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Miss Austen
A wonderfully original, emotionally complex ‘reading-group� novel that delves into why Cassandra burned a treasure trove of letters written by her sister, Jane Austen—an act of destruction that has troubled academics for centuries.
It’s 1840, twenty-three years after the death of her famous sister Jane, and Cassandra Austen—alone and unwed—returns to the vicarage in the village of Kintbury.
There, in a dusty corner of the sprawling vicarage, she discovers a treasure trove of family letters—and within them secrets that she feels certain must not be revealed.
She resolves to burn the letters, even those written by Jane herself.
But why destroy so much of her sister’s legacy?
As Cassandra casts an eye back on her youth and the life of her brilliant yet complex sister, she pieces together long-buried truths from both her and Jane's pasts, and knows she must make a terrible choice: let the contents of the letters colour Jane’s memory for ever � or protect her reputation no matter the cost.
It’s 1840, twenty-three years after the death of her famous sister Jane, and Cassandra Austen—alone and unwed—returns to the vicarage in the village of Kintbury.
There, in a dusty corner of the sprawling vicarage, she discovers a treasure trove of family letters—and within them secrets that she feels certain must not be revealed.
She resolves to burn the letters, even those written by Jane herself.
But why destroy so much of her sister’s legacy?
As Cassandra casts an eye back on her youth and the life of her brilliant yet complex sister, she pieces together long-buried truths from both her and Jane's pasts, and knows she must make a terrible choice: let the contents of the letters colour Jane’s memory for ever � or protect her reputation no matter the cost.
392 pages, Hardcover
First published January 23, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,499 reviews
April 7, 2023
Miss Austen is a historical fiction giving insight into the what and why of the letters that Jane Austen's sister Cassandra destroyed, during Cassandra's last years of life. As the story starts, Cassandra drops in suddenly, to stay with Isabel, the relative of her late fiance, as Isabel is packing up her late parents belongings. Cassandra has a secret mission to go through Isabel's mother's letters so that she can remove any letters that Jane wrote that might put Jane's personality and demeanor in anything but the best light. There were other letters that pertained to Cassandra's life that she didn't want exist any longer, either.
While Cassandra is going through letters, trying not to be caught at it, by the pesky and grumpy housekeeper, she is also meddling into the future of Isabel. For Cassandra, being a single women is a blessing, almost a great calling, even though society looks down on such women. She is going to set Isabel up in a safe, tidy, living arrangement with Isabel's sisters. The trio varies from indifference to unwillingness to embark on such an arrangement but Cassandra feels like she must do her duty to help them see the error of their judgement.All of this is written very much in keeping with the way Jane Austen wrote her books and the way Jane Austen saw the plight of women of her time, single women of her time, to be more specific.
Although the story is told with some humorous undertones, overall, life does not look good for a single woman who is past finding a husband who can elevate her financial and social status. Still, we learn that Cassandra is very happy with her lot in life and if Jane was unhappy before she died, Cassandra feels it is her duty to hide that unhappiness from the public. The book makes it clear that in this world of Jane and Cassandra Austen, single women are at the mercy of others, dependent on the generosity of others, when it is convenient, and then often sent on their not so merry way, until the women can be useful again. Basically Cassandra acts as her brother's nanny, as each of his children are born and then is sent on her way, between births.
Published January 23, 2020
Thank you to Flatiron Books/Macmillan for this ARC.
While Cassandra is going through letters, trying not to be caught at it, by the pesky and grumpy housekeeper, she is also meddling into the future of Isabel. For Cassandra, being a single women is a blessing, almost a great calling, even though society looks down on such women. She is going to set Isabel up in a safe, tidy, living arrangement with Isabel's sisters. The trio varies from indifference to unwillingness to embark on such an arrangement but Cassandra feels like she must do her duty to help them see the error of their judgement.All of this is written very much in keeping with the way Jane Austen wrote her books and the way Jane Austen saw the plight of women of her time, single women of her time, to be more specific.
Although the story is told with some humorous undertones, overall, life does not look good for a single woman who is past finding a husband who can elevate her financial and social status. Still, we learn that Cassandra is very happy with her lot in life and if Jane was unhappy before she died, Cassandra feels it is her duty to hide that unhappiness from the public. The book makes it clear that in this world of Jane and Cassandra Austen, single women are at the mercy of others, dependent on the generosity of others, when it is convenient, and then often sent on their not so merry way, until the women can be useful again. Basically Cassandra acts as her brother's nanny, as each of his children are born and then is sent on her way, between births.
Published January 23, 2020
Thank you to Flatiron Books/Macmillan for this ARC.
March 1, 2020
This was a beautiful study of grief and the position of women in early 19th century. It was very powerful, and despite a sceptical start, I adored this.
November 28, 2019
Oh dear, I feel like I read a different book from all those enraptured reviewers in the blurb. I like the idea of writing Cassandra Austen's story, but actually found this a pale, and rather thinly-imagined homage to the Austen sisters. None of the characters really have much, er, character - not even Jane, and by the time I got to the end, I was still waiting for the story to start.
Hornby has mingled attention to the real biographies and letters with something imagined - yes, there's a kind focus on the lives of so-called spinsters but it lacks wit, insight and clarity - all those qualities Jane Austen had down beautifully. Lots of potential but ultimately a bland book that lacks flavour.
Thanks to Random House/Cornerstone for an ARC via NetGalley.
Hornby has mingled attention to the real biographies and letters with something imagined - yes, there's a kind focus on the lives of so-called spinsters but it lacks wit, insight and clarity - all those qualities Jane Austen had down beautifully. Lots of potential but ultimately a bland book that lacks flavour.
Thanks to Random House/Cornerstone for an ARC via NetGalley.
August 11, 2020
The minute I held the physical book ( gifted to me), in my hands, warm feelings filled my body.
Most of my reading these days are either ebooks or to audio-books.
Yet, if I go too long not touching, feeling, smelling the pages with the book I’m reading, I feel an empty void for the distinct type of reading pleasure. ....
Gil Hornsby’s hardcopy novel of “Miss Austen� is a beauty....a treasure to spend time with.
It’s highly imagined storytelling, mystery, history, and delicious concoctions were pure-moving-joy.
This must be my year of reading about characters who deserve their due:
Nick Carraway in “Nick�, by Michael Farris Smith, ..... from “The Great Gatsby....
Hamnet, from “Hamlet�, by Maggie O’Farrel,
and now
Casandra Austen, in “Miss Austen�, from the “Jane Austen�, books.
Jane Austen wrote six full length novels, two of which were published posthumously. Jane died in 1817.
We learn about Casandra’s life - Jane’s older sister - through letters and remembrances.
She was once engaged to Tom Fowle. In her later life she became executor of her sister, Jane’s literary estate
Casandra ( in her 60’s), would stay with the Fowles of Kintbury, family, [England, 1840], as long as it was necessary� she was determined not to leave until the work was done. ( that is find Jane’s letters, read them, then make some choices from what she discovers).
She read Jane Austen’s letters....letters that held secrets about both Jane and Cassandra. The question that stood was....”would Cassandra reveal details about Jane - to the world that they didn’t know....or keep the secrets to herself?�
A wonderful fictional world.... and anyone who tells you there’s nothing more to be learned about a beloved sister....ignore them.
Cassandra was a fascinating woman - in her own right. We also come to understand why Casandra said that Jane was “the sun of my life�.
Identity, loyalty, love, loss, victory...its all captured in this lovely compelling tale.
Most of my reading these days are either ebooks or to audio-books.
Yet, if I go too long not touching, feeling, smelling the pages with the book I’m reading, I feel an empty void for the distinct type of reading pleasure. ....
Gil Hornsby’s hardcopy novel of “Miss Austen� is a beauty....a treasure to spend time with.
It’s highly imagined storytelling, mystery, history, and delicious concoctions were pure-moving-joy.
This must be my year of reading about characters who deserve their due:
Nick Carraway in “Nick�, by Michael Farris Smith, ..... from “The Great Gatsby....
Hamnet, from “Hamlet�, by Maggie O’Farrel,
and now
Casandra Austen, in “Miss Austen�, from the “Jane Austen�, books.
Jane Austen wrote six full length novels, two of which were published posthumously. Jane died in 1817.
We learn about Casandra’s life - Jane’s older sister - through letters and remembrances.
She was once engaged to Tom Fowle. In her later life she became executor of her sister, Jane’s literary estate
Casandra ( in her 60’s), would stay with the Fowles of Kintbury, family, [England, 1840], as long as it was necessary� she was determined not to leave until the work was done. ( that is find Jane’s letters, read them, then make some choices from what she discovers).
She read Jane Austen’s letters....letters that held secrets about both Jane and Cassandra. The question that stood was....”would Cassandra reveal details about Jane - to the world that they didn’t know....or keep the secrets to herself?�
A wonderful fictional world.... and anyone who tells you there’s nothing more to be learned about a beloved sister....ignore them.
Cassandra was a fascinating woman - in her own right. We also come to understand why Casandra said that Jane was “the sun of my life�.
Identity, loyalty, love, loss, victory...its all captured in this lovely compelling tale.
August 25, 2020
This novel is a must for Jane Austen fans. It gives her sister Cassandra her own due, fleshing out what little we know about their lives, and Cassandra's life after Jane's death. The plot hinges on Cassie visiting the family of her long dead fiancee in the hopes of finding letters from Jane that she intended to destroy if they damaged Jane's reputation at all. Her last years were spent preserving and promoting her legacy and the future of her novels. In that she seems to have been very successful. The letters she finds from Jane are all made up, of course, but they offer tantalizing views of her sharp wit and sarcasm. I am not an Austen scholar, but there is nothing here that doesn't fit with what little I know about her. We also get a glance at the plight of unmarried women in the early nineteenth century, and their efforts to not only survive, but to find happiness in a world in which they were considered worthless as anything but caretakers for those more fortunate.
The author is not only the wife of novelist Robert Harris, but the sister of Nick Hornby, and now shines in her own right. Very well written in the style and language of an Austen novel, it was a delight for me to read.
This book was gifted to me by someone who had received it as a gift herself. In that spirit, I intend to gift it to a friend who shares my love for Jane Austen. Looking at you, Heather. Thank you, Elyse.
The author is not only the wife of novelist Robert Harris, but the sister of Nick Hornby, and now shines in her own right. Very well written in the style and language of an Austen novel, it was a delight for me to read.
This book was gifted to me by someone who had received it as a gift herself. In that spirit, I intend to gift it to a friend who shares my love for Jane Austen. Looking at you, Heather. Thank you, Elyse.
February 2, 2020
A fictionalized story about Cassandra Austen and her insight into Jane's life. This book was a highly enjoyable Saturday read. I devoured it. A lovely historical piece the writing flowed and had a wonderful story line. Highly recommended for those that l0ve Jane Austen
December 23, 2019
This historical novel looks at the life of ‘Miss Austen,� but not, perhaps, the one you expect. For the title character is Cassandra Austen, sister of Jane, and protector of her legacy. It is March, 1840, and a, now elderly Cassandra, returns to Kintbury, the previous home of the man she was once betrothed to. Now it is a poor shadow of the previous family home of the Fowle family and only inhabited by spinster daughter, Isabella, who is packing up the family belongings, and a few servants.
Although she is, quite obviously, unwelcome, Cassandra is in search of letters that Jane had written to their mutual friend, Eliza. She is determined to protect her sister and to control her image. When it is apparent that the Fowle family are suggesting a family history, the search becomes more intense. Of course, the letters are unearthed and this allows the letters to tell the story of both Cassandra and her more famous sister.
This is sure to appeal to lovers of Jane Austen, but it is also an interesting look at women’s roles in that period. For those who see Austen novels as genteel and are, as yet, unacquainted with the author’s sharp eye and sharper humour, this may be a surprise. Isabella is a woman who sees success through marriage and, as the daughter who stayed at home looking after her elderly father, it is clear that his temper was harsh and the suggestion he was often violent. A female in those times, as anyone who has read Austen’s novels is aware, had limited options and a lack of control over her own life � especially if she is seen, as Isabella will be, as an unmarried burden on her family. Overall, a thought provoking read, which gives a good, fictional account, of both Cassandra, and Jane’s, lives. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
Although she is, quite obviously, unwelcome, Cassandra is in search of letters that Jane had written to their mutual friend, Eliza. She is determined to protect her sister and to control her image. When it is apparent that the Fowle family are suggesting a family history, the search becomes more intense. Of course, the letters are unearthed and this allows the letters to tell the story of both Cassandra and her more famous sister.
This is sure to appeal to lovers of Jane Austen, but it is also an interesting look at women’s roles in that period. For those who see Austen novels as genteel and are, as yet, unacquainted with the author’s sharp eye and sharper humour, this may be a surprise. Isabella is a woman who sees success through marriage and, as the daughter who stayed at home looking after her elderly father, it is clear that his temper was harsh and the suggestion he was often violent. A female in those times, as anyone who has read Austen’s novels is aware, had limited options and a lack of control over her own life � especially if she is seen, as Isabella will be, as an unmarried burden on her family. Overall, a thought provoking read, which gives a good, fictional account, of both Cassandra, and Jane’s, lives. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
February 21, 2020
Kintbury, 1840. Cassandra Austen arrives unannounced at a vicarage where the Fowles had lived for three generations. Isabella’s father has just passed away. Now, she has two month to vacate the house for the next incumbent.
Why Cassandra arrives in such hurry? With the slow moving story, it seems as it takes quite some time to find out. Eliza, Isabella’s mother, was Cassandra’s dear friend. Both sisters, Cassandra and Jane, wrote many intimate letters to Eliza and they could still be here. As Cassandra is the executor of her sister’s estate, she feels responsible for protecting her sister’s legacy. She needs to find those letters and destroy them.
When the story alternates to 1795, revealing Jane’s letters and Cassy’s relationship with her fiancé Tom, I hoped the story would become more engaging. But I continued to struggle to be fully connected with this story.
At times, Cassandra is an interesting character. She likes order and efficiency. She does sewing to sooth her in difficult situations. And of course she likes novels. But when her thoughts become overdrawn, then I felt disconnected.
The story touches upon interesting subjects including the view of “male presence somehow made a household more desirable, superior.� Cassandra found happiness without a man. Isabella sees happiness only with a man.
Overall, the plot is fairly simple and with slowly progressing story for most of the time I felt disconnected. Those who like slow and detailed stories may appreciate this book. Therefore, don’t let this review influence your decision.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Why Cassandra arrives in such hurry? With the slow moving story, it seems as it takes quite some time to find out. Eliza, Isabella’s mother, was Cassandra’s dear friend. Both sisters, Cassandra and Jane, wrote many intimate letters to Eliza and they could still be here. As Cassandra is the executor of her sister’s estate, she feels responsible for protecting her sister’s legacy. She needs to find those letters and destroy them.
