Jane Austen discussion

I think it would be neat if we built a list based off what folks in this group read and give a rating! That way other members can take a peek and may get interested!

If you'd like to add to the list, reply below with also a rating. I'll input into the sections!

Or if you have a review on a novel that doesn't have a See Also, let me know and I'll add!

I do sincerely apologize to the group about not updating this list more quickly. I will, however, add a couple of continuation/sequel lists from main Austen sites.

Jane Austen Sequel GR Group
Bibliography of Jane Austen Sequels by Pemberly

Persuasion
1) Captain Wentworth's Diary by Amanda Grange (3 Stars)

2) None But You, by Susan Kaye
See Also: JA GR SPOILER Forum Post

3) For You Alone by Susan Kaye
See Also: JA GR SPOILER Forum Post

4) Persuading Annie by Melissa Nathan

5) Jane Austen in Scarsdale by Paula Marantz Cohen

6) The Family Fortune A Novel by Laurie Horowitz (Tanja - low stars)

7) Captain Wentworth's Persuasion: Jane Austen's Classic Retold Through His Eyes by Regina Jeffers (Li mentioned - see below)

Pride and Prejudice
1) Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith (4 Stars)
See also: JA GR Forum Post

2) Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange
See also: JA GR Forum Post

3) Seducing Mr. Darcy by Gwyn Cready (Jennifer Review - 1 Star)
See Also: Jeannette Profile

4) An Assembly Such as This by Pamela Aidan (Renee - fabulous)
See Also: JA GR Forum Post

5) These Three Remain by Pamela Aidan (Renee - fabulous)
See Also: JA GR Forum Post

6) Duty and Desire by Pamela Aidan (Renee - fabulous)
See Also: JA GR Forum Post

7) Chance Encounters by Linda Wells

8) Austenland by Shannon Hale

9) Pride, Prejudice and Jasmin Field A Novel by Melissa Nathan (Erika)

10) The Other Mr. Darcy: Did you know Mr. Darcy had an American cousin? by Monica Fairview (Patricia)

11) Lady Catherine's Necklace by Joan Aiken (Patricia)

12) Lydia Bennet's Story: A Sequel to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice by Jane Odiwe

13) Murder at Longbourn: A Mystery by Tracy Kiely

14) The Phantom of Pemberley: A Pride and Prejudice Murder Mystery by Regina Jeffers (Robin - low stars)

15) Mr. Darcy's Daughters by Elizabeth Aston (Robin)

16) Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife: Pride and Prejudice Continues by Linda Berdoll (Robin - low stars)

Sense and Sensibility
1) Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Ben H. Winters (tbf)
See also: JA GR Forum Post

2) Eliza's Daughter by Joan Aiken

Mansfield Park
1) Mansfield Park Revisited A Jane Austen Entertainment by Joan Aiken (Sarah Mod - 4 Stars, Leslie liked)
See Also: JA Group Read Discussions

2) Mansfield Park and Mummies: Monster Mayhem, Matrimony, Ancient Curses, True Love, and Other Dire Delights by Jane Austen and Vera Nazarian

3) MARIA OF BIRKTHWAITE, A JANE AUSTEN SEQUEL by Judith Brocklehurst (Patricia)

Northanger Abbey
1)The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe (Mentioned in NA Book)

2) Atonement by Ian McEwan (NA Passage)
See Also: Wiki Entry

3) North By Northanger, or The Shades of Pemberley: A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery by Carrie Bebris

Emma
1) Emma & Knightley The Sequel to Jane Austen's Emma by Rachel Billington (Sarah - really liked it)

2) Jane Fairfax The Secret Story of the Second Heroine in Jane Austen's Emma by Joan Aiken

3) James Fairfax by Jane Austen and Adam Campan (Meredith)
See Also for 3-18: Meredith's Reviews

