Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

I absolutely loved this book! This is the first book in quite a while where I have been interested from beginning to end. Annie is a too nice girl who caters to her family. And years ago this cost her the love of her life. I loved seeing the growth and transformation of Annie into a stronger woman. And I have to say- the ending- that confession from Austen- so cute! 5 ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What makes Austen adaptations so compelling is that they embrace her wit and charm. Sadly, Persuading Austen does little to persuade the reader to compare this work with any from the great lady. Persuading Austen has a decent enough storyline, but the leads have no chemistry, rendering this story lame.

Annie Elliot doesn't quite know who she is. She knows who her family think she is, and who she wants to be, but who she is now, is stuck. While she was busy dealing with her melodramatic family, the ex-love of her life, Austen Wentworth, was becoming the hottest star in Hollywood. When Annie finally gets the chance of her dreams to produce a film, she jumps at the chance, until she realises that it will also involve her family and the return of her ex. A recipe for disaster, surely?

I am notoriously uber-picky about chick lit, but god, this book is so good. Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read it. I love a pseudo-filmmaking setting, I love Annie's over the top family, and I love Austen Wentworth. (I also very much love the 1d references. Every time I think they can't get better THEY DO.)

A contemporary retelling of Persuasion, this book is absolutely delicious. I was rooting so hard for Annie and Austen to stop being idiots!! You love each other dammit!!! A highly recommended summer read.

Even though I'm a fan of Jane Austen I also love the books that re imagine her stories so I was definitely looking forward to reading Persuading Austen. As you may guess from the title or in fact the description it is a modern day version of Persuasion. You have Annie who I instantly felt for as her family life is very tricky. She is stuck firmly in the middle trying to keep everything and everyone happy. However there is no one really looking out for her. There were times when I did wish that she would stick up for herself but on the other hand she is that used to being walked over I could see how difficult it would be to make a stand.

The story moves smoothly and there is some humour that deflects away from how Annie is treated. I don't think I will ever see My Little Pony in the same way again ;) Even though they could be annoying Annie's family are all big personalities and do bring a little fun and entertainment into the story. The romance was a lovely extra but I loved seeing Annie emerge from her families shadow. Even though it follows closely to the original there are a few lovely suprises that put a fresh and interesting twist on things. The ending definitely left me sighing and smiling away to myself.

Persuading Austen is fun, light hearted and entertaining!

With thanks to HQ Digital & Netgalley for my copy. This is my honest and unbiased opinion.

Must confess that this isn't my usual genre, but I really enjoyed the book. Great characters, lovely engaging plot and a thoroughly satisfying ending. There were times when I wanted to give Annie a good talking-to and tell her to see what was in front of her, but enjoyed the character development throughout the story. Some great minor roles there too, which is always nice to see.

Ahhh! I keep forgetting to review this! I just haven't had time! :c

What a cute little read! I dont read many Clit-It type books but this one was something else. It made me laugh. It made me cry. In short it was the perfect summer read!
Annie Elliot doesn't quite know who she is. She knows who her family think she is, and who she wants to be, but who she is now, is stuck. While she was busy dealing with her melodramatic family, the ex-love of her life, Austen Wentworth, was becoming the hottest star in Hollywood. When Annie finally gets the chance of her dreams to produce a film, she jumps at the chance, until she realizes that it will also involve her family and the return of her ex. I know right, it sounds like a complete disaster! But it was soo amazing!
This book was such a fun read. It was full of family drama, work drama, relationship drama and then some. I love a read that is action-packed and fast paced like this

Anne Elliot has just landed a career making contract as a producer on the newest adaption of Pride and Prejudice. Nothing can stop her from moving forward from her disappointing past. Not her crazy, over-bearing, needy family. Not the promise she made to her dying mother to take care of them. Nothing. Except maybe the fact that her ex will be playing Mr. Darcy. Oh and her ex is now a huge movie star and the "World's Sexiest Man". Can't a girl catch a break? Yeah, a girl can, because Austen Wentworth is wonderful and their love story isn't over yet.

This modern day re-telling of Pride and Prejudice was a fun, quick read that any fan of Jane Austen will devour.

I was given an arc of this book from Netgalley. While the writing was good and the plotline was interesting, I wasn't as thrilled with the overall ending as I thought I'd be.

