Emma Woodhouse grapples with the fact that everyone has seemingly moved on except for her—her sister has moved out after getting married and her friends are all traveling abroad while she is still living with her dad on 83rd Street. Then she befriends a classmate, Nadine, and sets out to help the Ohio native live out her NYC dreams. Unfortunately for Emma, her childhood best friend, Knightley, has a few things to say about her new project.

This is a modern retelling of Jane Austin’s Emma. I have never read the original, so I can’t speak for how it compares, but I absolutely adored this debut which leads me to think I may need to go back and read Austin’s version as well. Emma is rich and spoiled, but not unbearably so. I appreciated how hard-working and motivated she was even when she did or said things that were a little out of touch. I also adored the overall cast of characters and all the fun personalities they brought to the story. The ending alluded to a Pride and Prejudice inspired sequel and I can’t wait!

I have a soft spot for Jane Austen retellings and remakes. As a huge Jane Austen fan, I knew I had to read this!

At first, I was a little hesitant because Emma is one of my favourites. However, by the end of the first chapter, I was completely sucked in. There was so much humor and funny dialogue, and I loved the modern take on all the characters. It was charming. I wasn't sure how I felt about some of the plot changes but I ended up liking them too.

I loved that the author was able to retell the story in a creative way, and was able to fully capture the essence of Emma. She was so snobby and spoiled but also endearing. George Knightly was also perfectly broody and handsome. In the epilogue, the hints at a Pride and Prejudice retelling which I will definitely read!

Emma of 83rd Street is a modern retelling of Jane Austen's Emma. And to be honest, I haven't read Emma, but have seen the movie so was slightly familiar with the story. Do you have to be familiar with Emma? Not at all! I enjoyed the story and loved the whole cast of characters. They were just lovely, light, fun and were all a close knit "family" that I adored.

Emma is a young woman living on the Upper East Side of NYC and is pretty much an entitled woman that is notorious for her "match making", but not so good when it comes to herself. When she befriends Nadine, a fellow student in her class that is from out of state, she can't help but take her under her wing and set her up with a whole new life. New clothes, new job, breaking up with her past and setting her up on a dating app. But her lifetime friend/neighbor Knightley is not too keen on Emma's actions. And he lets her know this all the time. At their Sunday dinners and when he just pops in on the daily. Their banter is heavy and we get it around every corner. Nadine sees it and we as a reader can see/feel it, but these two are blind to what is right in front of them.

Although Emma is a character that is rich and spoiled, she is someone that has goals and wants to achieve them on her own merit. She may do things that are out of touch, but she really has a heart of gold. I truly felt that and it was a pleasure to see how her character developed over the course of the story. And Knightley. What can I say about a man that seems almost perfect? He's the epitome of the perfect Austen gentleman. Successful, yet a bit hard on the outside, but also has a strong sense of awareness and reality that Emma does not have. You just know there is so much more to him. And thankfully we get to see those parts through his POVs, which were a great addition.

While this story is about Emma and her journey, I also fell in love with each character and the Sunday dinners. Margo (Emma's sister) and her husband, their father, Mrs Pawloski, Nadine and even the other characters that had small parts that played huge roles. The whole crew really elevated the story and added to my enjoyment. And then there's the romance. It was definitely a slow burn, but once it came on, it was like a delectable little dessert and I loved it, especially when Knightley pushed all of Emma's buttons during a Sunday dinner. #iykyk

Overall, an enjoyable and fun story that I would recommend. And if these authors are teasing us about another story they have up their sleeve in the epilogue, I will definitely be here for that!

Just My Feelings* Rating: 4.5/5 I LOVED THIS BOOK!


Empowered Romance** Rating: 🆗 - This isn't the type of book to redefine your worldview. That being said, it didn't promote toxic or unhealthy ideals. So ultimately, it gets the green light.


The "Did this book make me stay up until 4 am reading even though my kids wake up at 6:00 am" Test - YES! I lost a lot precious sleep. But a good slow burn will do that to you 😉



Just My Feelings Rating Breakdown:
This book was so charming and I absolutely loved it! I have to admit, I've never read Emma (only Pride and Prejudice 😉) so I didn't know how slooooow of a burn this book would be. But oh my, it was a slow burn in the best possible way (view spoiler).

Also, I'm just a sucker for books set in New York City. IMO, only London compares in charm. I particularly loved how the authors made 83rd Street feel like a character in this story.


