Hi readers!
I’m excited to share a new Austenesque Top Ten list with you today! 🤗
Although, I’m suspecting this list might not be very popular, because it is for modern adaptations (instead of variations) and it is for non-Pride and Prejudice stories to boot. But even though these books may have a more niche audience, they are each so fantastic that I thought they deserved to be spotlighted. 🌟
In fact, I’m hoping that maybe 1 or 2 of these books might have been under your radar and will be one you add to your TBR pile.
Today’s list is for my favorite Non-Pride and Prejudice Modern Adaptations.
* These lists are based only on the novels I have read and reviewed on this blog and are my top ten favorites.
**These lists are subject to change.
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(in alphabetical order)
Incense and Sensibility (The Rajes #3)
Author: Sonali Dev
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“The echos and all the subtle nods to situations and themes from Jane Austen’s S&S were ingenious. The sisters who embrace and view life differently, the hero who is trapped in a relationship he doesn’t want, the struggle between burying your emotions and releasing them, and so many others.”
Interference
Author: Kay Honeyman
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations, Young Adult
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“There are so many components in this story: politics – winning and deciding between right and good, campaigning and the balance between image and reality, football and the distinction between individual glory versus team gain, photography and learning about finding beauty instead of forcing it, and not to mention ants and their incredibly coordinated survival instincts. This story truly becomes a complex and brilliant work of art.”
Jane of Austin
Author: Hillary Manton Lodge
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“Written with equal parts sense and sensibility and blending together flavors that are familiar and new, Jane of Austin is a delightful and delectable story for all readers to enjoy! This story about surviving the unexpected turns and upheavals life throws in your path is definitely one to savor!”
Persuade Me (Darcy and Friends #2)
Author: Juliet Archer
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“How I LOVE these novels by Juliet Archer! Her skillful and stellar retellings are some of my most favorite contemporary Austenesque novels! I love how she tells the story from both the hero and heroine’s perspective. I feel it adds so much to the story to know what both characters are thinking and feeling, and I vastly enjoyed my time in Rick Wentworth’s head!”
Recipe for Persuasion (The Rajes #2)
Author: Sonali Dev
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“Like a master chef creating an elevated offering from a beloved classic dish, Sonali Dev’s homage to Jane Austen’s Persuasion is full of complex components, vibrant layers, and subtle notes of Jane Austen that work together harmoniously.”
Sass and Serendipity
Author: Jennifer Ziegler
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations, Young Adult
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“I loved how Ms. Ziegler played with the Elinor/Edward and Marianne/Brandon love stories – some surprises are in store for you, my friends! Unique, delightful, and heartwarming – Sass and Serendipity is an Austenesque novel I’d highly recommend to both Young Adult readers and Jane Austen admirers!”
Seeking Mansfield (Seeking Mansfield #1)
Author: Kate Watson
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations, Young Adult
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“Kate Watson makes a spectacular debut with her discerning, delightful, and well-crafted homage to Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park. I loved that this wasn’t just a light-hearted teen romance filled with melodrama angst and insta-love. There were unique twists, complicated characters, romantic tension, depth, substance, and growth. Definitely a book I would recommend to Young Adult readers and Austen admirers alike!”
Sway
Author: Melanie Stanford
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“One of the things I loved most about Sway was that it took place in the music world! To see characters express their emotions through songs and melodies, witness them turn to music in a times of pain, and see the selections of music that they play and listen to was a very lovely experience! “
The Emma Project (The Rajes #4)
Author: Sonali Dev
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“Sonali Dev concludes her brilliant and beautiful series with a moving tale about the importance of learning how best to fighting for others and not forgetting to fight for yourself. The Rajes series is exquisitely crafted – full of vibrant and allegorical prose, character depth and relationship developments, and thought-provoking and perceptive themes. But also, let us not forget the nuanced nods and clever connections to Jane Austen and the rich display of cultural diversity and detail.”
The Importance of Being Emma (Darcy and Friends #1)
Author: Juliet Archer
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“I loved Ms. Archer’s portrayal of Emma and Mr. Knightley; her Emma was feisty, maddening, yet lovable, and her Mr. Knightley was very sexy and oh so irresistible! In her fresh and sparkling debut novel, Juliet Archer emerges as a talented and clever author that clearly loves and cherishes Jane Austen and her works!”
The Marrying Type
Author: Laura Chapman
Type of Novel: Modern Adaptations
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
My Review I Add to Cart I Add to Shelf
“A modern-day Persuasion where Elliot Lynch (Anne Elliot) is a wedding planner. How perfect! If there is any Jane Austen character that the saying “always a bridesmaid (or wedding planner), never a bride” could be applied to, it would be Anne Elliot. I just knew this premise was going to work well.”
Are you 10 for 10* with this list of favorite Non Pride and Prejudice Modern Adaptation?
* And by 10, I mean 11.
Which one(s) are you adding to your TBR pile/wishlist?
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~ Previous Lists ~
Austen-Inspired ❀ Alternate Point-Of-View ❀ Summer Reads ❀ Minor Character
Sense and Sensibility ❀ Persuasion
What Top Ten List do you want to see next?
I have some ideas – Action-Packed Austenesque, Anthologies, Emma, Bennet Sisters, Moderns Part 2 – but would love to hear what you want to see most.
I only remember reading one of those, but I would have to check my list of books read. Thanks for your work and sharing here.
Okay, Meredith–you’ve got me convinced I have to read Sonali Dev’s Rajes Project series. Thanks for sharing her work, and these other titles.
Thank you, great list!!! I’ve read the Rajes and maybe Sway. One item on the list is on my Kindle App/new Kindle. And there are others that is price comes down I’d want to check out. If I remember, I’ll have to check out the library ebooks to see if they have a copy.
I don’t read a lot of modern adaptations, but Jane of Austin and Seeking Mansfield are two of my favorites.
I’m one of the minority who loves the modern adaptations because they force the writer to focus on theme rather than just feelz, and they don’t distract me with errors of period manners and mores. Thanks for making this list!
Great list, Meredith! Thanks for the recommendations 🙂
Wonderful list!
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More for the TBR list! Thanks for your list, Meredith.
I’ve read five of them, but have two more on the TBR pile. Loved your list topic pick. 🙂
Hi Meredith, this post is so entertaining! I’m really curious about “Sway”, “Seeking Mansfield”, “The marrying type” and Sass and Serendipity”. Thank you so much for giving us this special list. Speaking of others lists I wouldn’t mind seeing one about “Fantasy ” and one about “Mystery and detective genre”.
Have fun this weekend. In Madrid the weather is so hot that it’s better stay home enjoying a good reading and a cold drink 😉
I’ve read The Importance of Being Emma & loved it 🙂