Finley has spent the last few years living with her godfather and his family in Chicago after her famous father's death. She has been taking care of them and thinking of herself as nothing even though Oliver keeps trying to make her feel like she deserves to have some of the things she wants. It is a slow love story, and a story about her finding her voice.

The only failings in the book are about Oliver constantly wanting people to see Finley and in his essentially wanting to change what she is. Finley is a selfless and loving introvert and she is strong and can be what she wants to be. Some people are happy in their shell. Respect that. Other than that little irritation, this book was wonderful.

Having loved Mansfield Park, this was fun to read and compare. The author did a great job of bringing that classic into a modern day era. The storyline was good, though at times it seemed there were too many problems, especially with Finley. It was a little strange the way she obsessed about keeping her father a secret and then all the abuse her mother gave her, it just didn't seem to mesh well. Overall it was enjoyable and brought back good memories of reading Mansfield Park for the first time.

I have to be honest: I had a hard time getting into the book. The story is a retelling of Mansfield Park, a Jane Austen novel. I have not read the book (only seen 2 movies of it) but I have read Austen novels before. The way people lived their lives in that era, entertaining people, visiting others, that is not the way society is now. But I did get that old fashioned vibe in this novel.

Finley is a very nice girl. She has lost her father (a famous actor) a few years back and is lucky her father's uni friend Mr Bertram and his family have taken her in. Her mother has abandoned her and her brother. She is now 16 and loves theatre, film and such. Her best friend is Oliver Bertram, who is secretly in love with her.

I disliked the fact Finley was treated as some sort of lower class person. She has only second hand clothes and stuff, works as a janitor and takes care of Mrs Bertram who is ill. She is half Brazilian and several remarks are made about that. There is a very nasty aunt that treats her horribly and everyone just assumes that's OK. Finley should be thankful...
There are way too many characters introduced in the first chapters, very confusing. But that is because these are all the characters of the original Mansfield Park.

Overall, the story is written in a very pleasant style. But it took ages for something to happen and as I never liked the original characters of MP (Oliver goes after Emma while being in love with Finley...) I did not warm to these characters or their backstories. I rooted for Finley to get to her dream, that is the only reason for the 3 stars.

The author should concentrate on creating her own original story as I am sure she could write something so much more amazing without the confines of the MP storyline.

Austen fans, dive in! Watson's take on Mansfield Park breathes new life into the original, and I ate up every word. Add this to your TBR list. You won't regret it!

Mansfield Park is not my favorite Austen. That isn't exactly an unpopular opinion; Mansfield is probably Austen's least popular work. Fanny just isn't considered as interesting a character as Lizzy Bennet or Emma Woodhouse or even the Dashwood sisters (sorry, Fanny). However, I do enjoy modern adaptations of classic works, particularly Austen's, which I think are a great framework for modern adaptations. So I requested this book. I thought it was a good adaptation of Mansfield Park--it kept the basics the same, but put an effective modern twist on them. I think poor Fanny gets a bad rap sometimes (I am guilty of it, too), so it's nice to see that this book and its characters are getting some love in the form of this adaptation.

This book is fantastic. I loved reading Finley's story about life after tragedy. At first I assumed that Finley was a Cinderella character, with an adopted family that doesn't appreciate her and an evil aunt, but her story was much more complex than that. Finley's story shows how tragedy can color our world and make us feel and see things differently than when the world is spinning back on it's axis.
When famous actors move into the apartment upstairs the Bertram family becomes friends. After wearing her down over a few months, Finley and Harlan start dating much to, Finley's best friend, Oliver's dismay. Oliver has held a candle for Finley for years, but after all Finley has been through he didn't want to take advantage of the broken girl living upstairs.
Over the course of the book, Finley realizes what's most important to her and the kind of person she wants to be. This story is light-hearted at times and distrusting at others, but overall, this is a great compelling read about the difficulty life presents you sometimes.

I love Jane Austen. I've always enjoyed the chance to immerse myself in the world. That generally extends to stories that move Jane Austen-like action into the modern world. It works with Shakespeare, why not Austen? All that being said, Mansfield park doesn't translate well. Fanny Price's dependence on the Bertrams is not something that is readily understood in the modern world. I liked Finley, and thought she was a fun character. I just thought that her motivation was severely lacking. Additionally, in the modern era, marriage is not the goal of high schoolers. Without marriage and future security on the line, the urgency also disappears. This one didn't do it for me.

I am a major sucker for modern retellings of classics - especially Jane Austen ones. So when I saw this book, of course, I was going to request it, especially when I saw that it had elements of theatre and acting in it. And let me tell you. I ABSOLUTELY ADORED this book. Major congratulations to the author for crafting a book that aligned itself with the original and at the same time brought it forward to the 21st century without any hints of awkwardness.