A modern retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion set against the world of the British Period Drama and the production of Pride & Prejudice sounded like all sorts of fun so this was an easy sell for me after reading the blurb and wanting to try a new to me author.

With modern retellings, I am always keen to discover how Austen's original characters will translate into the modern world and what the author will choose for the modern setting. I thought it was clever to cast the Persuasion characters as actors and actresses and at the same time offer a fun wink at the more popular Austen novel, Pride & Prejudice.

I was all set to love this one to death, but I ended up settling for milder feelings of like.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but for certain, I was anticipating something different and it took me a bit to adjust. See, Persuading Austen is Women's Fiction rather than Contemporary Romance (which was what I thought I was getting). It makes a great deal of difference in expectation obviously to get the genre straight, right Sophia? LOL


However, even if I hadn't tangled up which genre I was reading, I still had a struggle on my hands with the main character. Jane Austen's Anne Elliot had more quiet strength and her reasons for her youthful choice was more understandable, to me, set in the time period when things were different for women. Whereas this didn't come across with modern Annie because the times have changed for women when it comes to status, class, and women's careers. She is a doormat and just under 75% of this story was evidence of that. She spends her time inner monologuing about her dreary personal and family life, being resentful, and jealous, but she will not speak or act to change it.

But...
All hope is not lost. That last quarter of the book began with her epiphany moment and then growth and inner strength happened. Now this Annie, I could get behind and cheer on. Oh, the change was not overnight. She still was uncertain and timid, but at least she was making an effort. The very end came in a rush, but it was definitely sweet and romantic.

The story was easily recognizable as a retelling with several key scenes paralleling the original and works fine for those who are unfamiliar or less familiar with the original story it is based on. Spoiler-non spoiler... there is a 'letter' moment (just putting that out there for those who need to know that important detail).

What was a delightful surprise was the humor. The humor was a great balance for the other emotions and the overriding feel of a woman’s regret for her past. There were a few laugh out loud moments like when Annie discovers a few family secrets that tabloids would love to get their hands on and her oblivious sister Marie the TV personality being a personality off-screen, too.

In summary, this was one I had to be patient with and wait for the paydirt moments nearer the end. I do love a good underdog story and this is indeed that. I also enjoyed my first time encounter with the author's writing and have my eye on a few books on her backlist. This will be for those who enjoy Women's Fiction and Modern Retellings.

An interesting attempt to weave Jane Austen's PERSUASION with her PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (though, really P&P has nothing to do with the story - it isn't even a plot device). At best, Jane Austen's Austen is much kinder, and a much better man than Brigid Coady's Austen. Makes a good beach read.

My Thoughts

‘Who are you living for, Anne? You or them?’ She could still hear Austen saying it. And she knew that he meant it because he called her Anne. And she still couldn’t answer that question eight years later.’

Anything ‘Austen’ captures my attention, so this book came on my radar and what a bit of fun it proved to be - a great and much needed weekend escape. A modern retelling of Jane Austen’s ‘Persuasion’ with a touch of ‘Pride and Prejudice’ thrown in for good measure.

One aspect I particularly enjoyed was how the author kept most of the key scenes from the original but put a contemporary twist on them. The storyline was most definitely recognisable, yet Coady did not let it dominate. I loved the ending and how everything was nicely bought together - yes the romance - but with the two leads only trading a few lines in real time (there are flashbacks), it was more about the lead character and her journey. Her success in life was her decisions - not a knight in shining armour - so you witnessed her grow and discover her own voice.

‘Over eight years what had she learned? Nothing. Not one single thing except how to keep on allowing her family to squeeze and mould her into the gaps in their lives. She hadn’t been living; she had been merely existing.’

Being ‘chick lit’ you have to make some concessions. For example, the family will grate on your nerves (‘Sometimes she felt like David Attenborough hiding in the undergrowth, and trying to work out what made them tick’), Annie’s inner dialogue will make you want to shake her at times and some parts are just way out of the ball park - three words for you who will read it - My Little Pony! Wow! At times a bit repetitive - I would love to know on how many occasions the author wrote ‘eight years ago’ - GAH! However, you have to take the good with the bad and it being so light and entertaining compensated for these drawbacks.

This was a fun read. I appreciated the Austen references eg. ‘Northanger Agency’ and there are some funny moments with enough romance but not overbearingly so. I found it to be fast-paced, whizzing through it over a weekend - pure fun and escapism.

