2020 is shaping up to be another renaissance year for the beloved author Jane Austen. If you love this classic author, you’ll love these seven dazzling books perfect for fans of Jane Austen.

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner

At the end of WWII, a group of unlikely locals and a visiting Hollywood movie star come together out of their mutual passion for Jane Austen’s work to preserve what remains of her legacy and her final home in Chawton. I had the privilege of reading an early manuscript of this delightful and endearing novel. It is an uplifting tribute to its inspiration and the nobility of the human spirit.


The Austen Girls by Lucy Worsley

A young adult novel from television personality and Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, Lucy Worsley, The Austen Girls has an interesting premise. Set in 1809, Jane Austen’s two younger nieces Fanny and Anna are launched into the cutthroat Regency marriage market by their ambitious mama while Jane rescues her falsely accused Aunt Leigh-Perrot from being transported to Australia. Dramatic and fast-paced, this Austen-inspired story is based on real-life events.


The Stars We Steal by Alexa Donne

When her spurned first love reappears in her life, 18-year-old Princess Leonie is faced with regret and anger over her family’s rejection of him years ago. While he flirts with others, she must navigate the intrigue of the royal court and the challenge to marry well to save her family’s floundering finances. In The Stars We Steal, Donne has dished out a clever spin on Austen’s Persuasion set in space for young adults, and those still young at heart.


The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow

Period drama fans have been watching television shows produced by the BBC where Janice Hadlow worked as an executive for more than two decades. Because of this, I was doubly curious to see how she could transform Mary Bennet, the bookish, sanctimonious middle sister in Pride and Prejudice into a heroine that we could admire and root for. Hadlow gives Mary 480 pages of challenges, twists and romantic entanglements in her search for happiness that rival any of Austen’s heroines.


Miss Austen by Gill Hornby

Described as Jo Baker’s Longbourn meets Therese Anne Fowler’s Z, this witty, poignant novel set in 1840 England is about elderly spinster Cassandra Austen two decades after the death of her famous sister, Jane. As she re-reads their intimate correspondence, she vividly remembers secrets between them and life events long hidden. This imaginative and insightful novel reverently weaves family lore and artistic license into a believable tale.


Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev

Last year’s bestselling Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Dev was a culturally rich, modernization of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Her next novel continues the theme of infusing Austen, food and Indian culture in America and is inspired by Austen’s classic Persuasion, a second-chance-at-love novel that always pierces my soul. This heartwarming romantic comedy promises to make us laugh and tug at our heartstrings.


The Wrong Mr. Darcy by Evelyn Lozada and Holly Lörincz

In this multicultural contemporary retelling of Pride and Prejudice, sportswriter Hara Isari and basketball rookie Derek Darcy both clash on first acquaintance, until fate reunites them and they begin to understand the error of first impressions. Written by an American Latina reality TV personality Evelyn Lozada, and Holly Lörincz, a successful collaborative writer, this spikey romantic comedy offers Austen’s classic story with a wholly original twist.


(Feature image courtesy of @bookbub)

*Disclosure: The links above are affiliate links. These picks are editorially selected, but if you purchase, She Reads may get something in return. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.