Your online source for Jane Austen and her legacy
Jane Austen’s novels brim with irony, witticism, and in the end, a gentle reprove or two. It is why I love her writing. Few authors can deliver this dry, deft and wickedly funny style. Michael Thomas Ford is one of them. His latest novel Jane Bites Back is more than a gentle joke, it is... Continue Reading →
Here’s a new novel that tugged at my heartstrings and validated my belief that if the world was run according to Jane Austen, we would be much smarter and happier. Enuff said! Fifteen-year-old Ellie Barnett is a bookish geek. She excels at academics, but according to her caustic older sister, she is digging herself into... Continue Reading →
Fall is in the air, and if you are looking for a great new murder mystery novel to cozy up with, Murder at Longbourn by Tracy Kiely is an excellent choice. Cleverly combining a traditional drawing room detective story and a comedy of manners, this surprisingly witty and beguilingly suspenseful whodunit is actually a contemporary chick-lit... Continue Reading →
I know of few novels - except Pride and Prejudice - that inspire as much fierce lifelong affection in their readers as I Capture the Castle. - Joanna Trollope This fall, UK audiences will be treated to a new adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Emma, starring Romola Garai as the irrepressible handsome, clever and rich... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: First published in 1950, The Grand Sophy contains one of Georgette Heyer’s most endearingly outrageous heroines. In this newly released reissue by Sourcebooks, you are in for a rollicking good time through Regency era London with Miss Sophia Stanton-Lacy. As one of her many male admirers proclaims, "By all... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:Â Is there always another chance at happiness? Are we bound to our past, or do "we all have the power to create heaven on earth, right here, right now?" Important questions heroine Jane Mansfield must come to acknowledge and understand in Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict,... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: If Jane Austen thought that her novel Pride and Prejudice was too light, bright, and sparkling and wanted shade, then author Maya Slater has made up for any deficit by crossing over to the ‘dark side’ in writing her re-telling of the story entitled The Private Diary of... Continue Reading →
When a new Pride and Prejudice sequel lands on my doorstep, I freely admit that the Austen geek in me goes into adrenalin rush. Usually after the third chapter I can see the lay of the land. Is the language reminiscent? Are the characters respectfully rendered? Is the tone appropriate? Is the storyline plausible? By... Continue Reading →
Book review of Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict (UK edition), by Laurie Viera Rigler.
From the desk of Christina Boyd: It's a wonder what wanton hubris an author must possess to undertake such a task of continuing a great work such as Pride and Prejudice. Regrettably more times than not, I have found the work falls short; but this is not the case with author Helen Halstead's sequel Mr.... Continue Reading →
After years of hearing the praises of author Georgette Heyer, I could no longer resist the temptation and dove in head first on the recommendation of Heyer enthusiast Vic (Ms. Place) of Jane Austen's World, selecting the author's favorite book Friday's Child. Since Heyer published 56 books over 53 years, she had a few to choose... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: "...his perfect indifference, and your pointed dislike, make it so delightfully absurd!" Mr. Bennet, Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 57 The Oxford World's Classics new 3rd edition of Pride and Prejudice is just what you need to read and explore Jane Austen's classic novel. This edition presents the reader... Continue Reading →
