Jane Austen prequels, sequels and variations are a popular genre, and some work better than others.

‘Harriet’ (and surely it should be called ‘Harriet & Jane’) is a highly successful variation on ‘Emma’ from the perspective of Harriet Smith and Jane Fairfax. What if Harriet were not the naïve air-head she appears, rather a young woman of unknown family with only her own wits to rely on to get on in society. In this world, Harriet, rather than Emma, becomes the puppeteer, even manipulator. Why does highly intelligent and talented Jane Fairfax fall for a ‘himbo’ like Frank Churchill?

Those of us who love the original will have filled in the gaps for ourselves, such as speculating on what actually happened when Frank Churchill encountered an overwrought Jane Fairfax in the lane, coming away from Donwell Abbey. What was said? Now the author recreates the scene for us and it’s much more vivid than this reader could have imagined.

It has been said that the novel should be called ‘Highbury’, not ‘Emma’, as the little town is so well realised in the original. Here, the author brings it – and the community of secondary characters – to life, with all its gradations in wealth, class and standing in the social hierarchy. It also brings home quite how impossible Emma would have been to live with.

In short, I found the novel an absolute page-turner and will be back for more.

Harriet is a delightful retelling of Jane Austen's Emma from the perspective of Harriet Smith and Jane Fairfax. Harriet Smith is in a girl's school and becomes Emma's protege in hopes of improving her chances in live. Jane Fairfax is Emma's contemporary but without parents and money. In Emma we only know these characters from Emma's perspective. This story gives us more insight into these characters. There is even a twist which you won't expect. If you love to read Jane Austen you will enjoy this variation very much.

Thank you to #netgalley, @AliceMcVeigh, and @WarleighHallpress for a copy of this book.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that if a jane austen retelling is written- i will read it!! And this book certainly did not disappoint! I absolutely loved this book. One of my main gripes with the original book is how annoying and dim witted Harriet is- i always wanted her to take herself more seriously and not let herself be pushed around. Apparently this author read my mind because this book was written! I love the characterization of Harriet and i loved reading about her schemes and strategies. The prose is beautiful and really fleshes out a classic story. Loved this! Highly recommend!

I found this to be a really lovely spin on Emma that definitely added more complexity and intrigue to the story of both Jane and Harriet. I thought the writing was strong and very reminiscent of Austen herself in a way that almost made the novel feel like canon, though I also appreciated some of the added commentary and plot points that might not have been "proper" in the original story.

I thought McVeigh did a really good job with this and I'm really hoping there's a Pride and Prejudice variation/spin-off in the works because that is by far my favourite of Austen's novels.

I'd definitely recommend this if you're a fan of Austen and want to spend more time in her world with her characters. The only issue I'd say I had with the novel was the same issue I had with Emma, and that it felt a little too drawn out at some points. Austen tends to lean more into dialogue, where this novel is more focused on the internal lives of Harriet/Jane and while I loved that there were some points where I felt the pacing was a little too slow.

Other than that, really enjoyable and I'll definitely come back to Alice McVeigh's work!

First of all, I did enjoy this book: it is well-written and Alice McVeigh clearly respects and admires Jane Austen, so that the occasional liberties she takes with Austen’s characters are easily forgiveable.

The chief of these, and a key part of McVeigh’s book, is turning Harriet from the silly little dimwit of “Emma” to a clever schemer who pretends to be an airhead in the hope of gaining entry to society and a route out of Highbury. She correctly calculates that acting this part will play to Emma’s need to patronise and be admired. This may be a complete change of character but is skilfully handled (and, let’s face it, a story told from the point of view of Jane Austen’s brainless Harriet would have been very tedious). It is also nice to meet some characters from Austen’s other novels who merge seamlessly into McVeigh’s narrative without this feeling contrived or intrusive.

The story carries you along at a good pace and it was only after finishing the novel that I began to wonder why nobody had seen through Harriet’s persona. In a small and gossipy village like Highbury, wouldn’t word have got around that Mrs Goddard’s parlour boarder was not only beautiful and of mysterious parentage but also clever? Harriet has surely not been playing the ninny since she was five years old?

