Editor’s note: we have several book reviews written by the Minions but with our recent slackage, they were never posted. This is the first of several. At this time, we are no longer accepting new books for review.

Review by Jenny Ellis

Short story collections such as Jane Austen Made Me Do It are great to have on hand when it’s been a stressful week at work and you can’t concentrate for long periods of time. It’s nice to read a couple stories put the book down, cook dinner and pick the book back up. I think there’s a story for everyone in this collection. It’s nice to see that so many authors were inspired by Jane Austen. Three stories really stand out to me. In Syrie James’s story “Jane Austen’s Nightmare,” Jane encounters all of her characters while out on the town. Marianne rips into Jane for having her end up with Colonel Brandon instead of Willoughby. If Marianne doesn’t want Colonel Brandon I’d be glad to take him off her hands. (Same here. –Ed.) I laughed out loud multiple times during this story because I think it’s every author’s nightmare to have their characters come to life and tell them how they really feel. Most of Jane’s characters’ responses made me laugh out loud. Author Beth Pattillo states “If only real life could be like one of Jane Austen’s novels”. Her story was short but sweet. It makes me wonder which novels I’d want my life to be like. I think I’d have to go with my favorite of hers, Persuasion. I like how Beth’s story shows you never know where you’ll find love. When I started to read Alexandra Potter’s “Me and Mr. Darcy Again” I thought the characters seemed familiar. It’s a sequel to her novel Me and Mr. Darcy from 2007. It made me want to re-read the novel. It was just enough of a continuation to make me happy. This book is a good mix of modern day settings and historic settings. My tastes lean towards the modern ones because I like how it shows how much Jane Austen and her novels are still relevant today.