Ardent Admirers Uniting To Preserve Jane Austen’s Legacy

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Source: Review Copy from Publisher

While enduring through the aftermath of World War II several residents of the sleepy and quiet village of Chawton cope with the tragedies and traumas of their lives by repeatedly reading the novels of the beloved authoress who lived in their very village more than 100 years before. Jane Austen’s characters and novels provide solace, insight, and debate at a time when their lives are feeling empty, lonely, or full of despair. But the world is on the brink of change. And before it is too late, these readers decide to do something more than continue to reread their well-worn Jane Austen novels. They band together and form a society that will undertake the mission of preserving Jane Austen’s legacy. Their first order of business it to purchase Jane Austen’s home – which is currently a bunch of tenant flats owned by the Knight family – and turn it into a site to honor Jane Austen. And so they establish The Jane Austen Society.

This is a fictionalized account (not strongly linked to actual past events), and all characters in this story are creations of the author. But like Jane Austen, Natalie Jenner creates a world that feels real and characters that are well-drawn, approachable, and flawed. Our main characters are:

• Adam Berwick: a quiet farmer, known for keeping to himself, living with his controlling mother
• Mimi Harrison: a famous Hollywood actress in her prime who is romanced by a big-time producer
• Dr. Benjamin Gray: a doctor in Chawton who is still coping with his wife’s accidental death
• Adeline Lewis: a schoolteacher who has the audacity to teach the works of female authors
• Francis Knight: a childless spinster who will soon be the only surviving Knight descendant
• Andrew Forrester: a solicitor who serves the Knight family and had his heart broken years ago
• Evie Stone: a maid who is smart as a whip, but had to leave school to help support her family
• Yardley Sinclair: an assistant director at Sotheby’s who has a special interest in Austen artifacts

I loved witnessing how this diverse and incongruous group came together, one by one. The one thing unifying and connecting them is Jane Austen. I found this “small band of true friends” most engaging and I found myself invested in their lives and stories. And I loved seeing them debate and discuss characters like Emma Woodhouse and Mr. Darcy – I wouldn’t have minded seeing more of those types of discussions.

One aspect I loved about these characters was spotting all the subtle echoes of Jane Austen’s characters in them and their relationships with each other.  I appreciated how they weren’t overt or forced parallels. I loved recognizing some Persuasion and Emma vibes (those storylines were my favorite), and I might conjecture that there were also some slight parallels to Mansfield Park and Pride and Prejudice with certain characters/relationships. And I thoroughly enjoyed how even though it may not seem like it would be a story about finding love – like a true Jane Austen novel – this story ended with some marriages and satisfying romantic developments.

There were some dramatic moments and surprise discoveries in this tale. I enjoyed the unpredictable twists. However, there were some revelations and developments that needed more page time and details. There were some holes and questions left unanswered. In addition, I did feel that the events of the last few chapters (which are momentous) came at a little too brisk a pace. I wouldn’t have minded several chapters more and a more leisurely culmination to these storylines.

For her splendid and praiseworthy debut, Natalie Jenner shares a most poignant and heart-touching story about healing from the past, reclaiming the future, and preserving what is important. The Jane Austen Society is a remarkably well-crafted and nuanced tale that I would dearly love to see turned into a movie! I highly recommend!

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My thanks to Laurel Ann Nattress of Austenprose for putting this lovely blog tour together and inviting me to take part!