Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson
Let me start off by saying, I am a sucker for perusing the
new arrivals and highest rated books on Amazon or Goodreads, reading their
reviews, downloading the sample, forming my opinion, then moving on . . . (I
have the same guilty pleasure with movie trailers, but that is a different
story). This is my methodical approach
for building my ever-evolving and always growing “Must Read List”. So when I found my Amazon account with a bit
of gift-card credit (thanks to my recent birthday and Christmas), I decided to
revisit the Edenbrooke page, a debut novel by Julianne Donaldson. I had read the summary of this book many
times as my trusty friend, Amazon, had recommended it to me on multiple occasions,
but the $8.99 price tag always held me back.
However, I finally found myself “1-click purchasing” this book now that
I came armed with the aforementioned credit. 5 Star Average? Check.
Over 600 reviews? Check. Deliver to Paige’s Kindle? You bet.
My initial hesitance to the book (beyond the hefty price
tag) was the time period – the Regency Era.
The author’s bio described herself as a Jane Austen addict, and I feared
her modern depiction of the time would not hold a candle to the works of Austen. Austen is deemed one of the most popular
English novelist of the genre, so I couldn’t fathom why one would want to have
her novels held up to the light next to Austen’s. However, I was quickly surprised to find that
Mrs. Donaldson was not competing with the likes of Pride & Prejudice or Sense
& Sensibility, but merely expounding the era to a 21st
century reader (consumers of Twitter, Facebook posts, People magazine, etc.).
Spiritually speaking, I felt like I was reading The Message
version of the Bible. The context had
not changed, the characters endured the same experiences, and the ultimate
message of the era was not compromised, but it was undoubtedly easier to
comprehend. Like the writers of The
Message understand about the Bible, Julianne Donaldson knows about Austen –
reading her work is not a walk in the park.
One must be thoroughly familiar with social customs of the early 1800s,
regency era diction, and norms of the landed gentry to be fully immersed in her
plots. Julianne simply translates this
magical time period for our contemporary minds without compromising its
uniqueness.
All that to say, this book was simply a pleasure to
read. While I may not venture back to it
again and again, I am happy to have divulged in this work of fiction for the
past three days. The heroine, Marianna,
was a character I easily admired and loved.
Once I got past the opening (and potentially cheesy) scene of her
“twirling” in the field, I quickly found her endearing. She is humble, naive, and honest in a complex
world of titles, money, and traditions.
Like a breath of fresh air, you can’t help but find vigor in her
perspective of life. Themes of family,
coming of age, and love weaved throughout the novel and kept me very
intrigued. Yes, of course, there was a
male interest in Marianna’s story, but their relationship is a sweet complement
to her own quest of self-discovery. The
many conflicts she finds herself in (which include all categories sans man vs.
nature, bless her heart) resolve by the novel’s end, which I am always thankful
to find, as I have never been a fan of the whole “interpret the ending
yourself” thing. (I’m still scarred by you, Inception.)
While I may not recommend this book to my husband (who only
reads non-fiction) or to people who prefer a thrilling or epic plot, I do
recommend it to those of you who enjoy a heart warming read on a lazy day. If you can appreciate prose filled with
carriage rides, chaperones, inheritances, masquerade balls, and other matters
of the like, you will surely enjoy this read.
Bravo, Julianne, I think Jane Austen just might be grateful for your
willingness and success at capturing the beauty of this time period and
gracefully depicting it to those of us who don’t know the early 19th
century denotation of a “lady”.
From: Paige
From: Paige
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