If you are a serious fan of Austen, this is the right book for you. This study is based on letters from Jane and Martha, their friends and relatives, and excerpts from diaries. When they first met Jane was 13 and Martha 23, but despite their age, they had a lot in common and they helped each other a lot through life, be it just being friends or financially - Martha was a test reader for Jane later, allowing Jane to form her ideas into the books we know and love. Jane offered Martha support at difficult times, and finally allowed her to live independently without worrying until she married one of Jane's brothers years after Jane's death.

It was an interesting study, but since the author is fan of Austen, she often filled the places she couldn't cover with letters with her own ideas and opinions, which may not be true at all.

Interesting reading if you want to know more about Austen.

I love Jane Austen, so I was really excited to read this book and learn a bit about the people that she surrounded herself with. However, I found that I just could not get into it. I would find reasons to put it down and not pick it back up. I am sure there are people who would love this book. It just wasn't for me.

Since reading Gill Hornby's fantastic Miss Austen, I have been keen to find out more about the forgotten females who were Jane Austen's chief companions. Austen's brothers all led colourful lives but her sister and close friends have all tended to fade into the shadows. Critics imagine that this or that brother or potential suitor must have had a major influence over Austen's writing and they skip over the women she actually lived with. So I was delighted to see that a biography had been written of Martha Lloyd, Austen's long-term housemate, close friend and even sister-in-law, although that last degree of closeness was only achieved after the author's death. Martha Lloyd married Frank Austen in later life, even becoming Lady Austen when he was knighted. Her whole life was intwined with the Austen family so an account of her life feels well overdue.

While the book has clearly been thoroughly researched, I still felt that Wheddon had decided on the type of book that she was planning to write before she actually began looking into Martha's life. The biography's opening pages are a musing on the meaning of friendship itself and she returns frequently to the theme. She seems to have cast Martha Lloyd as Jane Austen's BFF like totes forever straight away. This jarred with almost every other biography that I have ever read of Austen. Martha Lloyd was at the heart of the coven of ladies at Chawton, but it was just that - a coven. A group. And if Jane Austen was closest to anyone, it was most likely her elder sister Cassandra, the sister with whom she shared a bedroom. I also noticed that so many of the quotations that Wheddon used to back up the idea of Martha and Jane being best friends were taken from letters that Jane had written to Cassandra. Martha was an adored friend but she was still not the bedrock to her that Cassandra seems to have been.

Having admitted that I disagreed with Wheddon's central thesis, I did still enjoy the biography. It was helpful to separate out the web of connections between the families and to trace how far back the friendships went. I also really appreciated a biography which seemed to explore Jane Austen's sense of faith. We only really know Austen from her writing, whether from her fiction or from her few surviving letters. From these we can see that she was extremely sharp-tongued. It is easy therefore to forget that she was a woman who had deeply-held Christian beliefs. Martha Lloyd does seem to have been a friend who supported and helped to sustain this faith. Analysing a subject's religious sentiment has rather gone out of fashion in biographical writing so this was deeply refreshing.

Jane Austen's Best Friend is as much about Jane Austen as it is about Martha Lloyd and it was an interesting glimpse of the writer 'off duty'. She talks bonnets, gloves and charitable donations with Martha Lloyd - they do seem to have had a beautiful friendship. The only other significant friendship of Jane Austen's that I had ever read about was with Anne Sharp, governess to Austen's brother Edward and writers have always tended to focus on the intellectual side of that one. It is nice to read about someone who Austen seems to have just had fun with. I was curious to see that parallels had apparently been drawn between Jane Austen's friendship with Martha and the relationship in Emma between Emma Woodhouse and Harriet Smith. Some critics had apparently supposed that Harriet Smith represented Martha. Wheddon disagreed and credibly so. Martha was ten years the senior of her friend and this must have affected their dynamic. I would also point out that Emma more or less dropped Harriet Smith by the end of the novel whereas Martha was clearly a treasured ally in life. The comparison is rather insulting to all concerned.

In common with other biographers, Wheddon suggests that Martha and Cassandra took on the burden of the housework in the Chawton house to leave Jane with more time for writing. If so, generations of readers should be grateful to her. I had been unaware of the extent of Martha's domestic talents however, nor had I realised that she was herself the author of a cookery book. Having recently read James Austen-Leigh's memoir of his aunt, this amused me since he vehemently insisted that none of his relatives had ever had anything to do with kitchen-work. There really is no snob quite like a Victorian snob. After years of trudging from relative to relative, this group of 'surplus women' had been fortunate enough to find a permanent home to call their own. They were not above getting their hands dirty to keep it running.

