Jane And The Final Mystery by Stephanie Barron - Review

Today the blog tour for the last (sob!) book in Stephanie Barron’s Being a Jane Austen Mystery, Jane And The Final Mystery stops by for my review. Let’s take a look at the blurb and then I’ll let you know what I thought of the book.

Book Description

The final volume of the critically acclaimed mystery series featuring Jane Austen as amateur sleuth

March 1817: As winter turns to spring, Jane Austen’s health is in slow decline, and threatens to cease progress on her latest manuscript. But when her nephew Edward brings chilling news of a death at his former school, Winchester College, not even her debilitating ailment can keep Jane from seeking out the truth. Arthur Prendergast, a senior pupil at the prestigious all-boys’ boarding school, has been found dead in a culvert near the schoolgrounds—and in the pocket of his drenched waistcoat is an incriminating note penned by the young William Heathcote, the son of Jane’s dear friend Elizabeth. Winchester College is a world unto itself, with its own language and rites of passage, cruel hazing and dangerous pranks. Can Jane clear William’s name before her illness gets the better of her?
 
Over the course of fourteen previous novels in the critically acclaimed Being a Jane Austen Mystery series, Stephanie Barron has won the hearts of thousands of fans—crime fiction aficionados and Janeites alike—with her tricky plotting and breathtaking evocation of Austen’s voice. Now, she brings Jane’s final season—and final murder investigation—to brilliant, poignant life in this unforgettable conclusion.

Godmersham Park by Gill Hornby - Review

Today the blog tour for Gill Hornby’s Godmersham Park stops by at Babblings of a Bookworm. Godmersham Park is where Austen’s well-off brother Edward lived, and this book is a fictionalised account of the time that real-life governess Anne Sharp spent there. Read on to find out more about the book, and what I thought of it. 

Book Description

A richly imagined novel inspired by the true story of Anne Sharp, a governess who became very close with Jane Austen and her family by the #1 International bestselling-author of Miss Austen.

On January 21, 1804, Anne Sharp arrives at Godmersham Park in Kent to take up the position of governess. At thirty-one years old, she has no previous experience of either teaching or fine country houses. Her mother has died, and she has nowhere else to go. Anne is left with no choice. For her new charge—twelve-year-old Fanny Austen—Anne's arrival is all novelty and excitement.

The governess role is a uniquely awkward one. Anne is neither one of the servants, nor one of the family, and to balance a position between the "upstairs" and "downstairs" members of the household is a diplomatic chess game. One wrong move may result in instant dismissal. Anne knows that she must never let down her guard.

When Mr. Edward Austen's family comes to stay, Anne forms an immediate attachment to Jane. They write plays together and enjoy long discussions. However, in the process, Anne reveals herself as not merely pretty, charming, and competent; she is clever too. Even her sleepy, complacent, mistress can hardly fail to notice.

Meanwhile Jane's brother, Henry, begins to take an unusually strong interest in the lovely young governess. And from now on, Anne's days at Godmersham Park are numbered.

Jane and The Year Without a Summer by Stephanie Barron – Blog Tour, Review

Today I’m pleased to be hosting a stop on the blog tour for the latest of Stephanie Barron’s ‘Being a Jane Austen Mystery’ series – Jane and the Year Without A Summer. I will share the blurb with you and then move on to my review of the book. Read on for more details.

Book Description 

May 1816: Jane Austen is feeling unwell, with an uneasy stomach, constant fatigue, rashes, fevers and aches. She attributes her poor condition to the stress of family burdens, which even the drafting of her latest manuscript—about a baronet's daughter nursing a broken heart for a daring naval captain—cannot alleviate. Her apothecary recommends a trial of the curative waters at Cheltenham Spa, in Gloucestershire. Jane decides to use some of the profits earned from her last novel, Emma, and treat herself to a period of rest and reflection at the spa, in the company of her sister, Cassandra.
 
Cheltenham Spa hardly turns out to be the relaxing sojourn Jane and Cassandra envisaged, however. It is immediately obvious that other boarders at the guest house where the Misses Austen are staying have come to Cheltenham with stresses of their own—some of them deadly. But perhaps with Jane’s interference a terrible crime might be prevented. Set during the Year without a Summer, when the eruption of Mount Tambora in the South Pacific caused a volcanic winter that shrouded the entire planet for sixteen months, this fourteenth installment in Stephanie Barron’s critically acclaimed series brings a forgotten moment of Regency history to life.

Murder & Miss Austen's Ball by Ridgway Kennedy - Guest Post and Excerpt

Today we are welcoming a new author to Babblings of a Bookworm. Ridgway Kennedy has joined us with a post about his upcoming book Murder & Miss Austen’s Ball, which releases on the anniversary of Jane Austen's birth, on the 16th of Decmeber. plus an excerpt. Let’s look at the blurb, and then I will hand over to Ridge.

Book Description

With her 40th birthday approaching and with three well-received novels in hand, Miss Jane Austen determines that she will host a ball. She has her reasons – quite sensible reasons. With the end of the war, the nation is in economic turmoil and, close to home, her brother’s bank is in distress. She has gained confidence and sees a way to gain her own means and independence.

A dancing master is sent for; a dancing master arrives. There is confusion, music, a literary rescue mission, a murder, a mystery and a puzzle that must be solved; even if the quest flies in the face of propriety. A mousetrap is set; it captures the wrong prey. Honor must be served, even if it involves headlong flight. And a mystery must be unraveled, even if it involves dark secrets.

Music & Dance

One unusual aspect of the story is the degree to which music and dance pervade its telling. The act of playing music together brings people into a special kind of intimate relationship. The story weaves in scenes of dance preparations, making music, teaching dancing and provides an inside look at a ball from the musicians’ and dance leader’s perspective. One scene follows a couple down the set through a longways dance.

A line on the cover promises “a novel with musical accompaniment” as we plan to provide readers with “audio illustrations” – online access to custom tracks that will be recorded to go along with the book. Some e-readers may even be able to click and hear the music. Most of the melodies will be tunes Miss Austen might have heard, danced to and even played. But there is one newly composed melody—The Dancing Master’s New Tune we’ll call it for now—that takes a prominent place in the tale.

Miss Austen by Gill Hornby - Review

Today I’m bringing you my review of Miss Austen by Gill Hornby. It’s not about that Miss Austen, but the other one, Jane’s sister, Miss Cassandra Austen. Let’s start with the blurb:

Book Description

Whoever looked at an elderly lady and saw the young heroine she once was?

England, 1840. Two decades after the death of her beloved sister, Jane, Cassandra Austen returns to the village of Kintbury and the home of her family friends, the Fowles. In a dusty corner of the vicarage, there is a cache of Jane’s letters that Cassandra is desperate to find. Dodging her hostess and a meddlesome housemaid, Cassandra eventually hunts down the letters and confronts the secrets they hold, secrets not only about Jane but about Cassandra herself. Will Cassandra bare the most private details of her life to the world, or commit her sister’s legacy to the flames?

Moving back and forth between the vicarage and Cassandra’s vibrant memories of her years with Jane, interwoven with Jane’s brilliantly reimagined lost letters, Miss Austen is the untold story of the most important person in Jane’s life. With extraordinary empathy, emotional complexity, and wit, Gill Hornby finally gives Cassandra her due, bringing to life a woman as captivating as any Austen heroine.

Jane Austen's Ghost by Jennifer Kloester - Guest Post and Giveaway

Today I'm welcoming a new visitor to Babblings of a Bookworm, Jennifer Kloester.  I've read Jennifer's work previously - she  has written books relating to my second favourite writer, Georgette Heyer, one of which I read in my pre-blogging days. Obviously, a person who admires Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer is a person of good taste, so I was very pleased to take part in the blog tour for her new book, Jane Austen's Ghost. Jennifer joins us today with a guest post and giveaway. So let's start with the blurb and then I'll hand over to Jennifer.

Book Description

A masterpiece of wit, ingenuity and impeccable style, Regency maven Jennifer Kloester brings the great Jane Austen into the modern world in this enchanting, exhilarating adventure of love, literature and life everlasting...

With her life a mess, Cassandra Austin seeks refuge in Winchester with her eccentric great-aunt – but Aunty B has problems of her own. Ghost problems.

Cassie doesn’t believe in ghosts but she’ll do anything to help the only person who’s ever loved her. Besides, a simple spell in the cathedral crypt couldn’t do any harm, could it? Well, except for the two-hundred-year-old curse on Jane Austen, that is.

Overnight, life is suddenly a whole lot weirder and it’s up to Cassie to save the day with the help of a dour Bishop, two literary geniuses, a couple of wise-cracking geriatrics and the enigmatic Oliver Carling.

Magic and mystery abound in this genre-bending contemporary-historical paranormal romance with a Regency twist.

ADVANCE REVIEWS,

“Jane Austen's Ghost is a fabulous, fun read full of fantastical twists - mind-candy for anyone who has heard of Jane Austen. Meticulously researched, this work is nevertheless a tour de force of the imagination. Although steeped in all things Austen, due to its imaginative presentation, this work will appeal to readers everywhere – from Austen scholars to the man in the street. This is a work that transcends genres, incorporating a contemporary-historical paranormal adventure, a sweet romance, and a female protagonist in a coming-of-age arc. A truly not-to-be-missed read destined to become a classic.”
-- STEPHANIE LAURENS

“Jennifer Kloester’s meticulous research frameworks an intriguing, complex fantasy, as well as a gorgeously intimate insight into a concept of the Jane Austen we’d love to have at our dinner table. The characters are marvelous, the friendships warm and deep, and the plot holds us spellbound until the end. A truly fabulous read.”
-- MARION LENNOX

“Jane Austen meets Bridget Jones meets Harry Potter in this fast-paced romp from Georgette Heyer expert Jennifer Kloester. There are laugh out loud moments but genuinely scary moments, too, in this diverting tale. Supernatural elements mix with Regency manners as Jane Austen finds herself grappling with the twenty-first century in Jane Austen’s Ghost.”
-- AMANDA GRANGE

Jane Austen Lives Again by Jane Odiwe - My Review

This week I have been joined by Jane Odiwe, author of 'Jane Austen Lives Again', who gave us a guest post and excerpt from the book. Jane is also offering an international paperback giveaway to two lucky readers here. You can gain one entry to the giveaway by commenting on Jane's post, and another by posting on this review post.

My review:
Many an Austen fan has grieved the fact that Austen died at the age of only 41. We will never know if she had more wonderful stories to enrich our reading time, and if she’d outlived her sister Cassandra there may have also been a far larger selection of letters for us to get to know Austen better, since Cassandra destroyed a large proportion of them. But what if, through pioneering medical treatment (involving immortal jellyfish!), Jane didn’t shuffle off this mortal coil in 1817 but instead wakes alive and well in 1925! In appearance, she is about 21, but she has her previous memories of her life. Jane has had a short time to catch up with the major changes in the world, advances in technology and so-on. She isn’t that worried about feeling like a fish out of water, because as a studier of character she believes that people will still have the same motivations more than a hundred years after her time:

‘Though the people she saw were dressed in the fashions of the day, Jane was sure they were still the same in essentials. Human nature didn’t alter, even if their clothes, their hairstyles and their use of slang changed. People still loved and hated, won and lost, struggled, succeeded or sank.’

Unfortunately, due to the financial costs of her medical treatment being far higher than Cassandra could have anticipated, Jane is forced to get a job and finds a placement with a family. She believes at first that she has been employed as a governess to five small girls, however, upon her arrival at the house she becomes acquainted with the truth, which is that all her ‘charges’ are in fact, grown women, and some of them are (in appearance at least) older than Jane! Jane’s task is to help direct them. There are 6 offspring in all; the elder three, Will, Alice and Mae, are from Lord Milton’s first marriage, and the younger three, Beth, Emily and Cora are from his second marriage, to the very attractive Lady Milton. Jane is only employed to assist Lady Milton in managing the girls. Lady Milton is very keen to marry them off if possible, but she is somewhat despairing of the elder two girls at least; Alice is stuck in the fashions of years ago and Mae is hostile towards her stepmother. Lady Milton’s own daughters are bringing her no comfort in their unmanageability either. Knowing that there were five sisters immediately sent my mind towards similarities with the sisters Bennet, but this is not the case; instead, when we get to know the girls it’s easy to see that they all resemble Austen characters, but not all from the same novel. You can see characters from at least four of Austen’s novels in these girls, and a nod to a fifth.

It’s extremely entertaining to see events played out that echo events from Austen’s novels, and it’s also fun to see that sometimes characters play different roles, so the same character can be in essentials a character from ‘Persuasion’ but also play a part that happened in ‘Emma’, for example. I would add a word of caution here, because while it’s entertaining for an Austen aficionado to look for nods to Austen’s other works, if you are unfamiliar with them the large cast of characters may prove really confusing, because there are many characters who are introduced close together, and it might be hard to remember the state of relations between them all.

'Jane Austen at Her Desk' by Jane Odiwe

Jane Odiwe is a very skilled artist; her pictures are just wonderful, and she really paints a picture with words here. The descriptive passages are just marvellous, described so visually that it was easy to imagine them, and this was an aspect of the book that I thoroughly enjoyed:

‘They were ascending out of the valley when she saw her first glimpse of the sea, a slice of lavender ribbon under an oppressive sky, and as the wreathed along the cliff top road she saw the greater expanse below, white horses crashing down on the beach, and a strip of sand stretching along an endless coastline.’

Jane Austen finds a place in this interesting family, and while learning about them, comes to terms with some things she finds out about herself. She is going through a huge adjustment in settling in a new area with new people and added to this she has the huge upheaval of settling in to a new time, with the change in societal norms. Through this, Jane still manages to retain her humour:

‘She felt quite shocked that she wasn’t at all horrified by anything he’d learnt that morning and began to feel her morals must be already corrupted.’

I would think that the hardest part in being transplanted to another time would be leaving your loved ones behind. We all know how hard it is when a loved one dies; how it hits you that you’ll never be able to tell them about something that’s happened, how you miss just the everyday interactions and knowing that they are there for you and care about you. By essentially travelling in time, Jane has outlived all of her loved ones and acquaintances. It must be akin to everybody you know suddenly dying. I can’t imagine how displaced that would make you feel. Jane doesn’t really dwell on this, but sometimes thoughts of the loss of the life she has left behind understandably overwhelm her:

‘It was silly to be so stirred up and emotional at thought of the past, but she was overwhelmed by a sudden desire for all that she had ever known, and for all those she had loved. She longed to share a conversation with someone who spoke the same language in the cadences and timbre of her youth.’

The only downside of this book for me is that, with such a large cast of characters, so many of whom are destined to end up together, none of the romances have a lot of page time individually. I was particularly interested in Alice’s story, even more than Jane’s. These stories were more fleshed out than the others, some of which were only briefly touched on. I also felt that the pace of the story increased towards the end. However, conversely, I enjoyed how many nods there were to other Austen books, and took great pleasure in spotting each of the story threads. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was excellently entertaining, and I’d rate it as a 4½ star read. I’d recommend it to any Austen fan, but particularly those who also enjoy stories set in the early part of the twentieth century.

*I received an ebook of this story from the author for my honest review.

Giveaway time!

As I said at the beginning of the post, Jane Odiwe is offering to give away a paperback copy of 'Jane Austen Lives Again' to two readers here. To enter, just leave a comment on the giveaway post by the end of the day on Monday 20 June, and for a bonus entry, comment on this post too. This giveaway is open internationally. Please leave a way for me to contact you in case you're the winner, so you don't miss out on your prize.

Jane Austen Lives Again by Jane Odiwe - Guest Post, Excerpt and Giveaway

Today I have the honour of welcoming Jane Odiwe to the blog with a guest post, excerpt and giveaway. Jane has written numerous Austen-inspired books featuring Austen's characters and people from Austen's life. Ms Odiwe's latest book, 'Jane Austen Lives Again' has a highly unusual premise, seeing Jane Austen waking alive and well in 1925. Here's the blurb:

When Jane Austen’s doctor discovers the secret to immortal life in 1817, she thinks her wishes have come true. But when she wakes up from the dead, a penniless Miss Austen finds herself in 1925, having to become a governess to five girls of an eccentric and bohemian family at the crumbling Manberley Castle by the sea. Jane soon finds she’s caught up in the dramas of every family member, but she loves nothing more than a challenge, and resolves on putting them in order. If only she can stop herself from falling in love, she can change the lives of them all!

Inspired by Jane Austen’s wonderful novels and written in the tradition of classic books like Cold Comfort Farm, I Capture the Castle, and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Jane Austen Lives Again is an amusing fairy story for grown-ups.

Now let me hand over to Jane Odiwe for a post about why she enjoys writing about Jane Austen as a character. Jane is very kindly offering a paperback giveaway to two commenters here - read on for more details!

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Jane and the Waterloo Map - Blog Tour and US Giveaway

Today the blog tour for Stephanie Barron’s ‘Jane and the Waterloo Map’ stops off here for my review. If you are unfamiliar with her work, Ms Barron has written a whole series of books with Jane Austen as the investigator of murders and foul play. Read on for my review, and for the chance to enter a US giveaway of some wonderful prizes.

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Amateur sleuth Jane Austen returns in Jane and the Waterloo Map, the thirteenth novel in Stephanie Barron’s delightful Regency-era mystery series.

Award winning author Stephanie Barron tours the blogosphere February 2 through to February 22, 2016 to share her latest release, Jane and the Waterloo Map (Being a Jane Austen Mystery). Twenty popular book bloggers specializing in Austenesque fiction, mystery and Regency history will feature guest blogs, interviews, excerpts and book reviews from this highly anticipated novel in the acclaimed Being a Jane Austen Mystery series. A fabulous giveaway contest, including copies of Ms. Barron’s book and other Jane Austen-themed items, will be open to those who join the festivities.

Jane by the Sea by Carolyn V Murray

Jane Austen is possibly the world’s best known romantic novelist (not that I would call her a romantic novelist, but that label is often applied to her). We know that she didn’t marry but that she did have some brushes with romance herself. There was an attraction towards Tom Lefroy, who was the nephew of Jane’s close friend and neighbour, Madame Lefroy which came to nothing after his family intervened, wanting him to marry higher.  There was a seaside romance that again came to nothing. I have read such different accounts of this as to puzzle me exceedingly :) The gentleman in question is either said to be a sea captain, or a Reverend Blackall, and the reason for the romance not ending in marriage differs too.  A couple of years later there was a marriage proposal from a family friend that Austen accepted and then drew back from, presumably because she didn’t love the gentleman. Marrying only for love was a big theme of Austen’s novels, and so it seems safe to assume that it was something she personally believed.

Unfortunately, many of the letters and other documents that Jane Austen wrote were destroyed by her sister Cassandra. However, if you read what are remaining of Jane Austen’s letters you get a sense of her quick wit and mischievous, acerbic sense of humour (think Elizabeth Bennet’s humour, but with more of a bite to it!). This story is loosely based on the seaside romance that Jane Austen is said to have had around 1800, before she moved to Bath, where her writing ceased for some years. Some of the details are changed from what I had read previously of that seaside romance, which surprised me a little when I realised it, but the flip side of the changes was that I had less idea of where the story was going. I learned afterwards that there appears to be more than one interpretation of the truth of it and I am not sure whether the real truth of the episode has been established.

We first meet with Jane here in the heyday of her romance with Tom Lefroy. I always feel a little melancholy when reading books based on Austen’s life as we know where they are headed, so you know straight away that this romance is doomed and I just had to wait for the hammer to fall. I thought the author did a nice job of capturing her wit and cheekiness, though I wonder if Austen was ever as naive as she seems here. Although a romantic, I think Jane Austen was also a realist, and such a keen observer that she would have known very well how the world of marriage worked at the age of 21. So although she might have hoped for a different outcome I don’t think she would have been as surprised by it as is shown here. When themes like this are discussed in Austen’s novels the only character who seems surprised by the general customs around marriage appears to be the über-romantic Marianne Dashwood, and I got the impression when I read that story that Austen wasn’t that sympathetic towards her, though of course that could have been just the bitterness of looking back. Once Jane has gone through this, and other, painful experiences, she resolves to learn from them, and not to be hurt again.

‘If only it had been explained to me from an early age... my lack of value in the marriage economy. Then I should be quite reconciled by now to a long, unending, solitary future.’

But then she goes to the seaside, where there is both a clergyman and a seaman, and she will find her resolve tested...

I very much enjoyed this book. I have my doubts whether Austen’s speech was so shocking in real life, though I am confident she was capable of thinking every one of the cheeky thoughts attributed to her here! One thing that I found particularly enjoyable in this book was spotting the inspiration for many of the characters and situations that found their way into her books (all of which were yet to be published at this time of her life). There is a clear Mr Collins, lines from her books, a situation reminiscent of Louisa Musgrove’s behaviour on the Cobb at Lyme and so on.

“And do these compliments spring from the moment?” I inquired. “Or are they the work of previous rehearsal?”

Jane is working on more than one book during this novel, and we see her passing on the lessons she has learned to her characters Elinor, Marianne, Elizabeth and Jane. The melodrama of the situations she puts them in are more in the line of her juvenilia than the finished articles, but it’s worth bearing in mind that they were a decade off being fully polished.

The language usage in this book was pretty good on the whole, although there were some American and modern words that I noticed, but I am particularly distractable by such things so other readers might not notice them too much.

As I said above I usually find books about Austen’s life melancholy as we know they are heading toward spinsterhood and a premature death but this book is saved from that by the amount of humour in it. There were some real laugh out loud moments, and the end particularly is pretty funny, which is quite an achievement! The below quote is Jane’s plan to get her dear friend Martha (potentially the model for Charlotte in ‘Pride & Prejudice’) invited to live with the Austens if Martha’s mother should die:

‘I laid out my plan. Mama was already fond of Martha, and with just a little exertion, Martha could make herself even more agreeable. During her visits, she could offer cheerful assistance with chores. Humour Mama’s medical complaints. Make herself indispensible. When Cassie was called away to play nursemaid to our expectant sister-in-laws, Martha would be there to fill the void. I should do my own part by becoming more and more useless, so that Martha’s assistance would grow to be essential.’

I’d certainly recommend this book to people who like books based on Jane Austen’s life. I felt it had a real flavour of the author’s wit and character, and managed not to be too sad a read. This is Carolyn V Murray’s debut book and I hope she writes more. I’d rate this as a 4 star read.

If my review has whetted your appetite to read this book, there is still time to enter the international giveaway for an ebook copy! Comment on the giveaway post to enter, and comment on this post for a bonus entry.

Jane by the Sea by Carolyn V Murray - Excerpt and Giveaway

Today I am welcoming author Carolyn V Murray to the blog. Carolyn has written a book with Jane Austen as a character called 'Jane by the Sea'. Just feast your eyes on that gorgeous cover! It's based around a seaside romance that Jane Austen was said to have had, around 1800. Here's the blurb:

Jane Austen’s love stories have withstood an incredible test of time. They are widely read and loved two hundred years after they were written. We know that Jane Austen never married. Where did her expertise in love come from? There is some evidence that she developed a deep mutual attachment to a man she met during a seaside family holiday. But almost no details are known of this man. Only that her sister was later to say that he was a man who was truly worthy of Jane.

This is the story of that pivotal encounter. It is written in Jane’s own voice, as closely as it could be captured. Not the gentle wit of her novels, but the sharp, blunt tongue that she used so freely in her candid letters to her sister.

At the same time, we will watch how her writer's voice evolved; how she drew from the people and events in her life to create the masterpieces of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility.

Carolyn has an excerpt of a rude encounter here for us, and she's very kindly giving away an ebook of 'Jane at the Sea' to two commenters here. Read on for more details.

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Aerendgast by Rachel Berman

Today the blog tour for Rachel Berman's 'Aerendgast' stops here with a review of the book. For further posts on the blog tour, please see the schedule below my review.

