Customer Reviews

Sanditon: Jane Austen's Last Novel Completed

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

It is a shame that Jane Austen did not live to finish this novel, but lucky for us that someone has made a great attempt to complete the fragment. It is very well done. If you are worried about the consistency of switching authors mid-book, need not worry, I assure you. I found it very hard to decipher where Jane left off and where 'another lady' begins. I think she followed the style of Jane's writing and predicted the correct outcome. I found nothing wanting with this novel. It was in no way disappointing. I highly recommend it for anyone who loves Jane Austen.

To entice those of you who are still undecided:
The Scenario:

A couple from the seaside resort of Sandition get into a carriage accident near the home of Charlotte, our heroine. Charlotte's family helps them and nurses Mr. Parker who sprains his ankle. In return they take Charlotte back with them to Sandition to give her a nice holiday. Charlotte is the most sensible and observant character. Everyone around her seems to have their head full of something other then sense and practicality. She meets all sorts of people, a wide variety of personalities and demeanors. Charlotte prides herself in being a good observer. But when Sidney Parker, brother of Mr. Parker comes to town, Charlotte finds it difficult to keep her head on straight and her level headedness disipates. This book brought me so much pleasure. If you don't read it, how will you ever find out: If Clara Brereton will elope with Sir Edward? Or if Henry Brudenall will get over his cousin whom he was jilted by? Or why Sidney really came back to Sandition the night of the ball?

As a major Jane Austen fan needing more, more, more I bought this book. With much trepidation, I practically circled it twice before opening it. By time I closed it at the end, I was amazed at how well the "other lady" finished Ms. Austen's last novel. It's obvious in the first 11 chapters that Jane Austen's illness made it impossible not only to finish the novel, but to polish and re-write it as was her wont. It's a little sad to read her rough beginning and I thought the "other lady" did very well at picking up the thread and saving this novel. Absolute purists may claim the novel was better left unfinished, but I think it was an enjoyable read. Unfortunately I accidentally left the book on an airplane, with only a few pages left to go, but suffice it to say that I immediately went out and bought it again because it was such a good novel. Only a very few words and scenes were not true to Austen form, but since there can never be another Jane Austen, this shouldn't come as a surprise. The Other Lady carefully developed the characters in Austen form, and the plot was very good. She introduced more twists in the plot than Austen would have, but they served to make the novel even better. Read the Apology at the end of the book before embarking upon reading, and you will understand how graciously the Other Lady bows to the fact that she knows she's no Jane Austen, but a loving Jane Austen fan. I enjoyed Sanditon more than Letters from Pemberely, which I felt left the reader rather cold and didn't capture Elizabeth Bennet at all. Sanditon is by far the best of the "spin off" genre.

I'm giving this book 4 stars in salute to the "Another Lady", who's done a better job of imitating Jane Austen's language at many points in this book than any other JA fragment-completer I've encountered. After looking at Coates' version of "The Watsons", which was awful, I appreciated all the more the restraint and skill needed to sustain the thread of Miss Austen's delicate style of literary weaving.

That said, "Sanditon" is far from perfect. Although the Lady carries on the language and plot in a convincing way for some time, one sees it break down after the sensible Charlotte Heywood, a la Bronte, falls dizzyingly and mind-numbingly under the spell of Sydney Parker. I was disappointed, as it seemed that JA had designed Charlotte to be a refreshingly strong-minded character. In the fragment she left, Charlotte says what she thinks, and observes with a great deal of keen good humor. Little by little this gets lost, and she turns to mush.

The whole abduction incident, too, while alluded to in the fragment, seems foreign to JA's style.

I rather like the Parker family, though, and think Lady Denham pretty well sustained.

In spite of its flaws, I did very much enjoy this novel for what it was, and felt that the Lady sincerely tried to respect JA's vision and tone. It would be interesting to see "Sanditon" dramatized. It has the marks of a labor of love.

So, don't expect the complete Austen experience here. But it's probably the best completion of the fragment done to date.

First, a disclaimer: I'm a long term Jane Austen fan, who inherited the complete collection (of her finished works) when my Dad returned home from serving in Operation Desert Storm, for my biologist-mother had taken to reading Jane Austen's novels in his absent. Needless to say, they came to me highly recommended.

