My Five Word TL:DR Review: I Wanted to Love It

To be fair I found this very easy to read.  I love reading stories from this period and couple that with the inclusion of a famous author from the past (whose books I love) then this is really a no-brainer.  Of course I want this series in my life.  The only thing that prevents me from absolutely loving this book and to a certain extent I had similar feelings with No.1 – is the main character.  I find her a little bit frustrating but I enjoyed the first instalment enough to want to press on and I was hoping that Jane (Austen) would learn a little from her mistakes in the past.  Anyway, not to get ahead.

As the story begins Jane is making her way to stay with her brother Neddy whose wife is pregnant and coming very close to her delivery date (lying in).  Normally, Jane’s sister Cass would have attended (and she is indeed a favourite with her in-laws and nephews and nieces) but disaster has struck the family and Cass is weighed down with grief.  On arrival at Neddy’s home however there appears to be discord.  Jane’s sister in law, far from having a quiet period as she approaches the impending birth of her next child, is quite besides herself with alarm.  The disquiet surrounds Neddy’s adoptive mother who has taken in a shipwrecked foreign princess who now appears to be pulling at her heartstrings and causing all sorts of trouble and headaches – particularly when it comes to the possibility of the young woman in question being an impostor trying to swindle both Neddy and the Austens out of their expected inheritance.

I won’t discuss the plot further.

What I really enjoyed about this.

Once again the writing is lovely.  It’s very easy to sink into the time, the family lifestyle and the story.  I really do enjoy returning to this period of time and I love the way the author manages to find new ways of showing how Jane came up with characters and plots.  There are little glimpses here, there and everywhere.

I also enjoyed getting away from the Austens and meeting other people.  There are strong Pride and Prejudice vibes from parts of the plot – which, again, I enjoyed picking up on.

But, as much as I am enjoying these and finding them good to get on with at the same time I find Jane frustrating.  In book one she jumped to some terrible conclusions and ran around a little like a headless chicken.  I was hoping that she might be a bit more prudent here given her past experience but she still flits about and takes the high road more often than not.  I just want to like her more and whilst sometimes she can be really caring or really witty, she can also be rather annoying.

Anyway, I would definitely pick up more in the series and I’m keen to see where Jane’s story goes next, but I really hope she can become a bit more circumspect.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 3.5 of 5 stars