When the story alternates to 1795, revealing Jane’s letters and Cassy’s relationship with her fiancé Tom, I hoped the story would become more engaging. But I continued to struggle to be fully connected with this story.
At times, Cassandra is an interesting character. She likes order and efficiency. She does sewing to sooth her in difficult situations. And of course she likes novels. But when her thoughts become overdrawn, then I felt disconnected.
The story touches upon interesting subjects including the view of “male presence somehow made a household more desirable, superior.� Cassandra found happiness without a man. Isabella sees happiness only with a man.
Overall, the plot is fairly simple and with slowly progressing story for most of the time I felt disconnected. Those who like slow and detailed stories may appreciate this book. Therefore, don’t let this review influence your decision.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 25, 2024
As with any Austen lover, I love to read books that give me a glimpse of her life. In this novel, that glimpse is through the memories of her sister, Cassandra.
The story takes place in 1840, 23 years after the death of Jane Austen. Cassandra has gone to Kintbury in the hopes of retrieving letters that both she and Jane wrote to Eliza Fowle. Cassandra is in charge of Jane’s legacy and wants nothing untoward to be revealed.
Through these letters (fictional) and Cassandra’s memories, we learn about Cassandra’s life, her past loves and her special bond with her sister, Jane. Also highlighted throughout this story is the plight of spinster ladies, who were at the mercy of their brothers� generosity.
A very enjoyable read!
Published: 2020
The story takes place in 1840, 23 years after the death of Jane Austen. Cassandra has gone to Kintbury in the hopes of retrieving letters that both she and Jane wrote to Eliza Fowle. Cassandra is in charge of Jane’s legacy and wants nothing untoward to be revealed.
Through these letters (fictional) and Cassandra’s memories, we learn about Cassandra’s life, her past loves and her special bond with her sister, Jane. Also highlighted throughout this story is the plight of spinster ladies, who were at the mercy of their brothers� generosity.
A very enjoyable read!
Published: 2020
October 12, 2024
I spotted this novel while sifting through monthly discounts on audible.com.
Oh no, not another Jane Austen escapade!
Yes, I'm usually rather skeptical about contemporary authors borrowing famous literary characters as well as their famous creators to use and abuse in their own novels. But a quick glance at the synopsis revealed that at the center of the story was Jane Austen's sister Cassandra, and the narration started in 1840, long after the departure of Jane Austen. The audiobook's sample sounded promising, so I bought the book.
Silhouette of Cassandra Austen (1773-1845), sister of Jane Austen. Image credit: Pemberley.com and Jane Austen Centre, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
As most of my books do, "Miss Austen" would have lingered in my bottomless TBR list for years, but recently my youngest daughter suggested watching "Pride and Prejudice" together (the one with Colin Firth, of course!), and I was fortunate to witness her discovering the pleasures of Jane Austen's literary universe. So, on the wave of this Austenian enthusiasm, I picked up Gill Hornby's fittingly titled novel. And contrary to my low expectations, I enjoyed it very much -- very well done, in my opinion, with love and care and knowledge and quality (not in the mood for Oxford commas today).
Jane Austen (1775 - 1817) by Cassandra Austen (Image credit: Cassandra Austen, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)
The year is 1840. Cassandra Austen arrives with a visit at the old vicarage in Kintbury, occupied for many a year by the family of Cassandra's long-dead fiancé Tom Fowle. The vicar has recently departed into a better world, and his daughter Isabella has a few weeks to gather her personal belongings and relocate the property, including the best china service, to a new vicar.
Isabella's late mother Elizabeth was a close friend of both Austen sisters, and their intimate correspondence is the true reason behind Cassandra's visit. Cassandra is certain that some of these letters would clash with the idealized image of Jane Austen as a good-natured and even-tempered spinster with uneventful life and agreeable disposition -- the flawless image that Cassandra has been painstakingly erecting for posterity. These letters must be found and destroyed, and Cassandra is determined to perform this sisterly duty.
As Cassandra delves into the old letters, she relives the most moving and tragic episodes of her life, which is inseparably intertwined with the life of her sister Jane. The novel alternates between past and present, and Cassandra's good judgement is put to test yet again as she becomes embroiled in the last Austenian chapter of Kintbury's vicarage affairs.
Monument To Cassandra Austen And Cassandra Elizabeth Austen, South Of Church Of St Nicholas. (Image Credit: imon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)
P.S. This reminds me that besides gifting us with her exquisite novels and providing an inexhaustible source of inspiration for fan-fiction, sequels, prequels and perpetuumquels, Jane Austen also inspired me to write this little parody, published in Bartleby Snopes magazine in 2016:
Oh no, not another Jane Austen escapade!
Yes, I'm usually rather skeptical about contemporary authors borrowing famous literary characters as well as their famous creators to use and abuse in their own novels. But a quick glance at the synopsis revealed that at the center of the story was Jane Austen's sister Cassandra, and the narration started in 1840, long after the departure of Jane Austen. The audiobook's sample sounded promising, so I bought the book.
Silhouette of Cassandra Austen (1773-1845), sister of Jane Austen. Image credit: Pemberley.com and Jane Austen Centre, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
As most of my books do, "Miss Austen" would have lingered in my bottomless TBR list for years, but recently my youngest daughter suggested watching "Pride and Prejudice" together (the one with Colin Firth, of course!), and I was fortunate to witness her discovering the pleasures of Jane Austen's literary universe. So, on the wave of this Austenian enthusiasm, I picked up Gill Hornby's fittingly titled novel. And contrary to my low expectations, I enjoyed it very much -- very well done, in my opinion, with love and care and knowledge and quality (not in the mood for Oxford commas today).
Jane Austen (1775 - 1817) by Cassandra Austen (Image credit: Cassandra Austen, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)
The year is 1840. Cassandra Austen arrives with a visit at the old vicarage in Kintbury, occupied for many a year by the family of Cassandra's long-dead fiancé Tom Fowle. The vicar has recently departed into a better world, and his daughter Isabella has a few weeks to gather her personal belongings and relocate the property, including the best china service, to a new vicar.
Isabella's late mother Elizabeth was a close friend of both Austen sisters, and their intimate correspondence is the true reason behind Cassandra's visit. Cassandra is certain that some of these letters would clash with the idealized image of Jane Austen as a good-natured and even-tempered spinster with uneventful life and agreeable disposition -- the flawless image that Cassandra has been painstakingly erecting for posterity. These letters must be found and destroyed, and Cassandra is determined to perform this sisterly duty.
As Cassandra delves into the old letters, she relives the most moving and tragic episodes of her life, which is inseparably intertwined with the life of her sister Jane. The novel alternates between past and present, and Cassandra's good judgement is put to test yet again as she becomes embroiled in the last Austenian chapter of Kintbury's vicarage affairs.
Monument To Cassandra Austen And Cassandra Elizabeth Austen, South Of Church Of St Nicholas. (Image Credit: imon Burchell, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)
P.S. This reminds me that besides gifting us with her exquisite novels and providing an inexhaustible source of inspiration for fan-fiction, sequels, prequels and perpetuumquels, Jane Austen also inspired me to write this little parody, published in Bartleby Snopes magazine in 2016:
October 8, 2020
A low-key, satisfying novel about Jane Austen's sister Cassandra. The cover, an exquisite lilac, illustrates this book perfectly.
November 2, 2019
For my full review:
When I spotted this book's title, I assumed that it was another novelisation of Jane Austen's life. Like most people, when I hear the words 'Miss Austen', my immediate thought is of the author ofPride and Prejudice. It is so easy to forget that while Jane Austen was alive, she wasnotMiss Austen. That title belonged to her elder sister Cassandra. So many pages and pages have been wasted on whether or not Jane Austen ever knew love, who inspired her celebrated characters. People ignore the fact that by far the most significant person in Jane Austen's life was her beloved sister. Cassandra was Jane's confidante, confessor, first critic and companion in all life's trials. After death, Cassandra was also her censor, destroying mountains of Jane's correspondence and silently shaping the narrative which we have before us. We forget Cassandra - she barely warrants a mention next to the dashing Henry or the rich Edward - but it is her shadow whichguides so much of what we think we know about the Austen family. In this deeply wistful novel, Gill Hornby explores not only what Cassandra might have been trying to hide but also what it meant to be one of those women who fall within the cracks of history.
The book opens in 1840 with the elderly Miss Austen arriving at Kintbury, home of the Fowle family, the relatives of her long-dead fiancé. The Reverend Fowle has recently passed away so his youngest unmarried daughter Isabella now has the unenviable task of packing up all the family's possessions to make way for the new incumbent. It is not a convenient time for house guests but Miss Austen is a woman on a mission. She needs to track down all of the letters she and her sister wrote to the late Eliza Fowle over the years and destroy them. Doing her best to side-step the hostile housemaid and indifferent hostess, Cassandra scours the house discreetly as long-faded memories bubble up to the surface once again.
Scholars and historians have long lamented that Cassandra Austen was such an effective gate-keeper to her sister's memory. There is so much that we do not know because Cassandra politely shut the door in our faces. So many of Austen's opinions are hinted at in her work but we cannot know for certain. I find myself imagining a horde of rabid Austen fans snapping at Cassandra's heels while she ignores them entirely and steps out of their way. Somehow though, in the act of effacing her sister's memory, Cassandra also seemed to erase herself. InMiss Austen, Hornby suggests that this was a conscious choice.
As the narrative switches back and forth between the past and Cassandra's present as an elderly woman, Hornby examines the disconnect between the past and the narrative by which we choose to live. Cassandra remembers Tom Fowle's proposal and her own enthusiastic acceptance. She remembers the excitement of her first visit to Kintbury as the prospective bride of one of the sons of the household, a visit which contrasts sharply with her own unwelcome arrival as an old spinster to a dilapidated establishment. This short little tragedy is all that the world knows of Cassandra Austen. She was the girl who loved Tom Fowle. He died before he could marry her and she lived the rest of her life consumed by quiet grief for his memory. There is a dignity to this, a respectability to being the loyal not-quite-widow of a good man. Hornby's suggestion that this is a version of the narrative that Cassandra crafted herself is very thought-provoking. Cassandra had absolute faith in her sister's creative genius. She believed in Jane's writing and its long-term success. Is it so outlandish to believe that in censoring her sister's letters, Cassandra was protecting her own reputation too?
Miss Austenalso explores what it meant to be an unmarried woman in Regency Britain. Cassandra feels a sympathy for Isabella Fowle who as another unwed daughter has very little agency around her own fate now that her last parent has died. As the two women sit down to readPersuasiontogether, Isabella expresses a hope that there will be a happy ending in store for Anne Eliot. Cassandra asks her what form that might take and Isabella responds that of course it would be marriage - what other sort of happy ending could there be? Cassandra wants to protest that she has found happiness in her own unmarried state but knows that the younger woman would never believe her.
Hornby is able to take a more unflinching view of the dividing line between the wives and the spinsters than Austen herself was ever really able to do. Elizabeth Austen has long been blamed for her husband Edward's lack of generosity towards his mother and sisters, an added cruelty since she does appear to have leaned quite heavily on Cassandra for support during her many confinements. But whileMiss Austendoes imagine her insensitivities rather vividly, it is as nothing to the way in which it conjures up Mary Austen, sister-in-law from Hell. That lady bursts her way into the narrative due to having been sister to Eliza Fowle, mother to Isabella. Not only does she shatter the fragile peace which has grown between the remaining women of Kintbury but she also represents all that Cassandra fears - another version of the family narrative.
Mary Austen's status as villain of the family has been unassailable for years. She captures so many character aspects that we love to hate. She was of the Lloyd family, sister to long-term stalwart Martha Lloyd.Miss Austensuggests that the Austen women were fond of her and supported her as a prospective second wife to James Austen. That she should then turn on them once she had achieved the status of wife implies a back-stabbing personality for which few could feel sympathy. It also suggests that achieving wifedom could bring out the very worst elements of someone's personality. Mary was the cruel stepmother, the inconstant friend, the shrew and all-round viper in the nest. As Austen fans we can rejoice in the delicious irony that it is the sister-in-law who Mary treated with such contempt who has managed to posthumously trash her reputation. I loved Hornby's implication that Mary was the inspiration forPride and Prejudice'sMary Bennet - it seems entirely plausible.
I found myself thinking about all that Mary Austen represents. Her character type is so recognisable. She is the woman who has little to offer in herself and so takes undue delight in her relationship status.Bridget Jonesdecried the Smug Marrieds - these are Marys too. In my own single days, I met several Marys. They were the friends who would ask me what was going on in my life and when I explained that I had visited this place or gone to that event, they would give me a patronising smile and say things like 'Still single then?' or the more 'encouraging' - 'Well, that's how you meet people, by going out and doing interesting things'. All the time, that strange implication that single women must go about their business with the one-track obsession 'I Must Find A Man'. As someone now in a long-term relationship, I try to make sure that I never become a Mary - she really is incredibly offensive.
Cassandra Austen's portrait of Mary Queen of Scots - often thought to be a portrait of Jane Austen
Yet in other ways, I wonder if Mary Austen gets an unfair press. Well, I don't wonder it. I think that part is obvious. She was even portrayed as a serial poisoner inThe Mysterious Death of Miss Austen, bumping off a significant percentage of the Austen family to clear the way for her affair with Henry Austen. Biographies often put the blame on Mary for encouraging her husband to ask his father to retire so that they could take over the living, putting Jane out of her childhood home and dooming her to an itinerant existence in Bath for over a decade. No fictional portrayal of Mary ever forgets to put in plentiful smallpox scars. The woman gets away withnothing.
But then I remember the friend I had at university who sobbed uncontrollably that being single was a state of limbo. Ten years later, her viewpoint does not appear to have shifted. I can think of several extremely dear friends who have stuck it out with partners who came nothing near them in terms of intelligence or wit because the alternative was unappealing. If a capable, talented and charismatic twenty-first century woman can be afraid to go it alone, what must it have been like for Mary Austen, who was none of those things and stuck in the nineteenth century to boot? What if Mary was just insecure, knowing herself to be less intelligent than her sisters-in-law and thus forever on the defensive? One of the many beautiful things about Hornby's novel is that she both holds Mary to account but also allows space for a more nuanced reading of her character.
Miss Austenis a miniature masterpiece, rich in detail and emotional complexity. Cassandra reflects on her life, on her younger self who accepted Tom Fowle's proposal with such high hopes and looks down at the woman she is now, full of aches but still as determined as ever to fulfil her duty. In a strange way, its title tells a lie. It actually is all about Jane Austen despite being set decades after her death. She is so clearly alive in her sister's love for her. Hornby's Jane Austen is quick-witted and sharp-tongued but also prone to low moods, particularly around her own uncertain fate. She was in need of protection. As Cassandra carefully edits the trace that the two of them will leave behind, she keeps tight hold of Jane. Ever the adoring elder sister, she keeps Jane safe from harm even after death. She watches in amusement as Jane's character defects are smoothed away by her nieces and nephews, noting the 'power upon reputation brought by an untimely death and a modicum of fame and success'. Not a word of protest will ever cross Cassandra's lips, even if it results in herself being dismissed as dull.
