Pemberley Ranch »

Jack Caldwell, a native of Louisiana living in Wisconsin, is an economic developer by trade. Mr. Caldwell has been an amateur history buff and a fan of Jane Austen for many years. Pemberley Ranch is his first published work. He lives with his wife and three sons in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, the Bennet family has just moved from Ohio to the town of Rosings, Texas, set on creating a fresh start. But their daughter Beth still prefers the familiarity of Ohio to the plains of Texas-that is, until she encounters Will Darcy, the reclusive owner of Pemberley Ranch. Will and Beth are instantly smitten, but pride, prejudice, and a gang of villains determined to take over Rosings threaten to keep them apart. This fresh idea in the world of Jane Austen retellings brings together the world of Pride and Prejudice with the struggles of the antebellum South.

Publishers Weekly

Caldwell's debut reimagines Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice as a heart-pounding western romance. The Civil War is over, but the scars remain. The Bennets leave the family farm in Ohio and move to the plains of Texas. Beth loves the open land, but clings to her Union loyalties. When she meets Confederate officer Will Darcy, the reclusive owner of neighboring Pemberley Ranch, she declares him arrogant. George Whitehead, a decorated Union officer, reinforces her opinions with his lies and insinuations. Over time, Beth re-evaluates her opinions and learns some hard truths about the Civil War. Unlike many of the Austen homages crowding the shelves, Pemberley Ranch is both fresh and a great history primer. Tenderness sometimes devolves into saccharine triteness, but the arguments and standoffs build up to an action-filled showdown that rescues this adaptation from mediocrity. (Dec.)