4) The Importance of Being Emma by Juliet Archer
5) Donwell Abbey by Katharine Moore
6) Lovers' Perjuries; Or, The Clandestine Courtship Of Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill A retelling of Jane Austen's EMMA by Joan Ellen Delman
7) Mr. Knightley's Diary by Amanda Grange
8) Amanda by Debra White Smith
9) Mrs. Elton in America by Diana Birchall
10) Anna Weston - a Sequel to 'Emma' by Jane Austen by Brenda Finn
11) Emma in Love - Jane Austen's Emma Continued by Emma Tennant
12) Later Days at Highbury by Joan Austen-Leigh
13) A Visit to Highbury/Another View of Emma by Joan Austen-Leigh
14) Truth and Rumour by Jane Gillespie
15) Aunt Celia by Jane Gillespie
16) Poor Emma (a short story found in There Are No Ghosts in the Soviet Union) by Reginald Hill
17) Journal of Miss Jane Fairfax by Charlotte Grey
18) Jane Fairfax by Naomi Royde Smith

Lady Susan, The Watsons, Sanditon
1) Lady Vernon and Her Daughter: A Jane Austen Novel by Jane Rubino (Kim - This Post)

Other (Series visiting each book)
1) Stephanie Barron -- JA Mysteries Series

2) Carrie Bebris -- JA Mysteries Series


Jane Austen Herself & Misc
1) The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler (JA Group Read)
See Also: JA Group Read Discussions

2) Pemberley Remembered by Mary Lydon Simonsen (Deleted Member)
See Also: JA GR Forum Post

3) The Remnant by Tim LaHaye (features grp called The Janes)

4) Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo

5) A Walk with Jane Austen A Journey into Adventure, Love, and Faith by Lori Smith (3 Stars - Nonfiction)

6) Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

7) Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

8) What Would Jane Austen Do? by Laurie Brown

I really liked Captain Wentworth's Diary. It's delicious when read immediately after Persuasion. I think it gives a realistic side of Captain Wentworth's viewpoint. There was a bit of canon conflict with the meeting prior to the opening of Persuasion but I still liked it.

I have 14 books under the topic Austen follow-ups on my profile page. A few of them are not direct follow-ups, but use Jane Austen as a character. I am also stingy with giving out stars. If I like a book, it gets 3 stars; if I like it enough to buy it, 4 stars. Only a few get 5 stars from me.

I always enjoy reading other people's reviews! I'm still waiting to read Susan Kaye's books.

Tanja, great idea. I can eventually get all these added to the group book shelf. Thanks for the idea.

You can add Mansfield Revisisted by Joan Aiken, which we are currently discussing now in our group. I will rate it 4 stars (IMO!)

I'll be adding a couple of adaptations mentioned on various websites. If anyone has read, please reply here so I can mark your rating! I think this could encourage other members to explore these novels :)

You can add a bunch of sequels for Emma I have compiled on my blog.

Here is the link to the list:
http://janeaustenreviews.blogspot.com...

Awesome! Thanks Meredith!
It's great to see what readers in our group recommend :)

I love Melissa Nathan she wrote another book "Pride,Prejudice and Jasmin Field" that was really cute.

Tanja wrote: "I think it would be neat if we built a list based off what folks in this group read and give a rating! That way other members can take a peek and may get interested!

If you'd like to add to the ..."

Thanks Erika!

I was looking for "Emma" sequels and happened upon this list. Thanks! I would also recommend "Lady Vernon and Her Daughter: A Novel of Jane Austen's Lady Susan" by Jane Rubino. An interesting telling, it makes Lady Susan downright likable.

Thanks for the recommendation, Kim! And glad that you liked the list. It's based on input from our Jane readers instead of explicitly using the lists posted on the multiple Jane Austen websites :)

Jane Rubino is a member of the group here, too. She has a blog, too.

Yes, and thanks again Tanja for initiating this list.

I'll need to update with any new posts over the weekend. We've made additional recommendations in other posts since this list was published.

And no problem! It isn't much credit since I'm merely surfing the threads for what others already posted! ^.^

On the 6.5 hour flight from Tampa, FL back to LAX on Tuesday, I read The Watsons & Emma Watson by Jane Austen and finished by Ms. Joan Aiken. Austen's fragment, The Watsons was nearly 60 pages, and Ms. Aiken's continuation probably another 250 pages. It was pretty well done, with an interesting and reasonably engaging plot. Would I read it again? Hmm, probably not.

I added a bunch of P & P sequels to the group's bookshelves, so see that too!

