Reviews with content warning for Grief - Persuasion

DISCLAIMER - I read this text as a set text for university meaning I did not pick this up for myself. It does not necessarily fit my usual reading selection so my review may be rather biased.

Of all of them I’ve read, this is my second favourite Austen. A beautiful story of love and loss and complex emotions, with an older and somewhat more mature set of characters. I enjoyed the simplicity of the story and the declarations of love were believable yet poetically written.

Enjoyed this read!

Content Warnings

laineydunne's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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kellyofcali's review against another edition

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emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Maybe it was the time of reading/my mood, but I couldn't get terribly attached to any of the characters in this story - it was a stark contrast between the sweet main characters and their mostly-horrible surrounding cast, but I didn't find either super interesting. That said, I the sharp narrator was often funny and I always enjoy ogling the now-odd traditions, customs, and rules of the regency area.

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zivareads's review against another edition

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emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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withlivjones's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This novel has a very slow start and I struggled to get into it. It only picks up really during the second half, but once it did I enjoyed it. The tension between Anne and Captain Wentworth is so clear and the narration of their interactions by Austen gives a real sense of pining and suppressed emotions. I actually let out a gasp at the letter Wentworth writes! When there is drama within the novel, Austen certainly knows how to write it.

Despite this tension, I found that the main couple don’t actually have much personality. Wentworth spends most of the novel brooding while Anne has Mary-Sue qualities (i.e. being fair, accomplished and good-tempered while also being ignored and pushed around by everyone around her) and only realises halfway through the novel that she can develop different opinions to other people. I actually found the most entertaining character to be Mary, who is annoyingly self-centred but at least has a personality. I think this is what caused me to struggle to get into the novel at the beginning, before the plot really kicked in.

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bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Started off a bit slow but once I got about 40 pages in I fell in love! The story would drag at times and I’d lose a bit of focus but overall I loved it. I have sooo many passages marked-the writing was beautiful and the relationships *swoon* 😍

This was my very first Austen and I can’t believe I waited so long to read her novels! I’ll be slowly adding her works to my shelves so I can continue my Austen education.

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