Bookish Review: Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood

Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood is a re-telling of Sense and Sensibility for today's teens. When Hallie and Grace Weston's father dies, he leaves everything to their step-mother and half-brother and they--and their mother--are left with nothing. Luckily, their mother has a generous relative, so they find a place to live, but it is in LA, not their hometown of San Francisco. Everything seems to be turned upside down, and Grace is the only one taking their situation seriously. Can Hallie and Grace both find love and a way to start over in their new life?

Fun read, clever retelling. Teens should enjoy.

Note: An e-ARC of this title was provided by the publisher via NetGalley, which was much appreciated, but did not affect the content of my review.

Bookish Review: Imperfect Bliss

There have been many novels inspired by the works of Jane Austen and many modern-day "retellings," and perhaps no Austen novel is more often flattered by this treatment than Pride and Prejudice. Imperfect Bliss is another such novel, set in modern-day America and featuring a bi-racial family, the matriarch of which wants nothing more than to see her daughters marry well. This is an inventive re-telling: Bliss (parallel of Lizzie Bennett) is a divorced mother, a reality TV show is involved, and this American family is headed by an English father and Jamaican mother.This is an extremely light and fluffy read, but it is funny and a perfect beach read. It was a great take-along on my vacation. Austen fans who don't take riffs on her work as offensive, but rather enjoyable, should find this a fun, fast read.

Atria Books sent me a free galley copy of this book for review. Their generosity did not affect the content of the above review.

Bookish Review: Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

This book is a quick read. It opens in media res--a huge Jane Austen fan finds her transported in time and it is as if she is living in a Jane Austen novel. The book is narrated by the protagonist and you are basically stuck in her head the whole time, which can be a bit taxing. She also behaves rather thoughtlessly at times, going off on rants about women's rights and nearly getting herself compromised several times. She's a bit tiresome in this regard, but the book is a quick read, fluffy and light. It's not bad if you can pick it up on the cheap, but I wouldn't recommend shelling out full price.