Finley- I really enjoyed reading about and reading from Finley's perspective. Her voice and character, in my opinion, is a step up from the original Fanny (though I still love Mansfield Park and Fanny ;) ) The author has successfully created a dynamic and complex character, through her experiences, and the unique viewpoint and tone used throughout it. Personally, I find that when I can step into a character's shoes and connect with the character on a level that it physically hurts when they are hurt, it means that the author has done a pretty freaking good job. So again, congrats to the author on that.

Ollie-I definitely appreciated the dual perspective within this book and I think it gave a nice touch to the storyline; being able to see and feel what he was thinking throughout just brought up the fact that the story isn't just about Finley/Fanny, but also about the other characters, and the fact that they are both so oblivious to each other's feelings gets so frustrating (in a good way) and creates a nice dynamic between the two of them. Personally, I really enjoyed hearing both their perspectives when they started to drift apart and when Finley started hanging out a lot more with Harlan and when Ollie started dating Emma, as it created a level of complexity to this particular relationship.

The other characters - the author, overall did a great job with the rest of the characters, especially Harlan and Emma. However, if I were to be a bit nitpicky, I would've loved to see more of the relationship between the two of them. I don't know if that's just me, but I would've loved to see them more together, not just bantering but the real closeness and relationship between them.

Overall, an amazing job to the author, this book hit in all the right places and is possibly one of my favourite books from Netgalley. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and give an honest review on this beautiful book.

This modern YA re-telling of Mansfield Park was surprisingly very well done. It had a dual POV which allowed me to get to know not only Finley, but her best friend Oliver. Usually in YA we do not get to know secondary characters except from the main's perspective, but it was a nice change of pace reading Oliver's POV.

I loved the writing style. It was definitely YA but it had a more mature feel, if that makes sense. It was very realistic and relatable for teenage voices.

Finley was obviously my favorite character. She was not your average teenager. While most teenagers are trying to find a boyfriend or girlfriend, Finley was just trying to achieve her dreams. Her top dream was to get in to the prestigious Mansfield theater program, if only she had the confidence to submit her application.

Fortunately for Finley, she has her best friend Oliver who is always looking out for her. Now this was one area that I did not like about the book. I'll admit, I have not read the original Mansfield Park so this review is based off of this version. I was not a fan of how he was always trying to save her and speak for her. Oliver kept saying how she needed to be strong and face her fears, but then he would swoop in and speak for her, just like Harlan.

It was very nice to see Finley transition from a shy and scared girl into someone that was sure of herself. I hated how weak she was for the majority of the book. She just let Nora walk all over her and speak to her the way she did. It was hard to read because I wanted Finley to shut her down every single time. Finley just needed a damn backbone. She didn't need anyone to save her, she just needed to believe in herself.

Juliette was a character that I never cared for. At all. She was a straight up b$*ch who had zero character development.

I never believed the romance between her and Harlan. He was constantly buying her affection by doing great deeds for her and getting her things. That is one of the main reasons that she started to like him.

Finley and Oliver on the other hand, were quite believable and adorable. I was waiting for them to get together and it was infuriating watching them with other people throughout the majority of the book when the reader clearly knows that they were meant to be.


Seeking Mansfield was a cute retelling of a classic Jane Austen novel. It would definitely read more of Watson's work if she chose to do more Austen retellings.

First, a huge thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of a book that basically killed me dead with all the feels.

Second, do you like angsty swoon? Like ALL THE ANGSTY SWOON? Then this book is for you!! I can't even properly describe the amount of feels I had while reading this book.

I'll write more when I read a properly published version (oh you bet I'll be buying a fancy published copy of this book and rereading it fortnightly).

Kate Watson, you're my hero.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley for review.

Seeking Mansfield was a great debut book by author Kate Watson. The pace was good and most of the characters were easy to like. I knew that I should want Oliver and Finley together, but for half the book, I was actually liking Harlan and Finley more. But that changed as he became more controlling. Finley was much better as she became more confident later in the book. Nora and Juliette were impossible to like, but Emma was fun.

An enjoyable YA retelling of Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. If you love Jane Austen, Jane Austen re-tellings and Young Adult literature you are going to enjoy Seeking Mansfield by Kate Watson. I'm a fan of all of the above. Ideally I'd probably give Seeking Mansfield 3.5 stars instead of 4. I enjoyed the book very much but didn't love it, mainly because it almost too dutifully followed the original work.

In this version of Mansfield, the drama unfolds in modern day Chicago, with Finley Price living with her Godparents and their kids. She of course adores Oliver, who in this version, clearly loves her. The two can't quite find their way toward being more than friends though, and this allows Emma and Harlan Cartwright to step in and sweep the two up into romance. Lots of angst and drama ensue.

I did enjoy watching Finley find her voice and her spine, and I loved how the author incorporated the theater world within the story. If you've ever read or seen a film adaptation of Mansfield Park you'll recognize all of the characters and know exactly how things will end, but it's a pleasant read non-the-less.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVE retellings, and I LOVE anything about movies and the theater, so this book was perfect for me.

