I am a sucker for a slow burn book but this book was way too slow and had no burn in it. It wasn't till near the end that we got to enjoy the main characters together and then the book was over. Also the third person perspective made it hard to really understand what was going on in these characters heads. Last but not least I did not like the names of the characters Lizbeth and Wil.... where is the E on Lizbeth and the extra L in Will.

It is a great story but you can’t really go wrong with Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice.

The book is faithful to the original in the necessary ways but also modern and refreshing. It’s a very clever idea to have the main characters be sorority sisters instead of family.

All in all a very enjoyable read. I definitely recommend it.

I hate, hate, hate writing negative reviews of books. That's someone's hard work and talent there, and who am I really to criticize it? So first, I will start off by saying that I didn't realize this was a modern retelling of Pride and Predjudice. Had I known that, I honestly wouldn't have requested this book because I'm just not an Austen fan. (Possible spoilers ahead, but I live in a world where I assume everyone already knows this story vaguely.)
Based on that, the best part of this novel, in my high school teacher opinion, is that it's a great resource to retell a tale that some might find boring/dull/etc in today's times. Such good lessons could come from rewriting and modernizing literature to show students that it's still so relevant today. I also loved that the chapters were set up as months of the school year. Very cute.
Things I did not like: the characters, pretty much any of them, their actions, their speech patterns being non-consistent (I don't care if you don't use contractions, but keep it the same throughout all of the character's lines in the book), all of it. The inaccuracy of sorority life/interactions with nationals. The weird adults and their interactions with the college kids. The random, out of nowhere romances that blossomed - the lack of build up and anticipation there (from scowling at everything one day to "I'm so in love with you"? Puh-lease. I need more as your reader.) But then the speed at which Lizbeth seemed to fall for Wil (I get that this was P&P, but just no). The subplot with Jorge (seemed forced and just there to be there). The lack of discriptions on somethings (feelings, thoughts, everything was said, said, said with no emotion behind it), but then the over discription on others (like Wil's outfits). Just didn't work for me. But again, not an Austen fan, so maybe I'm not the best person to listen to. I also found the sheer number of characters to be confusing to keep up with, but again, that's just me.
If you're not an Austen fan like me, this is not the book for you. If you are an Austen fan unlike me, this is not the review you should base your reading decision on. If you're looking for a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am kind of romance, this might intrigue you. If you're looking for a sweet build up with a slow, white-hot burn, this is probably not going to give you that. Do I recommend it? To my former VPsometing of her sorority sister who loves Jane Austen, probably. Would I purchase it for my classroom? Jury's still out. Will I give the author another try? For sure.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to preview this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Most readers know the love story between Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy in Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice'. Sara Marks retells this famous story in her novel 'Phi Alpha Pi'. Elizabeth becomes Lizbeth, a busy senior working on her honors thesis, decide her plans for after graduation, and keep her sorority in good standing on campus after a year on academic probation. The new sorority house manager, Mrs. C, Lizbeth finds the new Alpha Pi fraternity member, Wil, rude, snobby, and judgmental. Just like in Austen's novel, it takes a proclamation of love for Lizbeth to reconsider her views on the world and on Wil.
This book was a quick and easy read, but a lot of fun. I enjoyed the updated world that Jane Austen originally set up and Sara Marks does justice to all of the original characters. This would be a great book to take examples of and show to students studying 'Pride and Prejudice' to show how texts can be updated for today and to show real world connections. I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would and it made me want to re-read 'Pride and Prejudice'.
Thanks to both Illuminated Myth Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC.