Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


There are Never Enough Modern Retellings of Pride and Prejudice

Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

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Timeless satire for the win. The many adaptations of Jane’s Pride and Prejudice only strengthen my admiration of the sly intelligence in the original. Apparently this is the 4th book of the Austen Project, what a delightful discovery. Liz Bennet is pulled back into her hometown Chicago and dysfunctional family dynamics when her father has a health scare. You will recognize the rest of the Bennet characters immediately. Author Curtis Sittenfeld is just loyal enough to the original’s wit, characters and storyline for comfort. This […]

Didn’t even read past “austen murder mystery” in the blurb

The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray

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Claudia Gray, of Bloodline, here stretches her fandom writing chops to a different world long, long ago with many fervent fans: Austen! The premise is simple: all the characters you know and love from Austen’s greatest hits also know one another. A sort of Extended Austen Universe, so to speak. Everyone has showed up to Donwell Abbey, the house of Emma and George Knightley, for a garden party that quickly sours when there are two unwelcome guests: a torrential rainstorm and Mr. George Wickham. Everyone […]

These are minutes of my life I will never get back

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I… just… bad. All of the bad. I can’t believe this drivel even got published. I think these may have started as plots for porn, and the director just laughed, said “It’s not what we’re looking for, why don’t you write a book?” while snickering, and the author went and did just that. It is not in any way a good imitation of Austen’s writing, it would not have fit in with any of the plots, and it’s not even good porn! It’s 2015, people, […]

Glamming up Austen

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For the record, I enjoyed this book and plan to read the rest of the series. For all its promise and the glowing reviews and recommendations, I was expecting a lot more. The comparison to Jane Austen is apt, and there are pretty clear references to several of her novels in the characters and plot. The addition of glamour magic as an everyday social skill provides a way to make the old Austen formulas new and interesting. The story follows Jane Ellsworth who is well […]

The downstairs gets their turn

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As an Austen fan, reading Longbourne is almost inevitable. I’ve always wondered about the story from the perspective of the servants, and what it must have been like watching Mrs. Bennett furiously attempt to marry off her daughters so that they can avoid the poverty of the servantry. How awful it must feel to watch these wealthy people parade around, attempting to catch equal or wealthier mates to avoid winding up in your own shoes. And knowing that while your own lot in life was nothing to be desired […]



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