I understand that this is an arc and as such, grammar and formatting issues are often present. While this normally does not bother me, this is probably the worst formatted arc I have received and as such, it's making it very difficult to read. There is no way that it would not influence my opinion of the book so I am choosing to stop. I do believe I would really like this story so I will wait until it releases and purchase a copy then. I don't want the author to be punished with a review that does not reflect her work so I will refrain from reviewing until I can read a cleaned up copy. Thank you.

This novel was an enjoyable read. It is a modern day setting about a woman who loves the works by Jane Austen, but it disillusioned by her due to her own personal experiences, especially those involving love. This novel contains romance, but also about discovering one's self. I enjoyed how the author used difference aspects from Jane Austen's novels and incorporated them into the story line. This is written in first person point of view and is a clean read.
Emma Pierce was abandoned by her mother and has difficulty opening herself up to people. She is in a relationship with Blake Hampton, but is not in love with him. She works to keep herself from dealing with her issues. When she surprises Blake, convinced by others that he might propose, and discovers he was having dinner with a woman, she is upset and leaves. She runs into Lucas, who offers to drive her to the train station. Emma does not know who he is exactly. They need to make a stop someplace and Emma judges Lucas based on the situation without knowing all the facts.
Emma learns she will be working with Lucas Hampton, Blake's brother at her job. They travel together to the east coast to expand the company Kinetics. They learn about each other but Lucas keeps trying to push Emma back to Blake. However, Emma is stubborn and Emma begins to fall in love with Lucas. Both Emma and Lucas had difficulties during their childhood, but were able to open up to each other about it. This to me was a turning point for Emma, but she still misjudged Lucas, which impacted their relationship. Emma goes out with Blake, but is not in love with him. She realizes that she loves Lucas and realizes her and Blake are more like good friends. Emma wants to tell Lucas how she feels, but has trouble doing so. However, does Lucas feel the same way or will he continue to push into her brother's arms?

"Lies Jane Austen Told Me" is a predictable book about Emma, a 26 year old who has always loved Jane Austen. However, she feels like all Austen's stories are completely fake, because not only did Jane herself end up alone, but in her own life, men just don't seem to be that great. The book begins when she is CMO for a fitness company and working later than she should be on a Friday for someone who was supposed to be visiting her boyfriend's family for the first time (and maybe getting a proposal). Emma has been dating Blake Hampton, a wealthy and attractive man, who she cares about. At her coworkers' urgings, she leaves work to surprise him at the family mansion.

When she arrives, Emma is thrown for a loop, as not only is his family not at home, but he is cooking dinner for another woman. Angry, she leaves and is caught by his brother Lucas, who offers her a ride to the train station. She finally arrives home and returns to work on Monday only to learn that the CEO has hired a consultant to help her- and that consultant is Lucas. As she and Lucas work more and more closely, she begins to realize that she has feelings for him in a way she never did for Blake- but Lucas seems to only want to get her back together with Blake.

In a series of near-constant misunderstandings and frustrating fighting of the feelings, this book becomes a little tedious. Add to that, Emma's complex about her mother leaving when she was 5 (despite having a super-great dad) and which has subsequently taken over her entire life- and which she feels is entirely comparable to being homeless and abandoned by a single parent at a shelter, and it becomes somewhat harder to like her. She seems a little spoiled and self-involved, as is Blake.

That being said, I still read the whole book and enjoyed it overall. It definitely won't make my list of favorites, but Lucas was the sweetest and a really great character! I also wish we had gotten to know Silvia better, as she seems like an awesome person (even though she seems to exist primarily as a shoulder for Emma to cry on). It had its ups and downs but was overall a quick read and a predictable love story.

Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I tend to be skeptical about books with Jane Austen in the title--there are too many now that read like cash cows, without the wit, insight, or (in period) the feel of Austen.

But this one was not set in the past, and the heroine was a firm fan of Austen, so I went for it.

I loved the beginning--Emma, a marketing executive, has loved Austen for years, and wants a guy to match Mr. Darcy. Who doesn't? At first it seems that Blake Hampton is her Mr. Darcy; she turns him down for a weekend at his parents', then encouraged by her office team, takes the train down to surprise him.

She gets surprised--ends up with a ride from his scarcely mentioned brother, with a side trip to a squalid part of town, and when she thinks she's done with the entire family, she's not. The brother ends up as her partner for a huge company project, and sparks fly.

I had some misgivings during those early chapters, in spite of liking Emma, and loving how she thinks of Austen. But the book starts out with a Big Misunderstanding, which is not a trope I care for unless it's very well done, especially when the obvious question that should be first thing out of her mouth isn't asked for unconvincing reasons until nearly halfway through the book.

After it's asked, though, I was totally on board with the storyline, and the pacing zooms to the most satisfactory ending.

Things I liked:

Emma's job reads like a real job. I have never been interested in marketing, but Wright intrigued me with Emma's enthusiasm and with the realistic-feeling details.

I liked Emma's reading taste, but most of all (one of the highlights of the book) is a lovely bit of dialogue from Mrs. Hampton on Austen.

I liked Lucas a lot. He is a terrific character, and watching the two figure out how to get together made the journey fun.

Things I didn't like:

The seemingly long misunderstanding before Emma asked the obvious question.

Blake's personality changes. (view spoiler)

The very end, there is a short climactic scene that I think robbed the emotional climax a tad, and was unconvincing. (view spoiler)

Those glitches are simply that--Emma, the Austen connection, Lucas, and the voice of the novel were so engaging that I finished with a smile.