Tanja wrote: "Jane Austen in Scarsdale by Paula Marantz Cohen"

I was thinking of this book when I saw this post! I quite enjoyed it =D

I haven't read this yet but:

Persuasion
1) Captain Wentworth's Persuasion: Jane Austen's Classic Retold Through His Eyes by Regina Jeffers

Christopher wrote: "On the 6.5 hour flight from Tampa, FL back to LAX on Tuesday, I read The Watsons & Emma Watson by Jane Austen and finished by Ms. Joan Aiken. Austen's fragment, The Watsons was nearly 60 pages, an..."

After recently reading the fragment The Watsons, I was desperate to see how the novel ended up. I also read Joan Aiken's continuation Emma Watson . It was enjoyable, but I would only give in 2-2.5 stars. The most satisfying part was just seeing the characters' plots fulfilled, although I don't think that much of what happened would have been what Austen would have chosen to do.

I think Joan Aiken just came up with mixed results with her Austenesque books. I couldn't get interested in Jane Fairfax in the past, but I liked Mansfield Revisited. I think there are a lot of mixed reviews. I haven't read her others, but I think I will for more comparison.

I think Jane Fairfax was more interesting to me because I was familiar with the characters and perspectives of Jane from Emma, so this book was satisfying because it played with those perspectives and the expectations the reader already had. However, all of that was gone from Emma Watson and all that was left was a mediocre story. But good fluff for summer reading all the same :)

Started to read Persuading Annie and the way the author writes turned me off. Annie (19) ends up pregnant and blurts it out to random people. The tense is weird. And instead of the perspective being from Annie, it darts back and forth between the characters so often I don't know who is thinking what. I only was a couple of pages in and closed the book (or rather Kindle). Disappointed since I adore Persuasion.

Hey Tanja,
Is that kinda of a plot spoiler or does it actually happen right up front? If it happens farther along, could you go aback and mark ***SPOILER*** at the top of your post?

Sorry you didn't like the book though -- I had it on my list too, so thanks for the heads up.

It isn't a plot spoiler. It's the first two pages, right up front.

I have been working on a list for Pride and Prejudice continuations/sequels/variations. Boy, is it going to be long! I have the first installment up on my blog, which is all novels published between 1914-2003.


http://janeaustenreviews.blogspot.com...

There may be some there that are of interest to readers looking for older works.

I can't wait to take a look at it, Meredith, and to just revisit your blog in general. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Thanks for the blogpost Meredith! I had no idea there was so much =o

I am currently reading
Suspense and Sensibility or, First Impressions Revisited: A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery (A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery) and it is hokey! I am pretty certain some supernatural things are about to happen. Also the idea of intertwining characters from P&P and S&S is really odd! Elizabeth Darcy and Elinor Dashwood (Ferrars) having a conversation is too weird for me. Not sure I'd recommend, but I am going to finish reading it.

Thank you for checking it out everyone! I hope it was helpful! I will have the next installment (2004-2007) out in the next week or so!

Old Friends and New Fancies by Sybil G. Brinton was a very interesting continuation. It's considered the very first sequel, and was written in 1913. It focuses on Miss Darcy and Kitty Bennet, in the realm of P&P, however it brings into the story many characters from the other main novels. Quite good.
Patg

Tanja wrote: "Pride and Prejudice
1) Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith (4 Stars)
See also: JA GR Forum Post

2) Mr. Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange
See al..."

I just 'checked out' a digital copy of Old Friends and New Fancies: An Imaginary Sequel to the Novels of Jane Austen for my nook. I am looking forward to reading a very unique continuation!

I'm presently reading Conviction by Skylar Hamilton Burris, another P&P sequel about Miss Darcy's dilemma choosing the right man among many suitors. This book is published by a history publisher and clains will have a more hystorical backdrop, however so far I find the author uses too many modern day terms like brother and sister in law, the word pregnancy in open society and 'how are you?' 'fine, and you'.
She also drops out of the narrative to talk to the audience, which is odd for me.
Patg

I am looking forward to reading Carrie Beris' "Emma" mystery, Intrigue at Highbury. Mystery is a major love of mine, I've written my own, so love anything Austen-ish in mystery.
Another murder mystery featuring the world of P&P is The Phantom of Pemberley by Regina Jeffers and it will be out September 1.
Patg

