Because I'm thoroughly in love with all fan fiction relating to Jane Austen and free stuff rocks, I was ecstatic when I won Jane Austen Made Me Do It from the editor Laurel Ann Nattress (signed too!) after winning a drawing at Barbara Tiller Cole's Darcyholic Diversions blog back in mid-July.
And rightly so.
Jane Austen Made Me Do It is a compilation of 22 short JAFF stories written by some of this literary community's prime authors, as well as one story by the winner of a JAFF writing contest. The various adaptations range from Regent fiction to supernatural fiction, as well as stories starring Jane herself. Some are letters or journal entries while others involve humor and romance.
Not only is this book worth a read, but I'm thrilled to add JAMMDI to my collection because whenever I have a hankering to read JAFF but can't commit to a book, I can pop open a short story and get my "Austen Addict" fix.
Now, I must be honest-- I didn't love all the stories. Believe it or not, this is part of the charm. Jane Austen Made Me Do It will be loved by JAFF fans like myself yet is an even better resource for new readers of this genre because it offers a great variety of styles & authors to choose from as a way to learn one's JAFF preferences.
In fact, I discovered that I tend to favor Regent stories like Monica Fairview's "Nothing Less Than Fairy Land" starring my favorite Austen characters over more modern adaptations, and even found a few more authors--like Jo Beverly's "Mistletoe Kiss" which is a wonderful Sense and Sensibility-esque Christmas story-- whose books I'd love to read.
Overall, a must read for any fan of Jane Austen and her fan fiction.
Rating 5 out of 5 stars
