Jane in Love: A Novel, by Rachel Givney — A Review

From the desk of Sophia Rose:

Australian filmmaker, and debut writer, Rachel Givney brings us a whimsical time travel romantic adventure for none other than Jane Austen herself with her new novel, Jane in Love.  What does the twenty-first century have to teach this well-loved author? Equally important, what does Miss Jane have to teach her counterpart in the twenty-first century?

Jane is twenty-eight and living with her aging parents in Bath. Her writing isn’t good enough to get published and her mother threatens to burn any further attempts. Mrs. Austen insists Jane focus on the serious business of finding a husband. Jane doesn’t find this objectionable, but is it too much to ask that the gentleman accept her the way she is and that she finds love? One more opportunity and yet one more disappointment force Jane to take the desperate step of trusting in an odd and mystical matchmaker who sends her two hundred years into the future to find what she’s looking for.

Sofia Wentworth is an A-List actress and has made millions fall in love with her. That is until recently when her own husband wants a divorce, and she can’t get a leading role. She is determined to get back her career, but more importantly, renew what they had together with Jack by taking a role in his new period film, Northanger Abbey. She encounters one of the extras who is crazy and thinks she’s the real Jane Austen, but the startling bit is that she just may be the real deal and something odd is happening as Jane meets Sofia’s brother Fred who plays a minor role in the film. Jane and Fred get over their early antagonism and are there to help Sofia with her plans. Sofia helps Jane as she must decide where she really belongs and what she really wants.

Jane in Love was a whimsical blend of light-hearted romance, historical and contemporary backdrops, colorful characters, and at heart, two women who are looking for happiness and fulfillment. The author wisely didn’t try to get too bogged down in authentic details and, thus, utterly fail. She wrote her own version of the famous authoress and dropped her into her own version of Persuasion. This Jane was witty and it was fun seeing her encounter the twenty-first century because situations were described just like a person from the past would see it and her observations were keen about how innovation didn’t improve the truly important parts of life.

Like many time travel romances, at the core, the conflict comes down to stay or go back. For Jane, it was have love, or have her writing. I was jealous of Sofia when she realized just who she had befriended because Sofia was an Austen fan and had read her books, so she had the real Jane right there.

The author knows the world of film, so it was great having that as the setting and the backdrop for the modern side of the story and to be Sofia’s world. I was really rooting for her to get her happy. Just like I adored seeing Jane find a man who truly appreciated her.

In the end, I was satisfied with how it all turned out and found this entertaining and engaging. It didn’t dig deep but never disappointed. I hope the author writes more as I was rather taken with her writing style. Those who enjoy lighter time travel romance and the world of Jane Austen are the target audience for Jane in Love.

4 out of 5 Stars

BOOK INFORMATION

• Jane in Love: A Novel, by Rachel Givney
• William Morrow (October 27, 2020)
• Trade paperback, eBook, & audiobook (448) pages
• ISBN: 978-0063019089
• Genre: Austenesque, Contemporary Romance

ADDITIONAL INFO | ADD TO GOODREADS

We received a review copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Austenprose is an Amazon affiliate. Cover image courtesy of William Morrow © 2020; text Sophia Rose © 2020, austenprose.com.