A rich imagined family saga, love story and social comedy, The Elopement is a moving story. Focusing on three women, two families and one forbidden marriage, we are taken back in time. Mary Dorothea Knatchbull is living under the sole charge of her widowed father, Sir Edward . Sir Edward marries Miss Fanny Knight and Mary's life changes. Fanny's sisters happy and sociable become Mary's friends. She falls deeply in love with one Mr Knight. Both did not expect any opposition to them getting married. They see no way out, other than to elope. The Elopement is a delightful, romantic , warm and intriguing read. A page turner, it is an uplifting escape into the the Austen world.

An enjoyable read for Jane Austen fans, which examines the history of some of the wider Austen family in the form of a historical novel. The author does get the right flavour and style of writing for the era whilst making it accessible.

Fanny Austen Knight's aunt was Jane Austen. That Jane Austen. And in this another novel by Gill Hornby which takes Austen's family and extends their stories into fiction.

Fanny marries into the Knatchbull family and Fanny gains a ready made family. The eldest daughter, Mary Dorothea who forms the other perspective of this novel.

Fanny thinks she is succeeding at being a step mother - Mary differs in that opinion. Then another member of the Knight family visits, Ned Knight and Mary has a very differing opinion on what her role is now going to be.

You have to have your wits about you, as there are many connections through the families, and with similar names it can be difficult to work out who the characters all are and how they relate. Once you have got this sorted then story is rather pedestrian in places and only really picks up towards the end.

A regency romance if you can forget the 'famous' characters. Dealing with marriage, spinsterhood, childbirth and the role of women. It is as much a book of historical fiction as it is a modern one.

The Elopement by Gill Hornby is historical fiction about the life of Jane Austen’s niece Fanny Knight and Mary Dorothea Knatchbull, Fanny’s stepdaughter. I wanted to read it because I loved her earlier books about Jane Austen’s extended family, Miss Austen and Godmersham Park. However, I was a bit disappointed as I think it fails to capture that flavour of Jane Austen’s novels that I have loved ever since I first read Pride and Prejudice as a young teenager.

There are many characters listed at the beginning of the book – there are the Knights of Godmersham Park; the Knatchbulls of Mersham-le-Hatch and the Austens of Chawton Cottage, where Cassandra, Jane Austen’s elder sister, and her mother lived. Cassandra Austen only has a cameo role.

Fanny’s father was Edward Austen, who was adopted by the wealthy Knight family (Thomas Knight was a cousin), taking their name in 1812. In 1820 Fanny married Sir Edward Knatchbull, a widower, with six children. Fanny and Mary Dorothea, the only daughter, had a difficult relationship right from the start, unable to break through their natural reserve. Fanny is not a warm character and Mary is reluctant to accept her as a substitute mother – neither of them are willing to be open with each other and maintain an icy politeness. However, Mary and Fanny’s brothers and sisters get on well; very well with one brother in particular.

I didn’t find it evenly paced, beginning very slowly with a rushed ending. I found the first part of the book was too drawn out (even boring in parts) and I thought I’d have to abandon it, but I read on and the second part held my interest and I finished the book. I liked the insight into the wider Austen family and the social context – family relationships, attitudes towards duty, marriage, the position of women and the dangers of childbirth.

The Author’s Note is very interesting, explaining that the narrative exactly follows Fanny Knight’s record of events she recorded in her daily journals that she kept from 1804, when she was eleven years old until she was eighty. Gill Hornby highlights:

‘ … the perilous nature of the lives of the married women. The birth of every child is a moment of danger. The loved ones of expectant mothers are on high alert. … If you married young and were happily fertile, then it was a game of Russian roulette, year after year.

In Gill Hornby’s latest tale of member of Jane Austen’s extended family, we meet the children of her brother Edward Austen Knight. When his daughter Fanny marries the widower Sir Edward Knatchbull, she also becomes stepmother to his children, including his eldest daughter, Mary. Relations between Fanny and Mary are strained, but Mary does fall in love with Fanny’s family – the Knights, and spends her teenage years in their company.

