Hi readers! I am very excited to welcome Jennifer Duke, who has just released her debut novel – Back to the Bonnet, to Austenesque Reviews today. Back to the Bonnet is a Pride and Prejudice novel about Mary Bennet and time travel! I am very happy to have this chance to chat with Jennifer about writing, her new release, and Jane Austen! 👒

Hi Jennifer! Thank you so much for visiting Austenesque Reviews! Since you are new to many of us, why don’t we start off with you telling us a little bit about yourself. How long have you been writing? When did you first encounter Jane Austen? What was your first impression?

Hello Meredith, it’s a pleasure to join you here on Austenesque Reviews, thank you very much for having me!

I had been writing on and off, with the aim of one day writing a novel, since going to university seventeen years ago. I studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. As well as Bath being a lovely city, it was really the Jane Austen connection that drew me there. In my late twenties, I spent around three years writing and redrafting a YA fantasy novel but, in the end, I decided that it was not one I wanted to be published. However, I learnt a lot from the process. After the idea for Back to the Bonnet came to me, I wrote the first draft in only about three months. It flowed so easily compared with my first novel attempt, I think mainly because I felt it was based on a strong idea and I was so excited to bring it into the world.

I’m from a town called Basingstoke in Hampshire, England, which Jane would have visited for social events such as balls as well as shopping. Steventon, where she was born, is only a short drive away and Chawton, where she did most of her writing, is pretty close by too which is really special. I remember becoming particularly aware of Jane Austen when the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice was broadcast. I must have been about ten and only saw bits of it then. However, we bought the VHS when it came out and I was able to watch it properly. It was a tragic day when the video player chewed up a chunk of the tape! This adaptation and subsequent Jane Austen films and series that I watched opened up a fascinating world for me. During my teenage years, I began to absorb everything Austenesque that came my way. I was captivated by her beautifully crafted stories, her characters and observations about human nature as well as the manners, elegance and romance of the worlds she presents to us.

Oh how lovely to live so close to places Jane Austen lived and visited! I am envious! With Back to the Bonnet you bring Mary Bennet into center stage and give her something else that separates her from her sisters. Out of all the characters in Pride and Prejudice, what made you choose Mary? What was it like to spend a lot of time inside Mary’s head?

I think what drew me to Mary was the sense that she is so different from the other characters in the novel and, within the Bennet family, she is somewhat isolated. Jane and Lizzy pair off, as do Kitty and Lydia, leaving Mary – by choice or otherwise – alone for much of the time. Neither does she appear to have a strong bond with either of her parents and, in the society of Meryton, she just doesn’t quite fit in either. This makes her character very intriguing to me and makes me think that she may be rather misunderstood by those around her. Jane Austen gives us a suggestion of her character – as though with the brushstrokes of a master impressionist painter – in the few lines of dialogue and action she is given, and I think this allows her character and motivations to be reasonably open to different interpretations.

It was interesting spending so much time in Mary’s head because she is so different from me. Through writing in the first person, from her point of view, I felt a bit like an actor, thinking and saying things that I wouldn’t naturally think and say – which was a lot of fun! I particularly like how matter-of-fact, logical, rational and direct she is. Magic comes into the story in the form of a bonnet Mary inherits, which enables her to travel in time, and I enjoyed her reaction to something so shockingly incongruent with her logical, scientific worldview.

Since Mary is so contemplative and studious, I am sure it was a challenge for her to let go and believe in the inexplicable! Speaking of…let’s talk about time travel. I really enjoyed learning some of the parameters you chose for Mary’s ability to travel through time! What inspired them? Did you face any challenges with introducing the concepts of time travel and magical realism into the Regency era?

You’re right, there are definite parameters and rules, which is a blessing for Mary – she might have run mad otherwise… though at least she would never have fainted ;). When we’re talking about time-travel in Back to the Bonnet, it’s not as though Mary can pop over to visit the court of Henry VIII or learn to fly a plane! The bonnet she inherited from her great aunt Harriet has magical properties but time cannot be taken without first being given – and this is all done through the stitching in the bonnet’s embroidery. Each stitch in the embroidery represents one hour. If you unpick a stitch and put on the bonnet, you go back one hour. Before long, Mary discovers that, conversely, if you add a stitch, you go forward an hour. So the supply of stitches in the bonnet represent actual hours of time from the life of whoever stitched them. With this knowledge comes respect for every stitch and the pressure for Mary to use her powers of time travel wisely as she endeavors to orchestrate events to promote the fortunes of the Bennets.

