It is more than 20 years after Jane’s death, and the elderly Cassy has arrived on a clandestine mission. Miss Austen begins in 1840 with the unannounced arrival of Cassy at the home of Isabella Fowle, the daughter of a departed, dear friend of both sisters. Cassy, two years older, was the steady, dependable one, always with an eye on the wellbeing of her far more fragile sister.

Jane was the odd one, sometimes moody and even prickly, sometimes jocular, filling the house with her wit and laughter. The only two daughters in a family with five sons, Jane and Cassy were remarkably close, sharing a bedroom - even, usually, a bed - and a deep, sisterly attachment almost their entire lives. Instead, the name refers to Jane’s lesser-known sister, Cassandra.īased in large part on a multitude of letters between the two sisters and their friends and family, as well as other contemporary accounts, Gill Hornby’s novel is a warm and fascinating story that reads as though it could be a Jane Austen work itself. an emotionally resonant, deeply complex imagining of the real contents of these letters - and a humbling respect for their disappearance and the woman who orchestrated it.A reader might well assume that a book titled Miss Austenrefers to the 19th-century novelist Jane Austen, about whom a plethora of biographies, novels, and scholarly works have already been written. Even more impressive is the way that Hornby’s writing mirrors that of Jane’s she manages to effect the same keen observations and wit, making the book a lovely homage to the writer. But it is lovers of Austen’s work who will find themselves enthralled by Hornby’s masterful portrait of Cassandra and, through her loving eyes, of Jane herself. Those who are not as invested in the life of Jane Austen will still find something to enjoy in Miss Austen, as Cassandra’s story takes the forefront, and her narrative is fleshed out by strong, detail-filled historical fiction. Interwoven with historical research about the roles of women at the time (and the judgment of spinsters like the misses Austen), the story of Cassandra’s life draws a heartfelt and emotionally tense picture of a woman at odds with her time. With skillful pacing and a flair for suspense, Hornby also reveals the contents of those letters and how they could damage the Austens’ reputation.

takes on the suspenseful air of a mystery as Cassandra races to find every letter she needs to save Jane’s legacy.

Written with empathy, a keen love of Austen and her family, and a hearty dose of Austen-like wit, this is a captivating tale for lovers of both Jane Austen and historical fiction.

Miss austen investigates