I've been reading a lot of these continuations lately. I'd read more, but I'm discovering that many of them include sex scenes. And that is just not something I prefer to read. I downloaded several samples for my Kindle before reading the reviews and had to delete them (now I check the reviews; I am grateful for those who include this information in their reviews of the books). So does anyone have any Austin continuation suggestions that do NOT include sex? 'Preciate it! :-)

Gosh, Jennie, I can't think of any I've read that have any explicit sex in them. None of Stephanie Barron or Carrie Beris' books have any other than one or more of the characters having had children.
The Other Mr Darcy was about an American cousin of our Mr Darcy courting Caroline Bingley.
Patg

Patricia wrote: "Gosh, Jennie, I can't think of any I've read that have any explicit sex in them. None of Stephanie Barron or Carrie Beris' books have any other than one or more of the characters having had childre..."

Thanks, Patricia. I'll have to check them out! I don't think any of the ones on the lists *here* had sex in them. The ones I saw were recommendations that came up on the side of the screen when I looked at the reviews for one of the continuations. Also, when I looked on Amazon for these titles, several of the worst ones came up as recommendations there. (Basically bodice-rippers disguised as Austin continuations.)

Obviously, I need to do some research on the ones recommended by Amazon. But I think, for the most part, the books recommended here have been okay. :-) Sorry for the confusion.

Yikes! I haven't come across any of those, but thanks for the warning Jenny!

Jenny, you remind me that I've said a lot, "Well, I'm not a prude, but... No, wait, yes I am!"
What other people read is completely their own business, but I personally sure do like to be forewarned about content!

Karlyne wrote: "Jenny, you remind me that I've said a lot, "Well, I'm not a prude, but... No, wait, yes I am!"
What other people read is completely their own business, but I personally sure do like to be forewar..."

It seems like there are a lot of us out there who do, Karlyne. :-)

I used to read bodice-rippers (and apt description if I've ever heard one) when I was in my teens and early 20s and probably would've enjoyed those books then (as my faves tended to be the Regency-period romance novels). It wasn't until I was in my late 20s that I even read Jane Austen (I know, *gasp*, *shock*!). Anyway, I can't read any of those racy romances any more. Unfortunately, several of the ones that were supposedly the most interesting Austin continuations are pretty sexually explicit. Not my cup of tea to be sure. But then, neither is anything with vampires, werewolves, the occult, etc. So I guess that cuts me off from two sub-genres of Austen continuations! ;-)

If preferring to read things that do not have sexual content or foul language makes me a prude, then I'm proud to be one. LOL!

Prudes United!

Well, I don't consider myself a prude at all, and I never read Austen until my 50s and I never liked any versions of romance until they added some 'realistic' sex, more age than early 20s, and competent, self-efficent women to them. But it didn't last long.
Anyway, I don't read just any continuation because I don't like 'rewrites' of her work. I want someone's idea of what happened next, and I've reached the point where Darcy and Elizebeth have been done to death. I want to know more about the other characters.
I adore vampires, but not in Austen, IMHO Austen does not mix well with paranormal--well, maybe ghosts, but I haven't seen anything done with that.
MIHS
Lady Catherine's Necklace by Joan Aiken
Lydia Bennet's Story by Jane Odiwe
Longboun by Nicolae Gerstner (this is as much the story of the house as the father, Mr. Bennet)
Maria of Birkthwaite by Judith Brocklehurst. (Mansfield Park's Maria Bertram Rushworth's story)
And I believe North by Northanger by Carrie Bedris gave some very interesting ideas about Darcy's mother and the wife of General Tilney.
Patg

Karlyne wrote: "Prudes United!"

I'm with you :)

ANy continuation of Sense and Sensibility?
I've never been too keen on prequels, sequels etc but I'm curious to see how others might have taken it where the story ends, this time.

Manuelsdottir wrote: "ANy continuation of Sense and Sensibility?
I've never been too keen on prequels, sequels etc but I'm curious to see how others might have taken it where the story ends, this time."

Go to the top of this thread and start looking down. Our member Tanja started listing fan fiction for each of Austen's main works, so under message #4 she has two listed for Sense & Sensibility. If you learn of any others, we can list them in this thread also.