Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict

Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to wake up in a different place and time? How would you react? How would you adapt?

Jane Mansfield hits her head when she falls off her horse in England in 1813, but when she awakens, it is 2009, and she is in the body of Courtney Stone...in L.A. There is a strange man in the other room, a glowing box contains tiny people acting out her favorite book, all of the clothes in the closet are inappropriate for a lady, and a horrible, deafening noise only stops when she accidentally knocks into the bumpy black box with the bright red numbers. How can this be? Why can she not wake from this strange dream? And how on earth is she supposed to fix Courtney's messed-up life?

This is the companion to Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, and I wish I had read them closer together because I had forgotten a few details about the first book. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the story of a Regency-era lady experiencing for the first time the freedom to make her own choices. I love the idea of time travel and have often daydreamed about what it would be like to travel backward or forward in time. How would one avoid the insane asylum?

For readers' advisors: character and story doorways, with character primary

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Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict

Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

My review

rating: 3 1/2 of 5 stars

I am a Jane Austen addict, albeit not quite as obsessed as Courtney Stone, the main character of this novel. I am not so miserable in my own life, which is apparently a good thing, as it makes me less likely to awake one morning in 1813 as she did. (For all my moments of wishful thinking, I don't really want to be someone else.)

Courtney, however, retreats to the world of Jane Austen as often as possible, especially since she discovered her fiance cheating on her with the wedding cake designer. Reading about Austen's world is not the same as living in it, however, and Courtney-inside-Jane-Mansfield's-body has a great deal to learn both about her new situation in life as well as the true meaning of being responsible for her actions.

I nearly tagged this book onto my "mystery" bookshelf because so much of the story is Courtney/Jane discovering what in the world happened in Jane's life--friendships and heartbreak alike--and how she came to inhabit Jane's body. (My practical soul could have used a tad more explanation on that last bit.) It's great fun to read, even if I did want to smack Courtney/Jane quite often and tell her to catch a clue.


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