Good Fortune

 

Good Fortune by C. K. Chau

416 pp

Elizabeth Chen and her sisters Jane, Lydia, Mary, and Kitty live in New York City's Chinatown.  Their mother is a real estate agent and their father runs a restaurant.  Elizabeth's mother sells their beloved community center to a company who plans to change a lot about it.  The two investors are Brendan Lee (the equivalent of Mr. Bingley) and Darcy Wong (the Darcy character).  What ensues is very similar to the novel "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen but with modern twists.  Jane falls in love with Brendan Lee.  His sister and Darcy Wong try to keep him away from her.  Elizabeth and Darcy have sparks, but Darcy's prejudice and Elizabeth's pride get in the way.  In the background is the fear that the buyers will change the community center so much it will no longer work for the people in the neighborhood.  Mr. Collins is part of the book and is not someone there to inherit their father's wealth, but instead works for Catherine  de Bourgh and offers Elizabeth (who is unemployed) a job.  She does not want to take it, but her friend Charlotte does.  Eventually, Elizabeth goes to visit Charlotte.  There she meets Catherine De Bourgh, her daughter, Darcy's sister, etc.  The pride and prejudice eventually get overthrown and Elizabeth and Darcy fall in love.  There are several modernizations, but the basic story line is still there and sometimes gets in the way.

I love Jane Austen, but didn't feel like this kept the spirit while becoming something new.  As a former English major, I may be too picky.  I give the book 3 of 5 stars,