Miss Austenis a book of huge warmth and real emotional depth. I loved that this was a novel that could celebrate Jane Austen without ever suggesting that she was incomplete due to being unmarried. Through Cassandra, Hornby even suggests that Austen was not particularly cut out for matrimony and all that went with it.Miss Austencelebrates the cathartic power of being in the company of good women. It is women who will clear up the house at Kintbury so that the new vicar can take up his post. It is another of the Fowle women who runs a creche for the children of the local villagers. It is women who care for Cassandra when she falls ill. The world may be run by men but it is carried by women.
Of all myAusten in Augustreads, there was no other that made my nose tingle with tears like this one.There have been so many representations of Cassandra Austen as a life-long mourner with her face turned prematurely to the wall, someone who just gave up on life. Miss Austen reveals her strength, a woman who followed her conscience and followed her duty even as it rendered her invisible. She is only one of untold numbers of women who did their best for their families for little reward. Yet while most of those knew that they could hope for no more than to be remembered with kindness by the next generation and then to pass into oblivion, things were different for Cassandra. Hornby's novel made me see that Miss Austen had her eye onus, the future readers. She knew we would come and when we did, she was prepared. It feels only right that her valour be celebrated at last.
When I spotted this book's title, I assumed that it was another novelisation of Jane Austen's life. Like most people, when I hear the words 'Miss Austen', my immediate thought is of the author ofPride and Prejudice. It is so easy to forget that while Jane Austen was alive, she wasnotMiss Austen. That title belonged to her elder sister Cassandra. So many pages and pages have been wasted on whether or not Jane Austen ever knew love, who inspired her celebrated characters. People ignore the fact that by far the most significant person in Jane Austen's life was her beloved sister. Cassandra was Jane's confidante, confessor, first critic and companion in all life's trials. After death, Cassandra was also her censor, destroying mountains of Jane's correspondence and silently shaping the narrative which we have before us. We forget Cassandra - she barely warrants a mention next to the dashing Henry or the rich Edward - but it is her shadow whichguides so much of what we think we know about the Austen family. In this deeply wistful novel, Gill Hornby explores not only what Cassandra might have been trying to hide but also what it meant to be one of those women who fall within the cracks of history.
The book opens in 1840 with the elderly Miss Austen arriving at Kintbury, home of the Fowle family, the relatives of her long-dead fiancé. The Reverend Fowle has recently passed away so his youngest unmarried daughter Isabella now has the unenviable task of packing up all the family's possessions to make way for the new incumbent. It is not a convenient time for house guests but Miss Austen is a woman on a mission. She needs to track down all of the letters she and her sister wrote to the late Eliza Fowle over the years and destroy them. Doing her best to side-step the hostile housemaid and indifferent hostess, Cassandra scours the house discreetly as long-faded memories bubble up to the surface once again.
Scholars and historians have long lamented that Cassandra Austen was such an effective gate-keeper to her sister's memory. There is so much that we do not know because Cassandra politely shut the door in our faces. So many of Austen's opinions are hinted at in her work but we cannot know for certain. I find myself imagining a horde of rabid Austen fans snapping at Cassandra's heels while she ignores them entirely and steps out of their way. Somehow though, in the act of effacing her sister's memory, Cassandra also seemed to erase herself. InMiss Austen, Hornby suggests that this was a conscious choice.
As the narrative switches back and forth between the past and Cassandra's present as an elderly woman, Hornby examines the disconnect between the past and the narrative by which we choose to live. Cassandra remembers Tom Fowle's proposal and her own enthusiastic acceptance. She remembers the excitement of her first visit to Kintbury as the prospective bride of one of the sons of the household, a visit which contrasts sharply with her own unwelcome arrival as an old spinster to a dilapidated establishment. This short little tragedy is all that the world knows of Cassandra Austen. She was the girl who loved Tom Fowle. He died before he could marry her and she lived the rest of her life consumed by quiet grief for his memory. There is a dignity to this, a respectability to being the loyal not-quite-widow of a good man. Hornby's suggestion that this is a version of the narrative that Cassandra crafted herself is very thought-provoking. Cassandra had absolute faith in her sister's creative genius. She believed in Jane's writing and its long-term success. Is it so outlandish to believe that in censoring her sister's letters, Cassandra was protecting her own reputation too?
Miss Austenalso explores what it meant to be an unmarried woman in Regency Britain. Cassandra feels a sympathy for Isabella Fowle who as another unwed daughter has very little agency around her own fate now that her last parent has died. As the two women sit down to readPersuasiontogether, Isabella expresses a hope that there will be a happy ending in store for Anne Eliot. Cassandra asks her what form that might take and Isabella responds that of course it would be marriage - what other sort of happy ending could there be? Cassandra wants to protest that she has found happiness in her own unmarried state but knows that the younger woman would never believe her.
Hornby is able to take a more unflinching view of the dividing line between the wives and the spinsters than Austen herself was ever really able to do. Elizabeth Austen has long been blamed for her husband Edward's lack of generosity towards his mother and sisters, an added cruelty since she does appear to have leaned quite heavily on Cassandra for support during her many confinements. But whileMiss Austendoes imagine her insensitivities rather vividly, it is as nothing to the way in which it conjures up Mary Austen, sister-in-law from Hell. That lady bursts her way into the narrative due to having been sister to Eliza Fowle, mother to Isabella. Not only does she shatter the fragile peace which has grown between the remaining women of Kintbury but she also represents all that Cassandra fears - another version of the family narrative.
Mary Austen's status as villain of the family has been unassailable for years. She captures so many character aspects that we love to hate. She was of the Lloyd family, sister to long-term stalwart Martha Lloyd.Miss Austensuggests that the Austen women were fond of her and supported her as a prospective second wife to James Austen. That she should then turn on them once she had achieved the status of wife implies a back-stabbing personality for which few could feel sympathy. It also suggests that achieving wifedom could bring out the very worst elements of someone's personality. Mary was the cruel stepmother, the inconstant friend, the shrew and all-round viper in the nest. As Austen fans we can rejoice in the delicious irony that it is the sister-in-law who Mary treated with such contempt who has managed to posthumously trash her reputation. I loved Hornby's implication that Mary was the inspiration forPride and Prejudice'sMary Bennet - it seems entirely plausible.
I found myself thinking about all that Mary Austen represents. Her character type is so recognisable. She is the woman who has little to offer in herself and so takes undue delight in her relationship status.Bridget Jonesdecried the Smug Marrieds - these are Marys too. In my own single days, I met several Marys. They were the friends who would ask me what was going on in my life and when I explained that I had visited this place or gone to that event, they would give me a patronising smile and say things like 'Still single then?' or the more 'encouraging' - 'Well, that's how you meet people, by going out and doing interesting things'. All the time, that strange implication that single women must go about their business with the one-track obsession 'I Must Find A Man'. As someone now in a long-term relationship, I try to make sure that I never become a Mary - she really is incredibly offensive.
Cassandra Austen's portrait of Mary Queen of Scots - often thought to be a portrait of Jane Austen
Yet in other ways, I wonder if Mary Austen gets an unfair press. Well, I don't wonder it. I think that part is obvious. She was even portrayed as a serial poisoner inThe Mysterious Death of Miss Austen, bumping off a significant percentage of the Austen family to clear the way for her affair with Henry Austen. Biographies often put the blame on Mary for encouraging her husband to ask his father to retire so that they could take over the living, putting Jane out of her childhood home and dooming her to an itinerant existence in Bath for over a decade. No fictional portrayal of Mary ever forgets to put in plentiful smallpox scars. The woman gets away withnothing.
But then I remember the friend I had at university who sobbed uncontrollably that being single was a state of limbo. Ten years later, her viewpoint does not appear to have shifted. I can think of several extremely dear friends who have stuck it out with partners who came nothing near them in terms of intelligence or wit because the alternative was unappealing. If a capable, talented and charismatic twenty-first century woman can be afraid to go it alone, what must it have been like for Mary Austen, who was none of those things and stuck in the nineteenth century to boot? What if Mary was just insecure, knowing herself to be less intelligent than her sisters-in-law and thus forever on the defensive? One of the many beautiful things about Hornby's novel is that she both holds Mary to account but also allows space for a more nuanced reading of her character.
Miss Austenis a miniature masterpiece, rich in detail and emotional complexity. Cassandra reflects on her life, on her younger self who accepted Tom Fowle's proposal with such high hopes and looks down at the woman she is now, full of aches but still as determined as ever to fulfil her duty. In a strange way, its title tells a lie. It actually is all about Jane Austen despite being set decades after her death. She is so clearly alive in her sister's love for her. Hornby's Jane Austen is quick-witted and sharp-tongued but also prone to low moods, particularly around her own uncertain fate. She was in need of protection. As Cassandra carefully edits the trace that the two of them will leave behind, she keeps tight hold of Jane. Ever the adoring elder sister, she keeps Jane safe from harm even after death. She watches in amusement as Jane's character defects are smoothed away by her nieces and nephews, noting the 'power upon reputation brought by an untimely death and a modicum of fame and success'. Not a word of protest will ever cross Cassandra's lips, even if it results in herself being dismissed as dull.
Miss Austenis a book of huge warmth and real emotional depth. I loved that this was a novel that could celebrate Jane Austen without ever suggesting that she was incomplete due to being unmarried. Through Cassandra, Hornby even suggests that Austen was not particularly cut out for matrimony and all that went with it.Miss Austencelebrates the cathartic power of being in the company of good women. It is women who will clear up the house at Kintbury so that the new vicar can take up his post. It is another of the Fowle women who runs a creche for the children of the local villagers. It is women who care for Cassandra when she falls ill. The world may be run by men but it is carried by women.
Of all myAusten in Augustreads, there was no other that made my nose tingle with tears like this one.There have been so many representations of Cassandra Austen as a life-long mourner with her face turned prematurely to the wall, someone who just gave up on life. Miss Austen reveals her strength, a woman who followed her conscience and followed her duty even as it rendered her invisible. She is only one of untold numbers of women who did their best for their families for little reward. Yet while most of those knew that they could hope for no more than to be remembered with kindness by the next generation and then to pass into oblivion, things were different for Cassandra. Hornby's novel made me see that Miss Austen had her eye onus, the future readers. She knew we would come and when we did, she was prepared. It feels only right that her valour be celebrated at last.
January 22, 2020
Cassandra, the central character in this novel, is Jane Austen's beloved sister. Cassandra, now that she's getting older is concerned that the letters that were shared among the family will fall into the wrong hands and destroy Jane's reputation. We learn of the loyalty these sisters had for each other and the loss of Cassandra's fiancé. It's a fictitious look into what led Cassandra to burn two thirds of her sisters letters and tries to peruse her sisters reputation.
Cassandra thought she was doing the right thing when she burnt her sister's letters. Cassandra was not just Jane's sister but her friend and confidant as well. This is a witty and charming story that's written and at times in the same style as Jane Austin. I found this to be an engaging read. I was drawn in from the beginning. Fans of Jane Austen will love this book.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Random House UK, Cornerstone and the author Gill Hornby for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Cassandra thought she was doing the right thing when she burnt her sister's letters. Cassandra was not just Jane's sister but her friend and confidant as well. This is a witty and charming story that's written and at times in the same style as Jane Austin. I found this to be an engaging read. I was drawn in from the beginning. Fans of Jane Austen will love this book.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Random House UK, Cornerstone and the author Gill Hornby for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
May 16, 2023
A sweet novel that I really enjoyed, despite the mysterious contents of Jane's letters being rather underwhelming.
The story follows Cassy, sister to Jane Austen - yes, THAT Jane Austen. It's a couple decades after Jane's death, and Cassy is on the hunt for letters written by her sister. We get a glimpse at some of these, which takes us back into the past and allows us a look at the lives of the sisters.
Firstly, I wasn't actually aware of 'the great mystery' of Cassandra burning a bunch of Jane's letters. But this novel talks about Cassy's fear of the letters causing a scandal and besmirching Jane's name, so I was very keen to hear more.
Present day Cassy is a bit of an old fuddy-duddy, to be honest. She's still obsessed with honour and good name and doesn't like dogs (!!!) so I actually didn't like her all that much. But I really enjoyed seeing her soften as the novel progressed, and I really felt for her as I learned about her past. Was also severely frustrated.
Jane is such a delightful character, and so very much like Lizzy Bennet (of fame). She fights convention and resists all things men and marriage to the point that I suspect she was perhaps in the closet at a time when being out of the closet no doubt would have caused all kinds of drama. But that's pure speculation on my part. On the whole, I just loved her rebellious spirit and I'm even more curious about the REAL contents of the letters.
I suppose there wasn't a huge driver for the action, which is where it lost stars for me. So much is built up about how scandalous the letters are but there's really not all that much in them to get excited about. I enjoyed the way the letters led the way into scenes from the past but the past wasn't all that dramatic.
On the whole, though, it was still a really enjoyable read. Nothing too demanding, and the setting feels very realistic and well done for the era. I loved sinking back into this 'English Countryside' vibe that Austen's novels have. I thought it was done really well.
Plus, bonus marks for the gorgeous cover art!
A lovely, low-key story that will warm the heart of anyone who has enjoyed Jane Austen's work. Don't look to solve any grand mystery, but instead soak up the atmosphere and enjoy your time with it.
The story follows Cassy, sister to Jane Austen - yes, THAT Jane Austen. It's a couple decades after Jane's death, and Cassy is on the hunt for letters written by her sister. We get a glimpse at some of these, which takes us back into the past and allows us a look at the lives of the sisters.
Firstly, I wasn't actually aware of 'the great mystery' of Cassandra burning a bunch of Jane's letters. But this novel talks about Cassy's fear of the letters causing a scandal and besmirching Jane's name, so I was very keen to hear more.
Present day Cassy is a bit of an old fuddy-duddy, to be honest. She's still obsessed with honour and good name and doesn't like dogs (!!!) so I actually didn't like her all that much. But I really enjoyed seeing her soften as the novel progressed, and I really felt for her as I learned about her past. Was also severely frustrated.
Jane is such a delightful character, and so very much like Lizzy Bennet (of fame). She fights convention and resists all things men and marriage to the point that I suspect she was perhaps in the closet at a time when being out of the closet no doubt would have caused all kinds of drama. But that's pure speculation on my part. On the whole, I just loved her rebellious spirit and I'm even more curious about the REAL contents of the letters.
