Longbourn, by Jo Baker, a sad attempt that was enjoyed by some, but alas not me. When we were at B&N at Christmas I over heard several people talking about this book with high praise, and being a Jane Austen fan I was excited to think there was something new to read.
The opening chapters are okay, the characters show some promise and make you want to like them, but by two thirds of the way through I was just reading because I finish all the books I start (I'm going to have to re-think this strategy!). The story and characters had disintegrated to stock characters with predictable and annoying characteristics. Also offensive to my purist mind, was the way Baker treats Jane and Elizabeth, I just don't want them to be selfish or petty, I want to retain the perfect sweet and spunky characters that Austen created. I guess I'm a romantic! Surprise!
Don't bother reading this.
