julian Darcy, Jessica Courtney and Darcy Gardiner are familiar to readers of the popular Pemberley series; here they have a bigger stage to develop their characters. While of a different generation to Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, their lives reflect the social environment and values, which are so clearly associated with Miss Austen’s.
Kate O’Hare is a newcomer to Pemberley, with a few surprises up her elegant sleeve. She does not fit the mould of a modest, young lady in search of a husband. Rather, she is an intelligent young woman of some experience, who admits to making a few mistakes along the way – mistakes which can have quite catastrophic consequences for her and pose great risks for her friends. But it is in her very difference that her fascination lies – for the reader and for young Darcy Gardiner.
It does not surprise that Ms. Collins handles her characters with affection and skill – as she has always done. A good believable story, well told with oblique touches of humour, is what readers of the Pemberley novels have come to expect. With its strong, attractive characters, lively dialogue and delightfully crisp narrative style, their enjoyment of Postscript from Pemberley is guaranteed.
Indeed, one might almost say with Jane Bingley, they will be “perfectly content”.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2003If it had been written at the end of the 19th Century, this book may well have been titled "A Tale of Two Sisters". The story of two remarkable women, it recalls Jane Austen’s own Elizabeth and Jane Bennet or Elinor and Marianne Dashwood.
It is also a moving love story, exploring both young love and mature emotion with understanding and compassion. Daughters of Charlotte Lucas and the lugubrious Mr. Collins, the stories of Catherine Harrison and Becky Tate begin at opposite ends of the spectrum. As they play out their divergent roles and cope with complex loyalties throughout the Pemberley series, we have been given glimpses of their characters. One, a modest parson’s wife, the other a woman of wealth and influence – their adult lives could not have been more different.
In Recollections of Rosings, their paths converge and as each woman struggles to find some deeper meaning in her life, tensions emerge and new bonds of warmth and intimacy are forged.
In this, her eighth novel in the popular Pemberley series, Ms. Collins shifts the scene to Rosings Park – the domain of the formidable Lady Catherine de Bourgh. But all is not as simple as it used to be. Following the catastrophe at Rosings, matters from the past emerge disturbing the even tenor of their lives. When a former employee of Lady Catherine – a Mr. Frank Burnett – returns to Rosings, Catherine Harrison has to confront her feelings as well as the long-forgotten reality of Lady Catherine’s conduct towards her. Meanwhile, changed circumstances compel Becky Tate to reassess the direction of her own life as she contemplates the future.
Recollections of Rosings has all the hallmarks of Ms. Collins’ best work – her strong, credible characters, believable plot, crisp dialogue and unpretentious narrative style make for a good story, well told.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2004Becky Tate, one of the more fascinating characters in the Pemberley novels, is a completely original creation of Rebecca Ann Collins.
Contrary, opinionated and headstrong, she defies her staid upbringing with her determination not to submit to the pressures of Victorian domesticity and class distinction.
When she marries a man of wealth and power, believing it will enhance her opportunities to make something significant of a hitherto ordinary life, but discovers that it has brought her neither happiness nor contentment, she is compelled to confront her mistake. To make matters worse, her outspoken and independent manner and social ambitions do not find favour with the well and truly gentrified ladies of the Pemberley circle.
How Becky copes with the consequences of her errors of judgment, makes for an intriguing tale in which her character develops as her story unfolds. We discover a more thoughtful, vulnerable woman, who comes to value warmth and sincerity above influence and wealth, but fears she may have left it too late.
For the most part, Ms. Collins lets Becky tell her story, through flashbacks, letters and intimate conversations. She deals with this unhappy, complex woman with both gentle humour and deep compassion.
As in many of her novels, she draws her readers in, as she explores her characters and lets us glimpse the complicated struggles that often lay behind the seemingly calm exterior of Victorian womanhood.
One is frequently surprised by the way her best characters grow and evolve through the series, with not a trace of manipulation or artifice. As before, in this, her ninth novel, she achieves a remarkable degree of success with one of her most interesting people.
Those readers who have followed the life of Becky Tate through the series, and wondered how this contrary, sometimes quite difficult, character would make out, should be delighted with the final result.
-by Rebecca Ann Collins, 2005"The Pemberley series occupies and interesting niche in the sequels market, appealing to both genuine Jane Austen readers as well as the new breed of Pride and Prejudice fans. It has provided us with a rare opportunity to trace the development of a new writer's craft over several years.
Ms. Collins has extended her reach and honed her skills within this genre, from those of a simple chronicler, content to ‘borrow and follow’ Jane Austen’s characters in her first novel, to a gifted and creative storyteller in her own right.
Her second and following novels explore the lives and loves of a new generation of characters – making decisions and facing the consequences of their own actions. Yet we are always aware of the framework of values and principles against which they are judged, which remain largely those of Jane Austen herself. Here indeed is the real difference between a worthwhile sequel to a classic and a superficial piece of Regency fantasy." ~ E.L. Flemming, Jane Austen specialist, 2004
And now, as they say in TV parlance, we have the series final. In The Legacy of Pemberley, Ms. Collins concludes, in a chronological sense, the popular series, drawing together the characters and themes that have been woven like a tapestry through the novels.
It would be wrong to reveal the storylines; which her readers will want to discover for themselves. Suffice it to say that, as in all her books, the characters are credible, the plots plausible and the stories are told in an engaging and unpretentious style.
For her many fans, the only disappointment with The Legacy of Pemberley, will be that this is the last of the Pemberley series.