OK. Lets get real. Jane Austen. Those of us who love a good regency, are probably all besotted with anything Jane. How did she reach this status, in which all Austen fans feel this kinship to her characters and the author herself? I'm not quite sure. Each one of us feels like her stories are our own personal best friends. So, with that said, you put Jane Austen in a title of a book and I'm a sucker for picking it up. No questions asked, I didn't even read the description. If this had been a paperback on a bookstore shelf, I would have put it into the basket. Its that simple.

Thankfully Julie Wright left me with no regrets. This contemporary take on one person's love affair with all thing Austen novels, and the comparison to her life is amusing and enticing. I could not put this book down. Not only has she written a compelling story about one girl and her fight or flight relationship with two brothers, she has interwoven it with small quotes and instances from the books in just the right places.

Emma, is a successful Marketing Director and has what appears to be the perfect life. Perfect boyfriend who is about to drop the perfect proposal. Blake & Lucas are two brothers, who are different in almost everyway possible. Surprised at the situation she finds herself at the Hampton estate, and then thrown into even bigger revelations by Lucas, Emma swears off Jane Austen completely. She's done. Done with all she has hoped, believed and wanted, and she blames Jane for all of it.

This book has everything I love in a good book. Love. Betrayal. Travel. Surprises. Well thought characters with depth. I am not usually a fan of a 1st person retelling either, from only one perspective. However, this really worked for me. Not knowing the inner thoughts from Lucas or Blake for that matter, left an element of surprise. This is one book that I will be purchasing upon its release.

Thanks to Netgalley & Shadow Mountain for the complimentary copy. This is my honest review.

As I started reading this book, my thoughts were, "Oh, this book is so cliche. Will it just be another repetition of a book that I have read before?"
I can honestly say that NO, it was not just the same old book told and re-told over again.
It may seem that way in the beginning, but then the story grabs you. I was going to put this book down when I was about 60% through with it, but I couldn't, I needed to know what happened. i continued to read and finished the book that night.

This book is about Emma, she is an executive at her company and more interested in being a CMO than being a wife and mother. She is dating a guy, Blake, who she loves, that is until he betrays her. As she is stomping off down Blake's driveway, his brother, Lucas, stops and gives her a ride to town.
One awkward situation down, many more to go.
On Monday morning, her boss announces that there is going to be a new addition to the team, at least for a little while. Lucas is that new addition and will be working closely with Emma.
Lucas tries real hard to get Emma and Blake talking about getting back together, all the while Lucas and Emma are falling for each other.
This tangled web eventually becomes untangled, but you will have to read the book to find out how it ends.
I received a free copy of this book in return for my honest opinion and I love it!

Reading Jane Austen or romance novels can give a false idea of love and romance. In this story Emma has given up on Jane Austen and her romantic notions to focus on her carreer. But of course that is just when romance is thrown in your path. I thought Lucas and even Blake were interesting characters. Neither of them are Mr. Darcy but neither are they Mr. Wickham either. Each could have been a decent fit but only one was the perfect match for her. She just needed the courage to tell one of them "No" and the other her feelings. I thought Mrs. Hampton's words about Jane Austen being a feminist was delightful and thought provoking. I would never have thought of Jane in that way but can see how Jane's wit and characters certainly and empower her readers. This was a great addition to the Proper Romance collection and look forward to more fromm Julie Wright in the future.

"It is very often nothing but our own vanity that deceives us. Women fancy admiration means more than it does. And men take care that they should."
Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice

Emma Pierce is a marketing executive with a dreary past. Despite her admiration for Jane Austen novels, she just can't seem to find her romantic hero. After fleeing an awkward scene with her soon-to-be ex-boyfriend, she meets Lucas Hampton. As fate would have it, Lucas is also the new consultant Emma ends up working with at Kinetics. Lucas is a man of many layers, and as Emma uncovers them, she begins to suspect he might be her Mr. Knightley.

There are several things I loved about this book. First of all, the work scenes were totally realistic. I felt like I was actually in the Kinetics office with Emma. It was a great idea to put the heroine and hero together as coworkers. This made the huge focus on their career tasks tolerable. If Lucas hadn't worked with Emma, I would have certainly complained that too much of the book had been devoted to her job. The author displayed a vast knowledge of the marketing field and health clubs. I have a deep respect for authors who do their homework before publishing a book.

The other thing I loved most about this book was witnessing Emma's journey to understand the truth about herself and Jane Austen. When she finally stopped being angry with Jane Austen for the false expectations she'd held tightly to most of her life, Emma realized Jane Austen's works were written to empower women, not fill their heads with silly romantic notions. Women are smart. Women have choices. We can choose who we love and who we will share our love with. Love and life are about taking risks. Even if things don't work out as we wish them to, we will be okay.

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Perfect for Jane Austen fans, this book will give a taste of classic romance story she's famous for without directly retelling any of the classic stories. Emma is a bold, inventive marketing professional, and her surrounding cast of characters including her ex, her best friend, and her boss create a lively story together (her best friend is nicknamed "cyclops" and her boss doesn't wear shoes in the office). When Lucas enters the scene, we really get to know Emma as she works to create boundaries in her personal life, advocate for herself as a professional, and decide who she really has feelings for. Emma is likable, and while she strives to appear poised and calm, she lets her personality shine in relatable moments (usually after closing the hotel door has provided her with some privacy). Jane Austen quotes preface each chapter and will endear those who are familiar with her books.

I have to say, I LOVED this book! It was endearing and realistic instead of overly dramatic and slutty. I loved the integrity of Lucas and the maturity of Blake. All the way around, a fabulous read!

I loved this book & so would have Miss Austen. This is the first one of Julie Wright's I have read. Going back to find & devour her other titles.