I'm a good deal older now, but even in a world of literature, Jane Austen stands her own as a cornerstone in British literature and the art of the novel of manners.

It was just a few weeks back when my mom handed me a copy of Sandition. I warily read the description on the back, and then placed the little paperback atop one of my many I'm-going-to-read-this-soon piles, where it was subsequently lost. This disappearance didn't bother me much, for I have read several Jane Austen sequels and prequels and take offs which failed miserably in their attempts to re-invent Austen's view of society, women, and the propriety of high society's courtship conventions.

Just yesterday, when deep-cleaning one such pile, I re-discovered my copy of Sandition. This morning, I completed reading what I now view to be one of the most excellent little novels yet.

The first eleven chapters, the very chapters I prepared to relish (unlike my premonitions of those following), were a severe disappointment to me. Like Sir Edmond, they were full of seemingly un-Austenish verbosity and disjointedness (not that such arrives unexpected in an unfinished, perhaps abandoned, work). Yet the sketches of the characters thus far held no appeal, either. Charlotte, the assumed heroine, was highly critical, to the point of framing a negative, sharp personality. She begins the opening stages of Sandition as an Elizabeth Bennet of some sharp wittedness and no kindness.

Yet, as the plot moved on, I was delighted with the turns and changes provided by the finishing authoress. Yes, once or twice characters displayed flashes of personality more vivid than the majority of Jane Austen's characters (I say majority, because both Mansfield Park and Northanger Abbey contain characters rich in themselves and their colorful personalities), but, more often than not, the flashes of wit and displays of humor, intelligence, naiveté, and "officiousness," as Sandition's Charlotte would say, contain the perfect intonations of a thoroughly Austonion work. And no, that is certainly not a word approved of by JAS (The Jane Austen Society).

Out of a five star rating, I would give Sandition the full honors. Why? I know, as both a reader and a literature major, the process of reading dull works, necessary works, even worthwhile books that bore me is a constant chore. But, Sandition was none of these. It made me laugh out loud (scaring my cat!), stay up late, get up early, and postpone gardening for the pleasure of remaining in the midst of the plot and finishing it. Some things are too good to wait, and Sandition is such a book. If you are an Austen fan, then you will cherish this book higher than Fanny Burney's Evelina (another novel I was delighted to discover in my early Austen years). Sandition has all the enjoyment of the novel False Colors without any of the modern complications. It has the propriety (though Sir Edmond's declared intentions go a little far for Austen fans) which is so refreshing to read, the characters that have more substance than Ms. Bridget Jones and her oft-touted diary, and the sequence of plot that stirs the reader to keep coming back for the next chapter (and, in regard to the continuing author's longer length of chapters, I thoroughly champion them! Please, readers, keep in mind that this was not the final addition of Jane Austen's work, and the brevity of her chapters are to be regarded as the unfinished product, rather than the ideal length for all novels).

If you a British classics lover, give this tale a go. It is not nearly so bawdy as modern works, but then, that is precisely why one should enjoy it.

Although Jane Austen did not live to complete this novel, the first eleven chapters that she did write (remembering that she did not live to edit and proofread as she probably would have liked--and therefore these chapters provide a wonderful example of her process of creation)opened a door that has the charming capability to lead us down several different corridors. 'Another Lady' has chosen just one of these many corridors and, while admitting herself that she is not Jane Austen and therefore could never possibly complete the novel exactly as Ms. Austen would, leads the reader on an engaging, worthwhile journey. For those critics that scoff at her attempt and criticize her courage, I ask them to complete "Sanditon" better than 'Another Lady' did. Not only does 'Another Lady's skillful penmanship shine through but also her humility in the insightful apology at the conclusion of the novel. Perhaps those who ridicule her should try to behave with more kindness and compassion, admitting to themselves that they could do no better, and would probably do worse. To any Jane Austen fans who are considering reading this novel, I wholeheartedly encourage you to. Read this book with an open mind and I promise you will enjoy it. Through the pages of Sanditon we are allowed to escape into a more peaceful, contented time. A friendlier time. A time which, I am sad to say, is too far behind us now.