I suppose there wasn't a huge driver for the action, which is where it lost stars for me. So much is built up about how scandalous the letters are but there's really not all that much in them to get excited about. I enjoyed the way the letters led the way into scenes from the past but the past wasn't all that dramatic.
On the whole, though, it was still a really enjoyable read. Nothing too demanding, and the setting feels very realistic and well done for the era. I loved sinking back into this 'English Countryside' vibe that Austen's novels have. I thought it was done really well.
Plus, bonus marks for the gorgeous cover art!
A lovely, low-key story that will warm the heart of anyone who has enjoyed Jane Austen's work. Don't look to solve any grand mystery, but instead soak up the atmosphere and enjoy your time with it.
February 9, 2022
So many people have recommended this book to me that I have been eager to give it a go. For me, it was a nice enough book but not worthy of the raves it has earned, especially from Austen fans.
Gill Hornby focuses not on the famous Austen, Miss Jane, but on her elder sister, Cassandra, centering the story on Cassandra’s quest late in life to track down and destroy letters from Jane that would, if shared widely or published, alter people’s perception of the author. Until quite recently this was a common phenomenon, family and friends of a famous person wanting to destroy records of their life that might present a less-than-heroic picture. The impulse was partly intended to protect the loved one’s reputation and partly to keep the focus on that person’s achievements—in the case of Jane Austen, on her novels. It is only within my lifetime that attitudes have changed and now many people lean toward full disclosure.
The story opens late in Cassandra’s life, the year 1840 (she died in 1845), when she turns up with little warning at Kintbury rectory, the childhood home of her long-ago and long-deceased betrothed, Tom Fowle. The incumbent of the rectory (Tom’s brother) has died and Tom’s niece is preparing to move out; Cassandra is after letters written by Jane to Tom’s sister-in-law Eliza, also now deceased. Both she and Jane were close to Eliza, and their letters contain revelations she wants to bury.
Cassandra is entering a minefield of tangled family relations and conflict histories, so she feels she has to pursue her aims covertly—though it wasn’t entirely clear to me why she couldn’t be open with her hostess, who had little personal stake in the outcome. The reasons for the complexity of the situation are somewhat illuminated in a series of flashbacks that run from Cassandra’s betrothal in 1795 to Jane’s death in 1817 and serve to tell Cassandra’s story.
As to the historical accuracy and use of period language in the book, two indices by which many including myself judge Austen-based modern fiction, I would give this book a “fair.� The author hews closely to known milestones in Jane and Cassandra’s lives and liberally uses phrases from Austen’s books and letters, but the sensibilities of the narration felt too modern for me. That’s a difficult thing to lay my finger on, but I had a recurrent sense of “it couldn’t have happened that way� and “a person in that position wouldn’t have spoken those words.� And anachronistic vocabulary was regularly used.
Cassandra’s essence eluded me to a degree; her choices seemed inconsistent, the crises in her life more narrated than felt, her relationship with her sister just a skosh too pure. But it was the description of Jane Austen I found most improbable: it builds an entire theory of her life on a basis I find shaky, the widely held (but not universal) view that her supposedly “fallow� period, 1801�1809, was a time of misery and emotional paralysis for her. The Jane Austen of this book seemed less clever, less profound, less satirical than the Jane Austen I experience in her writings, both those for publication and those for personal entertainment. I would contrast the portrayals in fiction by Stephanie Barron and Kathleen Flynn, which feel more authentic to me.
Those concerns nagged at me throughout. I think I would have enjoyed this story more had all the names been changed. Hornby could have told this story more effectively had it been entirely fictional—but of course then it would have been much harder to sell and market. Let’s just say the book has many merits, but her Jane is not my Jane.
Gill Hornby focuses not on the famous Austen, Miss Jane, but on her elder sister, Cassandra, centering the story on Cassandra’s quest late in life to track down and destroy letters from Jane that would, if shared widely or published, alter people’s perception of the author. Until quite recently this was a common phenomenon, family and friends of a famous person wanting to destroy records of their life that might present a less-than-heroic picture. The impulse was partly intended to protect the loved one’s reputation and partly to keep the focus on that person’s achievements—in the case of Jane Austen, on her novels. It is only within my lifetime that attitudes have changed and now many people lean toward full disclosure.
The story opens late in Cassandra’s life, the year 1840 (she died in 1845), when she turns up with little warning at Kintbury rectory, the childhood home of her long-ago and long-deceased betrothed, Tom Fowle. The incumbent of the rectory (Tom’s brother) has died and Tom’s niece is preparing to move out; Cassandra is after letters written by Jane to Tom’s sister-in-law Eliza, also now deceased. Both she and Jane were close to Eliza, and their letters contain revelations she wants to bury.
Cassandra is entering a minefield of tangled family relations and conflict histories, so she feels she has to pursue her aims covertly—though it wasn’t entirely clear to me why she couldn’t be open with her hostess, who had little personal stake in the outcome. The reasons for the complexity of the situation are somewhat illuminated in a series of flashbacks that run from Cassandra’s betrothal in 1795 to Jane’s death in 1817 and serve to tell Cassandra’s story.
As to the historical accuracy and use of period language in the book, two indices by which many including myself judge Austen-based modern fiction, I would give this book a “fair.� The author hews closely to known milestones in Jane and Cassandra’s lives and liberally uses phrases from Austen’s books and letters, but the sensibilities of the narration felt too modern for me. That’s a difficult thing to lay my finger on, but I had a recurrent sense of “it couldn’t have happened that way� and “a person in that position wouldn’t have spoken those words.� And anachronistic vocabulary was regularly used.
Cassandra’s essence eluded me to a degree; her choices seemed inconsistent, the crises in her life more narrated than felt, her relationship with her sister just a skosh too pure. But it was the description of Jane Austen I found most improbable: it builds an entire theory of her life on a basis I find shaky, the widely held (but not universal) view that her supposedly “fallow� period, 1801�1809, was a time of misery and emotional paralysis for her. The Jane Austen of this book seemed less clever, less profound, less satirical than the Jane Austen I experience in her writings, both those for publication and those for personal entertainment. I would contrast the portrayals in fiction by Stephanie Barron and Kathleen Flynn, which feel more authentic to me.
Those concerns nagged at me throughout. I think I would have enjoyed this story more had all the names been changed. Hornby could have told this story more effectively had it been entirely fictional—but of course then it would have been much harder to sell and market. Let’s just say the book has many merits, but her Jane is not my Jane.
June 6, 2021
This was a delightful novel about the life of Cassandra, Jane Austen's beloved sister. I had seen this on a list of the best audiobooks of 2020, and it was certainly one of the most enjoyable audiobooks I've listened to in a while.
The audio version was performed by Juliet Stevenson, who I have previously raved about and who is one of my veryveryvery favorite audiobook narrators. So I would have listened to this book even if it didn't have the charm of being in Jane Austen's world, so enamored am I of Juliet's work.
The story alternates between England in 1840, with Cassandra as an older woman trying desperately to protect Jane's legacy, and with flashbacks to the sisters when they were younger. I've read a few biographies of Jane Austen, so I am somewhat familiar with the outline of her life, and I enjoyed Gill Hornby's fictional creation of letters between the sisters, and her imagined conversations and scenes with Jane and Cassandra.
I was caught up in the story and was sad when the book ended and I had to take my leave of these clever characters. Highly recommended for fans of Jane Austen or readers who enjoy historical fiction.
The audio version was performed by Juliet Stevenson, who I have previously raved about and who is one of my veryveryvery favorite audiobook narrators. So I would have listened to this book even if it didn't have the charm of being in Jane Austen's world, so enamored am I of Juliet's work.
The story alternates between England in 1840, with Cassandra as an older woman trying desperately to protect Jane's legacy, and with flashbacks to the sisters when they were younger. I've read a few biographies of Jane Austen, so I am somewhat familiar with the outline of her life, and I enjoyed Gill Hornby's fictional creation of letters between the sisters, and her imagined conversations and scenes with Jane and Cassandra.
I was caught up in the story and was sad when the book ended and I had to take my leave of these clever characters. Highly recommended for fans of Jane Austen or readers who enjoy historical fiction.
April 19, 2020
I am in the mood for almost anything related to Jane Austen at the moment. Well, truth be told, I’m always in the mood for Austen as I’m a little fangirl.
This book, back when it was published, caught my eye due to the cover. The original, you see, is all hand-stitched ()! And I was very pleased to discover that that design became the cover of the hardcover editions (no, they aren't actually stitched but at least the stitching is replicated in print on the dust jackets).
They even replicated the back of the stitching on the inside of the dust jacket!
Moreover, as is often the case, Waterstones has quite the pretty exclusive edition.
The concept of the story is a mix of real-life events and the author's additions to flesh out the events and give motives.
For those, who don't know, Jane Austen - one of THE classic authors - died very young. She had had extensive correspondence with her sister Cassandra and many other people, most of them relations. Cassandra Austen became her sister's assistant and, after Jane's death, caretaker of her sister's legacy. One day, she burnt her sister's letters (not all, some few have survived) and nobody knows why.
Gill Hornby seems to have done quite some research both on Jane and Cassandra Austen as well as on the letters that did survive and thus has spun a thread that might explain what's happened.
From the Austen family's history and their relations, the heartbreak of many a family member, to the ending we all know, the English countryside is being brought to life here. The cast includes some that must have been the inspiration for many of Jane's literary characters.
Mingling real-life events with fiction is often a tricky business. Just because we think this or that might have been a person's reason for certain actions, doesn't make it so and too many books pass off the fictional part as gospel, which I never like. I did not have this problem here. It rather felt like an author's attempt at writing an Austen-inspired novel and I was never tempted to regard it as a biography.
But as an Austen-inspired novel, it didn't succeed. I had quite a rocky start with the story but I did get used to it eventually. Maybe the abominable Mary helped. However, it remained slightly pale(r than any of Austen’s) and the characters never reached the depth of Austen's either. I know the comparison isn't quite fair as not everyone can be such a literary genius but still, the point remains.
The book nevertheless had its charms and did entertain and thus worked as a nice enough what-if story.
So not a bad way to spend a sunny Sunday if you don't have too high expectations and take it with a pinch of salt (which is why I round 3.5 stars up).
This book, back when it was published, caught my eye due to the cover. The original, you see, is all hand-stitched ()! And I was very pleased to discover that that design became the cover of the hardcover editions (no, they aren't actually stitched but at least the stitching is replicated in print on the dust jackets).
They even replicated the back of the stitching on the inside of the dust jacket!
Moreover, as is often the case, Waterstones has quite the pretty exclusive edition.
The concept of the story is a mix of real-life events and the author's additions to flesh out the events and give motives.
For those, who don't know, Jane Austen - one of THE classic authors - died very young. She had had extensive correspondence with her sister Cassandra and many other people, most of them relations. Cassandra Austen became her sister's assistant and, after Jane's death, caretaker of her sister's legacy. One day, she burnt her sister's letters (not all, some few have survived) and nobody knows why.
Gill Hornby seems to have done quite some research both on Jane and Cassandra Austen as well as on the letters that did survive and thus has spun a thread that might explain what's happened.
From the Austen family's history and their relations, the heartbreak of many a family member, to the ending we all know, the English countryside is being brought to life here. The cast includes some that must have been the inspiration for many of Jane's literary characters.
Mingling real-life events with fiction is often a tricky business. Just because we think this or that might have been a person's reason for certain actions, doesn't make it so and too many books pass off the fictional part as gospel, which I never like. I did not have this problem here. It rather felt like an author's attempt at writing an Austen-inspired novel and I was never tempted to regard it as a biography.
But as an Austen-inspired novel, it didn't succeed. I had quite a rocky start with the story but I did get used to it eventually. Maybe the abominable Mary helped. However, it remained slightly pale(r than any of Austen’s) and the characters never reached the depth of Austen's either. I know the comparison isn't quite fair as not everyone can be such a literary genius but still, the point remains.
The book nevertheless had its charms and did entertain and thus worked as a nice enough what-if story.
So not a bad way to spend a sunny Sunday if you don't have too high expectations and take it with a pinch of salt (which is why I round 3.5 stars up).
April 20, 2020
As a companion piece to Jane Austen's life, as told through her sister Cass, this novelization performs a kind of alchemy, a pretty recollection of biography told in a proper regency-romance style.
For everything it achieves, bringing Jane and her sisters to life, it does well, but I have a single quibble:
As fans, we're ALL set to sink our teeth into the juiciest mystery of all: the reason why the personal letters were burned!
No spoilers. But I will mention that I was slightly... let down. For how well the characters of these real-life personages were portrayed, I think I rather expected something a bit more extraordinary. On the other hand, it DOES fit.
No real complaints here, but I will mention that I prefer Jane Austen's actual novels more. :)
For everything it achieves, bringing Jane and her sisters to life, it does well, but I have a single quibble:
As fans, we're ALL set to sink our teeth into the juiciest mystery of all: the reason why the personal letters were burned!
No spoilers. But I will mention that I was slightly... let down. For how well the characters of these real-life personages were portrayed, I think I rather expected something a bit more extraordinary. On the other hand, it DOES fit.
No real complaints here, but I will mention that I prefer Jane Austen's actual novels more. :)
April 16, 2020
If readers know anything about Jane Austen’s personal life, it most likely pertains to how she and her sister, Cassandra, both remained unmarried and had the closest and most devoted of sibling relationships. With Jane Austen’s letters to Cassandra that portray their lifelong companionship, and the famously recorded words shared about them, it is easy to discern that these two sisters shared an uncommonly close and fulfilling bond:
“If Cassandra’s head had been going to be cut off, Jane would have hers cut off too.� � Mrs. Austen
“I have lost a treasure, such a sister, such a friend as never can have been surpassed. She was the sun of my life, the gilder of every pleasure, the soother of every sorrow, I had not a thought concealed from her, and it is as if I had lost a part of myself.� � Cassandra Austen upon Jane’s death
The other fact readers may know about Cassandra Austen is that she destroyed hundreds of letters to and from Jane before her own death in 1845. But because of all the admiration and fascination Jane Austen’s genius inspires, many wish to know all the secrets and facts of her life. What private affairs did these destroyed letters reveal? Were they filled with confidential thoughts and feelings? Were there secret romances or affairs discussed? Or were all the hardships and heartbreaks these ladies experienced painfully exposed?
Gill Hornby’s brilliant biographical fiction novel illustrates some plausible revelations for the Austen sisters� private correspondence. The story takes place in 1840, Cassandra Austen is sixty-seven and travels to Kintbury, the home of her fiancé, Tom Fowle on a mission to search for and destroy any letters might be damaging to Jane Austen’s memory and reputation. These letters canvas some important relationships and events between the Austen, Fowle, and Lloyd families between 1795 and 1817. While finding and obtaining these letters, Cassandra Austen revisits the past, and the details of her life and her sister’s life are tantalizingly revealed.