Martha Lloyd comes across as a warm-hearted and deeply principled woman. She seems to have been one of those truly 'excellent women' who are so often relied upon by the very people who forget their existence when they are not immediately useful. It was interesting that she seems to have selected the Austen women as her 'chosen family' above her own sister Mary, the wife of Jane Austen's eldest brother James Austen. I had always vaguely wondered about the precise nature of Martha's late in life marriage to Frank Austen. There are suggestions that Jane Austen had hoped that Martha would be Frank's first wife but even if his choice was elsewhere, it made me truly happy to see the evidence that when the time was right, the two of them did find true marital happiness.

Still, I felt like I was the wrong fit for Wheddon's writing style. It felt gossipy and far too speculative. It reminded me of those paparazzi shots which get published in the tabloid press and which are so often accompanied by ridiculous guessing-game captions such as, 'Here is John Smith on location for his latest film. He is holding a coffee cup which probably has something to do with the scene'. While an element of conjecture is necessary in order to write about women of this era, it did feel excessive in this case. I also found Wheddon's fan-girling not quite to my taste - declaring this or that letter 'sweet' rubbed me up the wrong way. Even looking at the cover of the biography, it looks very much like 'chick lit' in style and I have a feeling that this is the non-fiction equivalent. I really strongly believe that you should be able to read and enjoy whichever genre of book happens to float your boat but unfortunately chick lit has never managed to float mine.

But reading all of that back, I feel like a massive Scrooge because Wheddon comes across as a truly lovely person though her writing and a lot of her opening thoughts on what it means to be a good friend really resonated. I think my personal alarm bells just go off when I read a book marketed as non-fiction which deviates from the standards I have for academic objectivity. This was a fun, light biography which considers the life of Jane Austen from a different angle but it's more Prosecco than fine wine.

This is a super fun read. I really enjoyed this one!

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed learning about Martha Lloyd and her friendship with Jane Austen. I started the book with no real expectations, so I was pleasantly surprised by how well researched and in-depth Wheddon's writing was. There were a few passages that were dry, but I was able to skim them without losing interest in the overall narrative.

What type of person would Jane Austen choose for her best friend? Who was she, and what was she like? As a fan of Jane Austen, I have read my fair share of biographical works on her life and couldn’t help noticing her intimacy with a certain close family friend, Martha Lloyd. I was excited to come across this biography on someone closely associated with Jane Austen and her family.

The longer introduction helps the reader understand why the author came to write Martha’s bio and then the first chapter gives the background of Martha’s family and heritage. There is the connection that brings Martha Lloyd and Jane Austen into each other’s orbits.

The biography is equally Jane Austen’s as Martha’s. This is natural since the author’s source material are the remaining extended Austen family correspondence. Martha’s parents, a vicar, and his wife serviced not far from her mother’s sister and her husband, also a vicar. Martha and her sisters, Elizabeth and Mary, grew up close to their Fowle cousins. The boys went away to be tutored by the Reverend George Austen. One of her cousins, Fulwar, married Martha’s sister Elizabeth and the oldest Austen child, James, married her younger sister Mary. Meanwhile, the oldest Austen daughter, Cassandra, became engaged to another cousin, Tom Fowle. It was no wonder that the families would be close and Martha would know the Austen girls so well. The author speculates that Martha and the much younger Jane were the close friends rather than Martha and Cassandra. The author attributes Martha with a heart for serving others, a great sense of humor, gentility, and a deep spirituality.

The author drew facts from the letters, but also made her own deductions beyond this to get a fuller picture of Martha and Jane’s relationship as friends. I was surprised at first by all the surmising and guessing, but shouldn’t have been, really. Most of the speculation jibed with my own guesswork though I do feel that the author made more of the friendship than was there- and that’s saying a lot, since it is obvious from letters exchanged among the Austens and their friends that the Lloyd sisters were considered as family to the Austens. What I mean is that I felt Martha was equally close with Cass and even Mrs. Austen as she was to Jane. I think they were close, but not that they singled each other out.

As a result of the author’s form of speculation, many times the book was more drawn out and roundabout than necessary. I felt that it could have been trimmed down and not lost any of the essence the author conveyed and the fascinating bits would have shone all the brighter.

