A worthy addition to Hornby's two previous novels on the life and times of Austen's family. She draws the characters well, distinguishing between the many (and similarly-named) people effectively. The reader finds themselves understanding the characters even when they behave very unsympathetically, and the depiction of age-old tensions that exist in families are finely-drawn and achingly real.

I really loved Gill Hornby's previous Austen novels, *Miss Austen* and *Godmersham Park*, so I was excited to dive into this third one—and it definitely didn't disappoint. This time, we follow Fanny Knight (who becomes Lady Knatchbull) and her stepdaughter, Mary Dorothea Knatchbull. Their relationship is far from smooth, and there's a pretty shocking moment when Mary's head is shaved just before she’s supposed to attend a ball. Later, when Mary falls in love, her chosen suitor isn’t exactly approved by everyone... but I won't spoil the details—just keep the title in mind!

Cassandra, Jane Austen's sister, also pops up in the story, and there's this lovely scene towards the end with a family cricket game at Chawton. Picture adults and a ton of tiny children just enjoying themselves—it's such a heartwarming moment.

As I read, I kept reflecting on the challenges women faced during this time—the lack of freedom, male dominance, and the constant risks tied to childbirth. It's all seamlessly woven into a story full of rich characters and plenty of drama. I’m already looking forward to the next book about the Austen family!

For all lovers of history - Based on the real-life diaries of Fanny, Gill Hornby has managed to bring the whole cast vividly to life, along with their opinions and characteristics.
Read in 2 sittings, if sleep hadn't prevailed I would have devoured in one.
📕

The Elopement dramatises the true story of Fanny Knight - niece of Jane (deceased at the point of this story) and Cassandra Austen - and her stepdaughter Mary Dorothea.

Fanny, who has taken on responsibility for her home and siblings, is extremely surprised to be proposed to by Sir Edward Knatchbull, a man with several children in need of a mother (though he also claims to love her). He wants her to be a mother to eldest daughter Mary in particular, as does Fanny herself, but the relationship never quite works, and new strains appear as Mary grows up.

It's powerfully shown here how little choice women - and many men - have about the course their lives should take. Several romances and potential marriages for various characters are vetoed on grounds of unsuitability, leading to heartbreak.

For Mary's father, his word is law - any alternative views she may hold are simply incorrect and certainly irrelevant. Desperate measures may be called for.

Fanny is an interesting character - she doesn't have ill intent, but some of her actions are certainly damaging. She certainly seems to lack a degree of empathy for Mary, in particular.

I haven't read Gill Hornby's previous books about the Austen family (or seen the TV series based on "Miss Austen") but I may have to rectify that, as I did really enjoy this story.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Gill Hornby's previous Austen novels, 'Miss Austen' and 'Godmersham Park', and this third book is a worthy successor.
We follow the stories of Fanny Knight, who becomes Lady Knatchbull, and Mary Dorothea Knatchbull, her step daughter. All is not plain sailing between the pair and there is a shocking event involving shaving Mary's head shortly before she attends a ball. When Mary Dorothea later falls in love, her suitor is not approved of and...no spoilers, but remember the title.
Cassandra, Jane Austen's sister, appears in the narrative and the family cricket game she witnesses on the lawn at Chawton towards the end of the book with adults and hordes of tiny children having the time of their lives is an absolute joy.
Throughout the book, one cannot help reflecting on women's lives in this period - the lack of freedom, male dominance and the ever present dangers associated with childbirth. All is cleverly woven into a compelling tale stuffed with believable characters and plenty of action. I can't wait for the next novel about the Austen family!

This was an interesting read. We are introduced to Fanny, who is one of Jane Austen's nieces, and who very much want to be married. She finds herself in quite the situation after she receives a surprise proposal and agrees to marriage only to quickly responsible for the gentleman's many children. The story doesn't get much more encouraging from there, but like I said, it is interesting to see how her journey goes.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book about Fanny Knight, a niece of Jane Austen, At the age of 27 Fanny is worried that she will become a spinster so when she receives an unexpected proposal from Sir Edward Knatchbull, she accepts it. To her dismay, the long engagement she hoped for is shortened to seven weeks and she is encumbered with a large number of children from his first marriage. Fanny is not a particularly engaging character. She bows to her husband's will and he is quite awful. A rigid and uninspiring man. When one of Fanny's brothers elopes with Edward's oldest daughter it leads to an estrangement between the two families. One thing that comes across very strongly is how dangerous childbirth was for women in those days. I think I'd have stayed single.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I now have to seek out Godmerston Park, the prequel to this.

After seeing the recent series of Miss Austen on the BBC I was excited to read this one. I love a period drama and this one transports you right back to the time of Jane Austen. Such a great read for all fans of Austen.

A sometimes enjoyable foray back to the Knight family home and following Fanny to a new marriage and stepfamily. I was surprised by how much I disliked Fanny and her interactions with her siblings and stepdaughter in this book-having found her completely tolerable in Godmersham Park. She seemed to me to completely shed her previous character, though her family seemed unfazed by her behaviour so perhaps not!?

This one lacked the intrigue of Miss Austen for me. It got caught up in dull interactions between unlikeable characters in the first half- and the titular elopement eluded the reader. Only after about 60%, did it became much faster paced and interesting.

I enjoyed the period detail, and the easygoing Knight family tales. I found Sir Edward and Fanny rather tough to endure as their character arcs went nowhere- just more of the same on each reacquaintance.

