First Impressions

by Charlie Lovett

published by Viking Adult

October 2014

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

My Review

I loved this book!  I thought I would, since I also loved his last novel, The Bookman’s Tale.  If you haven’t read that one, do it!   This is a little different, yet similar in some ways.  Tale featured a bookworm who tried to figure out the mystery behind the true authorship of a certain well known Bard, while First Impressions gives us a heroine bookworm trying to uncover the truth  behind whether Jane Austen plagiarized Pride & Prejudice.  Since that is one of my favorite books, I was in a little bit of heaven reading this.  While I hope this doesn’t become TOO formulaic, I have enjoyed both stories and definitely recommend them, especially if you enjoy reading about characters that love to read.

Summary

Charlie Lovett first delighted readers with his New York Times bestselling debut, The Bookman’s Tale. Now, Lovett weaves another brilliantly imagined mystery featuring one of English literature’s most popular and beloved authors: Jane Austen.

Book lover and Austen enthusiast Sophie Collingwood has recently taken a job at an antiquarian bookshop in London when two different customers request a copy of the same obscure book: the second edition ofLittle Book of Allegories by Richard Mansfield.  Their queries draw Sophie into a mystery that will cast doubt on the true authorship of Pride and Prejudice—and ultimately threaten Sophie’s life.

In a dual narrative that alternates between Sophie’s quest to uncover the truth—while choosing between two suitors—and a young Jane Austen’s touching friendship with the aging cleric Richard Mansfield, Lovett weaves a romantic, suspenseful, and utterly compelling novel about love in all its forms and the joys of a life lived in books

For more on the author, please visit http://charlielovett.com