Summary
Maddy writes a "Dear Jane" column, and is let go from her job. Living in London is expensive and without a job, she may need to move back with her parents. Then her dad's cousin Nigel dies and she finds out he left his country home to her, with the stipulation that she lives in it for a year. With a tiny stipend to help pay for household necessities, she needs a source of income, and another neighbor suggests a lodger. She does not expect the lodger is Cameron Massey, She finds out Cameron Massey, a best selling crime author, who she had tension with since they were on a radio panel together. Now Maddy is living in this mansion, running the local literary festival Cousin Nigel started and trying to figure out what's next for her, while also trying to figure out the truth behind Nigel's past and getting to know Cameron.

Review
I love Jane Austen. I went in mostly cold, knowing this was a romance and was somehow tied to Jane Austen. I was a little disappointed. Maddy's character was a little over the top with her obsession with Jane Austen. The Cousin Nigel mystery storyline was an interesting subplot. I do wish we had more closure with that though... why did he choose Maddy to leave the house to? I love an enemies to lovers and grumpy/sunshine trope, but this one seemed to lack depth and the usual tension/chemistry that I usually associate with a strong romance for those tropes. A cute and light story.
I will say, I LOVED quotes from Jane Austen books that started each chapter.

I love Jane Austen and this book really brought everything to life for me with the title, cover, and characters. I loved this book and all that it represents. I can't wait for the next read from this author.

Love is this. Perfectly written and kept me reading from start to finish! Thank you for giving me the chance to read in advance

Very cute lovely rom com.
Enjoyable cosy read with a group of eclectic villagers, a grumpy author and a lover of the classics, not forgetting Buster of course.
Would recommend

Delightful loose retelling of Pride and Prejudice featuring a sunny Janeite down on her luck and a grumpy crime author with writer’s block. Mandy and Luke navigate their relationship with humor and heart and each find something they weren’t aware they were looking for. Very enjoyable read, especially for Austen fans.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my free copy. These opinions are my own.

This is an enjoyable, fun and lighthearted read which is perfect for fans of Jane Austen or romantic fiction.
I loved reading this book and I would definitely recommend it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

I really enjoyed this novel. It had a lovely storyline containing romance, a bit of mystery, countryside setting and a great bunch of neighbours. I loved the main characters Maddy and Cameron and also Buster the dog. I would definitely recommend it. I also loved the Jane Austen quotes and references to her novels.

A very charming and fun-to-read story about a journalist who finds out her column, Dear Jane, has been cancelled. Fortunately, she inherits a house. Unfortunately it is next door to an extremely cranky crime writer. This is a great "grumpy enemies to lovers" story. It is lighthearted and filled with Jane Austen references (although it is not necessary to be a Jane Austen reader to enjoy this book). I look forward to recommending this book.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This book was okay. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't great either.

A delightful story blessed with some classic Jane Austin quotes to just provide the icing on the cake. Maddy has been left a wonderful big house in the country, with the stipulation that she must keep it for a year. So, with nothing better to do, she moves in. She acquires a lodger who writes best selling crime novels, but is suffering from writer's block, but redeems himself with the most lovable dog. In the meantime, she inherits the annual literary festival and sets to work to make it a success while trying to convince her lodger that romance novels are not that easy to write as he might believe. She also starts finding out the truth about her benefactor, and how his family had misjudged him for so many years. A lovely enjoyable read, was sorry when it ended

I loved What Would Jane Austen Do? even more than I expected! I felt drawn into the story right from the very start and enjoyed getting to know Maddy and Cameron as their ‘enemies to lovers’, ‘grumpy/sunshine’ plus ‘forced proximity’ relationship developed. The ‘city girl moves to the countryside’ vibes worked really well for me, and I really liked the peripheral characters that the village setting gave us.

Something else I thought was great in this one was the subplot we saw with Maddy getting to know more about her cousin Nigel through both her experiences with the literary festival as well as some amateur sleuthing.

I really got along well with the writing in this one, which made it an easy and warm read for me, and I looked forward to picking it up when I got a chance to read. The banter between Maddy and Cameron was fun and there were some parts where I laughed out loud. I do love when a pet helps to bring romance novel protagonists together, so I appreciated the dog in this one!

I do recommend What Would Jane Austen Do? if you’re looking for a sweet and fun romance to pick up, especially if you are an Austen lover!

The premise of this book is really interesting. While reading it, it felt like parts of the plot weren’t developed as fully as they could’ve been, which made it a really slow read. It was also very slow burn: almost too much for me at times. Again, the premise is great. 2.5 rounded up.

‘Her experience of women inhabiting country houses was limited to reading - and watching televised adaptations of - Jane Austen books, along with reruns of Downton Abbey. So what would Jane Austen do with her day?’

With Jane Austen in the book title, how could I resist? What Would Jane Austen Do? is a fun, light romance read with an enemies to lovers trope - just right for that inbetween read.

‘… after all, Elizabeth Bennet didn’t get her first glance of Pemberley and think, ooh, I bet that will involve a lot of dusting.’

