Conceit & Concealment

Conceit and Concealment is amongst my all-time favorite books but I never got a chance to review it, so I am doing it now in the hopes that those who, for some reason, have not read it yet, may consider adding it to their to be read list.

You may ask why you should read this book, well; for starters, the historical component of this book is an unbelievable addition that will get readers hooked to the story from the start. Not only will readers want to know what is happening to the main characters, but most of all, they will want to know what will happen to the country and the resistance. In this book England is at war with France, the French army has actually overpowered British troops, and entered English soil ruling it on behave of Napolean. You may think you will stand by the English people who have apparently lost the war, but I must warn you that readers will have a hard time picking sides because they are shown both sides of the conflict and both arguments will seem valid. You may want to choose the side of our heroes, but you will definitely understand that on the other side you have people who are just following orders, and for whom you start to grow a lot of sympathy. I found this a beautiful aspect of the book, and even if I didn’t research a lot to know if there is historical accuracy, I am sure the author did a lot of research because she made me love reading every single historic aspect that was depicted in the book.

Most readers want to know about the writing style and romance present in the book, of course, and even if I didn’t start with that aspect, they are both incredibly good! The dialogues are witty and engaging and I would personally love to have those type of discussions with Darcy. Moreover, the women are portrayed as thinking beings, and not just as fragile creatures who need to be protected by man. They are intelligent and take action into their own hands. They are courageous and an important part of the plot, which was another aspect I really enjoyed.

The secondary characters aren’t just there to fill the pages either, they are well built with their own backstory, which makes us intrigued at first and in love with them as pages go by.

I haven’t spoken much about the main characters, namely Mr. Darcy, but my, oh my! He is absolutely perfect in this book! I have certainly loved him and how his relationship with Elizabeth was built. We could feel real chemistry between them as we flipped the pages in this book, and even when we thought things would get cold between them, something happened to bring the sparkle back. The depth of their feelings is addictive in this book and readers keep craving for more Darcy and Elizabeth moments. It is one of the most beautiful relationships I have seen in JAFF, and I can say with certainty that most readers will be rendered to it.

I have initially read this book and more recently heard the audiobook so let me tell you that if you prefer audios, the narration makes justice to the quality of the book. All characters are easily distinguished and the accents are very well done. Usually I find accents from different countries annoying in audiobooks because they never seem quite right (in my line of business I hear a LOT of different accents, so I’ve become quite the expert), but that doesn’t happen in this book so I need to congratulate Elizabeth Klett for a wonderful narration.

Conceit and Concealment is a roller coaster of emotions, it is fast paced with something always happening in the narrative, but the author also takes the time to ascertain certain characters feelings and let the reader experience their interactions, making it perfect in terms of balance between action and character development. It is an incredible narrative full of passion, history and supported by strong and well-built characters that will compel readers to turn the pages franticly until the end. I highly recommend this book to all my readers.

You can find Conceit & Concealment at:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

and on Audible

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