7.8 /10 1 Votes
Publisher Bloomsbury USA Media type Hardback ISBN 1-59691-285-5 Originally published 29 May 2007 Page count 208 | 3.9/5 Barnes & Noble Publication date May 29, 2007 Pages 208 Dewey Decimal 813/.6 22 OCLC 73502669 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Followed by Midnight in Austenland: A Novel Similar Shannon Hale books, Jane Austen books, Other books | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Austenland is a novel by Shannon Hale, published on May 9, 2007 by Bloomsbury. It is first in her Austenland series. A film based on the novel was released in 2013.
Contents
Midnight in austenland by shannon hale book review
Plot summary
Austenland tells the story of 30-something Jane Hayes, an average New York woman who secretly has an unhealthy obsession with Mr. Darcy from the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. But after Jane accidentally reveals her secret to a great aunt, who shortly after dies, Jane gets the opportunity of a lifetime. In her great aunt's will, Jane's great aunt leaves Jane a trip to a Jane Austen–themed getaway destination where Jane hopes to meet her own real life Mr. Darcy.
While at "Austenland", Jane is plagued with self-doubt about pretending to be a woman from the Jane Austen era. However, along the journey Jane makes new friends and finds a new romantic interest.
Reception
Ella Taylor of the Los Angeles Times described the novel as "some lit lite to see you through a day at the beach". Another reviewer summed the work up as "an utterly enjoyable tribute" to the work of Jane Austen. Stephenie Meyer, the author of the Twilight series, declared that the novel was "Adorable! The best tribute to obsessed Austen freaks (like me) that I've ever read."
Awards and nominations
Film adaptation
The novel was adapted into a film scripted by Hale and Jerusha Hess. The cast includes Keri Russell, JJ Feild, Jennifer Coolidge, Bret McKenzie, Georgia King, Ricky Whittle, Richard Reid, and Jane Seymour. Stephenie Meyer produced the film.