Jane Austen fans will appreciate the carefully selected quotes at the start of each chapter that lightly align with the given theme. However, given the book title, I was expecting stronger Jane Austen ties that in reality were only fleetingly mentioned. This book could easily remove that draw card name and present as a standalone.

‘Jane Austen would say that if you like someone, make it clear that you do, but don’t put your feelings on public display unless you’re sure they’re reciprocated. Otherwise you’re heading straight into Marianne Dashwood territory.’
‘Who’s she?’

Maddy inherits an English manor but of course there is a stipulation that she must live for one year in the home. Intrigued with the inheritance, she investigates this distant cousin and the surrounding mystery; she gets involved in the local literary festival and takes on a cranky lodger and this is where the light romance comes into play. All these aspects come together for an easy paced read and when you add in an adorable dog there is enough to engage readers.







This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

What a fun book! This has great tropes, and is a winner for Jane Austen fans. Recommend!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this book.

Maddy, a true romantic. moves to the country and meets a crime writer, Cameron who is anything but a romantic. When he moves in as her lodger, how will they get on.? Funny and really enjoyable.

A Fun romance full of quirky characters and an adorable dog. Set in the present time mostly in a small village of Cotlington near London.
Maddy loses her job as a correspondent for a magazine answering Dear Jane questions on love and relationships. As she contemplates how she can afford to keep living in a flat with her friend she is given news that she has inherited a house in the village of Cotlington when her father’s uncle dies.
A condition of the will requires that Maddy must live in the house for twelve months. Maddy is a fan of Jane Austen and romance novels. Each chapter starts with a quote from one of Jane Austen’s books.
I loved the way Maddy got involved in village life and helps plan a literary festival. To earn some extra cash Maddy agrees to let Luke Hamilton stay in her house as a lodger for a short time. Luke is a mystery writer who is not a fan of romance novels and is having trouble writing his next novel. Maddy and Luke clash over the merits of romance novels versus mystery novels.
This was about village life, literary festivals and writers. Lots of humorous situations.

As a Austen fanatic myself I just loved this book. I have often wondered the title question myself and this was just a fun journey and I hope you read it and like it as much as I do.

What Would Jane Austen Do? is without a doubt one of my favourite books of the year so far! I absolutely loved it!

Maddy is such a lovely character I absolutely want to be friends with her.

Things are looking pretty bleak at the beginning of the book. Maddy is made redundant from her agony aunt job, and her meagre savings means she won’t be able to stay in London for long. And then, in true romantic heroine fashion, she inherits a house from a long-lost relative.

Maddy,s plans to sell up and stay in London are thwarted when the solicitors reveal a strange clause in long-lost Cousin Nigel’s will – she has to live there for a year and becomes chair of the village literary festival.

Like many an Austen heroine before her, Maddy has to put aside her pride and prejudice and get to know the villagers. Before long she is actually excited about the literary festival and repairing the house.

The only thorn in her side is Cameron Massey, a best-selling local author whose views of fiction are the opposite of Maddy’s. He may be good-looking and intelligent but he’s also sulky and brooding. Is he her Mr Darcy?

This is a fantastic romance with lots of humour and fun along the way. The supporting cast are interesting and compliment the main characters well. Buster the dog is a scene stealer.

The back story of Nigel, the family black sheep, is really interesting and adds a poignancy to the story. Maddy works hard to get to know a man who is so adored in the village but ridiculed by his family.

I loved Maddy and Luke’s relationship. They come to really appreciate each other despite more than a few misunderstandings. Of course, it ends with a happily ever after – but it is a very satisfying one.

I also loved the Austen quotes at the beginning of each chapter. They were such a joy and will make you want to reread all Austen’s books, too.

A very cute and enjoyable read! The main character is just so likeable, I was totally rooting for her. The chemistry between Maddy and Luke was so well written from the beginning.

Read if you like:
- small town romance
- enemies to lovers
- grumpy x sunshine
- forced proximity
- closed door romance

Life's throwing curve balls Maddy Shaw's way
Sacked from her job, she has a lot to say
When a crime writer, Cameron Massey, suggests romance
Is bland, predictable and shouldn't have a chance!

When Maddy challenges him to write romance
He thinks it'll be easy, but won't give it a chance.
Then she learns a distant relative has sadly died
And left her his home if there for a year she'll reside!

What she never expected was to discover, you'll see,
Is how highly esteemed the deceased seems to be.
The village community his praises sing
And living in his home new tasks for Maddie will bring!

There's drama, a lodger, a festival to run,
A mystery, family history and work to be done.
A new place to live, new friends to make
And new activities in which to partake!

A fun romcom with Jane Austen quotes, too,
As Maddy uses the author's works to tell her what to do.
There's a delightful dog and secrets to uncover
As well as a chance for romance to discover!

A heartwarming read to put a smile on your face
As Maddy meets the challenges of living in a new place.
For my complementary copy, I say thank you,
As I share with you this, my honest review.