These Three Remain (Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman #3), by Pamela Aidan

It would make sense, given the sort of loose ends that need to be tied up, that this novel is considerably longer than the other two novels in the series and that it is longer than Pride & Prejudice itself despite only containing the material from Darcy’s visit to his aunt to his marriage with Elizabeth (spoiler alert).  As is sometimes the case, the somewhat abruptness of the conclusion would seem to indicate that the author might desire to right some sort of sequel, as she has stated that she would like to write about the (courtship?) between Dy and Miss Darcy, which would be an intriguing read, no doubt, and something that would be all the more interesting if someone like a Caroline Bingley had set her cap on him as being a worthwhile replacement for her failed attempts at wooing Darcy.  For the most part, if not completely, this particular book manages to do a good job at tying up loose ends and at showing the reformation that makes Darcy the sort of man that Elizabeth would want to marry.  And that alone makes this novel a certainly worthwhile one to read on account of its intrigue and plausibility.

A great many factors make this novel so long and complex.  For one, we see the behavior of Darcy at Rosings from his point of view, where he mistakenly things that Lizzy is interested in him when she is only being friendly and more or less herself away from the confining habits of her family.  After the first, disastrous proposal, of which Dy said that only someone like Darcy would begin a proposal of marriage by discussing all of his scruples about marriage, Darcy is sent into a tailspin.  His depression lingers for some time, and he even manages to go on a bit of a bender that his friends have to help him with.  He even gets involved in a dangerous scene that threatens to leave him subject to blackmail for treason during the time of the assassination of Prime Minister Percival, where Darcy finds out that his friend Dy has been feigning silliness for years to cover for his work as an intelligence agent.  Of course, as we know, in the end true love prevails as Darcy shows himself to be a warm and supportive brother in his desire to introduce Elizabeth to his sister, shows himself a gracious host of the Gardiners and Elizabeth, and shows himself to be able to admit his faults in dealing with Bingley’s continued love for Jane.

So while loose ends are mostly tied up here (there are possibly a few of them related to Dy and Miss Darcy, for example, as well as Dy’s intelligence work), this particular book does point to possible sequels where those loose ends remain.  Does the author wish to explore the marriage of Darcy and Elizabeth and how the two of them continue to influence each other as Elizabeth adds her own big sister element to the growing up of Miss Darcy into an adult?  Does the author wish to draw Dy and Miss Darcy together in a courtship that would add to the complexity of Darcy’s family connections thanks to his marriage to Lizzy Bennet?  Would it be worthwhile to discuss the stress that having to wait on marriage had for Fletcher and for his largely anonymous bride, who was a servant of Lizzy herself?  Does the author wish to change gears and write a series of spy novels about Dy and his adventures, as that would certainly be worth reading.  This novel is a good one in that it ties up loose ends while leaving the path open for plenty more writing in this vein if the author so wishes.