That said, I enjoyed how the author gleaned all that she could from the historical documents on Martha Lloyd and followed her life which was challenging in her losses as well as circumstances, but had many bright moments including being privy to Jane Austen’s work and claiming a close friendship. The book takes Martha’s life to the end and my favorite part when this hardworking, kind woman got her own late life romance with Jane Austen’s older brother, Admiral Frank Austen. I know the focus of the book was friendship, but in true grand story fashion, Martha’s life ended happily ever after and I loved that part best.

All in all, I was glad to get the life story of this ordinary woman who could claim a close relation with one of the world’s most famous authors. The book had lagging moments, but also heartwarming tidbits and insights into the past and past lives that I was interested in learning more about. While not for everyone, I can recommend this biography especially to those who want to know more about Jane Austen or life in the late Georgian period.

The idea of this book really piqued my interest. Although I think it’s generally accepted that Jane Austen’s sister Cassandra was the closest person to her, the sisters also had a very close friend in Martha Lloyd. Martha was a neighbour to the Austens in Jane’s childhood and she and her sisters mixed with the Austen sisters. The families were later connected by the marriage of Martha’s sister Mary to Jane’s eldest brother James, following the death of his first wife. Later in life, Martha Lloyd lived with the widowed Mrs Austen and her daughters for quite a number of years at Chawton. After Jane’s death Martha actually ended up marrying Jane’s brother Francis, becoming both Jane’s sister in law, and leading to her becoming later Lady Austen. These were the facts that I knew so I was keen to learn more.

This book has obviously been extensively researched. There are masses of references to sources. The version I was reading was a digital ARC, so there were no links for me to easily see what the references referred to. Obviously this will not be the case with a hard copy version, it would be easy to flick back and forth if you wanted to see where you could read the quotes put into their full context.

I felt that the material presented was over-analysed in this book. What could easily have been throwaway comments, exaggeration for comedic effect and dry wit were presented here as very meaningful and analysed at length. I felt that many assumptions were made about things that happened and how people felt and thought. Personally, I prefer books presented as factual to be presented more as the facts and have less interpretation and imagining, but for some readers, they may feel that it brings facts more to life for them.

‘Do not let the Lloyds go on any account before I return,’ she desperately instructs Cassandra. Sometimes they had to contend with harsh winter weather logistics or Martha’s other duties, but they worked at it, because making it happen was a primary objective for them both.

There was also interpretation that I didn’t necessarily agree with. For example, the reason for Austen’s change of mind in relation to the marriage proposal she received. The author here is quite decided that she changed her mind because marriage would take her away from writing, Cassandra and Martha:

Her whole way of life would be under threat and would be changed forever. She was selling all their souls.

However, I think it is just as likely that Jane may have been willing to marry if she had loved or respected the person who asked her, and this could have been the realisation that caused her to withdraw from it. Marrying for love was such a strong theme in her books that I think you could make an argument for this alternative view. And the truth is, we will never know exactly why Jane changed her mind because no records exist which tell us her view.

There were some lovely quotes in this book, which I really enjoyed. The following one, for example, shows how close the Austen sisters and Martha were, that Jane had been sharing early drafts of her stories with them. As I am sure you will know, First Impressions later became Pride & Prejudice:

‘I would not let Martha read First Impressions again upon any account & am very glad that I did not leave it in your power. She is very cunning, but I see through her design; she means to publish it from Memory, & one more perusal must enable her to do it.’

Although I am not sure how much the friendship of Martha with Jane Austen affected her writing, there is one way in which Martha unarguably assisted, which is also covered in the book. When the ladies were settled in the cottage in Chawton and Jane finally had a home, rather than lodgings, her creative muse was awakened, and both Martha and Cassandra took on the lion’s share of household duties, allowing Jane the time to write. And we are so glad they did!

I hadn’t been aware before reading this, but Martha Lloyd also wrote a book. Hers wasn’t a work of fiction, but instead a book of household recipes, ranging through food, medical remedies and even ink. As a person who lived with Austen for many years it seems probable that Martha’s book contains the recipe that would have been used for Austen’s own ink! The book still exists and is in the stewardship of the Jane Austen Memorial Trust.

In summary, I thought this book was well-researched, and there were some interesting quotes in there that I enjoyed reading. I learned some new facts about Martha Lloyd. However, I often didn’t agree with the interpretation of the source material and felt that the analyses were longer than needed and were done through the bias of proving that Martha was an influence on Jane rather than the source material actually showing that. I would agree that she was certainly a close and trusted friend but I don’t know how much further than that I would go. I’d rate this as a 3½ star read.

