Review of Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

Pages: 289

Genre: Adult Fiction

Published: 2009

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon says, "This delightful sequel to Rigler's Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict has 19th-century Jane Mansfield switching bodies and milieus with contemporary L.A. girl Courtney Stone. As Jane grasps the idea that she's a different person in an unimaginable world, and grapples with the radically liberal social mores, dress and language, she leans on Jane Austen's novels as touchstones to reality. Kate Reading performs the first-person narration with a cultured tones and accent befitting an upper-class Regency-era young lady. Her skill as a versatile voice performer becomes evident as dialogue introduces modern American characters, and she skillfully modulates her accent, dialect and tones to accommodate them. The romantically suspenseful story and the entertaining vocal interpretation will keep romance listeners enthralled and amused."

If you have read Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, you know that Courtney Stone, a modern California girl, somehow wakes up in Regency England in Jane Mansfield's body.  Jane Mansfield is a gentleman's daughter and very different from Courtney.  This book focuses on the other side of the story, which is told from Jane's point of view when she wakes up in Courtney's body and is living in modern day Los Angeles.  Readers will laugh out loud as they watch Jane navigate through this contemporary world and learn how to use modern day amenities that have become second nature to us, such as the telephones, televisions, computers and vehicles.  Laurie Viera Rigler's sequel, Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict, is very entertaining, especially for lovers of Jane Austen.

Rigler's commentary is hysterical.  I loved some of Jane's observations regarding something as simple as mail.  She says, "And since Friday I have received almost ninety letters?  Assuming that there is no post on Sunday, that is thirty letters per day.  How can anyone find the time to earn her living, keep house without servants, and read and answer thirty letters per day?" (page 140).  How true is that? I was in an uproar!  Also, Jane's observations on etiquette and behavior were also interesting, because it truly made me think.  Our society lacks manners and sometimes we have lost sight of common decency.  This novel made me reflect upon some of Jane's observations, such as what is acceptable behavior.  It really made me think how nice it would be if some of the etiquette from Regency England was still followed today.

One of my favorite laugh out loud moments was when Jane met Courtney's outlandish friends.  She was convinced they were her servants as well as Courtney's best friend and love interest, Wes.  It was hysterical and lets just say, it also involved a wedding dress.  I also loved how Rigler included various allusions to Austen's novels, which was a nice touch.  The only reason why I didn't give this novel four out of four stars is because it was good, but it didn't knock my socks off and I can appreciate that, because it's a lighthearted read.

Do you have to read Confessions before you read this novel?  No, but I recommend it so you can get some background regarding the plot.  Rigler's novel is amusing, a lot of fun, and I highly recommend it for those who are Janeites.  If you have seen Lost in Austen, Rigler's novels remind me of this movie, which I LOVED.  As the readers watch Jane become acclimated to modern day ammentities and actually enjoy them, it made me realize how much we take for granted.  But at the same time it makes me long for a more simplier life like the life that Jane had back in England.  A girl can dream, right?

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*Buy the novel

*Buy Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

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*This post is part of the Book Rat's Jane in June. Check it out here!