Back of the book: Jane is a young New York woman who can never seem to find the right man ~ perhaps because of her secret obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths to her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-obsessed women, Jane’s fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she ever could have imagined. Is this total immersion in a fake Austenland enough to make Jane kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?
I thought Austenland got off to a bit of a slow start but then I realized it was necessary to set the tone of Jane’s pre-vacation mindset – the Colin Firth obsessed Jane. Once Jane arrived at the resort she had to assume a role and stay in character for the duration of the 21 day vacation. This made it difficult for her to know what was ‘real’ and what was acting. That led to some broad comedy and a lot of giggling for this reader. It’s an entertaining and fun book.
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