I got it for my birthday in August and read it in December. It was a quick read, only a few hundred pages, and it only took me a few weeks (that’s fast, for me!). Each chapter focused either on Jane Austen or on a young, twenty-first century woman named Sophie, who lives in England and works in an antiquarian bookshop. In the sections about Jane Austen, Lovett imagines a mentoring relationship between Jane Austen and a kindly older man. The author did a good job of melding the two different times in history, and the story that connected them was inventive, interesting, and unfolded over the course of the novel. The novel exhibited a love for the written word, which I always appreciate.
The evil character was generally well-developed, although I found him a little weak at times, and Sophie, though usually interesting and believable, was sometimes a bit empty or boring. I wonder, though, if that’s just realistic. One scene at the end of the novel I found to be unrealistic—picture the evil character setting a fire and delivering a maniacal evil laugh, to give you the vibes without giving away too much—and I didn’t buy it. But at that point I was invested enough, and I was willing to let Lovett have that one. When I made my “good/nah” list to help write this review, let’s just say that the positives outweighed the negatives by at least double. Lovett gave the reader varying and likable characters, intriguing action, and a lovely setting; I’d recommend this as a fun read that’s light without being empty, and fun without being stupid. Check it out if that sounds like something you'd like!
all da luv,
Charlie