I have read several sequals to Jane Austins book over the past month and have been sorely disappointed. The plots took on such outlandish twists and turns. The characters simply would not stay in character! Not so with "Sanditon"! "Another Lady" did a remarkable job at creating an interesting story without resorting to extravagant plots that were wholly implausible!

There was a decided change in Chapter 11 where the authorship changed hands. I can not say that it was the style of writing that struck me, but rather it was here where the plot began to thicken. Though I was amused by Jane Austen's characters in the first 11 chapters, they did not endear themselves to me until "Another Lady" took up the pen in Chapter 11. There Charlotte's character began to emerge and the hope of future suitors enlivened the plot! (Jane Austen does write romance novels, and for the first 11 chapters the suitors were ineffectual.)

I have to admit I was a bit surprised by Sir Edward abduction of Charlotte. However, like a previous writer, the comical end released me from any critical judgement!

In its totality, I enjoyed "Sanditon" as much as I enjoyed Pride and Prejudice and Emma. Sydney's character was every bit as appealling to me as Darcy and Mr. Knightley! My only criticism is that the book ended too soon! Just as I would like to read a sequal to Pride and Prejudice that accurately displays the marital life of the Darcys in true Jane Austen style, I would also like to see how the "Parkers" would move together in society. I believe that "Another Lady" could be trusted with both endeavors.

This book is by far the best Jane Austen continuation that I have read. You get absorbed in the story and the characters right off. The original text is in this book and the author seemlessly carries on the story until the very satisfying ending(no spoilers here).

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Jane Austen's stories. My hope is to see an A&E mini-series of this book one day!

"Austen's Sanditon, completed by another Lady" is one of the first Austen sequel/completion I have read, and during the 7 years since I first started to read takes on Austen it still remains the best one. Granted, the "Other Lady"'s prose is not perfectly seamless, and the characters have little modern touches about them sometimes; but compared to the inaccuracies and prose/plot attempts I found in other Austen sequels this one's errors are negligible. The author develops the plot believably enough and in an entertaining way, the characters- particularly Sidney and Charlotte- are engaging, and the prose is most of the time very good. Other sequels always seem to lack something about them- either in prose (as in Julia's Barret entertaining but highly flawed "Presumption"), an interesting plot (or otherwise, as in Joan Aiken's very-good "Jane Fairfax", keeping true to Austen's book), or adequate characterization. This book, however, has everything in sufficient and well-done amount, and I found it to be the most satisfying of the Austen takes that I read.

Not one of Jane Austen's better beginnings. I appreciate the effort of "another lady" and her comments at the end. The first chapters (Austen's)are vague. "Another lady" takes the characters in different directions, and introduces new ones. There seemed to be a lack of character development, but by the middle, "another lady's" plot with its twists and complications makes you forget all that. A very enjoyable read, but only to the reader intent on reading all of Jane Austen's works. Nothing, in my opinion, will ever compare to Pride and Predjudice and Sense and Sensibility!

When I bought this book, I didn't know what to expect. The first eleven chapters(the part Jane Austen wrote) was of course, wonderful and witty, as her other books. Once i past the last sentence she wrote, I was getting prepared for the worst. Many authors have tried and failed at matching Jane Austen's charm. This author, however suprised me. The style of writing was authentic. It might have been a bit easier to read, but I believe it's the closest you can get. The characters stayed true from the first 11 chapters. The plot itself was interesting. I couldn't figure out what Sidney's intentions were: Did he love Charlotte? Was he interested in Clara? His questions and some of his actions(like the fake broken wheel on the way to Brinshore)puzzled me. Towards the end I knew Charlotte was being too hard on herself and that Sidney was interested. Sir Edward was a riot, I couldn't get over how easily Charlotte just got off the carriage and left. It was halarious! And of course, the happy ending. It reminded me a lot of Pride and Prejudice, my favorite Jane Austen novel. Sidney ends up reminding me of Mr. Darcy.... the romantic way of proposing and explaining himself. I would reccomend this novel to anyone, it's terrific, and I would sincerely enjoy it if "Another Lady" would write sequels to Jane Austen's other novels. She did so well with Sanditon.