Empowered Romance Rating Breakdown

⭐️ Authentic Sexual Health 🆗 - I'll admit I'm a bit picky on this one (being a sex educator and all). I marked this as "okay" because I can't stand it when authors put their characters on the pill rather than easier-to-use and more effective contraceptives like an IUD or an implant. It's a simple way to educate readers. Even with Emma being on the pill, this book definitely did NOT promote a toxic, male-centric sexual framework! So that's a win!

⭐️ Awareness of Social Issue ❌ - I mean, the characters come from Old Money who live in the Upper East Side...sure, Knightly runs an environmental sustainability VC...but it's still a VC...and they're all obscenely rich.

⭐️ Book Boyfriend + Main Character ✅ - I loved Emma, just like everything else about the book, she was charming! I liked Knightly and I love them together. But I'll be honest, Knightly didn't make me want to turn my real-life husband into him (a.k.a. he's not going in the Book Boyfriend Hall of Fame or anything).

⭐️ Representative Storytelling ❌ - Again, Old Money. How representative can it really be?

⭐️ Smash the Patriarchy 🆗 - I'd say this was mostly neutral while definitely written for the female gaze.




*100% based on how I felt while reading this book.

**A 5-point criteria rating based on how much this book empowers readers to better know themselves and live with more pleasure, passion, and connection in their lives. This is written from my feminist, sex educator point of view.


I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

If you are looking for a great feel good read, look no further! This is a great one! I have been in a bit of a reading slump and this is just the book I needed to get me out of it.

'Emma of 83rd Street' is a modern retelling of Jane Austen's Emma. I loved this book wholeheartedly and I had SO much fun reading it. I loved seeing them grow together and I thought the retelling was done in a fantastic way, the buildup and the fighting and the miscommunication was everything.

I approached this book with trepidation; "re-tooling a classic" is always a hard thing to nail. However, I quite enjoyed this one. It keeps enough to the storyline of Emma without trying to do a qUiRkY tWiSt, but modernizes enough aspects to keep it interesting. I particularly enjoyed the dual POV, as the original Emma is entirely one-sided and you don't get Knightley's perspective. It makes a much more balanced story.

Emma is still spoiled, but at least more self-sufficient in this retelling, trying to make her own way in the world. Knightley is a more rounded character than in the real book, and yet even with his lesser role, ends up being a more interesting person than Emma somehow. And of course the name drop at the end, how can I not read the next one?

Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding is a modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Emma. Emma Woodhouse has lived twenty-three years in her elite Upper East Side wealthy neighborhood, and is soon to graduate with honors from NYU. She is determined to get her dream job on her own, without her father’s interference; Emma is very likeable, with a heart of gold, but she is also a bit spoiled. With her sister now married, and friends aboard, she meets a new friend at school, Nadine. Emma begins her new project in making over Nadine, convincing her to dump the boyfriend, and bringing her to the many balls/concerts, teaching her how to act and look.

George Knightley (Knightley) has been Emma’s best friend since childhood, but he is constantly giving her criticism, telling her she interferes in other people’s lives; he continually tells her she needs to grow up. Though Emma gets angry at him, they still remain as best friends, spending lot of time together, and Knightley always attending the Woodhouse Sunday family dinner.

Emma’s sister, Margo, pushes her to date wealthy entrepreneur Montgomery Knox. When she finally does meet Montgomery, he is attracted to her, but Emma knows he is not the one for her. She realizes despite his being annoying at times, Emma knows she has feelings for Knightley. Knightley begins to see Emma in a different light, knowing she is no longer his childhood friend, but a woman who he has strong feelings for; he refuses to approach Emma about his feelings. Will Knightley come forward and tell Emma he loves her? Will they only be best friends?

Emma of 83rd Street is an enemy to friends to lovers’ story, a retelling that takes place in Manhattan in modern times. Emma was sweet and charming, though a bit overboard at times. I did like her friendship with Nadine, who turned out to be a good friend. There were some very good secondary characters, that added to the fun. Emma of 83rd Street was very well written by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding. If you are a fan of Jane Austen’s books, you should be reading this book.

I’m a sucker for a boy next door story, so I was thrilled to read Emma of 83rd Street. I’ve never read the original Emma, so I’m reviewing this as a novel and not as a remake. I liked Emma and Knightley. My only problem is that my favorite scene of them being sweet and couple-y didn’t come until the Epilogue. This is a novel about the relationship journey, so don’t expect lots of couples scenes. Be prepared for wealthy family antics and Nadine’s nana’s plagiarized quotes.

