Jane OdiweReseñas

All your favourite P&P characters together with some fun surprises and new cousins. Jane Odiwe has a way with writing Austen's characters in the same vein. A fun novella and quick read.

Jane Odiwe never fails to capture the spirit and voice of Jane Austen. The second Time Travel with Jane Austen story centers on Jane Austen's inspiration for P&P. In the present day, we follow five young women, all with similarities to the fave P&P characters.

This is a very sweet book filled with romance. It is a fun and light read with a different and unexpected twist at the end!

Another sweet and fun novel by Jane Odiwe. Jane Austen Lives Again brings new life to our beloved Jane Austen except now she must navigate the Roaring 20's! It doesn't really matter how she got there, Jane Austen Lives Again is a quick read connecting much of Austen's work to the lives of the Milton Family, Jane's employers.

I really enjoyed this story and it's parallels to different Austen stories.

I've rarely read a book and had no idea where it was going. This one kept me guessing and when there was the 'big reveal' towards the end, I only figured it out a few lines before.

I thought it was going to be more about some secret love Jane Austen had but no...time travel my friend, time travel! I like that Jane Odiwe doesn't give too much explanation but just enough of how it all worked. And ultimately there was the happy ending!

This should be a 4.5 star rating, as that is what I gave it on my blog but no half ratings here. Decided to just give it the five. It was a pleasant read.

Lizzy Benson decides to visit Chawton House, one of Jane Austen's homes, where she buys what turns out to be a special advent calendar. But when she opens the first door magical things start to happen as she meets the Bennet family. But as seen in First Impressions, can Lizzy's meeting with Miss Austen steer the story to become Pride and Prejudice.
A very enjoyable read.

Sophie Elliot visits the family home in Bath, which is next door to the home of Jane Austen in the early nineteenth century, to help get over a broken romance. The story is from Sophie's point of view as she meets the downstairs tenant and the finding of a white glove which transports her to Regency Bath. There she meets the Austen family - how close is Persuasion to the life of Jane and Sophie.
I enjoyed the parallel romance in modern day and Regency, and liked the characters which made it a satisfying read.

The newly married Darcys have invited their families to stay for the Pemberley Ball. Meanwhile, Elizabeth has mislaid a precious family heirloom, and a mystery is coming back to haunt and ruin the Darcy family.
An entertaining read with a glimpse into the Darcy's marriage.

Dr. Lyford, the personal doctor of Jane Austen has found the secret to immortal life, a secret he has discovered just in time to save Jane. When she wakes up she is no longer in 1817 but 1925. Thankfully she is soon employed as a governess to five girls living in the castle called Manberley. As you read the book it is easy to see the original characters from Jane Austen's books in this story.
An entertaining read.

While visiting Bath in 1975 Caroline Heath discovers teenager Jane Austen's diary. She soon becomes involved in her own love story, and travels through time seeing the past through the eyes of Jane and Cassandra Austen.
An enjoyable story.

Ellie Bentley and her four friends join a secret archaeological dig at Jane Austen's childhood home. But Ellie starts slipping back to 1796 and into the body of Jane Austen. Although Jane's romance is doomed, what about Ellie's?
An interesting read, a nice mix of Austen and time travel.

A sweet short story about Kitty Bennet finding love at Pemberley.

In this story we see Pride and Prejudice from Lydias's eyes, her acts and thoughts. Which then continue with her life after with Wickham. With this story we have the introduction of quite a few new characters which are very welcome.
I have not been a fan of Lydia (she and Kitty are much too silly for me) but you can certainly start to feel sorry for this Lydia.
A well-written and enjoyable story.

An enjoyable fantasy based on Jane Austen, featuring a magical Advent calendar.

The fun of reading a sequel pastiche - and no doubt the fun in writing one - are spotting those sentences you are certain Austen would never have written. So Odiwe pushes the boundaries in an entertaining but respectful way. And it was enjoyable seeing how the younger sisters behave, given a little more freedom, while the men as usual are rushing off to take care of their ‘responsibilities’.

Some entertaining scenes, especially those that included the suitably ghastly & delusional Anne Steele.

