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A review by onceuponanisabel
First & Then by Emma Mills
4.0
I gotta be honest here, I love retellings. And even more specifically, and am a SUCKER for Pride and Prejudice retellings. It's definitely one of my favorite niche genres. So, I mean, I was definitely going to love this book anyway. However.
I was a tiny bit apprehensive going into the book because of the fact that it is contemporary and that is just generally not super my jam. However! This book was actually really really good. I laughed out loud on several occasions, I had a wide smile on my face through most of the book. This was a really cute, really enjoyable retelling and I'm probably going to exchange my library copy for one of my own to reread in the future.
As for the plot itself, there's not a whole lot to cover since it is a retelling. I loved the romance, but a lot of that is for the same reasons I love Elizabeth and Darcy. I thought having a protagonist in an Austin retelling who loves Jane Austin and references her frequently was a little heavyhanded at first, but it grew on me. I was a little disappointed that some of the plot (i.e. the Wickham/Lydia/Georgina drama) from Pride and Prejudice didn't play out in First & Then, but I'm not sure whether or not to count that against the book. Just...bear that in mind -- this is a pretty loose retelling for sure.
I was a tiny bit apprehensive going into the book because of the fact that it is contemporary and that is just generally not super my jam. However! This book was actually really really good. I laughed out loud on several occasions, I had a wide smile on my face through most of the book. This was a really cute, really enjoyable retelling and I'm probably going to exchange my library copy for one of my own to reread in the future.
As for the plot itself, there's not a whole lot to cover since it is a retelling. I loved the romance, but a lot of that is for the same reasons I love Elizabeth and Darcy. I thought having a protagonist in an Austin retelling who loves Jane Austin and references her frequently was a little heavyhanded at first, but it grew on me. I was a little disappointed that some of the plot (i.e. the Wickham/Lydia/Georgina drama) from Pride and Prejudice didn't play out in First & Then, but I'm not sure whether or not to count that against the book. Just...bear that in mind -- this is a pretty loose retelling for sure.