Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld is an updated take on the Jane Austen classic, Pride and Prejudice. The story follows the five Bennet sisters as they are introduced to Chip Bingley, the recent star of a ‘Bachelor’-style show called ‘Eligible.’ Chip ended up closing out his season without finding a potential bride and decides a move to Cincinnati will help clear his head. There he meets the eldest Bennet sister, Jane, while her sister Liz is introduced to Darcy, the unpleasant best friend of Bingley. The story follows the familiar tale, with Darcy and Liz’s dislike of one another gradually turning into something more.

I remembered seeing this book everywhere when it first came out and flip-flopping over wanting to read it. On the one hand, I love Pride and Prejudice and ‘The Lizzie Bennet Diaries’ web series. But I had read a few other P&P re-tellings that had fallen short and was worried this would have the same effect on me. I decided to take a chance and get the free sample on my Kindle app. Once I started reading I was immediately hooked and went back to purchase the full version.

I thought the take of having the girls be closer to middle age was great. We were given lots of backstory for each of the characters, especially for Liz and Jane who are the most important characters in each iteration. I honesty could not put this story down. The only part of the book that dragged for me was the last third of the book, specifically the Lydia storyline. I understood what the author was going for in this updated take of Lydia elopement and that not all parents are accepting of different lifestyles, but it was missing something for me. I think what bothered me was that it didn’t seem to take the family very long to find Lydia once she ran away, which is crazy given how big the country (or even the state) is. I also kept wondering how exactly Darcy’s role would play into this. In the original he forced Wickham to marry Lydia, but Wickham had nothing to do with this situation at all.

Overall, this was a good read. However, while I did find myself enjoying this , I’m more likely to recommend ‘The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.’

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars.

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