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Violet Desmond has a full life. She doesn’t have much family, since she is an only child, brought up by her grandmother. She led quite a solitary childhood, but she now has good friends, a job as a lecturer, and she is the owner of a historical house that she is in the process of sourcing antiques for and restoring. Her grandmother, Millie, is terminally ill but still in good spirits. Violet visits her one day and Millie gives Violet a very unusual cameo necklace, which belonged to Violet’s mother, and since Violet has nothing of her parents, not even a recollection, she is very pleased to have something to link to them. Millie impresses on Violet that the necklace is important and that it will help her find what she’s searching for, though Violet doesn’t know what is meant by this. After handing over the cameo, Millie takes a turn for the worse, and although Violet calls an ambulance, Millie can’t be saved.

While still reeling from Millie’s death, Violet discovers documentation that shows that what she was told about her life was a lie; she isn’t Violet Desmond, but Violet Atherton. She has two birth certificates, so one of them is fake. There is also a newspaper cutting detailing a fatal car crash in which Martin and Gwen Atherton and their daughter Violet all died. There are pictures of the Atherton family and Violet recognises the young girl as herself. The name of Violet’s godfather is mentioned in the article, Lord Blake Lockhurst. Violet is determined to find out the truth of the situation. Googling Lockhurst brings up the name of his home, Aerendgast, a National Trust property, and so she contacts him under the guise of seeking a job. She is offered a paid job working for Lockhurst as an archivist where she hopes to find some answers. Things aren’t helped by the fact that since the day Millie died Violet has started having some very vivid dreams about one of her favourite authors, Jane Austen:

‘Through Violet’s dreams, Austen revealed her life story, only it was much darker than the familiar tale ... and Violet felt Jane’s pain and pleasures as acutely as if they were her own. It haunted Violet during the day and hounded her at night as she struggled to understand what was happening.’

Why is Violet having these dreams? Over time they begin to manifest as visions in the day as well. Violet begins to wonder about the truth of Austen’s life. Could it have been very different to what is currently believed? Does this connect with Violet’s family? Who can Violet trust? And what secrets can be found at Aerendgast?

The story is mainly a treasure hunt story with a dash of romance thrown in, but it’s interspersed with Violet’s dreams and visions of Jane Austen. I always find books with Austen as a character quite melancholy – the thought of how short her life was, and how she didn’t find a lasting love herself despite writing about her heroines finding love. In this book, Jane’s story is worse than melancholy, she is treated appallingly and goes through some real heartrending misery. She has a secret love, and it’s fair to say that by not very far into the book at all I was very angry with him for being so utterly spineless and selfish!

Violet works together with a treasure hunter, Peter, to look for clues to help her discover the truth of her visions. Whether she can trust Peter remains to be proven... This part of the story reminded me somewhat of those Nicolas Cage treasure films, National Treasure, although here the ‘national treasure’ being searched for is the truth of the life of a well-loved writer. There were some very exciting moments and puzzles to discover. The only thing with this type of high drama is that I didn’t find it particularly believable. It sounds odd to say it, but the visions from 200 years ago seemed more real than the action taking place as the actions being described in the visions were more prosaic. I was also surprised by how some events unfolded because the behaviour of the characters sometimes seemed illogical to me. This meant that it took me quite a long time to connect with the story set in the present day, because the passage of events sometimes didn’t seem likely.

Being a huge admirer of Jane Austen, I really enjoyed the connection to her works. The idea is put forward that parts of Austen’s novels were inspired by events that she had lived through, which is a really interesting concept to explore:

“Maybe she covertly wrote her own life into her books because she wanted someone to discover everything she’d had to hide. Maybe there’s something in her books, something we’re meant to find?”

Violet is a pretty likeable character, although she sometimes seems a bit too trusting and open for her own good. I liked her habit of talking to herself while she was reading, she often had the same thoughts as me, although she expressed them with more swear words! The reader gets to know Violet better than the other characters in the story, and it’s a bit of a mystery as to who she can trust and who is trying to manipulate her for their own ends.

I’d recommend this book to people who enjoy plenty of action and excitement in their reading. The mystery is very fast-paced so I don’t think it’s the type of thing you can work out while you’re reading, as clues keep being uncovered.  There was a lot of focus on Austen and her works which I really enjoyed. Her hidden story made me feel quite sad and angry on her behalf, but it was very inventive, and meshed with some of the known facts about Austen, such as her dislike of Bath and the reason why so much of her correspondence was destroyed, which I thought was a nice touch. The story is concluded in this book but there could be scope for further adventure. I thought this was an entertaining read and I’d rate it at 3½ stars.

*Many thanks to Meryton Press for providing an e-ARC and Leatherbound Reviews for allowing me to be part of the blog tour for 'Aerendgast'.

