I love all things Jane Austen and instantly knew that I wanted to read this book when I saw it. That combined with my love of historical fiction are what made this book for me.

Set in post-war England, on the former estate of Jane Austen, a group of characters - all suffering after the war - came together to preserve Austen's legacy as the last of the inhabitants of the estate dwindle down.

Each character has a connection to Austen and draw inspiration, healing, and even dreams from her works. Some storylines loosely follow fictional Austen but do you have to be a die-hard Austen fan to appreciate this book, no? I would still recommend this book to someone who appreciates good literature who might even turn into another Austen fan after reading this book.

The research, the writing, and the characters were all captivating. This book does move a bit slow at times but I appreciated the slower pace compared to some of today's current books. I read this book in a few days and it was a wonderful escape.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted ebook in exchange for my unbiased review and promotion.

My full review will be posted on my blog and I will update the links accordingly.

This was a delightful and charming book about people coming together to preserve the last home of Jane Austen in the village of Chawton in the mid 1940’s. A wonderful debut novel that I recommend for Jane Austen fans and fans of The Chilbury Ladies Choir. I was fortunate to receive an e-galley of the book and think I will buy a hard copy for my personal library.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the review copy.

Perhaps it is time for a new generation to delve into the life of Jane Austen. Through this fictional tale,, the author takes us on a delightful journey throughout the English countryside. The characters we meet along the way help us to weave together a glimpse of what life would have been like during Jane Austen's time, and especially the place where she spent the last decade of her life. The author, very coyly, adds dimension to his characters that parallel of the figures in Austen's six published books. Anyone who enjoys reading and collecting books would want to have a chance to visit the massive library in the Knight's main house. As for me, I''m off to reread Pride and Prejudice.

A Band of Jane Austen Lovers

In the mid 1940’s many great, and not so great families were selling their inherited treasures. The Austen family was no exception. Several of Jane Austen’s belongings including jewelry, a writing desk, and letters were up for sale at a Sotheby’s auction. The items are purchased by a wealthy admirer of the famous actress in the audience and presented to her after the sale. The actress, a lover of Austen’s books, takes the items with her to her home in Clawton, the site of Jane Austen’s home.

Visitors come to Clawton to venerate Austen, but the town itself, has many Austen enthusiasts. A diverse group composed of a farmhand, a doctor, a school teacher, a solicitor, a maid, the famous actress, and an Austen relative comes together to try to save the Austen legacy and to discuss the books.

The book has a great many characters each with his or her own story. It’s the love of Austen’s works that binds the group together. While we learn about their individual lives, I found the most interesting part their discussions of Austen’s works. Sometimes, the characters are even able to see themselves in the books.

The pace of the book is gentle, as befits a book about Austen lovers. I enjoyed it very much. I highly recommend it if you too are an Austen lover.

I received this book from St. Marin’s Press for this review.

I might be kicked off of the internet for saying this but... I've never read Jane Austen. Maybe I should, but I've never been able to get in the "classics" and enjoy them.

That being said, I liked this book and the characters. Maybe I would have loved it more if I had a soft spot in my heart for Jane Austen and wanted to learn more about her. It was still a great story, though the first 30% or so was spent introducing characters before we really got into the plot and that was a little hard to get through. Once we got running though I enjoyed how the characters came together. I would have liked a bit more of the society and what they created, but overall I liked the story. the location was also a huge plus as the little town sounded so charming.

A lovely story with wonderful well developed characters. If you love Austen, you will want to make the journey to see the cottage after reading this book!

THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY was sweet, endearing, and nostalgic in the best of ways. A group of avid Jane Austen lovers come together, form a family, and hold hands through some really hard life stuff. It's the perfect story for our tumultuous and unpredictable COVID-19 summer. My only complaint about the story was that the point-of-view was confusing at times with its rather abrupt shifts between the main characters (particularly because there are quite a few). Overall, I highly recommend this book for Jane Austen lovers and readers of historical fiction. I have to say that THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY really did make me want to do some Austen rereading!

Content Warnings: sexual assault, infant loss, spousal loss, parental loss

The Jane Austen Society: Natalie Jenner
Published: May 26th, 2020
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
4 Stars!
I loved this one! Way more than I ever thought I would!
Chawton was the home of Jane Austen one hundred and fifty years ago. Now, all that’s left is a diminishing estate and a few distant relatives that seem completely uninterested in Jane Austen. With Austen’s reputation and legacy threatened, a group of individuals ban together to attempt preserve both her home and legacy. Connected by solely their love of Austen, each individual in the Jane Austen Society comes from a different background and livelihood. As each member has their own personal struggles, they come together to form a formidable society.
Thoughts:
I enjoyed this book WAY more than I thought I would. I have never really been a Jane Austen fan but now, I am definitely going back and reading them! I loved the setting of this story, how well the era was depicted and how easy, and light, this read was. It wasn’t a page turner but it was enjoyable none the less! Very much a non-controversial read.
Along with posting on Net Galley, I will be posting my review to Goodreads, Amazon (when it becomes available), my Instagram (which has over a two thousand book review followers) and my blog. Please find the link to my blog post below. I am very grateful for the opportunity to review such a inspiring and archetypal memorial. All opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you very much.