Despite the title, only half of the novel concerns Harriet: the rest tells the story of, and is narrated by, Jane Fairfax. The idea of “Emma” told from Harriet’s PoV is new, but telling it through Jane’s eyes has already been done, very well, by Joan Aiken. Although McVeigh gives a completely different, and less detailed, account of Jane’s life and experiences than Aiken, I nonetheless felt that Jane’s sections of the novel lacked the freshness of Harriet’s and found it harder to get involved in her story.
But I think that the main reason that “Harriet” ultimately leaves the reader feeling slightly cheated is McVeigh’s need to stay faithful to Austen. Harriet’s aim in playing her part as Emma’s faithful and foolish companion is to gain an entry to London society and to marry “above her station”. But we know that Jane Austen has destined her to marry Robert Martin. So although Harriet does get her wish to go to London she is almost immediately disillusioned with it and sinks contentedly into the muscular, golden-haired arms of the local farmer.

While this is inevitable, it does seem out of character for the Harriet who we have followed throughout the novel. If McVeigh had dared to risk the outrage of the Jane Austen establishment by allowing Harriet more time to experience the delights and perils of London and taking her story in a new direction it might have made a more interesting, if less authentic, story. Although I have to say that, in spite of the predictability of the plot, there is one audacious departure from Austen that made me laugh and gasp at the same time.

I hesitated between giving "Harriet" three or four stars - probably 3.5 would be fairest but I have chosen to round it up as time spent with Emma and the people of Highbury is always a pleasure. “Harriet” is a worthwhile read, but does demand a certain suspension of disbelief to enjoy it fully.

Every once in a while I like to set aside my feminist leanings and just read a beautiful story. This time I chose Harriet by Alice McVeigh, a retelling of Jane Austen's Emma. The setting is the same as the original, nineteenth century Britain. There are dual narrators; the lovely, weak-constitutioned and musically gifted Jane Fairfax and the attractive, intelligent but manipulative Harriet Smith. Emma is much as Jane Austen painted her: beautiful, rich, spoiled, and flighty. She incorrectly imagines herself a talented match-maker. Each character in Harriet is flawed but mostly good intentioned and they prove themselves capable of personal growth.

There are several love stories here as well as a bit of scandal. Each storyline is carefully crafted and fully developed while highlighting the restricted life choices of women and the resulting social maneuverings. The story is replete with clever repartee in the language of the period which is often lacking in retellings. At times I forgot I wasn't reading the immortal Jane Austen herself! It is fitting that I finished reading Harriet (with a satisfied sigh) on Valentine's day.

Thank you to the author, Alice McVeigh, and Warleigh Hall Press for a complimentary copy of Harriet for my enjoyment and review.

Jane Austin's "Emma" retold! This book was fantastic! Alice McVeigh did a wonderful job re-vamping and bringing to life characters that we all know from long ago. Jane Fairfax, Emma Woodhouse and Harriet Smith dance across the pages in this retelling.
This time around, Harriet, who becomes friends with Emma is a bit more cunning and pretends to play into Emma's hands, all the while knowing exactly what she is doing, and is anything but naive about it. Emma. os the one who seems to have her head in the sand most of the time, not recognizing what is right in front of her the whole time.
This novel captures the spirit of the decade, with descriptive passages setting the scene and transporting the reader back in time. I felt propelled into a different era, with all the glamour and glitter of high society of the victorian age.
I highly recommend to all classic fans, this book is excellent and will hold your interest throughout.
Thank you to Net Galley and Warleigh Hall Press for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review in return.

I just loved this book, with a perfectly Jane Fairfax-ish but beautifully fleshed-out Jane Fairfax, and an almost Becky Sharp-ish (without the psychopathy) Harriet Smith. Very well written with only a single anachronism that I noted, my only complaint is that I didn’t realize it was the second in a series. I’m a bit obsessive about reading series in order, but by the time I realized I’d missed the first book, I was too far into the second to be willing to put it down. In any case, it read fine as a stand-alone. That said, I’m moving immediately to Susan (first in the series) and already looking forward to reading the rest as they are released.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing an ARC copy for my review.