*Thank you to Netgalley and Pen & Sword publishers who provided me with a digital ARC for review.

I love Jane Austen, which was why I immediately picked this book up, but I'm disappointed. I finish reading fueled by my love for Jane only, because the writing in this book bored me to death.

This is a biography of a character many might consider of little importance to history, since she was neither titled, a producer of great literature, a scientist or a leader in any way. Nor was she a mother of those who went to go on to do great things. Nevertheless, her life may have had a profound influence on some of the greatest stories produced in literature; the writings of Jane Austen.

Martha Lloyd came from a similar social background to Jane Austen, being the daughter of a clergyman herself. She became closely connected when her sister Mary married Jane’s brother James, but the two were already close friends before that, despite Martha being some five years older, in an intriguing echo of the friendship between Elizabeth Bennet and Charlotte Lucas. Eventually Martha was absorbed fully into the family, moving in to set up household with Jane, her mother and her sister Cassandra. It was when the four settled finally at the Chawton cottage, with Martha expertly running the household, that Jane Austen’s writing career finally blossomed. She revised her earlier, unpublished novels (including Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice) and wrote new ones (Emma, Mansfield Park) and submitted them for publication.

Though few writings from Martha still exist, with the notable exception of her book of recipes and household management tips, Wheddon does an excellent job of piecing together Martha and Jane’s relationship from Jane’s letters, in which Martha is frequently mentioned, painting a vivid picture of two close friends who trusted each other absolutely, able to tease and laugh together without fear of censure.

I did think the book began rather dry, with some notes on the author of what really constitutes a best friend, but the actual story of Martha and Jane’s friendship is quite engaging, and very well referenced, with a hefty bibliography at the back of the book evidence of just how present Martha was in Jane’s thoughts as she wrote her considerable correspondence. Jane’s letters themselves don’t always make for easy reading, requiring at times an explanatory guide and context to make sense of them, and Wheddon does an excellent job here of providing that context, showing where Jane was both physically and mentally at the time of writing them, and therefore giving insight as to her state of mind.

Martha’s story takes a really fascinating turn after Jane’s tragically early death, as she married Jane’s widowed brother Frank when Martha herself was in her sixties, and went on to live a good many years in from all accounts a very happy marriage. Is it really speculation by the author to say that Jane would likely have been overjoyed for her friend? I really don’t think so. There’s evidence Jane tried to matchmake Martha and Frank in their youth and she obviously loved them both dearly; I personally think it’s quite evident Jane would have been delighted by the eventual outcome.

From a purely evidential point of view, Martha Lloyd lived a fairly boring life. She dedicated almost the whole of her life to caring for others, particularly sick relatives, and had no children of her own. Her influence on one of the greatest writers of all time, however, makes her of interest, and I could definitely see parallels between the friendship of Martha and Jane, and friendships Jane wrote about in her novels. The truth is that we will never know exactly how much input Martha had into Jane’s writings, but we do know that Jane loved her friend and valued her opinion.

This is an intriguing biography of a woman few people who are not Austen scholars will have heard of, but above all a look at the nature of close female friendships in the Georgian era. I did find it a little dry at times, but it is solidly researched and an interesting read. I’ll give it four stars.

As a huge Austen fan, reading everything that has “Austen” on its title, I had to request this book as soon as I saw it.
This book has a biographical text-book quality, pages are dedicated to both Martha Lloyd and Jane Austen, the life they shared together and how they came to be friends. As a ten-year senior of Austen, Lloyd was known as a good-humoured, sensible woman, who understood and shared similar ideas with Jane Austen. They mutually affected each other in the best way possible. From the correspondences of the two friends, it’s easy to deduce that the profound love and care they feel for each other and the influence Martha Lloyd had on Austen’s work. Another beautiful remark on the Lloyd was that she was indispensible part of Austen family, had a collection of recipes used in Austen house in Chawton, which was later published as a cookbook!
Though the writing style was a little bit dry for my taste and dragged at some points, I enjoyed this nonfiction on Austen and recommend it to her fans.

I wanted to love this book, but I couldn't stand Martha and I didn't like how the author wrote Jane herself.

I know this might be blasphemous, but I haven't read a lot of Jane Austen's work. I was more interested in the historical aspect of this book to see how she and her best friend lived in that time.
It was long winded in some places with a bunch of repetition.
I felt like part of it might be speculation more than factual, which detracts from the goal of the book in my opinion.

