Pride & Prejudice was a seminal reading experience for me. It, in many ways, guided me to where I am now in that it set me on the path of studying English literature. I devoured all of Jane Austen's books and the Brontës were next on my list. Jane Eyre was a revelation, as it continues to be for many readers, in how it broke with tradition and gave the reader an insight into a fascinating mind. I have ended up re-reading these books countless of times and I have discovered new ideas and themes each time. So naturally I find myself poring over various editions, always looking for those new angles. The Marjolein Bastin Classics Series was the latest. I will be reviewing these two together, since this review will mainly focus on design and layout, rather than the texts themselves. Thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing and Netgalley for the copies of the books in exchange for an honest review.

There is something about both Pride & Prejudice and Jane Eyre that provided something of a roadmap for me. Neither Elizabeth or Jane are considered particularly beautiful or accomplished, but they're both determined, proud and stubborn. They have their own ideas about the world and society they find themselves in. Where Elizabeth is very free with her opinions, Jane often keeps her opinions to herself and the reader, unless provoked. They are what I imagine "strong female characters" to be, strong in themselves, aware of their strengths and limitations, and not cowed by the powers that be. As such, I find the key imagery of "things that grow" quite fitting. Just like nature, both Elizabeth and Jane continue to grow, to develop and to flower and bloom in their own way. They are also both extraordinarily fond of nature, of the freedom it offers them as otherwise rather sheltered women. The purple tones for the cover of Pride & Prejudice struck me particularly, the perfect balance between warmth and cold, the passionate back and forth between hate and love. I was less enamoured with the soft tones on the Jane Eyre cover, but I can't deny it is very eye-catching.

The font and text size of both Pride & Prejudice and Jane Eyre are supremely readable. There is a nice, gentle slope to the font that I found very pleasing. There are also watercolour illustrations throughout both editions which are charming but occasionally felt a bit out-of-place. Perhaps I am biased by other illustrated editions, but I think I would have preferred more topical illustrations myself. At times these editions almost felt twee, a little too cutesy for their topics. However, the illustrations are undeniably beautiful and well-placed. I'm not quite sure whether it was due to my own copy, but I wasn't able to read or view the ephemera mentioned in the blurb. However, it sounds delightful. As such, these Marjolein Bastin Classics Series' editions would make stunning gifts for any Austen or Brontë fan! I myself know many reades who I would gladly gift this too.

The Marjolein Bastin Classics Series' editions of Pride & Prejudice and Jane Eyre are beautifully illustrated and very well designed. They are very readable and as long as the watercolour flower imagery works for you, you will find the reading experience very satisfying.

A beautifully illustrated version of a great classic. I can only imagine how stunning this will be in a physical copy as the digital version I bet doesn't do the fabulous illustrations justice

Pride and Prejudice

This is my first time reading Pride and Prejudice. I had the opportunity to listen to
Rosamund Pike and read along with this beautiful ebook version.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

The illustrations were just perfect, sprinkled throughout but not overwhelming. It definitely added to my overall reading reading experience.

10/10 would recommend!

Beautiful nature illustrations fill this lovely copy of Pride and Prejudice. This is something that, of course, would be much more stunning on the page but I enjoyed looking through the electronic copy I was given. I thought the illustrations of two (love)birds at the end of happy/romantic chapters was a really cute way to interact with the text. I would have preferred to see illustrations of the characters and setting, but I think this will make a beautiful copy of Jane Austen’s novel..

A great new version of one of classic literature’s best books! Highly recommend! Thank you so much for this advanced book!

As someone who loves to collect beautiful books (inside and out), this beautiful edition of Pride and Prejudice can be added to those ranks. Marjolein Bastin has beautifully illustrated this all time classic with gorgeous flowers, birds, and butterflies. The rich purple, pink and blue hues are most appreciated on the stunning cover, but within its pages, hide small treasures, reminiscent of finding pressed flowers in one of your mother's or grandmother's books. Visually stunning!

Y’all. If you love #janeausten #prideandprejudice then you need this beautifully done copy. My heart. The #illustration is done by #marjoleinbastin it’s very unusual for me to actually “buy” a hardcover of the book once #netgalley so kindly approves me but this one will definitely be added to my bookshelf. It’s absolutely gorgeous. #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #readersofig #booklover #bookrecommendations

Thanks to Netgalley for the copy. I hadn’t read this before and this gave me the motivation to read it. Unfortunately with the format I didn’t even read this one and ended up listening to it. Glad I finally read it.

Pride and Prejudice is one of my favourite books ever.
I wish I had this gorgeous edition when I first read it.
Absolutely stunning.

The great Classic text by Jane Austen that we all grew up with and loved. Just this re-mastered edition has beautiful flowers to bring color to some of the pages to be pleasing to the reader. Great read for all nothings different besides that they have clean colorful flowers on the pages.

I LOVE PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, I have read many editions of this book. My rating for this book is not for the book itself but the edition.

I must say that I love the front cover, back cover and endpaper illustrations in this edition although none of these illustrations is inherently a part of the book. All these could very well fit in with any other book. Still, this is one of the pretty classics editions and a worthy buy.

This is a book I would love to have on my shelf. The illustrations and detailing is beautiful. Pride and Prejudice is the first Jane Austen novel I read and it continues to be one of my all time favourite stories. Surprisingly I don't have a physical copy anymore but I will definitely be treating myself to this edition.

This is a truly beautiful edition of one of my favourite books of all time, Pride and Prejudice. It gave it another layer of romance and beauty that only enhanced the reading experience. I loved the flowers and the butterflies in the corners and all the pretty colours. Truly and enriched reading experience.