The idea of empowering female characters with a kind of magic related to the ‘feminine’ accomplishment of sewing was probably inspired by a story I read a long while ago by Susanna Clarke from her collection of Regency fantasy short stories: The Ladies of Grace Adieu (which I highly recommend). In her story ‘The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse’, a lady has the uncanny ability to sew events into reality. I thought this was such an exciting idea, considering how relatively powerless women were in general during the Regency era (as well as through most historical periods). Being able to find power through something that was part of the ‘feminine’ sphere, rather than that of the ‘masculine’ was an exciting concept for me.

I didn’t find it particularly challenging bringing the concept of time-travel or magical realism into the Regency era. I think there is scope for magic in novels of any historical era, as long as it serves the story. However, as a time-travel story it was a challenge keeping track of dates and timelines!

I can imagine! What kind of relationships can readers expect to see in Back to the Bonnet? Mary is typically a very solitary character, do we see her confide in or connect with anyone in this novel? 

As I’ve suggested before, Mary has a degree of disconnect from family members, mainly because they don’t really understand her. However, she has a real fondness for Jane and a fierce loyalty to her family in general, despite their frequent neglect or ridicule. Outside the family circle, she develops two particular friendships which are important to her emotional wellbeing. Chamberlayne is an officer in the militia who is a background character in Pride and Prejudice but in Back to the Bonnet he is much more prominent. He and Charlotte Lucas both become friends to Mary and who accept her just as she is, allowing her to trust and open up to them.

I am excited to see Mary develop some friendships with other characters! Speaking of other characters…I believe I saw John Thorpe make an appearance in the first couple of chapters of Back to the Bonnet! Will readers encounter other recognizable characters in this story?

John Thorpe does make an appearance early on, that is very true! Two characters from Mansfield Park ‘take a turn’ about the novel as well, causing trouble for Mary to deal with! 😉

Ooh! I can’t wait to see what they do! What is next for you, Jennifer? Do you have any other projects in the works?

My work in progress is completely different to Back to the Bonnet. It is a novel set in prehistoric times, inspired by ancient cave paintings in southern France and has a fantasy/mythical tone to it. After that one, I have an idea for a novel inspired by Jane Eyre but set in the 1940s after the second world war. So each novel idea of mine so far has been very different in tone and setting… but I can only go where the inspiration takes me!

I am very intrigued about your Jane Eyre inspired novel!! How about we switch it up with some Quick-Fire Questions  🔥😉

• Which Jane Austen character do you best identify with?

Probably Catherine Morland (incidentally, I think Mr Tilney is lovely)

• Which Jane Austen character do you intensely dislike?

Willoughby (what a douche!)

• Would you rather spend your time extensively reading or practicing the piano?

Extensively reading – but I do find practicing the piano therapeutic (though I’m not as accomplished as Mary)

• In what way are you like Mary Bennet?

I’m an introvert like she is but apart from that we’re very dissimilar… For example, she’s a practical, ‘detail’ person whereas I’m usually more of a ‘head in the clouds’ kind of person …except regarding food perhaps… food keeps me grounded in the real world!

• What do you think Mary Bennet would like most about life in 2020?

The advances in science and the opportunities for women

• If time travel were possible, where (or when) would you choose to go first?

Ooh, good question! Let’s say Regency times and I would gate-crash a fancy ball. However, I would also want to visit Edwardian London. Not only do I love the beautiful fashions of that era, but I think it would be fascinating to witness the growth of the suffragette movement. I would also like to stop by Shakespeare’s original Globe Theatre to see a play – but I wouldn’t stay long in case I caught the plague or something – I guess whenever I went, I ought to wear a mask! 😉

• What is your truth universally acknowledged?

I’m going to quote from Winnie the Pooh here and say: ‘Poetry and Hums aren’t things which you get, they’re things which get you. All you can do is to go where they can find you.’ …I think there’s some useful wisdom for writers and artists to bear in mind. 😉

• If you were to meet Jane Austen, what would you like to hear her say?

I’d like to hear her say what she thinks about all the different adaptations of her novels and the casting of her characters. I’d love to have a movie-fest with her and show her how her stories still entertain, fascinate and inspire us after over two hundred years.

Your answers are fantastic, Jennifer! I am so happy to have had this chance to chat with you!! All the best with the release of Back to the Bonnet!

~ Connect with Jennifer ~

Facebook   ❧   Twitter   ❧   Website   ❧   Instagram   ❧   Youtube

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Hear Jennifer read the first chapters of Back to the Bonnet on her Youtube channel!

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~ GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY! ~

Jennifer is running a lovely giveaway this month on her website and all are welcome to enter! Just sign up for her newsletter on her website and one lucky reader who subscribes during the month of October will win a paperback copy of Back to the Bonnet!!

NOTE: GIVEAWAY CLOSED – Congrats, S. Richards! Happy reading!

What do you think readers?

Are you interested in following Mary’s adventures with this enigmatic bonnet?