I am struggling over how to rate this book. First, this was billed as a romance novel. It certainly is NOT a romance. The romance genre has conventions that readers expect from the book - namely, that the story is primarily focused on the romantic relationship between 2 main characters, and there is a happily ever after ending. Honestly, if you are not delivering those 2 baseline standards, you are not writing a romance novel. If I was to rate this from the standpoint of romance, this would be a 1 or 2-star read.

However, if I review this from the lens of women's fiction or fantasy fiction, it's much more a 3 star read. The writing is witty and the author really focuses on women's value and agency in society, and what has and hasn't changed since the 19th century. The main character relationship is the friendship between Jane and 21st century actress Sophia. In many ways, I wish the story developed this relationship more and left the anemic and unbelievable love plot out. One other pet peeves of mine is the convention (and primary theme here) that women must choose between creativity/career and love/happiness. As if art can only be made while dwelling in tragedy and sadness, and creatives don't also deserve financial security or love that other types of professionals expect.

So, in summary, this wasn't a bad read, but it certainly wasn't a romance, and I'm not sure anything revolutionary was said about women's lot in society either. It was witty and charming, and I may have rated it higher if not for touching on some personal pet peeves of mine.

ARC provided by the publisher for review.

I enjoyed the premise and I enjoyed parts of the story. However, I thought it was slow and I never bought into the love story aspect.

Jane in Love examines the possibility that the one person Jane was meant to love, actually lives in the 21st century. This was a well researched look into Jane’s brain and what would possibly tempt her to fall in love. Jane Austen was always a woman outside her time, so it makes sense that the right person would not be present in her lifetime. Full of humor and a backdrop of Bath, England this book is a satisfying read for all Jane Austen fans.