First of all, the cover of this book is so appealing. It made me want to open the book and spend time reading it. Then, of course, it is intriguing to think about getting to know a friend of Jane’s. Isn’t that just who all of her readers would like to be?

In this title, Jane’s friendship with Martha Lloyd is explored. Those looking to become better acquainted with Jane, her world, her interests, and the people to whom she felt close, will enjoy taking a look at this title. Chapters include Fun and Frolics; Home Sweet Home; Our Chawton Home; Anything You Can Do, and more.

The author clearly cares deeply abut her subject. She tells readers that she, herself, grew up at Chawton House and she is a relative of the Austen family. She has done her research and it shows.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.

When reading Jane Austen, sometimes her words feel like you're having a discussion with a best friend about the world around you.  The new book by Zoe Wheddon explores the life and influence of Jane's best friend Martha Lloyd.  Jane Austen's personal life is often spoken about, but the actual proof and letters are very restricted thanks to her sister Cassandra making sure to burn some of the evidence. This book, however, puts the focus on the oft overlooked Martha Lloyd and her qualities. It explores their common interest, their goals, and in turn reveals quite a bit about Jane Austen in the process. 

Jane Austen's Best Friend: The Life and Influence of Martha Lloyd is a must read for fans of Jane Austen and those interested in finding out more about the life behind the published pages. 

Jane Austen's Best Friend is available this May from Pen & Sword History.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This book is well-researched, and I definitely enjoyed how Zoe Wheddon pulled from historical sources to extrapolate information about the influence of Martha Lloyd on Jane Austen’s life, and Vice versa. I was particularly touched to learn about the circumstances that led to her marriage to Frank, as I always wondered whether it was a convenience thing or a love match, and I’m glad to see it was the latter, in true Austen novel fashion, albeit a bit later in life than most of her heroines, and that Austen herself was something of a matchmaker, although she did not ultimately live to see them get together.
The writing was a bit boring, so I did a lot of skimming, and likely ended up missing quite a bit. I did like it overall and think other Austen fans will enjoy it.

“Who among us has not once wished that they had been a companion to Jane Austen?”

This book is a detailed biography of Martha Lloyd, Jane Austen’s best friend, and serves as a tribute to their friendship. I learned so much about Jane Austen, especially her younger years.

The writing in this book left a lot to be desired, but if you love Jane enough, it is worth a read. Wheddon clearly conducted a ton of research in order to write this book, which shows. You’ll learn quite a bit about Jane as a young woman, even though the writing will make you cringe quite a lot. I definitely need to pick up an Austen book as soon as possible after reading this.