Buy links:

Amazon (US) « B&N (US) « Amazon (UK) « B&N (UK)

Blog tour schedule:

2 March: Guest Post at Austenprose 

3 March: Excerpt & Giveaway at My Jane Austen Book Club 

4 March: Author Interview at The Little Munchkin Reader

5 March: Excerpt & Giveaway at BestSellers & BestStellars

6 March: Review at Babblings of a Bookworm 

7 March: Guest Post & Giveaway at My Love for Jane Austen 

8 March: Review at The Delighted Reader

9 March: Excerpt & Giveaway at So Little Time… 

10 March: Guest Post & Giveaway at More Agreeably Engaged 

11 March: Review at Austenprose 

12 March: Excerpt & Giveaway at My Kids Led Me Back to Pride and Prejudice 

13 March: Review at Diary of an Eccentric

14 March: Review at Margie's Must Reads

15 March: Review at Warmisunqu’s Austen

16 March: Guest Post & Giveaway at Austenesque Reviews

17 March: Guest Post & Giveaway at Babblings of a Bookworm

18 March: Guest Post at Laughing with Lizzie

Mr Darcy's Christmas Calendar by Jane Odiwe

I read a lot of books inspired by Jane Austen’s works but this is something quite different; rather than a variation on her works, this involves time-travel, a visit into a Jane Austen novel and features Austen as a character too. Lizzy Benson has gone to visit Chawton (Jane Austen’s home towards the end of her life, which is now open to the public as a museum). Here, Lizzy meets a pretty rude Museum employee, Mr Williams, but before she leaves in a huff, the situation is saved by another employee, a lady in period costume, who is doing a very good rendition of Mrs Bennet.

‘She reminded Lizzy of Mrs Bennet especially when she laughed like a young girl, her curls trembling as she disappeared through a door at the end. Lizzy suppressed a desire to giggle, and wondered how the lady managed to keep up her way of talking, as if she’d just stepped out of a Jane Austen novel.’

This lady convinces Lizzy to take an advent calendar, which she can pay for at the end of her tour, and she sends Lizzy off to change into period costume and meet with her daughters (more employees in character, Lizzy presumes). Trapped in Chawton by the snow, somehow, Lizzy finds herself as part of this world. The characters she is trapped with seem very real. She gets to know the Bennet family, and Mr Williams and even takes a trip to Derbyshire. The advent calendar appears to be very unusual, with the doors glowing before they are opened, and each picture has a resonance to what is happening that day.

Lizzy assumes that she is in Pride and Prejudice but some things are quite different. Elizabeth Bennet is very taken with a rich, charming gentleman from Derbyshire, a Mr Wickham(!), and when Lizzy mentions Mr Darcy nobody has ever heard of him!

“Is Mr Darcy here?” Lizzy asked tentatively 

Elizabeth shook her head. “I do not recall that name. Darcy, did you say? Is he a friend of yours?”

When Lizzy finally gets to meet Miss Austen she discovers that she has found herself in a draft of ‘First Impressions’ (this is the original title of ‘Pride & Prejudice’, a book that was worked and re-worked to give us the story that so many of us love). However, Miss Austen feels that something isn’t quite right with the story, and she requests that Lizzy help inspire her to improve the story. Lizzy can’t just tell Jane how to fix the storyline, all she can do is hint, as Jane needs to think up the details herself, and she tweaks at the characters, so they don’t always behave the same way from one day to the next. Mr Williams is included in this, so Lizzy isn’t even sure if he is real.

This was a very readable story, and I enjoyed seeing Austen’s characters interacting with their visitor Lizzy in this ‘book world’. I particularly enjoyed seeing Mr Darcy, when the character was introduced, as rather than the proud and somewhat haughty man we would be expecting, instead he is instantly besotted with Elizabeth, and so rather than be offended by him expressing an adverse opinion on her, she instead is put off by how much he likes her! However, Austen’s characters are very much secondary in this story, the main protagonist is Lizzy Benson, who is very likeable, although sometimes I was a bit surprised at her reactions to events. She accepts the time travel/book world issue almost without a blink and doesn’t seem at all worried that the fate of one of the most famous books in the English language may lie in her hands, though I accept that ‘First Impressions’ was an earlier version of it, so she may have felt that it was safe as long as the main issue of the hero of the story was resolved. She also integrates seamlessly into the earlier time when I thought there may have been some stumbling blocks, though since this is a book world rather than the real world there is some crossover of knowledge to the earlier time, such as knowledge of telephones etc, though none of them work of course.

The only thing I would have changed in this story is the main romance storyline. I didn’t feel the relationship was developed enough for me to buy into it and I didn’t find the ending really believable in modern times, though it was an enjoyable ending and full of Christmas feelgood. However, I very much enjoyed the part set in the world of ‘First Impressions’ and the way that Jane Austen was tweaking and developing the characters. This is an enjoyable read and I’d recommend it. It would be suitable for most people as there are no sex scenes or bad language in this book but you’d need to be willing to buy in to the fact that the action takes place in an alternate reality! This was no issue for me, so I’d rate it as a 4 star read.

