Your online source for Jane Austen and her legacy
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: How much do book covers impact your reading emotions? This stunning cover of Jane Eyre popped up in my Amazon shopping. It stopped me in my tracks. Charlotte Brontë's classic gothic romance has had 1,000s of book covers grace its pages since its publication in 1847, but there... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: While I own more copies of Jane Austen’s novels than I will publicly admit, there is just something so enchanting about a beautiful book cover. They totally break down my willpower. So, here I am with new editions of Pride and Prejudice, Emma, and Sense and Sensibility to... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: In Jane Austen’s novels we rarely hear about clothing—only an occasional mention of a blue coat or white frock, here and there. However, we do know from her surviving correspondence that she was a fashionista. The frequency of her and her older sister Cassandra discussing fabric, bonnets, and... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: We are coming up on a significant anniversary next year in the Jane Austen film adaptation world. Sense and Sensibility (1995) will be thirty—an age in Austen’s Regency world when unmarried women were considered old maids, unworthy of serious consideration on the marriage market. Not so with this... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: It is always a red-letter day when a book is published by Mimi Matthews. Since her debut novel, The Lost Letter in 2017, I have been beguiled by her writing. In six years she has published 16 novels and novellas, first as a self-published author and now with... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Have you ever read a book that was so captivating that your own thoughts vanish, and you totally escape into the lives of the characters? Every historical fiction writer aspires to achieve this pinnacle, but few succeed as well as Laura Frantz. Her new novel, The Seamstress of... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Happy New Year, dear readers. I hope that your holidays were joyful with a generous portion of peace and relaxation. Today I am so pleased to introduce you to one of my favorite reads of 2023, The Ladies Rewrite the Rules, written by a favorite author, Suzanne Allain.... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Happy Holidays, dear readers. Less than one week to go until the big day and I am still shopping for gifts and wrapping presents. How about you? Books make great gifts and here is a suggestion for a historical romance reader. Just released this past week is bestselling... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Do you enjoy cozy mysteries? Or, are you in the dark about what they are about? Here’s a quick rundown or refresher for you: Cozy mysteries are fun, engaging, and low impact mystery novels that usually involve a woman (just think of Jessica Fletcher from the TV show,... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: So many great books are being released this week, just in time for holiday gift-giving. Rising above the fray is Julie Klassen’s A Winter by the Sea. It is the second novel in the On Devonshire Shores series and continues the story of the Summers sisters who we... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Today let’s talk about books set in Cornwall. There are so many of them—and for good reason. The picturesque coastal scenery, the fabled and mysterious history of the land and its people, and the romantic draw of a southern county in England far removed from the industry and... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: G’day dear readers. I am opening with a greeting in the Australian vernacular, even though I am a Yank who should know better than to try to be clever. It’s all due to the book that I want to introduce to you today—The Milliner of Bendigo, by bestselling... Continue Reading →
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