Did Jane Austen’s sister, Cassandra, really burn all of Jane’s letters?  What if some were discovered years later, revealing an intimate part of the writer’s life?

If you are longing to return to the comfort of Jane Austen, Syrie James offers an easy fictionalized biography of the beloved writer in The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen.  Staying true to Austen’s writing style as well as to most of the known facts of her life, James creates a story around the secret love life that many have speculated about – even based a movie on, with Anne Hathaway in “Becoming Jane.”  In a clever introduction, James simulates a letter from a Jane Austen researcher, and weaves the action into Austen’s writing of Sense and Sensibility to convince the reader of the truth of the tale.

Maybe it is.

At the very least, the story is a great romantic tribute to the growing fame and sustainability of Jane Austen.  If you are not an Austen fan, you might find the storyline frivolous and a little tedious, but if you are a Janeite – you will appreciate the romance, and the references to her work, especially Pride and Prejudice, and to Jane Austen’s life.

And, if you like it, you might want to move on to The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë, by the same author.

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