This story was simply incredible. The impeccable research, meticulous detail, and reverent correlation with history all make this work an immensely satisfying experience. I am greatly impressed with how Gill Hornby so perceptively and plausibly intertwined fact and fabrication in this tale. Cassandra’s tragic loss of Tom Fowle, Jane Austen’s acceptance of Harris Bigg-Wither, and the rumored seaside romance � are all thoughtfully and skillfully fleshed out and given new insight. I especially loved Ms. Hornby’s depiction of Jane Austen’s “unproductive years.� The events and explanations portrayed in this story shed so much new light and sympathetic understanding to what Jane Austen could have been experiencing and feeling during that time.
I thoroughly enjoyed spending more time with Cassandra Austen and seeing so many events of her and Jane’s life told from her perspective. Like Jane Bennet, Elinor Dashwood, and Anne Elliot, I have always thought of Cassandra Austen as gentle, unassuming, and dutiful. Her devotion to her family and her loyalty to her fiancé’s memory enhances the assumption of her being all things good and pure. But in this story we see Cassandra exhibit some other traits that are not at all farfetched; she is portrayed as intelligent, cunning, opinionated, and strong-willed. It was wonderfully moving to see her reflect upon the past and analyze her decisions. She thoughtfully examines the lives and lots of unmarried women, and spends time comprehending the many ways they find their own worth, duty, and purpose in life.
This mesmerizing and stirring tale felt like a long fireside chat with Aunt Cassy as she bravely bares her soul and answers all the impertinent questions we were begging to ask. Miss Austen is a supremely beautiful and magnificently-crafted tale that will enthrall ardent admirers of Jane Austen.
Some Things I Learned:
- There was another Lloyd sister!?! I have always thought it was just Martha and Mary. 😧
- Mary Austen must’ve been insufferable. She is always depicted like a cross between Mrs. Norris and Caroline Bingley! 😠
Austenesque Reviews
“If Cassandra’s head had been going to be cut off, Jane would have hers cut off too.� � Mrs. Austen
“I have lost a treasure, such a sister, such a friend as never can have been surpassed. She was the sun of my life, the gilder of every pleasure, the soother of every sorrow, I had not a thought concealed from her, and it is as if I had lost a part of myself.� � Cassandra Austen upon Jane’s death
The other fact readers may know about Cassandra Austen is that she destroyed hundreds of letters to and from Jane before her own death in 1845. But because of all the admiration and fascination Jane Austen’s genius inspires, many wish to know all the secrets and facts of her life. What private affairs did these destroyed letters reveal? Were they filled with confidential thoughts and feelings? Were there secret romances or affairs discussed? Or were all the hardships and heartbreaks these ladies experienced painfully exposed?
Gill Hornby’s brilliant biographical fiction novel illustrates some plausible revelations for the Austen sisters� private correspondence. The story takes place in 1840, Cassandra Austen is sixty-seven and travels to Kintbury, the home of her fiancé, Tom Fowle on a mission to search for and destroy any letters might be damaging to Jane Austen’s memory and reputation. These letters canvas some important relationships and events between the Austen, Fowle, and Lloyd families between 1795 and 1817. While finding and obtaining these letters, Cassandra Austen revisits the past, and the details of her life and her sister’s life are tantalizingly revealed.
This story was simply incredible. The impeccable research, meticulous detail, and reverent correlation with history all make this work an immensely satisfying experience. I am greatly impressed with how Gill Hornby so perceptively and plausibly intertwined fact and fabrication in this tale. Cassandra’s tragic loss of Tom Fowle, Jane Austen’s acceptance of Harris Bigg-Wither, and the rumored seaside romance � are all thoughtfully and skillfully fleshed out and given new insight. I especially loved Ms. Hornby’s depiction of Jane Austen’s “unproductive years.� The events and explanations portrayed in this story shed so much new light and sympathetic understanding to what Jane Austen could have been experiencing and feeling during that time.
I thoroughly enjoyed spending more time with Cassandra Austen and seeing so many events of her and Jane’s life told from her perspective. Like Jane Bennet, Elinor Dashwood, and Anne Elliot, I have always thought of Cassandra Austen as gentle, unassuming, and dutiful. Her devotion to her family and her loyalty to her fiancé’s memory enhances the assumption of her being all things good and pure. But in this story we see Cassandra exhibit some other traits that are not at all farfetched; she is portrayed as intelligent, cunning, opinionated, and strong-willed. It was wonderfully moving to see her reflect upon the past and analyze her decisions. She thoughtfully examines the lives and lots of unmarried women, and spends time comprehending the many ways they find their own worth, duty, and purpose in life.
This mesmerizing and stirring tale felt like a long fireside chat with Aunt Cassy as she bravely bares her soul and answers all the impertinent questions we were begging to ask. Miss Austen is a supremely beautiful and magnificently-crafted tale that will enthrall ardent admirers of Jane Austen.
Some Things I Learned:
- There was another Lloyd sister!?! I have always thought it was just Martha and Mary. 😧
- Mary Austen must’ve been insufferable. She is always depicted like a cross between Mrs. Norris and Caroline Bingley! 😠
Austenesque Reviews
December 6, 2019
If you love Jane Austen, but already read all of her works a few times and are always a little disappointed with the "fan fiction" from various authors, you will not be disappointed with this one!
The protagonist is Jane's beloved older sister, Cassandra. It is a fictional account of her later years, after Jane is long dead, when visiting extended family members and helping to clean out their house after a death, Cassandra finds a huge stack of letters written by Jane and other family members and pieces together alternate versions of events written by other people, but also personal letters that Jane has written to a dear friend about Cassandra herself.
As usual, no great action, adventure or great mystery is solved, but the author's deep understanding of personalities and Jane Austen's writing made it so enjoyable that I looked forward to reading it each day and got a little teary eyed when I finished.
March 9, 2020
If you are a Jane Austen fan, I would recommend this. It starts off in the year 1840, when Cassandra is an older lady and is on a mission to find Jane's letters so she can destroy them. ( By the way, that concept still horrifies me!!) We do get flashbacks of when Jane and Cassandra are younger, and get glimpses of their lives through some letters. I appreciated Gill Hornby's take on Jane and what their lives were like. I enjoyed the flashbacks more than I did Cassandra's life in 1840. Overall, this was an enjoyable book but not one that I would pick up again and again.
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
May 31, 2019
History has often wondered why Cassandra Austen burned much of the personal correspondence between herself and her famous sister, Jane. Gill Hornby has imagined the story that Cassandra was determined not to share with the world. Inhabiting their lives and discovering their secrets was a joy from the prologue to the author's note. Rich in historical detail, family lore, and all-heart, Miss Austen will wow Janeites and enchant the uninitiated, who will never look at Jane Austen's life in the same light. Upon her sister's death, Cassandra Austen claimed that she was "the sun of my life, the gilder of every pleasure, the soother of every sorrow." Now we know why. -- Laurel Ann Nattress, editor of Jane Austen Made Me Do It
June 3, 2020
Come si può definire questo romanzo? Forse una biografia romanzata su Cassandra Austen e, trasversalmente, su sua sorella Jane Austen. Una giustificazione al fatto che Cassandra bruciò buona parte della corrispondenza di Jane. Una lunga riflessione sulla condizione di "zitella" nel XIX secolo.
Una valorizzazione del villaggio di Kintbury, nel Berkshire, il luogo in cui Gill Hornby abita, e che è il luogo da cui proveniva Tom Fowle, il fidanzato di Cassandra, morto di febbre gialla nelle Indie Occidentali prima delle nozze, lasciandola in una condizione vedovile prima ancora di poter conoscere una qualche felicità coniugale. Kintbury con questo libro diventa un altro luogo austeniano, perché è anche casa di Elizabeth Fowle, nata Lloyd, la sorella minore di Martha e Mary, un'amica legata quindi a filo doppio agli Austen.
Io lo considero una sorta di pacifico romanzo riparatore. Un romanzo che rimette a posto tutti quei castelli di carte che sono stati costruiti facendo illazioni sulle lettere bruciate, sui ricordi fallaci dei nipoti, sulle tracce di arsenico nei capelli di Jane, sulle motivazioni del rifiuto alla proposta di matrimonio di Harris Bigg-Wither; illazioni che sono sfuggite di mano al punto da diventare calunniose.
Nel 1840, alla morte del reverendo Fulwar Craven Fowle, Cassandra, sapendo che sia lei che Jane hanno scritto numerose lettere all'amica Elizabeth - lettere che potrebbero essere compromettenti perché parlano della vita privata di Jane, ma anche della sua, o fanno dei commenti poco gradevoli su parenti che sarebbe inutilmente crudele far restare male ora che Jane è morta da più di vent'anni - va ad aiutare la figlia di Elizabeth, Isabella - che è restata accanto al padre fino alla fine dei suoi giorni - a sgomberare la canonica per il nuovo parroco, cercandole una nuova sistemazione ma, soprattutto, cercando le lettere da riportare a Chawton per fare un falò di quelle meno innocue.
Rileggendo le lettere - che sono tutte scritte di sana pianta dalla Hornby, che si è ispirata allo stile di Jane Austen - Cassandra ripercorre alcuni episodi della sua vita e di quella di Jane, a partire dal fidanzamento con Tom Fowle, al dolore per la sua perdita, al trasferimento a Bath, eccetera, eccetera; tutto ricostruito perfettamente dal punto di vista storico, dando a ciascun episodio il suo giusto valore.
Perché non è detto che la storia d'amore di Jane con un gentiluomo conosciuto in una località balneare riportata sui Memoir familiari sia vera. Caroline Austen, la figlia più giovane di James, ricordava ben poco, e probabilmente ci ricamò sopra per dare alla zia una storia romantica, non sapendo fornire, peraltro, nessun particolare, se non che l'anno successivo Jane seppe che l'uomo che amava era morto. La Cassandra della Hornby non smentisce, pur sapendo di essere stata lei a conoscere qualcuno a Sidmouth, qualcuno di cui si è innamorata - ricambiata - ma a cui rinuncia per la promessa fatta a Tom prima della sua partenza per le Indie Occidentali e, soprattutto, per restare accanto ai genitori e a Jane, perché sente che i suoi doveri verso la famiglia sono più importanti dei doveri verso se stessa e la propria felicità. Perché la felicità si può trovare anche nella tranquillità accanto a una sorella in un piccolo cottage nello Hampshire e non solo in una grande tenuta nel Derbyshire.
Cassandra sa che la sua condizione di sorella nubile e dal temperamento dolce la espone a essere considerata quasi una sorta di bambinaia da parte delle cognate, in particolare da Elizabeth, la moglie di Edward, che non si fa scrupoli a sfruttare il tempo di Cassandra a suo piacimento. Tanto Cassy è nubile, no? Cos'altro avrà mai da fare?
Perché è vero che probabilmente fu Cassandra a convincere Jane nell'arco di una notte a rifiutare la proposta di matrimonio - già accettata - di Harris Bigg-Wither, ma solo perché la fece ragionare sulla sua indipendenza. In quei tempi ci si sposava per conquistare una certa indipendenza e soprattutto una sicurezza economica. Ma Jane avrebbe avuto sì la sicurezza, ma sarebbe diventata schiava dei mille impegni di Manydown, la tenuta dei Bigg, e non avrebbe avuto più tempo per se stessa e, soprattutto, non avrebbe più avuto tempo per scrivere.
E il racconto di questi episodi ripara in un certo senso alle folli calunnie di un'altra Hornby, che ha osato dichiarare che Jane e Cassandra avessero una relazione saffica, e che Cassandra abbia fatto cambiare idea a Jane dopo una notte d'amore!
Perché se è vero che Mary Lloyd Austen doveva essere una persona insopportabile, a volte invidiosa e meschina - di sicuro non rese la vita della piccola Anne, la figlia di primo letto di James Austen, una passeggiata - è pur vero che il personaggio che esce fuori da The Mysterious of Miss Austen di Lindsay Ashford è un mostro.
Gill Hornby la rende per quello che doveva essere, un'impicciona, saccente ed egocentrica, colei che probabilmente ispirò il personaggio di Mary Elliot Musgrove (che non per nulla, ha lo stesso nome), ma anche un'amica per le sorelle Austen, che a luglio 1817 a Winchester è capace di ricordare i vecchi tempi con Jane sul letto di morte e di donarle delle risate spensierate.
Era tardo pomeriggio quando Cassy tornò di corsa nella stanza della malata, con il cuore in gola, gli abiti in disordine. Era già tardi? Non poteva essere già troppo tardi! Poi udì parlare e ridere sottovoce. Mary e Jane godevano della reciproca compagnia. "È davvero bello vedervi così" commentò, molto contenta.
"Stavamo ricordando la nostra giovinezza" rispose Mary.
Ho trovato questa scena molto commovente, quasi una riparazione per tutto il male fatto a Mary dalle farneticanti idee di certi autorucoli.
È un romanzo che fa vedere tutte le varie sfumature della vita nel nubilato e suggerisce che sia una situazione molto dura, è vero, ma che per alcune donne potrebbe anche essere l'unica alternativa per trovare la felicità nella tranquilla vita di campagna.
Cassy vede nella situazione di Isabella una similitudine con la situazione sua e di Jane prima quando il padre decise di punto in bianco di lasciare la canonica di Steventon a James per trasferirsi a Bath e, successivamente, alla morte del padre, quando la situazione finanziaria delle tre signore Austen le costrinse a trasferirsi in una casa più piccola e poi andare a vivere con Frank e la sua giovane sposa a Southampton.
Tuttavia, alla fine Cassy si rende conto che ciò che per lei era una situazione ideale, non lo è necessariamente anche per Isabella (che ha, peraltro, due sorelle con cui sarebbe difficilissimo convivere).
Devo dire che ho preferito leggere di gran lunga la versione originale del romanzo, pur tenendo aperto in contemporanea il cartaceo in italiano. La traduzione di Zabini, sempre molto elegante, è a volte troppo libera, e perde di vista il vero significato del testo; sebbene nel caso delle lettere la sua traduzione sembri avvicinarle di più allo stile austeniano.
Potete leggere la recensione completa qui:
Una valorizzazione del villaggio di Kintbury, nel Berkshire, il luogo in cui Gill Hornby abita, e che è il luogo da cui proveniva Tom Fowle, il fidanzato di Cassandra, morto di febbre gialla nelle Indie Occidentali prima delle nozze, lasciandola in una condizione vedovile prima ancora di poter conoscere una qualche felicità coniugale. Kintbury con questo libro diventa un altro luogo austeniano, perché è anche casa di Elizabeth Fowle, nata Lloyd, la sorella minore di Martha e Mary, un'amica legata quindi a filo doppio agli Austen.
