The Marriage of Miss Jane Austen Vol. II by Collins Hemingway Blog Tour with Personal Reviews!
The Marriage of Miss Jane Austen Vol. II by Collins Hemingway
Publication Date: August 8, 2016
eBook & Paperback; 332 Pages
ISBN-13: 978-1535444958
Jane Austen Lived a Quiet, Single Life-Or Did She?
Tradition holds that Jane Austen lived a proper, contemplative, unmarried life. But what if she wed a man as passionate and intelligent as she-and the marriage remained secret for 200 years?
The Marriage of Miss Jane Austen resolves the biggest mystery of Austen's life-the "lost years" of her twenties-of which historians know virtually nothing.
• Why the enduring rumors of a lost love or tragic affair?
• Why, afterward, did the vivacious Austen prematurely put on "the cap of middle age" and close off any thoughts of finding love?
• Why, after her death, did her beloved sister destroy her letters and journals?
The Marriage of Miss Jane Austen trilogy answers these questions through a riveting love affair based on the history of the times and the details of Austen's own life.
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Praise for The Marriage of Miss Jane Austen Series
"A skillful portrayal of an early nineteenth-century literary icon takes this historical romance on an imaginative journey of the soul. … The adventure of a true romantic partnership and all the excitement that the nineteenth century had to offer. … [The] novel invites you to linger, to savor, and to enjoy. … Makes for wonderful reading. … A Jane that lives and breathes on the page."—Claire Foster, Foreword Reviews, 4 stars "Hemingway captures the energy of the times, while also writing with the irony and sly humor of Austen herself. … A strikingly real Jane Austen fully engaged in the turbulent times. … She is a living, breathing presence. … [He] displays a notable ability to recreate time and place. … A lively, compelling read, [a] sobering but moving conclusion." —Blueink Starred Review "An enjoyable novel in an imaginative, well-researched series. … A well-researched work of historical fiction … [with] sweet moments and intriguing historical insights. … An incredibly moving portrait of a woman facing loss and love." —Kirkus Reviews
***MY PERSONAL REVIEW OF VOL I AND VOL II***
Just mention the name Jane Austen and I go nuts. I am a literature freak and Austen is without a doubt my favorite author. If you haven't heard of JAFF (Jane Austen Fan Fiction), then you have to check that out as well - thousands of adaptations, spin offs and more of all her works. This series of course is not quite the same thing - this is a historical fiction series that tells us the fictional story of Jane Austen's life and marriage. Of course any Austenite knows that Jane never married in real life - she was engaged for one night - but then called it off. But ahhhh wait - this book also considers that as well! For Ashton's hopes of marrying Jane in round 1 are dashed and so he runs off. But of course this is a book about a marriage, so we are left to figure out whether he will come back and marry Jane or whether she will end up with someone else.
So it's definitely fiction, but I absolutely loved Ashton Dennis, he was young, fun and most of all, handsome :) Perfect for Jane. But when he was first introduced to us as readers, I wasn't quite sure that he would be THE one - he stuttered when embarrassed, and Jane did not seem to think well of him at all. You know with the name of the book that she would marry, but in the meantime she does find herself in a lot of awkward and completely inappropriate situations that would not have been done in those days, and even though we suspect it's Ashton, we don't know that for certain. A lot of the first book reminded me of things from Pride and Prejudice. For example, the relationship that Jane and her sister Cassandra share - it's SO comparable to Lizzie and Jane Bennet's relationship in the P&P book. Then of course a woman of 26 is considered a spinster - that reminded me of Emma in a lot of ways. But the situation that Jane finds herself in involves a hot air balloon and it takes off with the story of Lydia Bennet, although it ends MUCH better than that story. But I loved that I could feel the Austenesque qualities throughout the book, and that Jane was portrayed as a strong character, especially for a woman in those times, and she does not care that she is 26 years old and pffts at her mother for even considering her a "spinster". That is laughable, and Jane finds it so as well. I know a lot about Jane's life, but there is a lot we don't know, and it's interesting to try to imagine her in these situations. And of course the writing comes into play quite a bit in the series - Jane is always going off on her own to write - but the only thing I would have liked a little more of is maybe showing her writing specific books and how she may have used her own life to write them.
Vol II dealt with a lot of the things that went along with married life in those days and was what I would assume P&P2 would have been like - the ups and downs of newlyweds and the differences in society. Unfortunately we never got that with P&P, but at least we kind of have a taste of that in this book. And the book also focuses on something that we don't think about a lot when it comes to marriages in Jane's time - things such as running a household, family matters and living up to his family's standards. Another Austen theme - one of the people never live up to what the others family thinks they should. But the hum drum life she has in the second book gives us a nice comparison to the life she lived in the first book as a single and free young lady. I actually feel bad for Jane in this book, she always is under the thumb of her new mother in law and her new husband always seems to be finding his way into a situation that is disastrous to say the least. Jane is pregnant and dealing with all of this, and surely it takes a toll on her, but again the books showcase just how strong Jane really is and she WAS truly a strong woman in real life. She rails against the stereotypes of her time by not marrying early on, she does things on her own time, she writes and she doesn't cowtow to anyone. I won't give any more away, but there is one other relationship in this book that deals with some very keen social issues that are still around today. But you are going to have to read it to find out what that is. I guarantee you will love it though, and as for me, I am going to get Vol III when I can and read that! 5 Stars for both books :)
I loved both of these books, I think they are great - and if you are a lover of historical fiction and Austen, they are a must read! They may be just fiction, but the historical setting, the society and all of those things are just as they would have been while Jane was alive.
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