What I’m reading: Pride and Prejudice: The Wild and Wanton Edition

Pride and Prejudice, The Wild and Wanton Edition by Annabella Bloom, takes the familiar story and adds the naughty bits. I guess you can’t call it the unexpurgated version since it was never expurgated in the first place and so far it hasn’t been very naughty, but I’ve only just started.

If you’re unfamiliar with The Wild and Wanton Edition line of books (which I was until my husband got this for me at The Denver Post reviewer’s copy book sale), the publisher, Adams Media, takes a classic like P&P or Wuthering Heights and hires an author, in this case Michelle Pillow who writes here under the nom de plume Bloom, and spices it up while still including the complete text of the original. Anyone who’s read P&P more than once (and I’m already reading the new annotated P&P) can immediately see the problem with this approach: they’ve taken an already big book and made it longer. Luckily, however, all the new naughty bits in the W&W edition are bold faced.

The publisher’s description says: “In this deliciously naughty updating of the beloved classic, you can peek behind the closed doors of Pemberley’s sexiest master bedroom — and revel in the sexual delights of your favorite couple. From first kiss to orgasmic finish, this book is every Austen fan’s dream come true—the story you love, with the heat turned up to high. It will come as no surprise that the dashing Mr. Darcy is as passionate and intense with his knickers off as he is with them on. And admit it, we’ve all wanted to see him sans knickers!”

Again, so far not so naughty and not too surprisingly there seems to be a lot more contribution from Kitty and Lydia. I will let you know after I’ve finished whether I now look at Mr. Darcy in a whole new light, although I warn you that I’m a bit of a prude and may not be the best reviewer for this book. Oh, the things I am forced to do.

UPDATE: OK, it definitely becomes naughty by page 24. And by page 25 I am out of my comfort zone, but I will soldier on. Also, I am informed by Ms. Pillow that Annabella Bloom is a sort of house nom de plume for all the Wild and Wanton editions.