Title: Ladies in Waiting
Author: Adriana Trigiani, Sarah MacLean, Eloisa James, Elinor Lipman, Audrey Bellezza, Karen Dukess, Emily Harding, Nikki Payne, Diana Quincy
Narrated by: Shiromi Arserio, Billie Fulford-Brown, Fiona Hardingham, Angel Pean
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Length: Approximately 11 hour and 14 minutes
Source: Audiobook Review copy from Simon & Schuster. Thank-you!
What secondary character in fiction would you like to see get a happy ending?
Ladies in Waiting is a short story anthology celebrating Jane Austen and her classic novels. Written by a variety of best-selling authors, it was put together to honor her for her 250th birthday.
My thoughts on this book:
• I read this in June for a selection for the JASNA Northwoods book club. Sadly, I missed the club due to an illness.
• This was a great collection of stories featuring Austen’s secondary characters finally getting their chance in the sunlight.
• This is a perfect read for those that loved the Other Miss Bennett and are looking for something new.
• Characters such as Margaret Dashwood from Sense & Sensibility, Lydia Bennet from Pride & Prejudice, Miss Bates from Emma, and Caroline Bingley from Pride and Prejudice get second changes.
• I loved the story of the widowed Lydia finding a chance for love and redemption with a local clergyman.
• I also enjoyed the story of Margaret Dashwood realizing her childhood friend Hugh may be more than a friend.
• Another favorite story was about Miss Hetty Bates and learning about her scandalous past and one true love.
• The worst part was that I wanted more stories, especially secondary characters Jane Austen’s other novels.
• I liked how it focused on lesser-known characters in the stories, but wish it would have included characters from all six Austen books rather than just Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, and Emma.
• Why were there two stories on Miss Bates? I enjoyed the second Miss Bates story much more than the first story.
• The stories were sometimes set in different time period and places.
• Each story started with a quotes from the original novel, a brief description of the character and a preview of the short story from the author.
• I thought the last half of the stories were the best of the bunch!
• This was great on audiobook. I enjoyed the narrators and music between each stories.
Overall, Ladies in Waiting was an entertaining mix of stories on intriguing Jane Austen characters who deserve their own day in the spotlight.