Seeking Mansfield is a modern YA retelling of Mansfield Park, which is not my favorite Austen tale, but this was a lovely retelling. The scenario (set around some teenagers in the community theater circuit) was really a clever way of adapting one of Austen's most antiquated plots. It was sweet and romantic and dramatic. While it did get a little overdramatic from time to time in the dialogue, it didn't take away from the enjoyment of the story. I love the cast of characters, all very relatable. I love that there are a couple of positive female/female friendships (and I'd like to see more of those). And it was nice to see that Austen's work holds up over time.

**Review may be tweaked closer to posting date

Seeking Mansfield is a modern retelling of Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. I will admit it right now: I did not read Mansfield Park, but I did see the movie, and therefore, had an idea of the story going in. Watson did a fine job with this tale. There is this essence of the original story, but it is also a story wholly her own.

Finley and her best friend, Oliver, were passing their time together. They were happy filling their days with homework on the roof, tours in Old Town, and movie marathons of terrible films. Then one day, they have new neighbors, and these new neighbors happen to teen movie stars, Harlen and Emma Crawford, who immediately shake up Oliver and Finley's norm.

The sad stuff first. Finley was taken in by her godfather after her father's death and her mother's inability to properly care for her. I will not reveal more of the details here, because I want you to get the full impact of what happened to Finley. Knowing this background made me really appreciate the growth Finley experienced.

There were so many couplings going on here. Initially, we knew that there were feelings brewing between Finley and Oliver. Once the Crawfords enter the picture, Emma showed an interest in Oliver, and Harlen took a liking to Finley. In-between all this, Juliet, Oliver's sister, attempted to ensnare Harlen even though she was dating Raleigh. Whew! So many romantic entanglements. I loved it!

Our heroine, Finley, has a love for the theatre that runs ocean deep. She had a vast knowledge of the theatre and its inner workings, but kept most of that to herself. Her talents are slowly revealed, and she begins to believe she can earn a place in the prestigious Mansfield Theatre Youth program. Finley was such an easy MC to root for. There was a lot brewing under the surface there. At first glance, I thought she was a little wallflower, who let people take advantage of her. I believe I yelled, "She is not your Cinderella!!!, " at one point. As the story progressed, Finley grew stronger. She began to believe in herself, and she began to rely on herself. As she began to see herself differently, so did others.

Oliver was quite the swoon worthy hero. He was there for Finley when she was at her lowest point, and he was very dedicated to encouraging her to go after everything her heart desired. He wanted her to realize her full potential and was just such a dedicated friend. I wish I had an Ollie in my life.

Emma and Harley were interesting. I did not immediately like either of them, but they grew on me. I especially grew to love Harlen. He was quite the charmer. There was tons of great banter between Harlen and Finley. She seemed quite a suitable foil for him, and it was fun to watch that relationship blossom.

This was a fine debut from Ms. Watson. Her writing was very pleasant and set an appropriate tone for the story. I easily flew through this story due to the good pacing, great characters, and easy nature of the writing. I look forward to reading more of Watson's work.

Overall: a smile-inducing story of healing and self actualization with a great love triangle and a peek into the world of live theatre.

This book was everything I could want in a contemporary romance book. I couldn’t even tell that it was the author’s debut novel.

The characters were masterfully created in that they all had flaws and yet were likable at the same time. I loved how you could see the growth in multiple characters throughout the novel but I especially loved the growth in the main character Finley Price. I found myself conflicted throughout the novel with who I wanted Fin to be with. I could see her and Oliver making a good couple but I also liked her with Harlan. I went into this book knowing that she had to end up with Oliver in some way, because that’s the way it is with novels like this. But I couldn’t see how I would be ok with that as I really liked Harlan and the way he changed her. The author, Kate Watson, pulled it off beautifully though. It was such a believable way for everything to work out and it did so in a way that didn’t alienate any of the characters too much and left it possible for me to still like them.

I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars.

Will update with links to where I posted my review online closer to the release date.

Review to come on Goodreads, my blog (possibly), and Netgalley.

Some thoughts:

I was not expecting to enjoy this at all. I honestly requested this on a whim. I had no expectations of it and didn't give it much thought. When I started reading it there were a few times I thought I would DNF this book. Due to the love triangle, and Finnely's past. I was convinced that this was going to be very dramatic. I find myself enjoying the dialogue between the characters so I kept reading on. Man am I glad I did.

Definitely recommend to everyone who reads.

One of the better contemporary reimaginings of Jane Austen novels I've read.
A bit long and it has a few underdeveloped characters but it's still a very captivating read.

Concept sounded great but story never got my full attention. Characters were OK but didn't gripp my attention. Sorry to say couldn't read full story. If story didn't grap my by third chapter I stop. Sadly this was that story.