We follow Mary and Fanny’s perspectives over the course of the years after Fanny marries Edward. While never particularly close, there is no animosity between them until such time as Mary falls in love with a man that her father – and therefore Fanny – deem unacceptable, leading to the titular event of an elopement.

This was an enjoyable read, and I liked having the perspectives of both women as time moved along. I did expect the elopement to happen much earlier in the book, given the title of the novel, meaning that the ending felt a little rushed to me. However, it was interesting to learn more about Mary’s teen years and her relationships with the various members of the Knight/Austen family.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

The Elopement by Gill Hornby. What the actual fuck is the plot of this book? Fanny is a wet wipe and and she’s married a man with kids and she’s horrible to everyone and no one likes anyone else. I don’t know what the plot is. I like a mindless plot but no.

I adored this book. It’s based on period research, added to by the author’s fabulous imagination. I’m very much looking forward to reading other books by this author.

I have never been so confused by a book before. Half of the I was not sure what was happening and who are they talking about. And don't get me wrong I love Jane Austen and similar books but the struggle I endured with this book was great and I'm not saying this lightly, believe me. This was one of the books I wanted to like but alas it was not meant to be.

It is 1820, and Mary finds her strict widower father's remarriage to Miss Fanny Knight opens up a new and delightful world to her, utterly transforming her life. Now she has access to all the new and interesting people that any young woman could wish for!

Unsurprisingly, in the process of exploring her new social circle Mary falls in love with an eminently eligible man. And surely no one could object to their union? But it seems otherwise...

This is a delightful Regency romance that brings alive the attitudes and social activities of the era to great effect, managing to imbue it with humour and charm. Worth reading, it gets 3. 5 stars.

Thank you for giving me the chance to read this book. I had recently watched the Miss Austen series on television and thought that I might enjoy this book. It is based upon the extended family of the Austen's and is love story set in the 1800's. Fanny Knight marries a local widower and takes on the role of stepmother to Mary Dorothea and her younger brothers. The relationships are not easy. Mary Dorothea also has a difficult relationship with her father, which is very different from the relationships within the Knight family children. The story details the times very well and the experiences of the different treatment of male and female children and even wives. It takes time to get to the point of the books title, which I found slow and tedious at times. Gill Hornby writes the characters well, but it is perhaps not the usual genre for me to read. I am sure that those who enjoy period books and love stories will find this an entertaining book.

This book is a work of fiction based on Jane Austen's niece, and written in a style similar to Jane Austen. It's a standard love story, underpinned with the social norms and expectations that you would expect from that time and from a book inspired by Jane Austen. However, I found it a really slow read - the plot seemed to move incredibly slowly, and while I enjoyed it, reading it did feel like a chore as the storyline didn't grip me. I have read others by Gill Hornby and enjoyed them, so this wouldn't put me off reading other books by this author.

Thanks to Gill Hornby, Penguin and NetGalley for this ARC, in return for an honest review.

DNF at 35%.

I requested this book because I had seen adverts for the TV mini series Miss Austen which had intrigued me and the blurb looked interesting.

Sadly, I am 35% through the book and I can't decide if it is intended to be funny (because it isn't), or who is supposed to be the main character. Indeed, I have just read the blurb as I start to write this review and I have discovered that the FMC is still a thirteen year old child, so far most of the book has been from the POV of her stepmother.

Anyway, I'm over a third through the book, none of it resembles the blurb, and I don't like the writing tone so I am giving up. Also, having downloaded the series I gave up after about 30 minutes of Miss Austen.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

This is a wondeful story of Jane Austins extended family. It deals beautifully with the trauma of Fanny's marriage and the integration of her new children. It demonstrates clearly what life was like back in the early 1800's and how men were superior , not to be botheeed with incidental affairs and women knew exactly jow to behave. Oh so different to today which made this book so appealing as it puts the society differences over in a lovable family way. Fanny had to face many trials and tribulations having the two families and none of which she could share with anybody.
A beautiful story set in a very elegannt society.