Willoughby has returned and he is bumping into Marianne Brandon at every turn. These unexpected meetings force Marianne to relive all of their painful, yet exquisite memories of the past. While she has been happily married to Colonel Brandon for three years, she has continually been in doubt of the attentions being paid to his ward Eliza and her daughter, Willoughby's child. Insecure in Colonel Brandon's affections and love, Marianne is forced to consider if she made the right decision in marrying him. The contemplation of her marital happiness is especially difficult now that Willoughby is back....and is pursuing Marianne attention and stoking the fires of their long lost love.

Willoughby's Return is a fanciful novel of what would happen if Willoughby came dashing back into Marianne's life, while proclaiming his undying love and desire. I enjoyed reading a "sequel" of Sense and Sensibility from a unique viewpoint. It really does make you think about how Marianne and Colonel Brandon's life would have turned out...especially if Willoughby came cavorting about again.½

This book had my attention from the beginning. I love reading about books that have some basis on other books with their own twist.
The story is about a young modern English woman named Sophie Elliot who journies to Bath in an effort to write a book and instead finds herself caught up in life about her in the present and in the 1800's when Jane Austen was alive. She finds herself drawn to Josh in the present and Charles Austen in the past. As she journies to the past more, it becomes harder for her to remember her life in the present and is more drawn to her life as Sophia Eilliot, spending time with the Miss Austen's as well as Charles and as little time with her own rather stuck up family as possible, in particular Mr. Granville.
She soon finds herself stuck between a rock and a hard place and when something tragic happens, not all hope will be lost as she imagines and the she will learn that love can be found when you least expect it.

A thoroughly engaging novel, Jane wrote beautiful descriptions of what life might have been like in Jane Austen's time and I could almost find I was in that era. I hope to visit that world again son.
Full of adventure, bonds of friendship, love and believing in oneself, it was a pleasure to read this book and I highly recommend it for Jane Austen friends especially if Persuasion is a favorite!!

I liked this re-telling because, well I can't say it cos that would be a spoiler. But I liked how it all tied in together. Oh and the end, I did not see that, fun :)

Elizabeth, Elle, is on a Jane Austen dig with her 4 friends. All with names hinting to that they are the Bennet sisters. And together they experience Pride and Prejudice. There is a Wickham, Mr Darcy and Bingley. There is Pride and there is prejudice.

But the thing is, that while all of this is going on Elle is seeing bits and pieces of Jane's life as they are digging out her house and visiting places she visited. There are memories from her childhood and how she met Tom Lefroy. And then there are spoilery things I wont mention but that were awesome.

An interesting re-telling of the old story with a new twist on it.

Awww there is nothing like JA variations, sequels and all the rest. Am I obsessed? How dare you Sir!!...ok ok, I am totally obsessed and enjoy them all :D

In this one we meet Darcy and Lizzy after the wedding and they will have a big ball, for friends and family. But there will be drama!

A missing ring. Did she loose it? Did someone take it?
An annoyed and annoying Lady de Burgh (put Caroline in that category too).
Mrs Bennet being Mrs Bennet (we all know what that means, sigh!)
And mysterious relatives showing up. Who are they?

There is some drama, some romance, and your favorite characters showing up and being their annoying selves ;)

There is also a build up for a sequel that I look forward to. But I will not go into things, I will let you all be surprised.

I am a sucker for Austen fan fiction, but this one was underwhelming. I was impressed by the author's ability to capture Austen's tone, at least in terms of grammar, structure and diction, though there were a few instances where contemporary usage crept in, and that was a little jarring. There was also something a little off with the storytelling, though that might simply have been my own dislike of how she chose to further develop these beloved characters. I know fan fiction is all about interpretation, and I guess I didn't care for some of hers. Most of the scenes between Willoughby and Marianne, for instance, seemed tortured rather than infused with a passion that had previously been denied. I understand that the author was expanding on the "he will always regret you, Marianne" theme, but the scale of his passion, bordering sometimes on stalkerish, was not quite believable. I can't tell if this was a fault of the writing or if the basic premise was flawed. Either way, it was a bit tougher to get through this than some other Austen fan fiction I've read.

