Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #75027 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-29
• Released on: 2007-05-29
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In 32-year-old singleton Jane Hayes's mind, no man in the world can measure up to Fitzwilliam Darcy—specifically the Fitzwilliam played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Jane is forced to confront her Austen obsession when her wealthy great-aunt Carolyn dies and leaves her an all-expenses-paid vacation to Pembrook Park, a British resort where guests live like the characters in Jane's beloved Austen novels. Jane sees the trip as an opportunity for one last indulgence of her obsession before she puts it "all behind her—Austen, men, fantasies, period," but the lines between reality and fiction become pleasantly blurred as Jane acclimates to the world of Spencer jackets and stringent etiquette rules, and finds herself torn between the Darcyesque Mr. Nobley and a forbidden tryst with Pembrook Park's gardener. Though the narrative is endlessly charming, Jane is convincing neither as a sarcastic single girl nor as a romantic idealist, and the supporting cast is underdeveloped. Nods to Austen are abundant in contemporary women's fiction, and an intriguing setup and abundant wit are not enough to make this one stand out. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School—Thirty-three-year-old Jane Hayes, who has a fairly serious addiction to the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice, inherits a trip to Pembrook Park, Kent, England, the location of a resort where guests dress, talk, think, and act in ways that Jane Austen would approve. Refusing to lie about her age, even on vacation in a place right out of Austen's England, Jane finds herself quickly overcoming the obsession with Mr. Darcy that may very well have jeopardized her 13 "relationships" over the years. Left to walk in last to dinner, mildly obsessed with one of the hotel's gardeners, and annoyed by another guest's overeager attempts to bag a man, Jane is eager to return to Manhattan. Then she decides to give it all one more chance, since Great-Aunt Carolyn did see fit to pay for the entire vacation. Hale does a lovely job with the tale of a single woman who would appreciate a genuine shot at love. The book is well written, quite readable, and the myriad characters, especially those working at the resort, are quirkily funny. Given the immense popularity of Jane Austen's novels among teen girls, this book definitely has cross-over appeal.—Sarah Krygier, Solano County Library, Fairfield, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From AudioFile
Well known for writing clever twists on fairy tales for young adults, the author has written her first adult story. Aficionados will connect with the many allusions to Jane Austens works in this modern-day story of 33-year-old Jane Hayes, who is frustrated in love and longing for an Austen-like romance. When her Aunt Carolyn wills her a three-week stay at Pembroke Park, an Austen role-playing theme park, Jane starts by seeking a Mr. Darcy and ends by realizing that her present reality holds more promise than the fictional past. Katherine Kellgren characterizes British-accented gentlemen and women as they indulge in a Regency lifestyle. As Jane, she expresses the passions of a young woman trying to make sense of life and love. S.W. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

Kudos to Katherine Kellgren
There's no better way to experience Shannon Hale's delicious Austenland than listening to Katherine Kellgren's exuberant narration. The story is of a thirtyish American singleton who is bequeathed a vacation at Pembroke Park, a meticulous evocation of regency England. The heroine is christened Miss Jane Erstwhile and embarks on an adventure that contains far more twists and turns than imaginable. Kellgren's narration not only catpure's Jane's breathless abandonment to Austenland but also the wide range of supporting players with accents ranging from the Deep South American style to the haut ton of Jane Austen's era. Note: Austenland is best enjoyed with Earl Grey tea and scones, clotted cream optional.

Light and Fun
I work for a school and try to read some young adult and children's literature so that I'll be able to use and recommend good contemporary books to the students. Often, this reading is amusing for me, but it typically feels like it's just a professional duty. I rarely find myself really hooked by the books.

The exception, though, is anything written by Shannon Hale. She's a tremendous writer. She can take seemingly tired plot patterns
(such as princess training in the wonderful Princess Academy) and make it feel like you've never seen anything like it before. She, too, is just the sort of writer who'd be fun to read even if the plot was terrible. It's great prose, with precise and surprising images and with humorous observations. I would, and do, recommend those novels to anyone--including adults.

So anyway, I was very excited to see that Austenland, a novel targeted for an adult audience (especially one knowledgeable of Jane
Austen's oeuvre), was coming out. Upon reading it, I'd say that Austenland definitely doesn't reach the level of Hale's young adult novels, but it was also not a disappointment.

I love the premise. Jane, a thirty-three-year-old graphic designer, is still single and has become obsessed with Colin Firth's Darcy
from Pride and Prejudice. She wonders if her dreams have hindered her ability to fall in love with a "real" man. Jane's aunt (somewhat
implausibly--one of the flaws in the novel, I thought) intuits her Pride and Prejudice obsession and bequeaths her with a three-week
stay at a sort of resort in which Austen's England and Austen-like plots are enacted. Jane sees this as a chance to finally confront
and reject the unrealistic images that have been holding her back, and she decides to take the trip.

Of course, not much is going to turn out as she expects. There's quite a cast of characters to deal with, including an absurd and out-of-place Southern woman (Mrs. Charming), a rival, a drunk, a Darcy, and a handsome gardener. She's come to Austenland to reject her fantasies so that she can finally live and find love in the real world, but when she meets these characters, what's reality and what's fantasy become pretty intertwined. She's got a lot more challenges to overcome than she ever thought.

Some of those characters were a bit overdone (especially in the audio version), and some of the jokes fall flat, but overall, it certainly manages to entertain. Once you accept the first premise of the book, everything else plays out logically, surprisingly, and in satisfying ways. There are a number of comical situations, and there is actual character growth, and there is quite a romance (or two) that develops.

So, if you like light romance, if you like Jane Austen, or Shannon Hale, I think you'll find this a really fun little novel.

For all you Austen fans.
Short but good book. Exciting plot twists. Loveable characters. Wish it had been longer but liked it anyway. This book will be re-read again many times. Glad I bought it.