Becoming a Man

A Charles Bingley Pride and Prejudice Variation

Becoming a Man is a heartfelt Pride and Prejudice variation that follows Charles Bingley as he navigates the consequences of his past indecisiveness and the influence of others. Inspired by a profound sermon on personal transformation, Bingley embarks on a journey of self-discovery, learning to stand firm in his convictions, manage his estate responsibly, and pursue true affection. Alongside his sisters' and friends' romantic entanglements, Charles confronts his own character, ultimately finding happiness and becoming the man he was always meant to be, proving that true worth lies not in societal expectations, but in the deliberate cultivation of one's inner self.
Will Caroline Bingley ever marry? Will Jane forgive Charles for his desertion? What if Mr. Collins is a wonderful man...what happens to the entail? And why are there four weddings? Come and see!

And they lived happily ever after!

I really enjoyed this episode extremely low angst version! Characters were well behaved and surprisingly insightful and grateful!!

Charles, family & friends

I loved the storyline of Charles as he finally took charge of his life. He married his sister off after her cruelty toward Jane & his friends lead him to lose her love.
This story no only shows how Charles' found his self, but also
love alone with his friends. Interesting how George Wickman
was not villian.

P&P where all the characters win

I was a bit uncertain when I picked out these titles by Grandy Eden since they didn’t have a lot of reviews and had virtual narration, but I loved this book so much! Grandy’s story telling style was just what you would hope for if Jane Austen herself had written more novels and her reimagining of the characters was loving and deep and honest. Each path that changed was true to the characters Jane wrote (except her Mr. Collins who was an exceptionally better man in Grandy’s version!). The virtual narration also suited the Regency style story so it worked very well. I downgraded that bit in the review for a few abruptnesses and a bit of flatness in the narration, but it was honestly so much more than I expected from a computer reading the book.

My favorite Austen Fan Fiction to date!!!

Loved Story

I'm surprised by the number of lower ratings for this story. We'll never know why since none were willing to actually review the book. I find that fact annoying. If you don't like it, tell us why. Perhaps because there was a moderate amount of religious content. It wasn't a lot but it was pivotal for the story. And I liked this story. It was unique to other variations I've read.

While I didn't think it was necessary for the sermon to come from George Wickham since having him do it didn't really add to the story, I did love the sermon that stirred both Bingley and Darcy to see the flaws in themselves and make changes in not only their behavior but also in their belief system. All changes for the better. I also loved that just because they worked to make these changes, things didn't fall in line with how they hoped. And it was much better that way.

I loved how the pairings ended up. Some were most unexpected. The highlight of the story is four marriages but there were more than that.

Was Collins different because he came to Huntsford after Lady C's lifetime and Anne had different expectations? Or did the author just want him to be a good person? I'm not sure. I can only speculate. But he was definitely different. It seemed so unlikely he would make the suggestion he did but I found I was able to accept it without difficulty. Some readers may say it would never happen in real life, but Collins was indeed totally different and thought of his career as a way to give to others rather than make him be better than others.

The story was also different because the main focus is on Charles Bingley rather than Elizabeth and Darcy. I love variations that focus on other characters. Darcy is by Bingley's side the whole way and going through the same transformation process that Bingley is but he doesn't take over the story.

The story was bright. There was so much positive in it and it made me feel good. My only real negative was the virtual voice narration. It was better than many virtual narrators and actually sounded like a real person reading the book but that is all it did. Read the book. I was wanting the characters to have their own voices as they might get with a live narrator.