*I was provided with an e-book of this by the author for my honest review

Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas by Stephanie Barron

This is the latest in the series by Stephanie Barron featuring our beloved authoress, Jane Austen as an amateur sleuth, stumbling across and solving murders. I am a little late to the party on this series, considering this is the first one I’ve read, and it’s number 12 in the series! There are some references to the previous books, but this book is pretty much stand-alone. It is set in the year 1814, so Jane is already a published authoress, with 'Sense & Sensibility', 'Pride & Prejudice' and 'Mansfield Park' all in print, and she is working on 'Emma'.

In this story, Jane, her mother and sister Cassandra are due to stay with Jane’s brother, James Austen, and his family, from just before Christmas right through to Twelfth Night. James took over the living as the Rector of Steventon at his father’s retirement to Bath, so Jane would be staying for Christmas at her childhood home. But instead of opening to a cosy family scene we instead join the ladies en route to Steventon; cold, uncomfortable and tired from their journey and weighed down with the sad certainty that although it is cold and snowing James is too parsimonious to hire a covered carriage for them, and they’ll have to complete the journey in an open carriage with snow driving into their faces and spoiling their bonnets.  Unfortunately, they meet a carriage coming the other way and end up colliding, in an accident which leaves the Austens’ conveyance undriveable. The occupant of the other carriage gets out to offer assistance, and though he is obviously in a hurry, being a gentleman he can’t just abandon the ladies, so he offers them the use of his carriage while he takes one of the horses and rides to his destination – The Vyne, whose occupants, the Chutes, have long been known to Jane.

When the ladies arrive at the Steventon Rectory we are treated to a wonderful scene with James’ wife, the deeply tiresome and self-absorbed Mary. I don’t know how closely Mary in this story reflects the real Mary Austen, but if this is a faithful representation then she must have been a strong contender for the model for Mary Musgrove from Persuasion (Anne’s egocentric hypochondriac sister):

“But you did not consider of me, I suppose, as you dawdled along the lanes. I am the very last creature alive, however, to complain of ill-usage at the hands of those I love.”

As you can imagine, the soaked and freezing Jane is highly sympathetic to ‘poor’ Mary:

‘But it was ever thus, in James’s household: the invited guests must immediately minister to the desperate heroine who commanded the scene, and no concerns but hers were broached. I might happily have strangled Mary many years since, so poor a patience do I possess for nerves; and therefore cannot trust myself to cross her doorstep unattended.’

Just when the Austen ladies are beginning to feel that they cannot face spending a full fortnight with the James Austens and need to make their excuses to leave some days early they are saved by a note from Eliza Chute from The Vyne, inviting them all to come and stay for a few days. The invitation is accepted, and the entire party of Austens travel to The Vyne the next day. There are others at the house party; aside from the hosts, the Chutes, and their household, there are Lady Gambier and her niece and nephew, and the gentleman who lent the Austen ladies his carriage, a Mr Raphael West. Mr West is at The Vyne to take some sketches of William Chute for a portrait. An unexpected visitor also arrives, Lieutenant Gage, who has come to confer with Chute in his government capacity.

The next day the Lieutenant leaves for London, but a short while later his horse returns, riderless. A search party sets out and finds the Lieutenant’s body, with a broken neck, presumably thrown from his horse. But Jane’s history of mystery leads her to try and verify this idea – she walks out to the scene where the body was discovered, and finds Mr West there, drawing a scene he is deducing from handprints and other marks in the snow:

‘Our eyes met soberly. “You are sketching a case for murder,” I said. “I thought it my duty,” he replied. “The evidence, you see, is melting.”

And so begins a mystery that will take the twelve days of Christmas to solve. There were some lovely touches in this book. It’s written from Jane Austen’s point of view and I felt the author did a good job of capturing her voice, and dry humour. I also really liked to see the family relationships between the Austens, such as the sweet touch of Jane and her sister delivering a new doll’s outfit to their niece on each of the twelve days, and the little humdrum details added like the former dresses used for the fabric of each doll outfit. The tone was also good, although there was the odd word here or there which I think were American English so seemed a little odd coming from Jane’s pen, but from the point of view of seeing Jane Austen as a character and following her around for twelve days I really enjoyed the book.

For me, the mystery side of the book was less successful, it was pretty slow to get going, and there were leaps and jumps in Jane’s deduction that I couldn’t always see the rationale for, unless it’s just that she understands the human mind better than the average person:

‘The novelist’s perception of motive and character is equally suited to the penetration of human deceit.’

I felt the pace of the novel was a little imbalanced too, as the beginning was slow, but then the ending seemed rushed in comparison. The ending was a little disappointing too, though I suppose it was realistic, but I felt it could have been more satisfying.

However, on the whole I really enjoyed this book. The humorous vein provided by Jane’s thoughts and comments was delightful, and I liked spending time with Jane and her family. There were lots of details weaved into the text in relation to everyday things such as the food served which helped bring the story to life. One of my favourite things about reading historical fiction is that it’s an engaging way to learn some history, and there were some interesting snippets in relation to life in the navy, and also references to things happening in the wider world, such as the situation with Bonaparte. I would certainly read other books in this series!

* My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book for my honest review.