Everything Austen II - Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict - Laurie Viera Rigler

Summary: Jane Mansfield, after an apparent spill from a horse, wakes up in 21st century Los Angeles. She doesn't understand anything modern, nor does she recognize herself – and the clothes! What lady would wear such things – deplorable! One recognizable thing is the works of one of her favorite authors, Jane Austen.

There is also freedom, making her own decisions (w/out the all controlling mother), but also memories of her own family who would be, if the calendar could be believed to be 2009, dearly departed from this world.  Even the man she thought she loved, Edgeworth, would be long dead. She has friends here whom she does not recognize and a former fiancé (jerk) as well. And then there is enigmatic Wes. What does Jane think of him and what does Courtney know of him? And how is that certain memories come through that aren't really her's but Courtney's. Who and what can she trust to maneuver around this new world? Is Jane better off in the 21^st century or would it be better to return to what she knows – if she can?

Thoughts: 

Jane Mansfield (love the name) has it way worse than Courtney Stone (Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict), if you ask me, excepting the discovery of one of our times greatest inventions - hot water showers (any of you been through a hurricane?).

After having read Ms.. Rigler's earlier book Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, I knew I was in for a great story. So many things for Jane to learn and manage and, alone to a large degree, really. Immediately Jane has to put past her ideas of decorum and try to decide who to trust. Wes, Anna, and Paula are all apparently Courtney's friends, but not exactly friendly with each other  - that much is apparent.

Again, the story of Courtney's (Jane's) very complicated life is revealed to the reader and Jane at the same time. I enjoy that because it gives you time to understand a character better. So too do I enjoy Jane's delight in realizing that there are 6 novels by Miss Austen – what a delicious treat for someone who knew of only 2 novels.

I shall not go into all the wonderful discovers and surprises Jane goes through as Courtney, but they are numerous, scary sometimes. and a great freedom for Jane. Vodka seems much appreciated. How lovely.

Deepa, a relatively new acquaintance, is a lovely character that I would like to see more of – genuine, caring and always ready with some pretty steady advice – much like the shape- and time-shifting fortune teller who is a help in Jane's (and Courtney's) confusion.

Frank, Courtney's ex-finance is a jerk and deserves little mention because we all know guys like him don't we??

Now, Wes, our Wes. I'll leave it to you, but let's just say that sometimes nice, decent, loveable guys do finish first.

Bravo Laurie! Loved it!

Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict - Laurie Viera Rigler

Austen Addict - Aren't we all... if you think about it. What would you do - besides assume your dreaming or insane if you woke up in Miss Austen's England looking like someone else and getting bits of her memories?  Well, Courtney in Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict handled it masterfully. However, I know I would end up in Bedlam.

Summary: After nursing a broken engagement with Jane Austen novels and Absolut, Courtney Stone wakes up and finds herself not in her Los Angeles bedroom or even in her own body, but inside the bedchamber of a woman in Regency England. Who but an Austen addict like herself could concoct such a fantasy?
Not only is Courtney stuck in another woman’s life, she is forced to pretend she actually is that woman; and despite knowing nothing about her, she manages to fool even the most astute observer. But not even her level of Austen mania has prepared Courtney for the chamber pots and filthy coaching inns of nineteenth-century England, let alone the realities of being a single woman who must fend off suffocating chaperones, condom-less seducers, and marriages of convenience. 
This looking-glass Austen world is not without its charms, however. There are journeys to Bath and London, balls in the Assembly Rooms, and the enigmatic Mr. Edgeworth, who may not be a familiar species of philanderer after all. But when Courtney’s borrowed brain serves up memories that are not her own, the ultimate identity crisis ensues. Will she ever get her real life back, and does she even want to?


Comments: There are several things I really enjoyed about Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict. I love that the story starts when with Courtney wakes up in 1813. Finding about Courtney's back story/"real" life a little at a time throughout the rest of the story was just such an effortless way to add interest and kept me waiting for more instead of the conventional linear story line. I found via Jane (have decided to call her that for simplicity because otherwise I'll confuse myself) how much of an impact a lady can have on those around her - good and bad. Through Jane's friendship with Mary, I was enlightened that just having a little fun can cause so much trouble for others.  Mary does try to inform Jane of this, but Courtney gets in the way. That is a lesson that I too, would learn the hard way.
On to the goods - Edgeworth is an amazingly sexy (a word I typically don't use - I don't think Darcy is sexy - that's for sure - Wentworth - yeah mostly) character with a bad boy bent and who does not love that?  I want to meet Wes. I'm sure Courtney could love him, if not for the big betrayal -- ouch. 
I do think that there should be more cussing - I know it would take me forever to stop talking like a sailor as I can do and I think Courtney would have a hard time sinking into the back ground when she just wants to tell Mother to fuck off. I loved the idea that in 1813 when you're visited by your friend each month you just get days in bed. That should be a national right no matter what friggin year it is - my personal opinion.  But chamber pots -- eeeewww - never mind - think I'll stay right here in 2010. 


Fortune tellers are creepy, but somehow it ties the past to the present very nicely for me. Never been to one and never will, but it works here. 
Things I was not convinced about - a romantic thing with Barnes' brother? I'm thinking not likely. But that idea that Jane had been telling him about the future... hmmmm?

Ah, Edgeworth, just lovely. Isn't it just lovely to find a man that makes you all giggly inside and who after all (spoiler alert) a good guy at heart. Isn't that what we want - and I'm happy I have one that does that to me. Lucky me. 
And last but certainly not least - I loved adored the diary entry at the end. The idea that Edgeworth has heard and wants to hear more stories of the 21st century and what Jane's life (may) have been like before. 


"Perhaps I did not always love him so well as I do now. But in such cases as this, a good memory is unpardonable."