Wickham

“Good,” said Wickham, studying his reflection in the large looking-glass over the fireplace. “I used to be rather fond of angling. It’s all in the bait, you see. Throw ’em a bit of juicy bait, and you’ve hooked ’em before you can say Jack Robinson – and with bait like this...” He caressed his elegantly-folded cravat and admired himself in the mirror.

This book develops the character of Wickham in Jane’s Austen’s masterpiece, Pride and Prejudice. It covers Wickham’s life from his early days as a fortune-hunter in London, through the Meryton scenes and his relationship with Elizabeth Bennet, to well beyond the point where Austen leaves off. This includes Wickham’s married life with Lydia, his experiences at the battle of Waterloo, and beyond that into the 1830’s. Wickham was described by Jane Austen as “One of the most worthless young men in Great Britain”. He was a fortune-hunter, a womaniser and a gambler. He was also a man of “easy assurance” and pleasing manners. It is this side of Wickham that receives the most attention in Jane Austen’s novel. However, Chris Webster has drawn on other nineteenth century authors such as Lord Byron, Honoré de Balzac, Émile Zola and Oscar Wilde, as well as extensive historical research, to flesh out the seedier side of Wickham’s character. The result is a racy and interesting narrative that is historically accurate, and remains true to the spirit of Jane Austen’s conception of Wickham.