I found this book very hard to start. The story was bland and uninteresting and I was tempted on a few occasions to put it away altogether - but I'm glad I held on. About halfway through the book the story became more entertaining, and I couldn't put the book down until the end.

Mr. Darcy was a little more haughty than I remembered him ever being. I felt the way he acted towards Elizabeth to be in contrast with the way that the characters evolved in the original novel. But I suppose it's hard to get over a lifetime of habit and acting a certain way, so perhaps that's what the author was trying to convey.

An enjoyable read regardless.

Hello, Jane Austen, my old friend. Or, rather, Jane Austen as continued by Jane Odiwe. I'm not gonna beat around the bush here - I loved this book. Austen sequels are a dime a dozen and some of them are truly awful. But then, once in a blue moon, you come across an author who not only obviously adores Austen (to the point of distraction, and I'll get to that later), but one who respects the original work enough to emulate it and then proceed in the same vein.

Willoughby's Return (2009), subtitled "A tale of almost irresistible temptation" is neither dry nor tawdry. This is no lifeless pile of words built upon Austen's frame, nor is it overly sexual; it remains comfortably in the appropriate time period. The story catches up with the Dashwood girls about three years after the events of Sense and Sensibility. Elinor and Edward have two young ones, Marianne and Brandon have a young son, and Margaret - never a diffident girl to begin with - has grown up and is ready to make her mark upon society.

John Willoughby was of course the foul rogue and spoiler of women whose abandonment of Marianne's love in favor of wealth almost killed the poor girl. You would think these parties would never stand to be in one another's presence ever again. But when Willoughby is involved in some business with Brandon's nephew, fate seems to have a different plan. While Brandon runs off to Lyme to care for his ward and her sick daughter (that being Willoughby's daughter), Marianne finds herself confronted over and over again by Willoughby and his unabated passion. Meanwhile, Margaret confesses that she herself was once in love with Willoughby, falls in love with someone else, is seemingly rejected by someone else, and ends up resembling the Marianne Dashwood of old in every way.

The story is well-constructed and the characters just as alive (if not more) as before. However (and here comes the point of distraction I was talking about) a large portion of the plot is drowning in pastiche. All of Austen's novels are represented, as if this book were the Austen Olympics. I wish that she had focused less on cramming in so many recognizable instances that had no place in the world of Sense and Sensibility.

At the same time, the novel is deeply engaging, it's funny, the characters are passionate and honest renderings of their originals, and the new characters (while some of them caricatures of other Austenfolk - i.e. Brandon's sister is so very obviously molded from the same clay as Mrs. Ferrars) are none too numerous that one cannot keep track of them, nor so flat as to be forgotten. Odiwe's insight into both her original characters and the classic characters is truly admirable. Now I need to go add her other books to my wishlist...

Lauren Cartelli
www.theliterarygothamite.com

Elizabeth and Darcy are married and in the midst of newlywed bliss, anonymous love letters from the past surface. Once a wave of town gossip reaches Lizzie’s ears she begins to wonder if her husband had a life before her, one that he is ashamed of and therefore hid away. Mysteries and suspicions add up as villains–Caroline Bingley, Lady Catherine and Wickham–from the past make appearances.

Along with this storyline of Darcy and Elizabeth, we are also given a peek into Georgiana’s love life as her brother sets out to arrange her into a loveless marriage. Will she submit to Darcy‘s rule or will she break them as Darcy himself did, and follow her own heart? Mr. Darcy’s Secret is one of the best Pride and Prejudice continuations I’ve read so far as it grabs you from page one; highly recommended. 4/5.

http://www.read-all-over.net/fiction/historical/book-review-mr-darcys-secret-by-...

An intriguing and unique continuation of Pride and Prejudice

Everyone has a secret or two in their past that they would rather forget. In Regency times, where a breach in propriety could ruin a reputation with a withering look, people had many secrets to hide. Are we surprised to learn that the residents of Pemberley, the palatial estate of the Darcy family in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, have a few of their own tucked away in the library or residing at a local cottage? Author Jane Odiwe wants us to explore that possibility in her new novel Mr. Darcy’s Secret. Will the happily ever after really happen for the newly married Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet, or will a family secret ruin the fairy tale?

