The Other Bennet Sister - Janice Hadlow

58%

08.03.26

This was charming and well characterised, although Austen did most of the hard work. As it's basically fan fiction, it suffers where it departs from Austen's example - being bogged down in endless exposition (so much telling, not much showing) and the occasional distracting head hopping away from the protagonist's point of view. And as for the completely contrived misunderstandings near the end... if even the characters admit they should have just spoken to each other, then the plot simply isn't strong enough.

Emma - Jane Austen

70%
28.03.20

Inspired by the latest, and very lovely, film adaptation, I gave this a re-read and (spoiler!) it's really rather good. The humour and reactions are still recognisable, and it's a masterclass in characterisation that modern authors would do well to study.

Note that I didn't like it much when I last read it, 15 years ago, and, in fact, have no recollection of reading it then at all. The 'anti-feminism' I objected to doesn't bother me as much these days - it's a product of its time, and Emma (as a character) interestingly pushes the boundaries of what a woman in her circumstances was free to do, but is simultaneously trapped by her own snobbery and prejudices.

(It's had some off-putting covers over the years but I think this engaging example captures the spirit of the story.)

Longbourn - Jo Baker

65%
12.03.14

I really wanted to like this. And I did, really. And yet... at times the quality of the writing is beautiful, and yet it's littered with snagging cliched phrases. The parallel with 'Pride and Prejudice' is clever, offering new perspectives on Mr Collins and Mr Bennet in particular, and yet the below-stairs story is somewhat pedestrian. The insight into servants' lives is fascinating and yet it doesn't quite ring true. So, a good read but not the great one the hype suggests.

Death Comes to Pemberley - PD James

56%
19.11.13

PD James is so old that her children are 70, but there's no need to make allowances. Her research, both into the historical period and into the novels of Jane Austen, is impeccable, and her writing is still elegant. Oddly, it makes me want to read more James than Austen. But still, the execution doesn't quite ring true, and as a whodunnit it's hardly riveting.

Emma - Jane Austen

07.12.06
57%



Wordy, slow and inconsequential, but also cleverly structured and observed. Some uncomfortable issues regarding sex and class are raised for the modern reader, not to mention the implicit anti-feminism of 'the taming of the shrew'. How much a product of its time is it really?