I was so excited about this one because of the history I thought it would include. However, the pacing was not good and I almost DNF halfway through. I don't think the characters were well fleshed out and I often wondered why somethings were put randomly in this story. There was also the rough transition from one charcter to another in a chapter. I found myself lost on who I was even reading about. The ending finally came together a little better, which bumped my rating to a 3 star.

Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth Bennet, Emma, Mr. Nightly, Fannie and Mr. Crawford...fans of Jane Austen know these names well. Step back into Austen's world through this group of people who's sole connection is all things Jane Austen. Jenner introduces the reader to the town of Chawton where Jane spent the latter portion of her life and where her relatives still live in 1946. Not much has changed...it's still a small town, slow moving. As the book unfolds, each character is revealed, causing the reader to understand how they come together and to wonder how these characters connect to Jane's.

This e-ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a warm cup of tea on a chilly night to anyone who loves Jane Austen. The characters frequently have discussions on characters and plot points of Austen's novels (I may even reread Mansfield Park even though I do not like it just to compare their notes) and it's delightful, insightful, and on point. It is a bit of a slow start as the first quarter of the novel is setting up the characters and their lives, but it's still good, and the novel really hits its stride when the Society is created. It's a classic novel in the sense that it's about getting inside heads and inside homes, and I love that we're able to pop into each of the members' perspectives. I was also so incredibly delighted by the twists (yes, there's 2!) in the last sixth of the book, and the occasional clues where you are able to figure out a detail right before the characters do. The prose also has moments of real loveliness, but the book really shines in its depiction of healing from trauma.
I had no idea when I picked up the book that this would be a main theme (I stopped reading the description pretty much after the title), but found myself highlighting some passages about resilience, healing, and coping, and I RARELY use that Kindle feature. I think this book would provide more comfort than triggering someone going through a hard time, but I think it's most clearly for an audience who loves Austen (the only reason it's 4 instead of 5 stars for me).
If you adore Jane Austen, pick this up!! You will love it. And then probably reread all of Austen.

If I had to pick one word to describe The Jane Austen Society, it would be charming. It's sweet, engaging and a loving tribute to my favorite author. Being a big historical fiction fan already, the setting in Chawton, Hampshire from 1932 to 1947 was a draw as well. Although the book starts in 1932 before WWII begins, most of it takes place in the aftermath of the war in 1945 and 1946. The war has left its impact on the small town and the five main characters of the novel. There is Adam, a farm laborer who gave up schooling when both brothers were killed in The Great War, Mimi, an American film star, Dr. Benjamin Gray, the widowed town physician, Adeline, former teacher and young war widow who also lost her unborn child, Evie, a promising young student who must become a house servant when her father is injured in an accident, and Francis, wealthy descendant of the Austin family and a spinster shut off from much of society. What draws this group of dissimilar people together is a love of Jane Austen and they decide to form The Jane Austen Society to protect the final home of the author in Chawton.

I think if you are an Austen fan at any level, you can't help but like this book, and if you are not a fan or familiar with Austen's work, this book will make you want to be. You can feel the passion the author has for Austen radiate from every page and I love how each character describes how they came to love Jane Austen over the course of the book. And having read and reread (and in the case of Pride and Prejudice reread at least once a year) Austen's books I love how accurately Jenner describes why so many of us do:

"Part of the comfort they derived from rereading was the satisfaction of knowing there would be closure--of feeling, each time, an inexplicable anxiety over whether the main characters would find love and happiness, while all the while knowing, on some different parallel interior track, that it was all going to work out in the end. Of being one step ahead of the characters and one step behind Austen on every single reading."

I am currently rereading all of Austen's books for an online buddy read starting with Sense and Sensibility and covering a chapter a day, and I love the discussions we are having and hearing people's' impressions whether they have read a book twenty times or are reading it for the first time. Along with the books, we are reading adaptations and other Austen-related books and I am recommending this book to all of them. Lest I scare you away with my Janeite fanaticism, I feel like it's an enjoyable book regardless. There's romance and friendship, small town doings, history, and a general feeling of hope in the pages. It's a delight! My only complaint is that it ended too soon--much like I feel when I read Jane Austen's books, I wanted much more time with these characters.

This book is a delight. I am a huge Jane Austen fan and direct mentions of Jane Austen, as well as, hidden parallel plot lines between the characters in this novel and those of Jane Austen's abound. The plot is very tight with colorful characters and humor. I will highly recommend this title.

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence my review.

