Miss Austen, Gill Hornby’s well-researched, slyly barbed historical novel, is a worthy addition, sure to enthrall Janeites ... Like Austen’s cunning social satires, Hornby’s novel works on multiple levels. On the surface, it’s the story of a smart, attractive Regency woman who, after the death of her fiancé, resigns herself to spinsterhood and a financially straitened life whose gratifications rest in being dutifully useful ... On another level, it’s a vivid portrait of Austen and her family...with entertainingly acid commentary ... there’s lots of courtship drama, but Hornby has slyly inverted the marriage plot and the notion that for a story to end happily, it must end in a betrothal ... Miss Austen continues to twist and turn deliciously to expose the dangers of blindly promoting one’s own idea of utopia, whether married or single, 'as the only true happiness.'
... a touching and exceptionally well-researched fictionalized account of Cassandra Austen’s life, both before and after her famous sister’s death ... In Miss Austen, Gill Hornby has created an exceptionally entertaining addition to the Jane Austen legacy. In this exciting new interpretation of historical fiction, fans of the genre will not be disappointed and undoubtably cheer the opportunity to revisit the grandeur and anguish of the extended Austen family. With poignant intricacy and unique perspective, Hornby gives a voice to and brings to life an extraordinarily charming adaptation of one the most overlooked and most important people in Jane Austen’s life, her older sister Cassandra.
... a delightfully astute reimagining of Jane Austen’s life that offers a shrewd take on Regency gender roles and the less period-specific anxieties of authorship ... Ms. Hornby enlivens the exhumation with inspired touches of social comedy and a cast of appealing eccentrics ... Given all these strengths, it’s a shame that Ms. Hornby’s ear sometimes lets her down. Miss Austen is scattered with anachronisms...and even the odd grammatical howler ... When Ms. Hornby gets it right, though, she’s so good that you forget which century you’re in.
Written with empathy, a keen love of Austen and her family, and a hearty dose of Austen-like wit, this is a captivating tale for lovers of both Jane Austen and historical fiction ... takes on the suspenseful air of a mystery as Cassandra races to find every letter she needs to save Jane’s legacy. With skillful pacing and a flair for suspense, Hornby also reveals the contents of those letters and how they could damage the Austens’ reputation ... Interwoven with historical research about the roles of women at the time (and the judgment of spinsters like the misses Austen), the story of Cassandra’s life draws a heartfelt and emotionally tense picture of a woman at odds with her time ... Those who are not as invested in the life of Jane Austen will still find something to enjoy in Miss Austen, as Cassandra’s story takes the forefront, and her narrative is fleshed out by strong, detail-filled historical fiction. But it is lovers of Austen’s work who will find themselves enthralled by Hornby’s masterful portrait of Cassandra and, through her loving eyes, of Jane herself. Even more impressive is the way that Hornby’s writing mirrors that of Jane’s; she manages to effect the same keen observations and wit, making the book a lovely homage to the writer ... an emotionally resonant, deeply complex imagining of the real contents of these letters --- and a humbling respect for their disappearance and the woman who orchestrated it.
Hornby (sister of author Nick Hornby) whips fact, romance and a little Gothic mystery into an imaginative compote that’s bound to satisfy those who hunger for more servings of Austen, and those who just enjoy a good tale. She channels Austen’s wry take on women in society, with a dash of ageism to boot ... Hornby delivers an engaging plot and some lovely passages[.]
...[a] bittersweet, gently persuasive novel ... Focusing on Cassandra...feels original, and allows this softer, diligent sibling to be the foil to a more showily clever, sharp-edged and volatile sister ... a sometimes poignant, softly paced book that makes a steady heroine of a wise spinster who, when first seen, seems as pitiable as Miss Bates does in Austen’s Emma to the thoughtless Emma Woodhouse. Without romanticising its period setting or underplaying the precariousness of any woman’s position in this society, it celebrates unexamined lives, sisterhood and virtues such as kindness and loyalty.
... a warm and fascinating story that reads as though it could be a Jane Austen work itself ... Hornby has written Miss Austen with compassion, wisdom, an observant eye, and a great deal of humor — sardonic and otherwise. Miss Austen is a novel that could well take its place on the bookshelf beside one of Jane Austen’s own.
It requires an author of guts to take on the thorny subject of Cassandra’s fiery expurgation, and to make sense of it all. Jealousy of a more brilliant younger sister, fear of exposing dirty family linen, anger at being left alone? Gill Hornby in her novel Miss Austen voices the (hitherto) shadowy figure of Cassandra, the villainess of the piece, and makes her flesh and blood. Vital and real ... Hornby is at her best describing the complex bonds between the 'excellent women' of her story ... At the heart of the tale is a new romantic twist, which ought to be equally satisfying to those readers who know their Austen family history and those who don’t.
...an elegant and involving book ... Cassandra Austen knew with perfect clarity that her sister belonged to all ages - she was the first to know it. The fact that she treated her sister’s letters as her own personal property is both a searing indictment and the very reason why there’s any artistic point to the informed guesswork of a book like Miss Austen ... Miss Austen is a moving portrait of Cassandra Austen but not a convincing one. Readers will come away feeling they know the whole extended Austen family more intimately than any biography could make possible, but Jane Austen fans will not forgive. And if Hornby’s next book is a sympathetic look at John Murray as he burns Lord Byron’s memoirs, well, it’ll be time to fire up the wood-chipper again.
...offers Hornby the opportunity to observe the marriage market, women’s lot, and men’s dominion—though with a heavier satirical hand than Jane Austen’s—and also to suggest that members of Austen’s own circle might have inspired some of her characters. Cassy herself never quite convinces and the business of the book can seem scattered, but the evocation of the sisters’ closeness is solid ... A nicely judged fictional resurrection joins the tribute library accumulating around a literary icon.
The third novel from Hornby...strikes gold in the much-mined terrain of Jane Austen–inspired fiction ... While today’s Jane-ites decry the real Cassandra’s decision to burn much of Austen’s correspondence, Hornby’s Cassy is convincingly sympathetic in her effort to preserve her sister’s reputation, and a focus on female relationships and mutual support adds unexpected tenderness. Echoing Austen’s sardonic wit and crisp prose without falling into pastiche, Hornby succeeds with a vivid homage to the Austens and their world.
