The main protagonist of this novel is Anne de Bourgh, who plays such a small role in 'Pride and Prejudice'. She is kept under total control by her mother, who is every bit as imperious and 'right' as in Jane Austen's original; until the day she breaks free, and discovers there is another way to live.

Well-written, interesting, lovely characterisations, especially of Anne and her friend. Whether Anne would have been able, in early nineteenth century England, to have made the choices Molly Greeley gave her would give many a reading group a lot to discuss.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow & Co for an ARC.

I loved learning about Anne, her struggles in a world where she was constantly told everything was too much for her weak constitution, and her coming of age as she broke free and became herself. This is a love story first and foremost as Anne learns to love and trust herself as well as those she can call her friends. Beautifully written, this story adds brilliantly to the world Austen has created.

An enjoyable read following the fortunes of a "sickly" heiress who realises she prefers the companionship of women, and the social mores around this, particularly regarding inheritance and finance. I've read Pride and Prejudice a couple of times but don't know it well enough to comment on characters in the story but read it as a book in its own right.
However, for me, it was only a three star read as I found it completely unbelievable that after a lifetime of addiction to laudanum Anne could recover so quickly and with such little effect on her mental and physical health

Thank you to netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for an advance copy of this book

It's been a while since I read a book that was both compelling and delicate, with a sort of rhythm of the words.

The plot was a bit unexpected, but the final chapter was so beautifully written, poetic would be a better description.., that The Heiress deserves five stars.

And secretly I'm hoping for a follow-up. Perhaps we can read about George growing up, losing his father and whatever else we've had a glimpse of so far...

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.

Anne de Bourgh is the heiress in question, the daughter of Sir Lewis and Lady Catherine, she will inherit Rosings Park, Kent one of the finest estates in the south of England. She is cousin to Fitzwilliam Darcy and Anne’s indomitable and controlling mother has decreed they will marry! Anne has been hooked in laudanum since she a baby as she was ‘troublesome’. Anne tells her own story.

This is an homage to Jane Austen via a minor Pride and Prejudice character and yes, it reads like an Austen in that it captures the spirit of the great author in dialogue, in language, in manners as it depicts etiquette, society and social mores. There the similarities end and I’m glad that it does as this is a work of originality not a duplicate. Austen most certainly wouldn’t have written about some of the topics included here such as the effects of coming off laudanum (not pretty) and ‘female issues’ (!) which wouldn’t have even been alluded to, never mind described! This is a love story but not the kind of love of Austen’s novels envisage and this is what makes it a refreshingly modern take. The characters are excellent though not all likeable. Lady Catherine is a bully and what she does to Anne is totally inexcusable. As Anne grows into her body and fills the spaces with spirit I like her more and more. Equally likeable is Eliza Amherst and John Darcy, Anne’s cousin who is a kind and understanding man. Eliza introduces Anne to the enlightening world of books and here we see the influence of Mary Wollstonecraft on Anne’s growing independence and strength of mind. Some of the descriptions of Anne’s addiction are fantastic in their hallucinatory effects but even under the dulling impact of the drug you detect mutiny. There are some superb analogies of Anne’s before and after laudanum state which have leanings towards animism and are very clever, vivid and colourful.

Overall, this is an excellent book to lose yourself in. It’s well written with a good plot line and some moments of tension especially between Anne and Lady Catherine, you almost see those flying sparks. I love the emergence of Anne from the chrysalis of laudanum to the spirited independent butterfly who flits where she wills and does a lot of good in the process. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the much appreciated arc for an honest review.

Despite reading many Pride & Prejudice retellings before, I've not read one quite like this before and notably one that follows Anne de Bourgh, the cousin of Mr. Darcy. I enjoyed reading how Anne comes into her own following a childhood where she was deemed 'too delicate and sickly' when in fact she was dosed with laudanum every day. While the pacing is definitely slow at times and certain elements can feel a bit repetitive, the story picked up a lot once Anne leaves Rosings Park for London and finds her voice and her independence in a world so clearly controlled by the male figures in society. I thought this was an interesting and well realised retelling, I don't profess to be any expert in history so I'm sure there are certain anachronisms and elements which may bother a reader seeking strict historical realism and a strict adherence to Austen's writing style. However these didn't bother me and I enjoyed reading this novel - a must read for fans of historical fiction and retellings.

The Heiress is a compelling and compulsive read , one of those books that is so hard to put down .It tells the story of Anne De Bourgh an heiress who was betrothed to Mr Darcy when they were children ,she was given laudanum as a sickly baby and of course becomes addicted to it living in a half world ..Mr Darcy weds Elizabeth Bennett but Anne cares not .When she is nearly 30 she decides to throw the laudenum away ,go and stay with her cousin in London and find herself in the real world .The story tells of her strength and fortitude to overcome her many adversities and fulfill her true potential and take over control of her estate and lead a happy life .Many thanks to the Publisher the Author and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review .