Thanks to Pen & Sword History and Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sometimes, when we think to Jane Austen's family, we refer to her parents and her siblings in her youth and to her mother and her sister Cassandra later on, and we tend to forget an active and always present element in Jane's life: her friend Martha Lloyd, who actually was like a second sister to Jane Austen, ten years her senior.
Today Martha is remembered for her Household Book, in which, aside from actual recipes there are tips for housewives and homemade remedies that she collected from various sources, but above all, her recipe for ink, that makes us think at the possibility that Jane Austen herself used that very ink. However, her support to Jane's life and, accordingly, to her works can't be ignored; and knowing Martha and her close friendship with Jane we can go one step closer to understand Jane Austen herself.
The close friendship between Jane and Martha lasted almost thirty years, ten of which were spent as housemates, in Southampton at first and in Chawton afterwords.
Wheddon explores their friendship in vivid detail, from their knowledge, that probably served as a spur and as an encouragement in drafting her Juvenilia, passing by her novels and everyday's life, made by small and larger purchases, jokes on common acquaintances, the aforementioned recipes, but also the care of the elderly and the infirms and the Christian faith that characterized Martha and that was for Jane and all the Austen family a further bond with her.
Jane never knew in her life, but Martha married her brother Frank in July, 24th, 1827, just like Jane herself had wished. Though Martha was 61 years old, and Frank 53, theirs was an actual love match.
And when, in 1837, Frank was knighted and therefore became "Sir Francis Austen" and Martha "Lady Austen", Cassandra gifted her with Jane's copy of "Camilla" by Fanny Burney, a book that Jane used to read aloud to both of them. It was just as Cassandra wanted Jane to take part to the celebrations of Frank and Martha's title.
A very interesting study through which we can re-read Jane Austen's works from a different perspective, maybe catching new details on her characters and her plots, supported by the knowledge of this paramount figure in Jane's life.
Such a shame that the notes were terribly disorganized and that I had to do a scavenger hunt to get my head round them.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to Pen & Sword Books for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A volte, quando parliamo del nucleo famigliare di Jane Austen, pensiamo ai suoi genitori e ai suoi fratelli in gioventù e a sua madre e a sua sorella Cassandra più avanti, e tendiamo a dimenticare un elemento attivo e sempre presente nella vita di Jane che è la sua amica Martha Lloyd, che invece, in realtà, fu per Jane Austen come una seconda sorella, maggiore di dieci anni.
Oggi Martha viene ricordata per il suo libro di ricette (che oltre a piatti veri e propri, comprende anche consigli casalinghi che si tramandavano tra massaie e ricette varie per ottenere «inchiostro», «vernice per tavoli», un intruglio per «pulire oggetti dorati» e un altro per «lavare calze bianche di seta»), ma il contributo alla vita e, di conseguenza, alle opere di Jane non può essere ignorato e conoscendo meglio Martha e l'amicizia intima che condivideva con Jane si può fare un passo avanti nella conoscenza di Jane Austen.
L'amicizia tra Jane e Martha durò quasi trent'anni, dieci dei quali furono vissuti come coinquiline, a Southampton prima e a Chawton poi.
Wheddon esplora la loro amicizia nei minimi dettagli, a partire dalla loro conoscenza, che probabilmente servì anche da sprone e da incitamento nella stesura degli Juvenilia, passando per i romanzi e la vita di tutti i giorni, fatta di piccole e grandi spese, battute su conoscenze comuni, le summenzionate ricette, ma anche l'assistenza degli anziani e degli infermi, e la fede cristiana che contraddistingueva Martha e che era per Jane e tutti gli Austen un ulteriore legame con Martha.
Jane non lo seppe mai in vita, ma Martha sposò il 24 luglio 1827 il fratello Frank, proprio come la stessa Jane aveva auspicato. E, malgrado lei avesse sessantuno anni e Frank cinquantatré, il loro fu un vero matrimonio d'amore.
E quando, nel 1837, Frank fu nominato cavaliere e quindi divenne Sir Francis Austen e Martha Lady Austen, Cassandra le donò per l'occasione la copia di Jane di Camilla di Fanny Burney, che Jane era solita leggere ad alta voce, quasi volesse far partecipare anche Jane ai festeggiamenti per l'onorificenza.
Uno studio interessantissimo, grazie al quale si possono rileggere le opere di Jane Austen con uno spirito diverso, cogliendo nuovi particolari sui suoi personaggi e sulle trame favoriti dalla conoscenza di questa persona fondamentale nella vita della scrittrice.
Peccato che le note fossero disordinatissime e che abbia dovuto fare un po' una caccia al tesoro per ritrovarle.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to Pen & Sword Books for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

My Goodreadss Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3647605239

This book takes a look at the relationship between Jane Austen and her best friend Martha Lloyd. Like most fans of Austen, I jump at the opportunity to learn something new about the author, but I found this book to be almost the story of Jane and her sister Cassandra but with Martha in the role of Cassandra. Not that I don’t think the author did her research, I just felt like there was nothing new or earth shattering here. Women of that era led a certain life, which fans of Austen are well aware of, I think this book merely places a new character into Austen’s world. Everything is based off existing sources, so no new trove of letters was uncovered.

I also found the book to drag along. I wanted the author to hurry up and found myself skipping ahead and skimming pages and I don’t feel I missed much. This could have been better edited, but I know that Jane Austen fans will devour this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book was a definite letdown for me. I was expecting a biography of Jane Austen's best friend, Martha Loyd, and insight into how she influenced Jane's life as a part of that. But this is mostly a story of Jane Austen with Martha seen through Jane's eyes, playing a supporting role. Without new primary sources, most of the information comes from reading between the lines in Jane's letters and a great deal of what Zoe Wheddon says is guesswork, "might have been", "we can imagine". The writing itself is highly repetitive and rather overdone in many places, with lots of waxing poetic on what friendship is and how important it is in general. I had a hard time staying interested in the book and really didn't feel like I got anything new out of it.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

An engaging and fascinating dive into the patterned and sensory world of female friendship in that era, especially because it takes us to a whole new place we never before envisioned. We see a friendship of a 'second sister' that doesn't quite compete with Jane's relationship with Cassandra, but needlepoints its own design in friendships of the day. I loved it for that rush of novelty, in bringing us into a friendship between women with a notable age difference. And where we are very used to studies of the people around Austen and the Brontes, this one delivers fresh energy. Very enjoyable.