Updated Emma with all the goodness of never having to read Austen's version to get the connections.
Cute story, missed connections, and a much shorter book to want to slap the characters and scream "TALK TO EACH OTHER!"

#arc
#netgalley
#emmaof83rdstreet

Emma of 83rd Street was delightful! A wonderful version of Emma. I may have enjoyed this more than the movie Clueless (which has always been my favorite take on Emma to date). The characters were alive and well rounded throughout the book. I highly recommend this fun read!

Emma is a hard Austen to retell, mostly because the character *is* annoying and spoiled at the start and has to grow out of it, and Knightley *is* a nagging grump at the start and.... well also should grow out of it. This does a really good job of capturing the original's magic of a girl who's becoming an adult and truly has the best of intentions at all times but is human and fallible. It also gives Knightley some depth and their siblings a real place in the story. I'm impressed at how easily Emma can be reset in 2020s upper east side (though truly it makes sense). Also LOVED what the authors did with the Harriet character. In general they hit the sweet spot of changing just enough about the original characters to make them their own while keeping the bones of the story intact.

My only complaint, and it was one I kept muttering to myself, is that the authors kept the original age gap. It's fine, seven years really isn't dramatic BUT they keep bringing up how Knightley has known Emma since she was born and seen her grow up and it gave me a bit of the ick. It could've been so much better if Emma was just a little older, but really that's a minor complaint and probably won't bother most people.

Who would have thought moving Jane Austen's classic character, Emma, to New York would result in such a fun story! This will be a great addition to your summer read pile. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

First, I would like to say that I am a HUGE fan of Jane Austen. I have read all her books and they're simply some of my favorite books of all time. So when I read the book description of this book and saw the cover I was like I need to read this book. So often I have seen spinoffs novels for Pride and Prejudice, but this is my first time seeing one on Austen classic Emma.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved how the author took 1800s Emma, and placed her right into Manhattan's Upper East Side. I love how the authors was able to connect the characters from the original, and in my mind am like that's so and so. I also loved how the author's did a twist on what those characters would look like today. I love the updated Emma and Knightly characters so much. I love how the authors spiced up their version because Jane Austen books are very pious, and you so much want to feel the love and desire of the characters. I also loved how as a fan of Austen this book allows us as fans and lovers of romance to see the passion. I loved seeing passionate Emma and Knightly. I highly recommend.
I want to thank you Gallery Books/Simon and Schuster publishers and Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity of reading this arc.

Rating: 3.75

I loved the idea of this being a re-telling of Emma, and an NYC romcom. I liked the story a lot, it reminded me a lot of Clueless, and it was entertaining overall. I just found that the story didn’t really hook me. I wasn’t bored, but I wasn’t hooked, if that makes sense. I think the romance took a bit of a backseat, it was a VERY slow burn, and it was more about this character Emma and how she navigates life. I didn’t care about how she treated her friend Nadine or commented on people’s clothes (cashmere vs. whatever Mrs. Pawzoski was wearing), but I think it all fit because that was her character. She reminded me a bit of Blair Waldorf in that sense.

The story is light-hearted, it’s set in the Upper East Side, and entertaining.

Retellings are hard. They either work or I am constantly struggling to stay in the story because I am looking for things and people that I know and love. Emma of 83rd Street is the best mix of Emma and Clueless. Once I fell into the setting and pace of the book, I loved seeing this take on a loved story. The authors held true to the story we know so well and Knightly was just the best. I love the found family in this story - in all of it's versions. And this version holds up to all of the things we love about the original.

I am such a sucker for reimagined classics in modern day. Probably because I cannot stand a classic and this makes me feel like I sort of know what they're about. Anyone else?!

This was adorably charming and I cannot wait for more from Harding.

Absolutely LOVED this one! Book of the summer for sure. Highly recommend. Could see it being book club picks.

I have never read Emma before but this book makes me want to read it as it's well-written and I enjoy every chapter! At first, it was hard to understand but the flow was impeccable and the story was enjoyable. Thank you, NetGalley for the free ARC!

I loved everything about the modern day Emma. The authors did a great job bringing the Jane Austen Emma to NYC with great characters. I loved it all!