Blessing or Burden: A Pride and Prejudice Variation

In this Pride and Prejudice variation, Elizabeth Bennet unexpectedly inherits a large fortune as the story begins. The effects of this surprising situation are, at first, delightful. Elizabeth is able to provide her sisters with suitable dowries as well as a delightful shopping trip in London. As the realities of her situation set in, however, her male friends and neighbors turn into fortune hunters, swamping her with unwanted attention.

After a few dangerous scrapes, Elizabeth decides to try her luck in London, hoping that by keeping her good fortune a secret, she can find a suitable husband to share her burden. Her luck runs out in London when her secret is leaked, and she is once again mobbed by a great deal of unwanted attention. After a few disasters bring her spirit low and eliminates the last shred of respect she has for men in general, Elizabeth decides to forego marriage altogether, and she retires to the countryside.

With Charlotte as her companion, Elizabeth purchases an estate in Derbyshire near her aunt’s hometown of Lambton. There she meets Mr. Darcy, her handsome but reticent neighbor. Over time, Mr. Darcy gradually restores Elizabeth’s faith in men, or at least one man in particular.