The Bennet Heir examines what would have happened had Elizabeth Bennet had an older brother. While many of the traditional characters are still there, many are different from how Jane Austen imagined them. The catalyst for all these changes is the fact that Thomas Bennet was married once before he married the former Frances Gardiner.
When Thomas Bennet died, his son from his first marriage, Jonathan, inherits Longbourn. Elizabeth is his younger sister; Jane is Frances’ daughter from her first marriage, and Mary, Kitty, and Lydia were born from the marriage between Thomas and Frances.
The widowed Mrs. Bennet does not care for her stepchildren and actively seeks to find a way to gain control over Longbourn, not caring about the truth or the lack of any legal claim.
When the Bingleys and Darcy arrive, they find a much different Bennet family. Mrs. Frances Bennet, called Fanny, lives in Meryton with Jane and Lydia. Jonathan married the former Charlotte Lucas and has done much to ensure his sisters who remained with him are educated. Darcy and Jonathan find common ground when they realize they both know Mr. Gardiner, and a friendship forms.
About the Author
I have been writing Austenesque fiction for a little over two years and have amassed a file of different ideas as they occur to me. Most imagine the Bennet and Darcy family in situations that alter slightly from canon. I enjoy exploring these “what ifs” and seeing what happens. Since I started publishing, I’ve published ten full length novels and four short stories/novellas. My “Holidays with Darcy and Elizabeth” series has three short stories ranging from around 12,000 words to 25,000 words. I hope to add another two or three similar length stories to this collection in the next year or two and then will combine them all into an anthology.
My readers tend to be those who adore Pride and Prejudice and/or Jane Austen in general and, like me, find enjoyment in putting Elizabeth and Darcy into different circumstances to see what will happen. I enjoy interacting with my readers on social media and on my Substack account.
I started writing in late 2022, early 2023, and began to self-publish when I discovered how simple it was to do. Since then, I have continued writing and I hope to continue to write more as I go. Hopefully, I will continue to write better books, books that my readers will enjoy even more than the previous one and so far, I feel convinced that is exactly what I am doing. Each book that I’ve released feels like it’s better than the last, and I hope that has encouraged my readers to stick with me.
At present, I have three works in progress that I have planned for the rest of 2025/early part of 2026. My current plan is to work on Sport for Our Neighbors next (a good Mr. Bennet story), which I hope will be released this summer. Next, I have A Moment Frozen in Time, which is a story from Mr. Darcy’s perspective where a vision prevents him from insulting Elizabeth, and last is The Very Best of Friends, which I started on a fanfiction site some time ago and has Elizabeth and Darcy coming to an earlier understanding while at Netherfield. I have all of these roughly plotted (very roughly since I never know where a story will take me), but then this one may be a good start for next year.
In real life, I’m a high school teacher in Georgia (in the United States). I grew up in East Tennessee and the Smoky Mountains will always be home.
How to get in touch with me:
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissa.anne.author
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissa.anne.author/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/melissa-anne
Substack: https://melissaanneauthor.substack.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MelissaAnneAuthor
Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Melissa-Anne/author/B0C54C1BNF