Io lo considero una sorta di pacifico romanzo riparatore. Un romanzo che rimette a posto tutti quei castelli di carte che sono stati costruiti facendo illazioni sulle lettere bruciate, sui ricordi fallaci dei nipoti, sulle tracce di arsenico nei capelli di Jane, sulle motivazioni del rifiuto alla proposta di matrimonio di Harris Bigg-Wither; illazioni che sono sfuggite di mano al punto da diventare calunniose.
Nel 1840, alla morte del reverendo Fulwar Craven Fowle, Cassandra, sapendo che sia lei che Jane hanno scritto numerose lettere all'amica Elizabeth - lettere che potrebbero essere compromettenti perché parlano della vita privata di Jane, ma anche della sua, o fanno dei commenti poco gradevoli su parenti che sarebbe inutilmente crudele far restare male ora che Jane è morta da più di vent'anni - va ad aiutare la figlia di Elizabeth, Isabella - che è restata accanto al padre fino alla fine dei suoi giorni - a sgomberare la canonica per il nuovo parroco, cercandole una nuova sistemazione ma, soprattutto, cercando le lettere da riportare a Chawton per fare un falò di quelle meno innocue.
Rileggendo le lettere - che sono tutte scritte di sana pianta dalla Hornby, che si è ispirata allo stile di Jane Austen - Cassandra ripercorre alcuni episodi della sua vita e di quella di Jane, a partire dal fidanzamento con Tom Fowle, al dolore per la sua perdita, al trasferimento a Bath, eccetera, eccetera; tutto ricostruito perfettamente dal punto di vista storico, dando a ciascun episodio il suo giusto valore.
Perché non è detto che la storia d'amore di Jane con un gentiluomo conosciuto in una località balneare riportata sui Memoir familiari sia vera. Caroline Austen, la figlia più giovane di James, ricordava ben poco, e probabilmente ci ricamò sopra per dare alla zia una storia romantica, non sapendo fornire, peraltro, nessun particolare, se non che l'anno successivo Jane seppe che l'uomo che amava era morto. La Cassandra della Hornby non smentisce, pur sapendo di essere stata lei a conoscere qualcuno a Sidmouth, qualcuno di cui si è innamorata - ricambiata - ma a cui rinuncia per la promessa fatta a Tom prima della sua partenza per le Indie Occidentali e, soprattutto, per restare accanto ai genitori e a Jane, perché sente che i suoi doveri verso la famiglia sono più importanti dei doveri verso se stessa e la propria felicità. Perché la felicità si può trovare anche nella tranquillità accanto a una sorella in un piccolo cottage nello Hampshire e non solo in una grande tenuta nel Derbyshire.
Cassandra sa che la sua condizione di sorella nubile e dal temperamento dolce la espone a essere considerata quasi una sorta di bambinaia da parte delle cognate, in particolare da Elizabeth, la moglie di Edward, che non si fa scrupoli a sfruttare il tempo di Cassandra a suo piacimento. Tanto Cassy è nubile, no? Cos'altro avrà mai da fare?
Perché è vero che probabilmente fu Cassandra a convincere Jane nell'arco di una notte a rifiutare la proposta di matrimonio - già accettata - di Harris Bigg-Wither, ma solo perché la fece ragionare sulla sua indipendenza. In quei tempi ci si sposava per conquistare una certa indipendenza e soprattutto una sicurezza economica. Ma Jane avrebbe avuto sì la sicurezza, ma sarebbe diventata schiava dei mille impegni di Manydown, la tenuta dei Bigg, e non avrebbe avuto più tempo per se stessa e, soprattutto, non avrebbe più avuto tempo per scrivere.
E il racconto di questi episodi ripara in un certo senso alle folli calunnie di un'altra Hornby, che ha osato dichiarare che Jane e Cassandra avessero una relazione saffica, e che Cassandra abbia fatto cambiare idea a Jane dopo una notte d'amore!
Perché se è vero che Mary Lloyd Austen doveva essere una persona insopportabile, a volte invidiosa e meschina - di sicuro non rese la vita della piccola Anne, la figlia di primo letto di James Austen, una passeggiata - è pur vero che il personaggio che esce fuori da The Mysterious of Miss Austen di Lindsay Ashford è un mostro.
Gill Hornby la rende per quello che doveva essere, un'impicciona, saccente ed egocentrica, colei che probabilmente ispirò il personaggio di Mary Elliot Musgrove (che non per nulla, ha lo stesso nome), ma anche un'amica per le sorelle Austen, che a luglio 1817 a Winchester è capace di ricordare i vecchi tempi con Jane sul letto di morte e di donarle delle risate spensierate.
Era tardo pomeriggio quando Cassy tornò di corsa nella stanza della malata, con il cuore in gola, gli abiti in disordine. Era già tardi? Non poteva essere già troppo tardi! Poi udì parlare e ridere sottovoce. Mary e Jane godevano della reciproca compagnia. "È davvero bello vedervi così" commentò, molto contenta.
"Stavamo ricordando la nostra giovinezza" rispose Mary.
Ho trovato questa scena molto commovente, quasi una riparazione per tutto il male fatto a Mary dalle farneticanti idee di certi autorucoli.
È un romanzo che fa vedere tutte le varie sfumature della vita nel nubilato e suggerisce che sia una situazione molto dura, è vero, ma che per alcune donne potrebbe anche essere l'unica alternativa per trovare la felicità nella tranquilla vita di campagna.
Cassy vede nella situazione di Isabella una similitudine con la situazione sua e di Jane prima quando il padre decise di punto in bianco di lasciare la canonica di Steventon a James per trasferirsi a Bath e, successivamente, alla morte del padre, quando la situazione finanziaria delle tre signore Austen le costrinse a trasferirsi in una casa più piccola e poi andare a vivere con Frank e la sua giovane sposa a Southampton.
Tuttavia, alla fine Cassy si rende conto che ciò che per lei era una situazione ideale, non lo è necessariamente anche per Isabella (che ha, peraltro, due sorelle con cui sarebbe difficilissimo convivere).
Devo dire che ho preferito leggere di gran lunga la versione originale del romanzo, pur tenendo aperto in contemporanea il cartaceo in italiano. La traduzione di Zabini, sempre molto elegante, è a volte troppo libera, e perde di vista il vero significato del testo; sebbene nel caso delle lettere la sua traduzione sembri avvicinarle di più allo stile austeniano.
Potete leggere la recensione completa qui:
September 9, 2019
I was very lucky to receive an ARC of this much-anticipated novel by Gill Hornby. MISS AUSTEN is a moving and extremely well-researched fictional exploration of the moral consciousness and mental landscape of Cassandra Austen, the sister of Jane Austen and keeper of her legacy. With clear and emotionally effective prose, Hornby shows us how critical events in the lives of both Jane and Cassandra informed their decisions as well as the writing of Austen's great works. Hornby also deftly brings to life less well-known friends and acquaintance who were instrumental to the sisters' happiness, comfort and social stability. Fans of Austen will rejoice in the chance to enter this fictional world and spend time with the extended Austen family, as Cassandra and Jane navigate the demands of her genius and temperament in the face of the many pressures single women have confronted throughout history.
April 7, 2020
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
It is impossible to describe this book. While it is largely set in a country village it does not involve 3 or 4 families. There are no rogues, no villains, no real high plot points, just a gentle story about 19th-century spinsters who were devoted to their families in different ways. The story opens in 1840 when Jane Austen's sister Cassandra, now in her 60s and frail, travels on her own, unannounced to visit Isabella Fowle, family friend and niece of Cassandra's late fiance. Isabella's brother, the country clergyman in Kintbury, Berkshire has recently passed away and by church rule Isabella must vacate her home. Feeling lost and unhappy, Isabella doesn't know what to do and is not thrilled to have to entertain this elderly woman on top of everything else. Cassandra has a mission and won't leave until she's accomplished it. Her mission is to ostensibly help Isabella pack and move. She also seeks to convince Isabella that the very best thing for her would me to move in with one or both of her sisters, something the three Fowle women are reluctant to do. It worked out for the best for Cassandra to stay with her mother and devoted little sister Jane. Cassandra's real mission is to search for letters written by her famous sister and destroy any that show Jane in a negative light. Cassandra wants people to remember her sister as always calm and happy, to have had smooth sailing all her life, nothing to ruffle her calmness and creativity.
In 1840 people weren't yet interested in the obscure Jane Austen who had some literary success at the beginning of the century and then died. Only the family is beginning to take an interest in that long ago past and Cassandra can not let them shape the narrative the way they want. Cassandra knows her sister-in-law Mary will make herself out to be a heroine and Jane a villain. If only Cassandra can find those letters. It isn't as easy as she hoped. She's thwarted by the lazy maid Dinah, sister-in-law Mary and niece Caroline as they help with the hustle and bustle of moving. Each night Cassandra reads from Persuasion with Isabella listening for the first time. In this small way Cassandra can keep her sister's memory alive.
The story shifts from 1840 to the past when Cassandra's loved ones are alive. Each letter she reads brings back memories Cassandra had long buried as she faced numerous hardships with a stiff upper lip. Beginning in 1795 when Cassandra was a young woman engaged to her father's former pupil Tom Fowle and ending in 1817 with the event we all know happened and none of us want to have happened, the story shifts back and forth in time sharing Cassandra's story as well as Jane's. Cassandra's past has the power to shape the future if she can recognize what needs to be done.
I enjoyed this different take on Jane Austen's life. It's more about Cassandra and how her life always intertwined with her sister's even after death. It's about the choices women have and must make, duty to family, love romantic or familial, which is more important? What stories do we tell while we are alive? How do we want to be remembered when we die? How do our loved ones remember us or want us to be remembered? This story asks those questions revolving around Jane and Cassandra. Jane's story is well-known, or we think we know her story anyway but in destroying her letters, Cassandra also erased part of her own story and Gill Hornby plausibly brings it back.
As an unmarried woman of a certain age myself, certainly a middle-aged spinster by 19th-century standards, I find myself more drawn to the Miss Bates characters and of course Cassandra and Jane Austen. This story gives us several single women, all of whom make choices that shape their lives. Let me start with Isabella and get to Jane and Cassy later. Isabella is unable to cope without a man. Her father was a bully and made his wife and daughter subservient to him. Isabella spent her whole life catering to him and caring for him in his final illness. She would not have dreamed of going against his wishes. Her story is quite sad and one of the usual themes of this time period. Many authors today like to point out how difficult it was for women, especially single women, without rights, to do what they pleased. Gill Hornby takes a different approach. While Isabella is lost without a man, her two sisters have been able to make their own lives. Elizabeth runs a one-woman daycare center caring for the babies of working women and has found fulfillment that way. Mary-Jane married and traveled, was widowed and returned to Kintbury. She's eccentric to be sure but she seems content with her choices and I admire that.
Cassandra and Jane are a different matter. They found happiness and contentment with each other but it wasn't the easiest path to take or really a matter of choice. This story shows Cassandra's fears about marriage- not the usual ones but her fears of being away from her lively, intellectual family and especially her sister. Tom seemed like he was a simple, uncomplicated young man who never stopped to think about what Cassandra wanted. Her fears seem justified for a MODERN woman on the brink of marriage but in the Georgian period, you married someone you liked well enough and hoped it worked out. As we know, Tom died young and Cassandra was left a grieving widow without having had the pleasure of actually being married. Fiction fills in the blanks.
Gill Hornby imagines a reason why Cassandra never married but I think even if she didn't have that big reason, she wouldn't have left her family, especially Jane. Jane and Cassandra were like two halves of a whole. Their devotion to each other is very sweet and touching but also tinged with sadness. These two bright young women were everything to each other but what history doesn't tell us is why Cassandra felt duty bound to stay with her family and never marry. Aside from Cassandra's secret, Jane has a secret. Jane's secret makes the story more heartbreaking.
Cassandra becomes the dutiful daughter, nurturing aunt and loving sister supporting everyone through the years. Cassandra doesn't come across as saintly though. She has moods based on her feelings. She makes decisions that affect her future and they weigh heavily on her mind. As a woman, she is in a difficult spot. Still, even today, women are expected to be caretakers of their ageing parents and of course in the 19th-century, women didn't have any outlets for their hurt or frustrations. Cassandra CHOOSES her fate and that sets her apart from many other spinsters. Martha Lloyd is the real saint, uncomplainingly moving around with the Austen women and helping to care for her family. She keeps smiling through and I found her goodness a bit hard to take. I like Cassandra better even though she's always annoyed me for coming across as perfect. Jane, with her clever mind and sharp wit appeals to me more.
Mary Austen is the villain of the story. Mary was born a Lloyd, sister to saintly Martha and friend to Jane and Cassandra. She's the Charlotte Collins of Jane's real life. Mary needs to marry and sets her sights of Jane and Cassy's widowed brother James. Mary turns into a different person around him, a person James expects a woman to be. After her marriage, Mary turned into a frenemy. In this novel, she's clearly the prototype for Mary Bennet, Mrs. Elton, Mary Musgrove and the other insufferable female characters. I HIGHLY doubt it was that obvious or people would have noticed! Jane may have taken some of Mary's characteristics but surely she wasn't stupid enough to earn her sister-in-law's hatred that way. Mary Austen is not bright. She doesn't have the cleverness of her Austen in-laws and doesn't seem to have a mind of her own. Mary is truly awful but she isn't really a villain. Perhaps she would have given us a more complete picture of Jane if she had been allowed.
Supporting characters in the present 1840 setting include Dinah, the maid who is a terrible maid but turns out to be a good friend. Personally I would have given her the sack long ago. Isabella doesn't have the inner strength to make Dinah do her job but Isabella is lonely and in need of a confidante so she seems to keep Dinah around for that. I don't know why Isabella didn't feel she could confide in Cassandra except perhaps because Cassandra is an old old lady. There's also a Mr. Lidderdale, a country doctor who treated Isabella'a father. He isn't a man of breeding or fortune but he's good at what he does and has a calming manner. That subplot was painfully obvious. Cassy should have known. Caroline Austen, daughter of Mary and James, apparently doesn't like her Aunt Cassy for whatever reason. Caroline is also a single woman of a certain age who must care for her widowed mother. The two have that in common and should have a bond of sisterhood. Caroline is too much like her mother for Cassandra's liking but she doesn't seem as spiteful.
