Helpful Score: 1
I thought the book was not up to the previous books of Jane Austen. It was a slow read and never really kept my attention.
This novel is a continuation of the fragment Jane Austen left unfinished at her death. It has recently been dramatized in Britain by Andrew Davies, who took the story in some sensationalistic directions which you won't find in this version by Jane Austen and Another Lady. (The other lady was Marie Catton Dobbs.)
At the point at which Austen left off (end of Chapter 11), she had barely set up the characters and situation. Later writers had to think up a plot and decide how the characters evolved. Some did it better than others. This one is more Austen-like than most. It has little in common with the TV series, so don't expect the same happenings or the onscreen sexuality of the TV series. It's an interesting read and one can only wonder what it would have been like if Austen had lived to finish it.
At the point at which Austen left off (end of Chapter 11), she had barely set up the characters and situation. Later writers had to think up a plot and decide how the characters evolved. Some did it better than others. This one is more Austen-like than most. It has little in common with the TV series, so don't expect the same happenings or the onscreen sexuality of the TV series. It's an interesting read and one can only wonder what it would have been like if Austen had lived to finish it.
John O. (buzzby) -
From the back cover:
"Sanditon - an 11 chapter fragment left at Jane Austen's death completed with seamless artistry by an Austen aficionado and novelist - is a delightful addition to Austen's beloved books about England's upper-crust world and the deception, snobbery, and unexpected romances that animate it. When Charlotte Heywood accepts an invitation to vistit the newly fashionable seaside resort of Sanditon, she is introduced to a full range of polite society, from the reigning local dowager Lady Denham to her impoverished ward Clara, and from the handsome, feckless Sidney Parker to his amusing, if hypochondriacal, sisters. A heroine whose clear-sighted common sense is often at war with romance, Charlotte cannot help observing around her both folly and passion in many guises. But can the levelheaded Charlotte resist the attractions of the heart?"
"Sanditon - an 11 chapter fragment left at Jane Austen's death completed with seamless artistry by an Austen aficionado and novelist - is a delightful addition to Austen's beloved books about England's upper-crust world and the deception, snobbery, and unexpected romances that animate it. When Charlotte Heywood accepts an invitation to vistit the newly fashionable seaside resort of Sanditon, she is introduced to a full range of polite society, from the reigning local dowager Lady Denham to her impoverished ward Clara, and from the handsome, feckless Sidney Parker to his amusing, if hypochondriacal, sisters. A heroine whose clear-sighted common sense is often at war with romance, Charlotte cannot help observing around her both folly and passion in many guises. But can the levelheaded Charlotte resist the attractions of the heart?"
