According to Jane
In Marilyn Brant's smart, wildly inventive fiction debut, one modern woman in search of herself receives advice from the ultimate expert in matters of the heart: Jane Austen.
It begins one day in sophomore English class, just as Ellie Barnett's teacher is assigning Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. From nowhere comes a quiet "tsk" of displeasure. The target: Sam Blaine, the cute bad boy who's teasing Ellie mercilessly, just as he has since kindergarten. Entirely unbidden, as Jane might say, the author's ghost takes up residence in Ellie's mind, and seems determined to stay there.
Over the next two decades, Jane's wise and witty advice guides Ellie through the frustrations of adolescence and into adulthood, serving as the voice she trusts, usually far more than her own. Years and boyfriends come and go—sometimes a little too quickly, sometimes not nearly fast enough. But Jane's counsel is constant, and on the subject of Sam, quite insistent. Stay away, Jane demands. He is your Mr. Wickham.
Still, everyone has something to learn about love—perhaps even Jane herself. And lately, the voice in Ellie's head is being drowned out by another, urging her to look beyond everything she thought she knew and seek out her very own, very unexpected, happy ending...
ACCORDING TO JANE ~ A Novel About Pride, Prejudice & the Pursuit of the Perfect Guy
**Note: This book has adult language and content and is recommended for mature audiences. This is the second edition of the novel. It was originally published by Kensington Books (October 2009).**
WINNER of the Romance Writers of America's prestigious Golden Heart Award, the Single Titles Reviewers' Choice Award, the Aspen Gold Reader's Choice Award, and the Booksellers' Best Award
Named one of the 100 Best Romance Novels of All Time by Buzzle.com
“Brant infuses her sweetly romantic and delightfully clever tale with just the right dash of Austen-esque wit.” ~Chicago Tribune
“Fresh, original, and lots of fun.” ~Barnes & Noble Review
"A charming book." ~Family Circle
"A warm, witty and charmingly original story." ~Susan Wiggs, #1 New York Times bestselling author
"An engaging read for all who have been through the long, dark, dating wars, and still believe there's sunshine, and a Mr. Darcy, at the end of the tunnel." ~Cathy Lamb, author of What I Remember Most
"This is a must-read for Austen lovers as well as for all who believe in the possibility of a happily-ever-after ending." ~Holly Chamberlin, author of Tuscan Holiday
“What an unexpected, uplifting, and urbane debut novel! To paraphrase Jane Austen’s character Lady Catherine, Marilyn Brant has given us a treasure. Granted that there are hundreds of Jane Austen inspired novels written over the years, this totally unique and original concept of Austen’s ghost inhabiting and advising a modern young woman is brilliant. The play of early nineteenth-century social mores against twentieth-century culture is so droll that I laughed-out-loud several times in total recognition. Like Austen, Brant excels at characterization offering a heroine in Ellie Barnett that I could totally identify with, and a hero in Sam that is so endearingly flawed that any woman worthy of her worn out VHS copy of the 1995 Pride and Prejudice miniseries will be happy to swoon over. Subtly powerful and amusingly acerbic, you will be gently reproved into agreeing in the power of love to transform us all.” ~Laurel Ann Nattress, Austenprose, editor of Jane Austen Made Me Do It
- Pages
- 269
- First published
- 2009
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Ebook
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Shelved by 1 Litcadian
Reviews
Finished February 1, 2010 · Read 2 times
(Small amounts of spoiler) The title caught my eye at the shops. I was intrigued by the storyline. A girl who is haunted by Jane Austen herself. Ellie isn't just haunted by Jane through her teen years though. Austen has been with Ellie from the age of 15 to 34 years old. So this is a coming of age storyline with Jane Austen's help. Just like Ellie, I was a geek in my English classes because I enjoyed reading the books assigned. Not all sophomore teens can understand Austen's satire, let alone dialogue. So that's why I was a book mouse. I might not of had Jane Austen "haunting" me. I did have Jane's works to use as guidelines in finding a Mr. Right. But like Ellie has realized, I've set that bar pretty high. "Heaven forbid! - That would be the greatest misfortune of all! - To find a man agreeable whom one is determined to hate! - Pride and Prejudice." At the beginning of each chapter, Marilyn Brant gives a quote from one of Jane Austen's works. This one is from chapter 9 and I think it is the perfect description of Sam Blaine. Jane and Ellie consider him to be Mr. Wickham. In my opinion, teenage Sam is a lot like the teenage boys that were in my school. The Wickham comparison is pretty good. But unlike Wickham, I think Sam can and has shown that he is changing. He wants to be a better person. So I was glad that Sam proved Ellie (and Jane) wrong about him. Most romance books that have H and h reunited have the heroine be celibate. I disagree with that. In According to Jane, I was very happy that Ellie isn't celibate while Sam wasn't also. I think that it's plausible that 15 y.o. Sam knew that Ellie was "The One." After all, my Uncle married his Junior High School sweatheart. They are still married and very happy. So finding "The One" at such a young age can happen. I am very glad I have this book. I've read it 5 times now since I bought it almost three years ago. I didn't always like Jane's "hauntings" because I thought they interfered with this nice story. They were good though