In the past we get to know Eliza Lloyd Fowle. Like her sister Martha, she is sweet and kind. She endures a pompous, bullying and perhaps physically abusive husband with good grace. The light went out of the household when she died. The Austen parents are portrayed much like the Bennets. Mrs. Austen is constantly complaining about her ill health like Mrs. Bennet and trying to marry off her daughters and their friends. Mr. Austen also tries to pay matchmaker. Cassy and Jane's brothers are lively and fun-loving in their youth. Cassy reflects on the difference between her family's love of literature and intellectual pursuits, their good humor and loving nature with that of the Fowles more somber and less intellectual household. When the Austen men grow up they fall victim to their wives. James always comes across as egotistical and pompous in history and here he's like John Dashwood, letting his wife do all the talking and thinking. Edward isn't much better but Elizabeth is more naive and lacks empathy than the cruel Fanny Dashwood. Frank and Charles are mostly mentioned and George is left out of the narrative, not living with the Austens.
Also in the past we meet that mysterious gentleman from the seaside whom Jane supposedly fell in love with. Cassy has no memory of telling this story to Caroline and what she remembers differs greatly from the family narrative. I had never thought of THAT but it surely seems plausible, even possible! This storyline was tough to read though, knowing that real life is not the same as a novel.
My only major quibbles with this novel are that it is difficult to tell who is writing Jane or Cassandra. Their voices sound too much alike. My other, major complaint, is that I don't think the Austen sisters would have revealed private information about the other to a mutual friend. Because we don't have existing letters or diaries to go on, Gill Hornby needed some way to tell the story and she chose letters to a friend rather than family.
I really enjoyed this thoughtful novelization of Cassandra Austen's life and how it was so intertwined with her sister's. I highly recommend this to Janeites new and old.
4.75 stars
and almost as many hankies! 5 hankies for July 1817! I silently cried out "NO!" as if I could somehow change the past. It's such a tragedy that such genius died so young- the same age I am now, nearly exactly. It seems extra unfair if she died of something that can easily be treated or cured today.
This is such a choppy review. I can't do justice to this book in a review. I found someone who can though, for a better, more in-depth analysis see
It is impossible to describe this book. While it is largely set in a country village it does not involve 3 or 4 families. There are no rogues, no villains, no real high plot points, just a gentle story about 19th-century spinsters who were devoted to their families in different ways. The story opens in 1840 when Jane Austen's sister Cassandra, now in her 60s and frail, travels on her own, unannounced to visit Isabella Fowle, family friend and niece of Cassandra's late fiance. Isabella's brother, the country clergyman in Kintbury, Berkshire has recently passed away and by church rule Isabella must vacate her home. Feeling lost and unhappy, Isabella doesn't know what to do and is not thrilled to have to entertain this elderly woman on top of everything else. Cassandra has a mission and won't leave until she's accomplished it. Her mission is to ostensibly help Isabella pack and move. She also seeks to convince Isabella that the very best thing for her would me to move in with one or both of her sisters, something the three Fowle women are reluctant to do. It worked out for the best for Cassandra to stay with her mother and devoted little sister Jane. Cassandra's real mission is to search for letters written by her famous sister and destroy any that show Jane in a negative light. Cassandra wants people to remember her sister as always calm and happy, to have had smooth sailing all her life, nothing to ruffle her calmness and creativity.
In 1840 people weren't yet interested in the obscure Jane Austen who had some literary success at the beginning of the century and then died. Only the family is beginning to take an interest in that long ago past and Cassandra can not let them shape the narrative the way they want. Cassandra knows her sister-in-law Mary will make herself out to be a heroine and Jane a villain. If only Cassandra can find those letters. It isn't as easy as she hoped. She's thwarted by the lazy maid Dinah, sister-in-law Mary and niece Caroline as they help with the hustle and bustle of moving. Each night Cassandra reads from Persuasion with Isabella listening for the first time. In this small way Cassandra can keep her sister's memory alive.
The story shifts from 1840 to the past when Cassandra's loved ones are alive. Each letter she reads brings back memories Cassandra had long buried as she faced numerous hardships with a stiff upper lip. Beginning in 1795 when Cassandra was a young woman engaged to her father's former pupil Tom Fowle and ending in 1817 with the event we all know happened and none of us want to have happened, the story shifts back and forth in time sharing Cassandra's story as well as Jane's. Cassandra's past has the power to shape the future if she can recognize what needs to be done.
I enjoyed this different take on Jane Austen's life. It's more about Cassandra and how her life always intertwined with her sister's even after death. It's about the choices women have and must make, duty to family, love romantic or familial, which is more important? What stories do we tell while we are alive? How do we want to be remembered when we die? How do our loved ones remember us or want us to be remembered? This story asks those questions revolving around Jane and Cassandra. Jane's story is well-known, or we think we know her story anyway but in destroying her letters, Cassandra also erased part of her own story and Gill Hornby plausibly brings it back.
As an unmarried woman of a certain age myself, certainly a middle-aged spinster by 19th-century standards, I find myself more drawn to the Miss Bates characters and of course Cassandra and Jane Austen. This story gives us several single women, all of whom make choices that shape their lives. Let me start with Isabella and get to Jane and Cassy later. Isabella is unable to cope without a man. Her father was a bully and made his wife and daughter subservient to him. Isabella spent her whole life catering to him and caring for him in his final illness. She would not have dreamed of going against his wishes. Her story is quite sad and one of the usual themes of this time period. Many authors today like to point out how difficult it was for women, especially single women, without rights, to do what they pleased. Gill Hornby takes a different approach. While Isabella is lost without a man, her two sisters have been able to make their own lives. Elizabeth runs a one-woman daycare center caring for the babies of working women and has found fulfillment that way. Mary-Jane married and traveled, was widowed and returned to Kintbury. She's eccentric to be sure but she seems content with her choices and I admire that.
Cassandra and Jane are a different matter. They found happiness and contentment with each other but it wasn't the easiest path to take or really a matter of choice. This story shows Cassandra's fears about marriage- not the usual ones but her fears of being away from her lively, intellectual family and especially her sister. Tom seemed like he was a simple, uncomplicated young man who never stopped to think about what Cassandra wanted. Her fears seem justified for a MODERN woman on the brink of marriage but in the Georgian period, you married someone you liked well enough and hoped it worked out. As we know, Tom died young and Cassandra was left a grieving widow without having had the pleasure of actually being married. Fiction fills in the blanks.
Gill Hornby imagines a reason why Cassandra never married but I think even if she didn't have that big reason, she wouldn't have left her family, especially Jane. Jane and Cassandra were like two halves of a whole. Their devotion to each other is very sweet and touching but also tinged with sadness. These two bright young women were everything to each other but what history doesn't tell us is why Cassandra felt duty bound to stay with her family and never marry. Aside from Cassandra's secret, Jane has a secret. Jane's secret makes the story more heartbreaking.
Cassandra becomes the dutiful daughter, nurturing aunt and loving sister supporting everyone through the years. Cassandra doesn't come across as saintly though. She has moods based on her feelings. She makes decisions that affect her future and they weigh heavily on her mind. As a woman, she is in a difficult spot. Still, even today, women are expected to be caretakers of their ageing parents and of course in the 19th-century, women didn't have any outlets for their hurt or frustrations. Cassandra CHOOSES her fate and that sets her apart from many other spinsters. Martha Lloyd is the real saint, uncomplainingly moving around with the Austen women and helping to care for her family. She keeps smiling through and I found her goodness a bit hard to take. I like Cassandra better even though she's always annoyed me for coming across as perfect. Jane, with her clever mind and sharp wit appeals to me more.
Mary Austen is the villain of the story. Mary was born a Lloyd, sister to saintly Martha and friend to Jane and Cassandra. She's the Charlotte Collins of Jane's real life. Mary needs to marry and sets her sights of Jane and Cassy's widowed brother James. Mary turns into a different person around him, a person James expects a woman to be. After her marriage, Mary turned into a frenemy. In this novel, she's clearly the prototype for Mary Bennet, Mrs. Elton, Mary Musgrove and the other insufferable female characters. I HIGHLY doubt it was that obvious or people would have noticed! Jane may have taken some of Mary's characteristics but surely she wasn't stupid enough to earn her sister-in-law's hatred that way. Mary Austen is not bright. She doesn't have the cleverness of her Austen in-laws and doesn't seem to have a mind of her own. Mary is truly awful but she isn't really a villain. Perhaps she would have given us a more complete picture of Jane if she had been allowed.
Supporting characters in the present 1840 setting include Dinah, the maid who is a terrible maid but turns out to be a good friend. Personally I would have given her the sack long ago. Isabella doesn't have the inner strength to make Dinah do her job but Isabella is lonely and in need of a confidante so she seems to keep Dinah around for that. I don't know why Isabella didn't feel she could confide in Cassandra except perhaps because Cassandra is an old old lady. There's also a Mr. Lidderdale, a country doctor who treated Isabella'a father. He isn't a man of breeding or fortune but he's good at what he does and has a calming manner. That subplot was painfully obvious. Cassy should have known. Caroline Austen, daughter of Mary and James, apparently doesn't like her Aunt Cassy for whatever reason. Caroline is also a single woman of a certain age who must care for her widowed mother. The two have that in common and should have a bond of sisterhood. Caroline is too much like her mother for Cassandra's liking but she doesn't seem as spiteful.
In the past we get to know Eliza Lloyd Fowle. Like her sister Martha, she is sweet and kind. She endures a pompous, bullying and perhaps physically abusive husband with good grace. The light went out of the household when she died. The Austen parents are portrayed much like the Bennets. Mrs. Austen is constantly complaining about her ill health like Mrs. Bennet and trying to marry off her daughters and their friends. Mr. Austen also tries to pay matchmaker. Cassy and Jane's brothers are lively and fun-loving in their youth. Cassy reflects on the difference between her family's love of literature and intellectual pursuits, their good humor and loving nature with that of the Fowles more somber and less intellectual household. When the Austen men grow up they fall victim to their wives. James always comes across as egotistical and pompous in history and here he's like John Dashwood, letting his wife do all the talking and thinking. Edward isn't much better but Elizabeth is more naive and lacks empathy than the cruel Fanny Dashwood. Frank and Charles are mostly mentioned and George is left out of the narrative, not living with the Austens.
Also in the past we meet that mysterious gentleman from the seaside whom Jane supposedly fell in love with. Cassy has no memory of telling this story to Caroline and what she remembers differs greatly from the family narrative. I had never thought of THAT but it surely seems plausible, even possible! This storyline was tough to read though, knowing that real life is not the same as a novel.
My only major quibbles with this novel are that it is difficult to tell who is writing Jane or Cassandra. Their voices sound too much alike. My other, major complaint, is that I don't think the Austen sisters would have revealed private information about the other to a mutual friend. Because we don't have existing letters or diaries to go on, Gill Hornby needed some way to tell the story and she chose letters to a friend rather than family.
I really enjoyed this thoughtful novelization of Cassandra Austen's life and how it was so intertwined with her sister's. I highly recommend this to Janeites new and old.
4.75 stars
and almost as many hankies! 5 hankies for July 1817! I silently cried out "NO!" as if I could somehow change the past. It's such a tragedy that such genius died so young- the same age I am now, nearly exactly. It seems extra unfair if she died of something that can easily be treated or cured today.
This is such a choppy review. I can't do justice to this book in a review. I found someone who can though, for a better, more in-depth analysis see
July 29, 2024
Hornby writes a very beautiful story of two sisters----Cassandra and Jane Austen. It's 1840 England, and Cassandra is 60 years old. This interesting story revolves around Jane Austen's letters, of which there were many, and Cassandra is looking to find the ones written to Jane's deceased good friend, Eliza Fowle, whose husband the vicar recently passed away at Kintbury vicarage.
Isabella, one of the vicar's daughters lives there, but now needs to move out for the new vicar. Cassandra has gone to help Isabelle, but also has another motive---to find and burn all the the correspondence between Eliza and Jane.
Cassandra was devoted to her sister, and wanted to keep her sister's life private. She didn't want any possibility of future publicity- positive or negative. Cassandra is tenacious about finding the letters, and she succeeds in her mission. Since most of Jane's letters had been destroyed, Hornby uses her skills and imagination when we hear Cassandra read some of the lost letters.
I found out that Jane had a quick, and sometimes caustic wit, yet she could also be light and humorous. Apparently, as Cassandra knew, Jane had her temperments. "Jane had two moods: sullen and silent, or brittle and wicked. Neither was easy on the household, and only Cassy could manage her."
There are many other threads that run through this wonderfully told story--which focuses mainly on Jane's devoted and caring sister, Cassandra. The reader discovers that Cassandra was engaged to one of the Fowle son's, who died while on a voyage to the Caribbean. She also received another marriage proposal some time later, but did not accept it because the family was going through much struggle after the death of their father, and she didn't want to leave Jane with all the obligations and responsibilities of their mother, who lived until she was in her eighties!
As Cassandra finds these letters, it brings back memories, and the story line follows them, and I felt immersed in this world, of people who loved, struggled, cared for each other and lived through many hardships. The Austens were quite a family, and a large one at that, and they enjoyed being in each others company too.
Cassandra, Jane and Mrs. Austen moved frequently due to their financial struggles, and this situation greatly affected Jane and her ability to write. Eventually, after many years they were able to settle back to the countryside, which was peaceful and allowed Jane to write. Edward, the son who had been adoped by another family member, was extremely wealthy and he was the one who provided them a move to the country.
Jane died in 1817 at the age of 41. Cassandra was there for her, and always acted in Jane's best interest. At the end, Cassandra asked Jane,"What can I do for you? Anything? Do you want anything?"Jane replied, "Nothing but death." Cassandra died at the age of 72, in 1845. She lived alone, visiting friends and family, and taking care of Jane's literary estate.
Speaking for myself, I would say that having a Cassandra in ones life would be a treasure beyond any words. It felt great being in this world of the Austens. Thank you Gil Hornby, for this poignantly written and bittersweet story.
Isabella, one of the vicar's daughters lives there, but now needs to move out for the new vicar. Cassandra has gone to help Isabelle, but also has another motive---to find and burn all the the correspondence between Eliza and Jane.
Cassandra was devoted to her sister, and wanted to keep her sister's life private. She didn't want any possibility of future publicity- positive or negative. Cassandra is tenacious about finding the letters, and she succeeds in her mission. Since most of Jane's letters had been destroyed, Hornby uses her skills and imagination when we hear Cassandra read some of the lost letters.
I found out that Jane had a quick, and sometimes caustic wit, yet she could also be light and humorous. Apparently, as Cassandra knew, Jane had her temperments. "Jane had two moods: sullen and silent, or brittle and wicked. Neither was easy on the household, and only Cassy could manage her."
There are many other threads that run through this wonderfully told story--which focuses mainly on Jane's devoted and caring sister, Cassandra. The reader discovers that Cassandra was engaged to one of the Fowle son's, who died while on a voyage to the Caribbean. She also received another marriage proposal some time later, but did not accept it because the family was going through much struggle after the death of their father, and she didn't want to leave Jane with all the obligations and responsibilities of their mother, who lived until she was in her eighties!