You don’t have to be a Jane Austen fan to love The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner, but if you are, you’ll love it even more.

In this gentle, sweet historical novel, set in the small English town of Chawton during the second world war, a group of six Jane Austen fans come together to preserve the legacy of the famous author.

Chawton is the one-time home of Jane Austen and of the Knight family, who adopted her brother Edward in order to have an heir. Austen’s works fell out of favor after her death. By the time interest in her life and works revived, many Austen artifacts and much memorabilia had been discarded or disbursed. Nevertheless, a trickle of diehard fans made pilgrimages to Chawton to try to connect, in some way, with the woman.

Dr. Benjamin Gray is the village physician, a man of young middle-age, who lost his wife to an accident several years before. Adam Berwick is a farmer, slightly younger, who lost his two elder brothers in WWI. Adeline Grover is a young schoolteacher, whose husband dies in the war shortly after their wedding. She’s pregnant, but miscarries the baby and nearly dies. Francis Knight is the last in the Knight line, living in the old house, waiting for her cruel, miserly father to die. Evie Stone is a whipsmart schoolgirl, forced to leave school when her father is injured in a tractor accident and can no longer support the family. She takes a job in the Knight home. And finally, Mimi Harrison is a beautiful Hollywood movie star, involved in a trainwreck of a relationship, whose love of Jane Austen brings her to Chawton first as a tourist and later as a member of the “Jane Austen Society.”

The lives of the Chawton villagers are intertwined. They’ve grown up with one another and know many, but not all, of each other’s secrets. Sometimes they understand each other better than they understand themselves.

As in Austen’s novels, the romances between various characters give the novel its heart. The goal, preserving Austen’s home as a museum, is secondary in importance to bringing hurting people together to heal. They will often break into discussions of their favorite characters or scenes, which grounds the book delightfully in its Austen-ian roots.

It’s a beautiful book. Highly recommended.

This is definitely for fans of Jane Austen! Set in the 1940s and bringing together a cast of unexpected characters, there are so may references to Austen's works that makes this such a fun read! It's lighthearted and well-written, feeling much like a comfort read.

The Jane Austen Society tells the story of various residents of Chawton, (the town where Jane Austen lived at the end of her young life) in post war England who are all brought together by their love of her books. Prior to reading it I kept seeing people describing it as charming and now that I’ve read it I fully understand why, as charming is just what it is. I loved each of the characters in this story and how, despite their differences and their own sorrow and heartbreaks they came together over a shared love of books. While you wouldn’t necessarily need to be an Austen fan to appreciate this book, I think it definitely helps. I really didn’t want this one to end, thoroughly enjoyed it! Thanks so much to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advance copy of this book.

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner is an interesting book that I really enjoyed. This book takes place just after World War II in the small English village Chawton, the last home of Jane Austen. The home is run down, and in need of repairs, so a group pull together, Jane Austen Society, to preserve Ms. Austen home and her legacy. I enjoy this book and will be reading more books by Natalie Jenner. I highly recommend.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

What a lovely book! I love Jane Austen, and many of the offshoot books related. This one I thought was very charming and it makes me want to go visit the village of Chawton when the world is open to travel again! I found the characters to be delightful and their idea to found a society to preserve Ms. Austen’s legacy was wonderful.

What an absolute delight this book was! It was charming, heartwarming, and wonderfully geeky in a way that all book nerds will love. So much of Jane Austen is in this novel through references to her works, her personal life, and her long-lasting legacy. I think she would love this novel and its approach to her and the canon.

Natalie Jenner clearly has a love not just of Jane Austen but of reading, of classics, of history. Her gift for prose and character work truly made this enjoyable. It was beautifully written and at times the descriptions of Chawton gave me shades of Thomas Hardy. She had a group of characters, all with tragedies in their pasts and all dealing with the aftermath of WWII, come together to do something extraordinary; preserving Jane Austen's legacy in a town where she lived for ten years.

I think Jane Austen fans will really enjoy this. Not only does Natalie Jenner paint a portrait of her and her readers wonderfully, I think the book itself is very reminiscent of Austen's writing and character work too.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an eArc of The Jane Austen Society.
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I love this book! I loved it so much that when I finished I preordered the paperback. I loved this cast of characters and that a love for Jane Austen brought so many different types of people together. It was so nice to see how a love of reading was able to create an immediate connection for them. There were so many characters that I grew attached to and I felt like there was a lot of character growth for all of them. This novel discusses heavy themes but it was also hopeful and I felt so warm and comforted while reading it. Wonderful characters, a good plot, some romance, historical fiction, and lots of Jane Austen discussion? Pretty much the recipe for a perfect book for me!
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If you’re looking for an audiobook I also highly recommend this one - Richard Armitage does an amazing job!!
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The Jane Austen Society is out June 26!
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TW:Rape, Loss of a spouse/siblings, loss of baby/late term pregnancy , dependency on medication