A review by raye_loves_reading
The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow

hopeful 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

3.75

I have to be honest, I did wonder if I was ever going to reach the end. The first half was very slow moving while the second (happily for me) moved at a much better pace.

I have completed a full video essay on my love/hate for this book. I found the first half dragged and could have been so much shorter than it ended up being. However, once Mary heads to London to live with her aunt and uncle (Mr & Mrs Gardiner, who were great in P&P), I felt that the story started to get going. Yes, some surprising events occurred before this move, but I found myself racing through the book once London was reached, Tom was introduced and Mary finally started to do more than exist.

I always found Mrs Bennet to be an embarrassing, uncomfortable character. However, in this book, she was unbearable, as though she had been turned up to 10 and made to be less embarrassing and more hateful.  That said, the same could be said for the "ever-charming" Miss Caroline Bingley!