‘ You are too generous to trifle with me. If your feelings are still what they were last April, tell me so at once. My affections and wishes are unchanged, but one word from you will silence me on this subject for ever…’



This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release

Thank you to NetGalley, HQ Digital and the other Brigid for allowing to me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I didn't warm to this book at all. I am not sure if it is because I haven't read 'Persuasion' and therefore cant relate to it, or whether my dislike for the main character completely turned me off it.

For someone like me who is headstrong and independent, I just cant abide characters that are push overs or allow themselves to be completely abused...... which is exactly what happens in this book.

The overall plot was nice and it did have some funny parts in it, but this book just wasn't for me.

This was a perfect holiday read for me. Romance, intrigue, will they, won't they - all added up to a great page turner.

The writing was captivating and pulled you and I found it hard to put down!

I' m not a huge Jane Austen fan and was concerned this might curtail my enjoyment of the book but it didn't - I'm sure I missed some of the nods to Austen's Persuasion but the book was a great stand alone book in my eyes and you don't need to be an Austen fan to enjoy it.

Looking forward to the next book by the author.

Overall: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
Plot: 4.5/5
Appealing: 4/5

Although I haven't read Persuasion yet, I still clicked on this book without hesitation. A Jane Austen retelling...why not? So I started reading, with a high expectation and was anticipating for the big HEA. The ending is HEA, of course, but before that, the plot was written in a style so long and pretty much like rambling. I'm not saying the plot is bad or that the writing style is intolerable ---in fact, I think so people might love it--- but personally, I just think it can be written in a better way. I almost lost my patience somewhere in the first 1/3 of it, but I told myself to read till the end. So four stars instead of five, but I'll recommend it to my friends and anyone who wants a Persuasion retelling.

This is based on "Persuasion"by Jane Austen.

Annie Elliot is a TV producer, and has wound up being responsible for the welfare of her father and sister after her mother died. Her family are all involved in showbiz in one way or another. Annie gets a huge opportunity that could mean a big break for her small company - a major producing role in an adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice". There's only one issue - Austen Wentworth, the new Mr. Darcy, is the man Annie left behind 8 years before in order to look after her family. Throw in a creepy cousin, a mole on set, money issues and - eh- ponies, and Annie has to decide once and for all if she's strong enough to finally follow her own dream.

I really, really enjoyed this book. I loved Annie and I loved that her whole success or failure didn't depend on a man. She needed to grow and find a voice, and I was rooting for her the whole way. While I hadn't read "Persuasion", a quick glance at the blurb suggests that fans of the novel might like this if they like adaptations. I read this curled up on the couch with the rain lashing on the window - absolutely perfect. A sweet read with depth and charm.

Accountant Annie Elliot is the unglamorous member of her showbiz family and has to tightly control the purse strings of her free-spending father and sister. She gets a chance to be producer on a new movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice but then discovers her ex, Austen Wentworth, is to star as Mr Darcy.
I started reading this on a Jane Austen-related anniversary but really wish I hadn’t. The book pays homage to Austen’s Persuasion, in which Anne gets a second chance with her Captain Wentworth. I must admit I don’t know that story that well so I possibly missed a lot of clever references. What I did not miss, however, were the multitude of characters named in honour of One Direction – there’s a Harry and a Lewis and Louisa, an Olivia Styles, a Diana Tomlinson, a singer called Liam, a savvy producer called Cowell and even a lighting guy called – wait for it! – Neil Horan (and yes, he has an Irish accent). The story is page after page of Annie telling us that she’s good at her job (although there’s not a lot of evidence to back that up) but a total pushover when it comes to her demanding family. And of course she hasn’t got over Austen either. There’s an accident, some dodgy finances, a flirty cousin and not sure what else because I was too distracted scanning for more 1D references.

You could read this as a second chance romance but it's really pretty darn good fangirl fiction based on Persuasion. I liked both Anne and Austen; not so much some of the other characters (but that's sort of the point.). I really enjoyed this because it was funny, light, and yet more mature than a lot of the romances on the market. Thumbs up to Coady for updating the tale to Hollywood, which is just so perfect. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Try this one if you like Austen (and are open to this sort of thing), if you've never read Austen or if you're just looking for a good well told story.