Rachel Givney

I was drawn to this primarily because of its cover and the description. It delivered only on one count, the cover paints it as a romance but this is not a romance. However, it is a well written women's fiction and I enjoyed it once I shifted my expectations.

I always love a good sismance and therefore enjoyed Jane and Sophia's relationship. The book also had witty banter and I enjoyed its touching on women's issues.

In conclusion, a nice summer read. And if you are an Austen fan, you should really enjoy it.

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC… (plus d'informations)

You know I love a good Jane Austen variation, so I couldn't resist Jane in Love by Rachel Givney. When a matchmaker promises Jane Austen a spell to bring her to her one true love, Jane finds herself in Bath in 2020, well, in an alternate 2020 with crowds, movie filming, and open businesses. At one point, Jane asks if the current 6-month drought is the apocalypse, and I longed for an alternate history where that was what we'd worry about in 2020. Her period clothes and speech just make her seem like another Janeite visiting Bath, an adorable twist.

The sharp wit is what keeps me coming back to Jane Austen novels, so I was slightly disappointed by this version of Jane as a bewildered time-traveler. For too much of the novel, she's more acted-upon than active, and she spends far too long playing with electric lights or self-inking pens. Constantly noting that people spend a lot of time on their mysterious talking boxes made Jane seem like a boomer bemoaning technology.

As Jane stays in 2020, though, her disappearance from 1803 affects the timeline, and her books start popping out of existence. This may be one of my favorite wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey plots! This is bad news for Jane's legacy, obviously, but also bad news for Sofia, Jane's friend in 2020, since she's hoping to make her acting comeback in a Northanger Abbey movie. I thought Sofia's worries about being sidelined as an over-thirty actress nicely mirrored Jane's struggles as an almost-thirty spinster.

The very heavy choice of work vs love didn't really work for me. I did like Fred a lot, but Jane's decisions didn't pull me in with tragedy, because the choices were to hang around 2020, cooking dinners for her love, or to return to 1803 and become a successful author. It felt a bit too heavy to be sympathetic and intriguing.

Not a huge win for me, although I really enjoyed the scenes visiting modern Bath with time-traveling Jane.… (plus d'informations)