At the conclusion of the original novel Austen left riffs running and a few positive connections for the couple. As Elizabeth arrives in Derbyshire and settles into to her new duties as mistress of the great estate of Pemberley, she attempts to reconcile her husband with his aunt Lady Catherine de Bourgh and build up fragile Georgiana Darcy after the emotional upheaval of the failed elopement with Mr. Wickham. Elizabeth resists the innuendo of local gossip Mrs. Eaton to a Darcy connection of a secret affair and illegitimate children until she discovers a cache of love letters hidden in the library. Her doubts about the man she married deepens further when Darcy insists that Georgiana marry quickly, and for title and fortune, and not for love.

"Elizabeth stared at Mr. Darcy in disbelief. Not for the first time in the last few days did she stare at the man she had married to consider how little she really knew him. She had been so sure of his character in Hertfordshire and now, for the moment, she could not reconcile any of her former beliefs. Looking at him, his countenance flushed from his passionate speech, his face solemn and sober, she realized it was useless to debate the matter. Without further ado, she excused herself…" page 114

No, life at Pemberley is not all sunshine and syllabub. Georgiana is torn between her family duty to marry the man of her brother’s choice or the man she truly loves, Thomas Butler, a young and aspiring landscape gardener designing a new garden on the estate. They have everything in common that true lovers should possess, which Elizabeth recognizes, and her husband does not. How could he be so calculating with his sisters happiness and not with his own? These inconsistencies in his character, the love letters and the familiar resemblance of a young boy in the village threaten Elizabeth’s trust in her new husband and Georgiana’s happiness.

With two plots churning, Jane Odiwe has crafted an intriguing and unique continuation of Austen’s classic that will charm and delight Janeites and historical romance readers. As we travel from Hertfordshire to Derbyshire to the Lake District of Cumberland, we enjoy the awe inspiring picturesque scenery and equally jaw dropping characterizations. Be prepared to see romantic icon Mr. Darcy knocked off his pedestal and conceitedly independent Elizabeth Bennet passively submit to her doubts. Is that a bad thing? Only, if you are determined that these characters should not change, grow and evolve beyond the last page of Pride and Prejudice.

I laughed at the creativity of giving Caroline Bingley a crush on a bohemian artist who she so wishes to impress that she embraces the peasant lifestyle and rents a rustic cottage near him while he is on holiday in the Lake District. He happens to be a wealthy and titled bohemian artist so we know she has not strayed too far from her aspirations of social grandeur. Georgiana plays out to be a bit of the rebel that we always knew she was by falling in love with one man while engaged to another, and thoughtless Lydia Wickham makes a cameo appearance to discover a secret that could ruin a Darcy’s happiness. Oh yes. Mr. Darcy is not the only one harboring secrets in this tale. Hiding or disclosing them is the mettle of true character. Who fesses up? Only those with the true Darcy spirit will tell.

Laurel Ann, Austenprose

MR. DARCY'S SECRET by Jane Odiwe is a historical romance set during Regency England. It is written with depth and details, in the Jane Austin dialog. When Miss Elizabeth finally marries her beloved Mr. Darcy she soon learns he may have a secret. After finding a stash of anonymous passionate love letters,along with town gossip questions of the letters owner and if they belong to her beloved Mr. Darcy arise.She is determined to find out the truth. Secrets will be revealed and long thought betrayal will come to light. If you enjoy Jane Austin and Pride and Prejudice you will enjoy this book.This book was received for the purpose of review from the publisher and details can be found at Sourcebooks Landmark, an imprint of Sourcebooks and My Book Addiction and More.

I am in two minds about this sequel to 'Sense and Sensibility', my favourite Austen novel. On one hand, Jane Odiwe is a fair writer, certainly not Berdoll-bad, and she has an obvious respect for her source material, but 'Willoughby's Return' adds nothing to the original. In fact, I was disappointed by how blatantly the plot mirrors the events of Austen's story, and how little the central characters have developed.