As Cassandra finds these letters, it brings back memories, and the story line follows them, and I felt immersed in this world, of people who loved, struggled, cared for each other and lived through many hardships. The Austens were quite a family, and a large one at that, and they enjoyed being in each others company too.
Cassandra, Jane and Mrs. Austen moved frequently due to their financial struggles, and this situation greatly affected Jane and her ability to write. Eventually, after many years they were able to settle back to the countryside, which was peaceful and allowed Jane to write. Edward, the son who had been adoped by another family member, was extremely wealthy and he was the one who provided them a move to the country.
Jane died in 1817 at the age of 41. Cassandra was there for her, and always acted in Jane's best interest. At the end, Cassandra asked Jane,"What can I do for you? Anything? Do you want anything?"Jane replied, "Nothing but death." Cassandra died at the age of 72, in 1845. She lived alone, visiting friends and family, and taking care of Jane's literary estate.
Speaking for myself, I would say that having a Cassandra in ones life would be a treasure beyond any words. It felt great being in this world of the Austens. Thank you Gil Hornby, for this poignantly written and bittersweet story.
December 22, 2019
For me MISS AUSTEN was a charming, enjoyable reading experience. I like the idea that the story features Cassandra and takes place some years after the death of her beloved sister Jane. This fictionalized version of events allows author Gill Hornby to present her own stamp of imagination on this pair of fictional characters who are so familiar to me. I've read quite a bit of factual and fictional information regarding these two well known women and am pleased to say I was well satisfied with this personal interpretation of what may have gone on in their lives.
Cassandra is in the act of finding, reading, and perhaps destroying personal correspondence written by Jane which might show her or the family in a less than appealing way. This visit to Kintbury in March 1840 is Cassandra's chance to search for any letters between Jane and Eliza Lloyd Fowle. What Cassandra had not been expecting was to find letters concerning herself. The letters are all fiction so this is the area where each reader will react according to their own notions of what type of personality Jane Austen might have had.
Because Cassandra Austen did such a good job of destroying anything she thought might present her sister Jane as being involved in any drama during her lifetime, readers and scholars put their own interpretations on what everyday life with Jane Austen might have been like. This book seems to be a balanced look at how trials, misfortunes and physical illness might have had an impact on Jane. If you don't want to think of Jane as anything other than someone approximating one of the heroines in her novels, then this book may not be completely enjoyable for you. But it is good to remember that this is all fiction even though it is woven skillfully around the historically accurate dates and locations in the lives of these two women. Cassandra is presented here as a lovely, thoughtful woman who only had the best interest in her sister's legacy when she consigned those letters to her special bonfire. How I can wish she hadn't been quite so determined, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy a book that gives me a lot of possibilities to think about.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for an e-galley of this novel.
Cassandra is in the act of finding, reading, and perhaps destroying personal correspondence written by Jane which might show her or the family in a less than appealing way. This visit to Kintbury in March 1840 is Cassandra's chance to search for any letters between Jane and Eliza Lloyd Fowle. What Cassandra had not been expecting was to find letters concerning herself. The letters are all fiction so this is the area where each reader will react according to their own notions of what type of personality Jane Austen might have had.
Because Cassandra Austen did such a good job of destroying anything she thought might present her sister Jane as being involved in any drama during her lifetime, readers and scholars put their own interpretations on what everyday life with Jane Austen might have been like. This book seems to be a balanced look at how trials, misfortunes and physical illness might have had an impact on Jane. If you don't want to think of Jane as anything other than someone approximating one of the heroines in her novels, then this book may not be completely enjoyable for you. But it is good to remember that this is all fiction even though it is woven skillfully around the historically accurate dates and locations in the lives of these two women. Cassandra is presented here as a lovely, thoughtful woman who only had the best interest in her sister's legacy when she consigned those letters to her special bonfire. How I can wish she hadn't been quite so determined, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy a book that gives me a lot of possibilities to think about.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for an e-galley of this novel.
April 6, 2020
In this intriguing biographical novel, Gill Hornby takes up the story of Cassandra Austen, Jane Austen’s older sister. It is 1840, over twenty years after Jane’s death, and Cassandra, an aging spinster, is still working hard to preserve her sister’s legacy and reputation. She arrives unannounced at the family of the Fowles, the home of her former fiancé and close friends of the Austen’s. Cassandra is sure that some of her sister’s letters are still at the Fowle residence and she plans to retrieve and then destroy them before they are lost to the Fowle family’s possessions. She finds the letters easily, but in reading them, Jane and Cassandra’s pasts are revealed in interspersed flashbacks throughout the story.
It is well known that after Jane’s death, Cassandra did destroy much of her sister’s correspondence, leaving scholars and fans to piece together the life and feelings of both Jane and Cassandra. The fictional letters here reveal the often-fraught lives the two lead. Cassandra loosing her finance in an untimely death; the retirement of their father, which sent them on a disjointed journey from town to town per the whims of their parents; and after the death of the father, a search for a more permanent home where Jane could write and Cassandra could tend to the needs of her sister and other family members. Following the death of Jane, Cassandra was able to create a satisfying life of friendships, family and duty.
This is a leisurely paced novel, with glimpses into the difficult life of a spinster in a world that valued well-struck marriages and the needs of men over women. The character of Cassandra is well drawn, creating sympathy and admiration for a woman who overcame her lot in life to make a happy existence for herself. The portrayal of Jane as often difficult and sometimes selfish, was an interesting one. Miss Austen is an interesting and original look it the world of the Austen’s and a good addition to world of Austen fan fiction.
Thank you to Flatiron books and NetGalley for the e-ARC.
It is well known that after Jane’s death, Cassandra did destroy much of her sister’s correspondence, leaving scholars and fans to piece together the life and feelings of both Jane and Cassandra. The fictional letters here reveal the often-fraught lives the two lead. Cassandra loosing her finance in an untimely death; the retirement of their father, which sent them on a disjointed journey from town to town per the whims of their parents; and after the death of the father, a search for a more permanent home where Jane could write and Cassandra could tend to the needs of her sister and other family members. Following the death of Jane, Cassandra was able to create a satisfying life of friendships, family and duty.
This is a leisurely paced novel, with glimpses into the difficult life of a spinster in a world that valued well-struck marriages and the needs of men over women. The character of Cassandra is well drawn, creating sympathy and admiration for a woman who overcame her lot in life to make a happy existence for herself. The portrayal of Jane as often difficult and sometimes selfish, was an interesting one. Miss Austen is an interesting and original look it the world of the Austen’s and a good addition to world of Austen fan fiction.
Thank you to Flatiron books and NetGalley for the e-ARC.
March 8, 2021
Het verhaal is iets te traag maar vooral te somber voor mij . De zusterliefde van Jane en Cassandra komt niet goed uit de verf omdat ze maar weinig "paginatijd" met elkaar hebben .
September 26, 2020
3,5 �
Kintbury, marzo de 1840. Han pasado veintitrés años desde la muerte de Jane Austen, y Cassandra Austen, su adorada hermana, cumplidos ya los sesenta, decide emprender un último viaje. Su destino, la casa de los Fowle, hogar de su antiguo prometido y de Eliza, una vieja y querida amiga de las hermanas Austen. La casa de los Fowle anda algo revuelta tras el fallecimiento de sus antiguos propietarios, y aunque Cassandra parece llegar para reconfortar a sus descendientes, algo parece esconderse tras su inocente visita de cortesía. La adorable señorita Austen busca algo entre las habitaciones de los Fowle y un arcón, escondido en el primer piso de la rectoría, guarda fielmente el objeto de sus desvelos...
Mucho se ha escrito sobre Jane Austen.
Su vida, sus novelas y los personajes que las habitan han sido objeto de multitud de estudios y reescrituras (para regocijo de todos los que la admiramos). Y es que es imposible resistirse, todo lo que rodea a una autora tan querida como ella, se convierte en una fuente inagotable de curiosidad.
Con 'Miss Austen' Gill Hornby decide rescatar la figura de una de las personas más cercanas a Jane, su hermana Cassandra. Un personaje algo controvertido, dadas las decisiones que tomó al convertirse en la guardiana del legado de su célebre hermana.
Y es que todos lo sabemos. Cassandra destruyó, tras morir su hermana, más de la mitad de la abundante correspondencia que esta mantuvo con muchos conocidos; una decisión muy lamentada por investigadores y admiradores de Jane.
¿Qué llevó a Cassandra a tomar tal decisión? ¿Qué información delicada quedaba expuesta en esas cartas, como para merecer ser eliminadas? ¿Lo hizo para resguardar la reputación de su hermana?
Esas son las preguntas a las que Gill Hornby da respuesta en su novela.
El resultado es un bonito homenaje al amor de dos hermanas y una vuelta apacible, aunque no exenta de trágicos momentos, a la preciosa campiña de Hampshire que las vio nacer.
Nunca sabremos cómo de acertadas son las hipótesis que Hornby aporta sobre los actos de Cassandra, pero para mí ha sido un auténtico placer leerlas y no me parecen exentas de coherencia.
La vida de Jane Austen no fue el cauce apacible e idílico que muchos quisieron dibujar a su muerte (incluida su propia hermana cuando eliminó pruebas que podrían probar lo contrario). En realidad, tanto Jane como su hermana Cassandra solo encontraron una verdadera paz en los últimos años de su vida, al instalarse en Chawton Cottage. Al fin habían encontrado un hogar, tras muchos años dando tumbos por distintos alojamientos y viviendo de la caridad de sus parientes.
En 'Miss Austen', al encontrar las cartas de su hermana, Cassandra vuelve a rememorar todos esos años, desde que ambas salieran de la seguridad de la rectoría de Steventon, el hogar de su infancia y juventud, al último día que pasaron juntas. Los años del duelo tras la pérdida de Tom Fowle, su prometido, los aciagos años en Bath, las curativas vacaciones en la costa, las primeras ventas de las novelas de Jane...un sinfín de penas y alegrías que las mujeres Austen superaron juntas y compartieron en su prolija correspondencia.
Y eso es lo que más me ha gustado de 'Miss Austen', el fiel retrato que la autora hace de la delicada situación en la que vivían las mujeres de la época; especialmente las mujeres solteras que carecían de medios propios. Una categoría a la que pertenecían Jane y Cassandra.
Mujeres, objeto de lástima e incluso consideradas como un estorbo, que quedaban abocadas a la caridad de sus familiares (en el mejor de los casos), o a la supervivencia, trabajando como costureras o institutrices, sirviéndose de la escasa instrucción recibida en su juventud.
'Miss Austen' no es una novela redonda. Algunas tramas resultan algo insulsas y ciertos personajes están algo desaprovechados, pero el retrato que hace de la relación entre Jane y Cassandra y las dificultades que atraviesan juntas merece una lectura e incluso una relectura. Admiradoras de Jane Austen, no podéis dejarla pasar.
Kintbury, marzo de 1840. Han pasado veintitrés años desde la muerte de Jane Austen, y Cassandra Austen, su adorada hermana, cumplidos ya los sesenta, decide emprender un último viaje. Su destino, la casa de los Fowle, hogar de su antiguo prometido y de Eliza, una vieja y querida amiga de las hermanas Austen. La casa de los Fowle anda algo revuelta tras el fallecimiento de sus antiguos propietarios, y aunque Cassandra parece llegar para reconfortar a sus descendientes, algo parece esconderse tras su inocente visita de cortesía. La adorable señorita Austen busca algo entre las habitaciones de los Fowle y un arcón, escondido en el primer piso de la rectoría, guarda fielmente el objeto de sus desvelos...
Mucho se ha escrito sobre Jane Austen.
Su vida, sus novelas y los personajes que las habitan han sido objeto de multitud de estudios y reescrituras (para regocijo de todos los que la admiramos). Y es que es imposible resistirse, todo lo que rodea a una autora tan querida como ella, se convierte en una fuente inagotable de curiosidad.
Con 'Miss Austen' Gill Hornby decide rescatar la figura de una de las personas más cercanas a Jane, su hermana Cassandra. Un personaje algo controvertido, dadas las decisiones que tomó al convertirse en la guardiana del legado de su célebre hermana.
Y es que todos lo sabemos. Cassandra destruyó, tras morir su hermana, más de la mitad de la abundante correspondencia que esta mantuvo con muchos conocidos; una decisión muy lamentada por investigadores y admiradores de Jane.
¿Qué llevó a Cassandra a tomar tal decisión? ¿Qué información delicada quedaba expuesta en esas cartas, como para merecer ser eliminadas? ¿Lo hizo para resguardar la reputación de su hermana?
Esas son las preguntas a las que Gill Hornby da respuesta en su novela.
El resultado es un bonito homenaje al amor de dos hermanas y una vuelta apacible, aunque no exenta de trágicos momentos, a la preciosa campiña de Hampshire que las vio nacer.
Nunca sabremos cómo de acertadas son las hipótesis que Hornby aporta sobre los actos de Cassandra, pero para mí ha sido un auténtico placer leerlas y no me parecen exentas de coherencia.
La vida de Jane Austen no fue el cauce apacible e idílico que muchos quisieron dibujar a su muerte (incluida su propia hermana cuando eliminó pruebas que podrían probar lo contrario). En realidad, tanto Jane como su hermana Cassandra solo encontraron una verdadera paz en los últimos años de su vida, al instalarse en Chawton Cottage. Al fin habían encontrado un hogar, tras muchos años dando tumbos por distintos alojamientos y viviendo de la caridad de sus parientes.
En 'Miss Austen', al encontrar las cartas de su hermana, Cassandra vuelve a rememorar todos esos años, desde que ambas salieran de la seguridad de la rectoría de Steventon, el hogar de su infancia y juventud, al último día que pasaron juntas. Los años del duelo tras la pérdida de Tom Fowle, su prometido, los aciagos años en Bath, las curativas vacaciones en la costa, las primeras ventas de las novelas de Jane...un sinfín de penas y alegrías que las mujeres Austen superaron juntas y compartieron en su prolija correspondencia.
Y eso es lo que más me ha gustado de 'Miss Austen', el fiel retrato que la autora hace de la delicada situación en la que vivían las mujeres de la época; especialmente las mujeres solteras que carecían de medios propios. Una categoría a la que pertenecían Jane y Cassandra.
Mujeres, objeto de lástima e incluso consideradas como un estorbo, que quedaban abocadas a la caridad de sus familiares (en el mejor de los casos), o a la supervivencia, trabajando como costureras o institutrices, sirviéndose de la escasa instrucción recibida en su juventud.
'Miss Austen' no es una novela redonda. Algunas tramas resultan algo insulsas y ciertos personajes están algo desaprovechados, pero el retrato que hace de la relación entre Jane y Cassandra y las dificultades que atraviesan juntas merece una lectura e incluso una relectura. Admiradoras de Jane Austen, no podéis dejarla pasar.
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