So Anne is born into wealth the heir to a Country Estate but she is very poorly, well she screamed a lot as a baby, (thought all babies did that till our Second was born). Dr Grant the local Kent doctor prescribed medication to calm her but he seemed to have forgot to stop it as she grew up. So whilst she enjoyed the morning then the meds knock her out for the rest of the day leaving a shell 🐚 of who she could of been.
So growing up she wasn't exactly the catch anyone was drawn to even her intended Mr Darcy. She never made it to London to enjoy the season or market of eligibility young ladies for the gentry. So glad we live in the 21st century but another subject for another day.
This is the story of Anne's life sheltered beyond reason does she escape it can Miss Hall change things what impact does her Father have and can anyone make headway with her Mum. Obviously the answers are in the book so I won't spoil it for you.
So why do I recommend this book, well it wasn't what I expected so the twists did come out of the blue there are hints and when things happen some you will see others you won't so guess that makes it a good read. I like to read historical fiction get a feel for the different ages of our great Country, and other ones, this from the wealthy not experienced by the large majority so I read about them as well. But this book i do recommend it was a good escape from life always a great reason to read a novel. It captures you and you will not want to put it down. It gets better as you read it building to what you will discover for yourself when you read it and it is truly worth while.

Once again I feel somewhat mislead by the comparisons to Sarah Waters (who happens to be a favourite author of mine). So far this P&P retelling, which focuses on Anne de Bourgh is dull indeed. By the 20% mark Anne has just turned 17 and she's twenty around the 30%. This means that so far we just get to read of her as a 'sickly' child. She overhears adults speak of her often in a dismissive manner, as they note how fragile and feeble she is. Her 'wicked' mother says time and again 'time for your medicine' which happens to be laudanum. Most readers will have realised why Anne is not getting better. She has a governess, a potentially interesting character, who sadly turns out to be just as uninspiring as Anne. I guess I have a low threshold when it comes to reading about wealthy yet sickly children affected by 'mysterious' maladies.
I'm sure many others will find this to be far more compelling that I did (I recognise that the writing was far from bad) but the narrative, characters, and story failed to capture this reader's attention.

The Heiress is probably the best Austen spin-off novel I’ve ever read. I always cringe a bit when I see there is yet another one and I always end up reading it anyway because it’s inspired by Jane Austen. This was brilliant. Greeley doesn’t try to imitate the inimitable Austen but her prose also fits the time period and style. Anne de Bourgh, the heiress of Rosings Park and intended bride of Mr Darcy, is given no real presence in Pride and Prejudice, and no lines, springs to life here. This does not feel as if the author is suggesting she could do it better than Austen – which is what I get from so many imitators – nor does it read as fan fiction. It’s more as if Austen has given Greeley and prompt and she’s turned it into a beautiful novel about wealth/ poverty, child-parent relations, sexuality and self-actualisation. There were things that Austen could never have written about in her day without being locked up (women with political opinions contrary to their fathers or brothers often ended up imprisoned in asylums without recourse, for example. And anyone openly criticising the government or the church openly, could be more conventionally locked up. People do not realise how ballsy Austen was or how much she got away with!) Greeley has more wriggle room and tackle many issues including the opium crisis. I’m sure some Austen fans are going to be taken aback at Anne’s sexuality however since there’s evidence that Austen herself may have been bisexual (don’t be fooled by exaggerated accounts of her romance with the young Irishman – it really wasn’t like that) I feel she would have approved. This is an intelligent novel that pays its dues to its source material. Recommended.

An enjoyable read following the life of Anne who spends her childhood hooked on laudanum. When her father dies Anne should take over the running of the estate but her controlling mother deems her too fragile.

There are many interesting ideas explored in this book and although there are some areas I could picture being relevant to Austen novels I’m not sure the second half of the book is necessarily Austen appropriate

I am sorry but this is not my type of book. I disliked the writing style and the characters. A life long laudanum addiction would take weeks if not months to recover from. Withdrawal would be hard and long. I stopped reading at this point. I don’t feel that this book is a tribute to Jane Austin’s work.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy.

A pleasant enough addition to the many pride and prejudice based books. This one fleshing out the character of Anne de Bourgh.
I'm not sure Austen herself would be too happy with where it's gone,but I mostly enjoyed it.
The speed with which Anne got over her life long addiction really was something,and then she became a whole new person.
Despite it being a little predictable from then on,the use of familiar character names and their supposed story is always a winner for me .

Unfortunately the author of this story has changed the whole essence of Austen's stories in order to tell her preferred story, whilst riding on the coattails of Jane Austen's fame to try to attract readers. Just as a warning to other readers (SPOILER ALERT), this book should be listed under LGBTQ section. Austen's novels, whilst occasionally touching on the harsh side of life, didn't dwell on it but kept things light-hearted and clean, this book was basically Ms De-Bourgh is a druggie and her battle with drugs. I feel if Jane Austen were to learn of how her characters had been bastardised she'd be rolling in her grave. I would definitely not recommend to others, in fact I'll be recommending friends who love Austen to avoid this book