I love Pride and Prejudice! So, when I saw a copy was produced that combined it with the artwork of Marjolein Bastin (who is one of my favorite artists), I was excited to read and review it. While the story continues to be great, I was less impressed with the artwork in it. I actually had a different expectation when I read the description. The artwork is Marjolein’s but I did not feel it added anything special to the book. While the artwork is pretty, it's not so wonderful that I would run out to buy a copy as I already own two copies of the story. However, If you want to buy a nice gift for someone who has never read the book, then that would be fine.

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by the publisher and Net Galley but the thoughts expressed are my own.

Pride and Prejudice is my all time favourite classic! This book has a special place in my heart and Jane Austen is the one author that got me into reading classics and mostly loving them. The book itself will get all the bright 🌟🌟 there are from me every single time. Needless to say, when I saw that a new illustrated version of the book was being published and an e-Arc was up for grabs on NetGalley, I grabbed it! So what are my thoughts about the illustrations? Visually it looks pretty, colourful and vibrant with illustrations of the different flowers, bees and butterflies interspersed at the edges and the end of each chapter within the text. I love the look of front and back cover design with it dark background covered with flowers and gold glitter giving it a gothic, magical look and the book will look lovely as a printed copy. However, to be honest when I saw that the book will be an illustrated version, I expected it to contain illustrations of different characters and scenes from the book, was looking forward to seeing them and was disappointed when I didn't find any.  I think it should be considered for any future editions.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Andrews McMeel Publishing for the e-Arc of the book.

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 (the book)
               🌟🌟🌟🌟 (the illustrations)

Jane Austen renders a beautiful display of English country life in the early 1800s and the complexity of ordinary people — all their vanities, their flaws and their quirks.

The writing is lush and descriptive with a slow melting pace filled with subtle humour, sarcasm and witty banter.

“But people themselves alter so much, that there is something new to be observed in them for ever.”


The author created a fantastic and varied cast of characters. The absurdities of the secondary characters are what kept the plot light and fun.

Elizabeth’s whole family (excluding Jane) were a trainwreck of silly individuals.

But none are like Mr Collins. This man never fails to astound me with his silliness. The things he said were half ridiculously funny and the other half of the time I just wanted to smack him.

Characters like Miss Bingley, Mr Wickham and Lady Catherine were also infuriating at times.

Something I always find extremely entertaining in these types of classics is the underhanded savagery delivered through a facade of polite smiles and impeccable manners. It’s admirable, really 😂 .

But let’s talk about our otp.

We have Elizabeth Bennet who does not care about societal expectations. She will not marry for anything less than love and mutual respect. And would rather marry no one than marry someone she couldn’t love. For the time that this book was published, this was revolutionary as women had little power and choice.

Lizzy is strong minded and makes hasty judgments but I adore her loyalty and admire her fierce protectiveness of those she cares about. She soon learns to not judge too quickly after a few too many misunderstandings.

“There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.”


And then we have Darcy who is our socially awkward wreck who doesn’t know how to talk to people and hides his uncomfortability behind a mask of arrogance. What I loved most about his arc is that he listens, reflects on his behavior and strives to be better. He grows into someone worthy of Lizzy’s respect without the expectation of her returning his feelings.

Can y’all hear me swooning over here?

“Now be sincere; did you admire me for my impertinence?”

“For the liveliness of your mind, I did.”


The romance isn’t a wild passion, but a slow build between two people who are wrong in their first impressions of one another, then grow to admire the other.

It’s soft, it’s gentle and it’s e v e r y t h i n g.

If you’re looking to get into reading Austen, or even classics in general, I really think Pride and Prejudice is the place to start. It’s a smooth read and the story is so well known it will be easy to follow. [👈 This is me trying to be subtle when actually I want to shout at everyone to read this book 😁

Gorgeous edidtion for anyone who wants to get into Jane Austen or anyone who already loves her.

About the story:
What can I say that hasn't already been said?
I can only tell you, that I am a huge fan of Jane Austen and her stories.

About the art:
The art is a beautiful addition to the story. The small details in the corner of the pages and on the edges, the illustrated letters at the beginning of each chapter and the gorgeous flowers at the end of the chapter are a nearly perfect addition to the story. The only thing I would have wished for was, that the art reflected the seasons throughout the story. Since the time span of the novel is about a year, it would have been a great opportunity to show the passing of the seasons not just in the story but also in the art.
Apart from that this edition is beatuiful and I may have to buy it myself. It would be a lovely addition to my Jane Austen Colection.

This book is a perfect addition to any growing classics collection

4.5/5 stars

Pride and Prejudice is a book that I've read hundreds of times. No really, I think that estimation is fairly accurate. I read it once a year, at minimum. I read it when I'm sad, I read it when I want to feel happy, and I read it when I want to find a comfortable escape.
I mention all of that to set the table for my excitement here. I absolutely freaked out when I learned that there was a new print of Pride and Prejudice coming out – one with lovely illustrations created by Marjolein Bastin.
There is something so elegant yet luxurious about the designs that found their way onto the pages of this beloved book. They're not overpowering, and instead lean towards the delicate side of things. The precision in placement helps so much in this case, from adding weight to the end of chapters to filling blank space on a page.
In short, this version of Pride and Prejudice is perfect for fans new and old. For those that have read the book hundreds of times, and those that have always meant to pick it up and give it a try. It's especially perfect for those that love to collect beautiful books, and I know that I will be happily adding this one to my Pride and Prejudice shelf.

*I am giving feedback based on illustrated version, not P&P itself.*

This book was beautifully illustrated and I think it would make a charming gift for any Austen lover in your life.

#PrideandPrejudice #NetGalley

What's left to say about Pride and Prejudice? A classic for a reason (though I'm more of a Jane Eyre person myself) and beautifully illustrated, just not as much as I had expected. Beautiful first letters, illustrations of flowers and bees - a wondeful present for those who collect P&P or love the story.