Thank you NetGalley for my copy in exchange for a review:

I want to start the review by stating I really enjoyed the writing and the premise of stepping into Austen’s world and I adored the setting.

it was an easy read for me and I enjoyed the emotional threads throughout the story but at times I struggled with the characters particularly Fanny who came off as unsympathetic but I really enjoyed the switching between her and Mary’s pov.

I look forward to checking out Hornby’s other works.

Mary Dorothea is navigating life since the death of her mother as best she can but then her father remarries. Suddenly she has a new mother and its taking some getting used to. She does however come from a large family leading Mary to new friends and maybe even a new love interest but would it be accepted by her father?

Aww this was such a good if somewhat sad at times read. I would rate it higher but I didn't like the ending. That's just my personal opinion though and the ending does very much fit the story and the times. I just wanted something else. That being said the story is well worth a read if you like Jane Austen and those style stories. I found the plot interesting and detailed. Mary really grew on me throughout the story but I loved Cassandra Austen the most. She played such a role in this helping everyone. Another great Austen family story.

The Elopement is a charming and witty peek into the Regency era. It’s based on real people (which somehow makes it more fascinating and more heartbreaking - how people treated their own family!), and you can definitely feel the tension and social drama. The characters are mostly warm and well done, and I loved how Hornby mixes in her usual cleverness and humour.



I went in thinking it was going to be a sweet love story, but real-life swoops in. Still, that’s what makes it stick with you. Even though it’s sad, it feels real and relatable.



So, worth a read if you’re into period drama, but brace yourself for a bittersweet finish.

Mary Dorothea Knatchbull lives with her strict father, for whom she is indispensable. When her stepmother, Fanny Knight (Jane Austen's niece), arrives, Mary finds friendship and love with a Mr. Knight. However their expected marriage faces unexpected opposition.

The story explores societal expectations and forbidden love in Regency England. Whilst it is obviously well researched, the narrative occasionally feels more like a detailed historical account than a compelling story.

Fanny Knight, apparently indispensable to her widowed father and her younger siblings, is married for convenience to a local widower, Sir. Edward Knatchbull . She lives her life estranged from Sir Edward’s eldest daughter Mary and has little to do with the younger brothers who are dispatched to boarding schools and family friends in the holidays. She fervently believes that she is central to both families although there is slow and gradual realisation that she is excluded from their thoughts and activities.

The story is told through Fanny’s experiences and those of her stepdaughter, Mary. The two views providing insight into the social customs, traditions, and concerns of English Georgian society and in particular the dangers and risks of pregnancy and child birth.

This is a well researched and beautifully written period drama. The historical detail is a particular strength of this story.

Fanny Knight feels fulfilled as the eldest sister running her father's household but when a local baronet asks for her hand Fanny is thrust into marriage and stepmotherhood. Mary was packed off to school at an early age and does develop a relationship with her cold, distant stepmother but loves her family. When Fanny's brother Ned develops an attachment to Mary disapproval leads to scandal.
This is the next instalment of Hornby's novels based around the family of Jane Austen and its a cracker. What Hornby does so beautifully is that she takes the facts about the family, weaves a story out of them and then writes it as though it were a Jane Austen plot. This could be awkward, or too reverential, but it's not, just a lovely novel of manners, duty and love that is gossamer light. It's a homage on one hand and a lovely piece of summer reading on the other!

An interesting read with flashes of dry wit reminiscent of Jane Austen herself. I found the depictions of Fanny, Mary Dorothea and Cassandra engaging, and the book brought to the fore how dangerous marriage could be for a woman in the past. Motherhood was a harsh physical trial, all too often fatal, and if a wife kept her life she might have to suppress her own personality and needs to suit the whim of her husband.
I felt the title was a little misleading, given how late the elopement occurs and how relatively small an incident it was in the broader sweep of the narrative. However, it was an enjoyable read, and will no doubt appeal to Hornby’s previous readers.