Three years after the hurried conclusion of 'Sense and Sensibility', Elinor Ferrars is happily married with two children, but only ranks a cameo appearance. Marianne is also now a wife and mother, mistress of Delaford and chaperone to the last remaining eligible Dashwood girl, Margaret - but in temperament and behaviour, she is still the same, if not worse. Petulant and needy, Marianne really annoys me in the sequel, whereas her forthright attitude and youthful exuberance in the original novel made her my favourite of the two sisters. She still carries a flame for Willoughby, invested with the author's charitable opinion of Austen's bad boy, no doubt; regrets Allenham when she has Delaford; transplants her own weaknesses onto others (why should the Colonel fall in love with the girl he raised as his daughter, for heaven's sake?); and above all behaves like a spoiled child. Marianne Dashwood didn't deserve Colonel Brandon's constancy and devotion the first time around, in my opinion, and nor is she making much of an effort as his wife. If anyone in the Brandon household should doubt that they are loved, it is surely the Colonel himself (or possibly their son, James, who is abandoned for weeks on end), and yet Marianne's selfish fits of jealousy make her sound almost paranoid. If the Colonel - named William here - is not there to shower her with gifts, make her the centre of attention, or carry her upstairs to demonstrate his love, she indulges in cruel suspicions and doubts ('Surely Brandon cannot look upon Eliza Williams without seeing her mother and the idea that they are moving towards an understanding of another kind looms with intensity'.)

When the prodigal Willoughby returns to play with Marianne's affections, he is resisted or received depending on how 'secure' she feels in her husband's love. The leopard of Allenham hasn't changed his spots, however much Odiwe takes pity on him and expects the same from the reader ('he had once tried to explain his past actions to Elinor, for which he had seemed truly sorry'). Yet apart from upsetting the marital apple cart, causing a stir, and playing cupid, the story isn't really about Willoughby. Or the fickle Marianne.

Margaret is now eighteen, ready for her first season - and the marriage market, this being Austen. Big sister Marianne, after resisting all matchmaking attempts by Sir John Middleton and Mrs Jennings herself five years before, has plans for her. Brandon's nephew Henry Lawrence (son of the sister in Avignon and owner of Whitwell) is in town, and Marianne means to pair them off. After resisting with a less than subtle statement about women having no say in their futures (Austen was much better at sly social commentary), Margaret spots the dashing Henry across a crowded ballroom and promptly loses her heart a la Marianne.

This is my main problem with Margaret's story - the development of the central plot is an exact replica of Marianne and Willoughby's hasty romance from 'Sense and Sensibility'. He's romantic and poetic, cares little for propriety, risks her reputation by taking her for unchaperoned drives - and then seemingly turns cold, transferring his affections elsewhere. Even Anne Steele, though far too old to still be interested in 'beaux' (in almost exactly the same words), is drafted in, and Mrs Jennings plays much the same role as before. What with Willoughby pursuing Marianne, even though both of them are married, and Margaret falling for a wrong 'un, I thought I was reading a Young Adult version of the original novel!

For all the repetition and uneven dialogue (I don't think Austen would have used phrases like 'bump into' and 'butt in'), I did find Odiwe's sequel readable, mainly because of my love for the Colonel. He is by far one of Austen's best 'matches', trumping even Darcy and his ten thousand a year, yet even she didn't truly do him justice. Like every reader who recognises his modest qualities over Willoughby's flash appeal, I wondered about his marriage to Marianne after finishing the book. In that respect, Odiwe doesn't disappoint - when the Colonel is in his wife's good books, and not being written out again to care for a sickly Eliza III (Willoughby's daughter), the pair are delightfully romantic and affectionate. I love those passages the most, when he can convey the love he feels in a mere glance and still cannot believe his good fortune - as he views his marriage, bless him - in finally winning Marianne. And she does love him in return, even if memories of her first love and Willoughby's skilled flattery are enough to tempt her. The devices that bring the two erstwhile lovers together are obvious and unconvincing - especially the replay of their first meeting - but her emotional vulnerability is understandable, if unneccessary. Marianne remains more on Willoughby's level than Brandon's, but a marriage built on mutual regard and love not lust is still satisfying to read about. I only hope that Marianne finally grows up and can appreciate all that she has!

Recommended for other admirers of wicked Willoughby, certainly, but any readers of 'Sense and Sensibility' who prefer Colonel Brandon should opt for 'Colonel Brandons Diary' by Amanda Grange.