Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict (Jane Austen Addict #1)

Summary:

After nursing a broken engagement with Jane Austen novels and Absolut, Courtney Stone wakes up and finds herself not in her Los Angeles bedroom or even in her own body, but inside the bedchamber of a woman in Regency England. Who but an Austen addict like herself could concoct such a fantasy? 

Not only is Courtney stuck in another woman's life, she is forced to pretend she actually is that woman; and despite knowing nothing about her, she manages to fool even the most astute observer. But not even her love of Jane Austen has prepared Courtney for the chamber pots and filthy coaching inns of nineteenth-century England, let alone the realities of being a single woman who must fend off suffocating chaperones, condomless seducers, and marriages of convenience. Enter the enigmatic Mr. Edgeworth, who fills Courtney's borrowed brain with confusing memories that are clearly not her own. 

Try as she might to control her mind and find a way home, Courtney cannot deny that she is becoming this other woman and being this other woman is not without its advantages: Especially in a looking-glass Austen world. Especially with a suitor who may not turn out to be a familiar species of philanderer after all.  (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)

Review:

This was a very “meh” book that I certainly finished, but would not have lost anything if I had decided to leave off halfway through.  As with many other readers, one of the things immediately noticeable is that the purported “Jane Austen addict” really doesn’t know anything about the historical time period.  Having read P&P around four times now (any by no means pretending to be an expert) there were multiple things that had me scratching my head that Courtney should have known.  I believe younger readers might have enjoyed the descriptions more even if some of the items are inaccurate.   

I do have to say that I liked the response Jane had to Courtney when she tracked her down, as it was likely the most historically accurate thing in the book.  Otherwise, the rants, questionable moral decisions (for the time) and general confusion had me shrugging my shoulders and deciding to move on.  I’d call this more of glorified fan fiction that has a title that is guaranteed to make Janeite frustrated.

Warning: Contains sexual content.

Rating: 2 stars!

Who should read it? Fans of historical romance, vague Jane Austen things and isn’t super concerned with historical accuracy.

Want to read the whole series?

• Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict (Jane Austen Addict #2)