3.5*. My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of The Elopement

I was very happy to have the chance to read The Elopement. It is entertaining and charming, with wonderful descriptions. It’s a richly detailed story of family, duty, marriage, death…and of course an elopement. It was fascinating to see how Fanny Knight copes when she marries Sir Edward Knatchbull and becomes stepmother to his children, including Mary Dorothea, about whom she has such good intentions but never quite manages to fulfil them. I warmed to Mary Dorothea the most. She has integrity and loyalty. The Elopement is a really enjoyable read, beautifully written in the style of Jane Austen by Gill Hornby. Perfect for Austen fans. I loved it!

After watching the latest Austen drama on BBC, it wasn't long before I felt eager to pick this one up and immerse myself in an Austen world again. With wonderful descriptions, I was soon transported into this tale and appreciated the author's writing style once more.

A lovely read.

got this book as an ARC from Netgalley. It has not been on my shelf for long. I read and enjoyed Miss Austen by the same author. Set in London and presumably the Bath area of Jane Austen's own life, although really the book only refers to the names of the Country estates where the characters reside. The characters are, I think, Based but not a re imagination of those created by Austen in her works. The mainttable thing for me is that they are utterly bland and forgettable and deeply unlikeable. As a cast I found them very dreary and the narratve surrounding them banal, unexciting and oh so long winded.
This should have been a book to really capture me - A modern classic relating back to one of tradition but it simply failed to capture my imagination.

I think the Author would have to plot a new novel, very different to this to make me want to read her again but I get the feeling she has become embroiled in the "austenesque" storytelling.

When I can get my hands on any kind of Jane Auten adjacent fiction, I am in. Many do not have the skill or the quality of writing and do not provide the joy I find when picking up a Gill Hornby novel, however. I raved about Miss Austen and Godmersham Park, and the Elopement is just as good. It is perfect if you are wondering what happened next in the Hornby-telling of the wider Austin family, and if you have either a book or TV series hangover from Miss Austin. (I thought that the BBC series was a lovely adaptation!)
The novel provides us with an insight into English upper-class life in the 1800s, the role and view of women, and gives us heroes and villains that make it a proper good read. Anyone else want to give Fanny a slap?
Pure escapism from a worrying and stressful world. I loved it!

If you liked Miss Austen then I thoroughly recommend this book.
This book centres around Edward Knight and his family and focuses on Fanny Knight and Mary Knatchbull. Based on true events, it's fascinating how woman were treated, how their lives were mapped out for them by their father's and just how many children they all had!
I love that Cassandra Austen still features heavily in their lives.

I was delighted to receive an ARC of Gill Hornby’s latest book which tells more about the Austen family and again involves Cassandra Austen.
It continues the story of Fanny Knight which started in Godmersham Park and tells of her marriage to Sir Edward Knatchbull and her relationship with Edward’s daughter,Mary Dorothea.
Mary becomes involved with the Knight family as a result of being Fanny’s stepdaughter ,and the story is told from both of their points of view.When Mary falls in love with Fanny’s brother Ned ,things become complicated,(without giving away too much of the plot).
The book is written in the style of Jane Austen and is both humorous and poignant .It really emphasises the way women were treated as their fathers’ possessions ,with little say in what happened to them.
I enjoyed the book very much and was sorry when it ended.Definitely one to recommend to Jane Austen fans.

A charming read bringing the Austen family and their descendants to life. I do admit there are parts in the first half that seem to slow the pace of the story but the second half more than makes up for it. Enjoyable and moreish. A lovely read.

Thank you Netgalley

Having really enjoyed Gill Hornby’s other Jane Austen related novels I was delighted to be given the opportunity to read and review ‘The Elopement’. I was soon immersed in the world of the Austen Knights and their very large extended family.
The author gives several characters a voice meaning that we, as readers, can see the narrative develop from different points of view. This makes the story so much more well rounded than just one characters perspective and gives an insight into everyday life for a family like the Knights and the expectations that society had for them and how some still managed to defy them.
It also gives us a chance to catch up with Cassandra Austen, still a fierce champion of her sister, Jane, and see her continuing importance as she takes her place in the families of her nieces and nephews.
I very much enjoyed The Elopement and would recommend it without hesitation.

Rooted in the histories of Austen's relations, this book brings a whole cast of characters to life. Between them they are warm, funny, frustrating and at times ridiculous, but all very human.

I picked this book up expecting the whirlwind romance of the elopement to take centre stage, but the story covers so much more. Taking place over the span of nearly twenty years, there are plenty of personal dramas along the way to keep it entertaining (the elopement is also very much a romantic whirlwind, never fear).

I loved getting to explore all the different relationships and dynamics over time, and was just as invested in Mary 's relationship with her new stepmother Fanny, and the challenges they faced, as I was in the romance with Ned.

Gill Hornby once again welcomes us into the rich and complex history of the Austen family. This time we meet her niece, Fanny, as a grown woman and follow her as she navigates being a wife and mother and leaving behind her beloved family with her loyalties split.

I enjoyed the added perspective of her step daughter, Mary, and the slow and steady unfolding of her relationship. I found the book enjoyable with flawed and real characters. Another great blend of history and imagination

A must for any Jane Austen fan. This is an utterly charming book based on the family of Jane's brother Edward, written in what can only be described as an Austenesque style. He arranges for his eldest daughter to marry a local widower with a young family. This is her role - to be a wife, a mother, to run a household, and defer, at all times to her husband. She attempts to form a relationship with his only daughter, but not as successfully as she would hope. Both families, living closely to each other, socialise in ways familiar to any reader of Austen's novel - balls, dinners, trips to London, relationships are formed, hopes are dashed.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, and would recommend it to anyone.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for an ARC.