The Heiress is the story of Anne de Bourgh, an oft neglected character from Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Greeley gives voice to one heavily silenced to the background through a beautifully woven novel of addiction, love, and personal agency.

I'll be honest, I was weary to read this at first. I'm not a big fan of P&P, and somehow when requesting this arc, I completely missed the connection. I'll say, I was proven very wrong, and I'm so glad I got the opportunity to enjoy this work. The writing itself was beautiful and lyrical. I felt like I could get lost in all these places and reach out to touch Anne's trees.

Her character growth throughout this story is very lovely and well crafted. It's so easy to root for her as she begins to believe in herself and fight against the bindings that have trapped her away from the life she so deserved to experience. It was refreshing to read about a woman from this time period with the abilities to live her life much of the way she wanted, once she learned how.

The romance was also enjoyable, and I loved the thread of it as another aspect of Anne's discovery of herself.

Lovely period piece. I quite enjoyed the lesbian love story aspect too. It was neat seeing a familiar story from another perspective.

Finally! Anne de Bourgh portrayed as the lesbian she was always meant to be.

If you've been looking for another queer Pride & Prejudice retelling, this might be for you. Focusing on the minor side character Anne de Bourgh, The Heiress follows Anne through her opium addiction in childhood and spans into her late twenties/early thirties as she truly experiences life for the first time. At times, this was a frustrating read- as it was intended to be! Anne's drugged complancency, her mother's stranglehold on her daughter's life, and the sexism and homophobia of the time acted as barriers for Anne despite her immense wealth.

Some characters were well fleshed out, including Anne and Catherine de Bourgh and John. With how restrained yet emotional Anne's onesided feelings for her governess/companion were, I was suprised at how underdeveloped the love interest introduced in the second half of the story felt. I suspose that as this a continuation of Pride and Prejudice, I'd hoped for something that contained more tension. Similarly, the tension in the story seemed to drop out at key moments that could have used a little more weight.

I would not describe this book as a romance, but I would definitely recommend it for those that enjoy historical fiction.

3.5/5 stars

I really enjoyed reading The Heiress. This book is an interesting take on Jane Austen's world!
Not only were the characters well written, the character development in this book was really well done, and I enjoyed the familiar characters that were also woven into this story.

This was good, but not great. I had issues with the way this was written, maybe it was just the time i was reading it I'm not very sure, I just didn't vibe with it. I've never read pride and prejudice and I'm not really a fan of Jane Austen but as a retelling this seemed pretty solid, it just fell flat for me in some places.

Confession: I’m an avid reader who has never read Pride and Prejudice (or watched any of the movie adaptations)! However, I plan to remedy this very soon after devouring The Heiress by Molly Greeley.

This slim novel with its stunning cover (have you ever seen a bottle of laudanum look so good?) shares an imagined life for Anne de Bourgh beyond the pages of P & P. The plot includes societal and parental expectations, opium addiction, forbidden love, and many Pride & Prejudice characters and places.

Molly Greeley’s love of books and reading is evident throughout the second half of the novel when Anne discovers the joy of reading. We can all relate to the swirl of emotions while in the midst of a powerful reading experience which was vividly described in this novel.

I’m grateful to William Morrow for the gifted copies of this beautiful novel. I know it will impact my eventual P & P reading experience in wonderful ways.

I always love revisiting the world of Pride and Prejudice, but I get worried when authors attempt to tackle the smaller characters from the original because it makes it more difficult to get attached to the characters. But this book has done the impossible: made me love Anne du Bourgh. I found myself quickly rooting for her, and I enjoyed seeing her character grow and develop.

exactly what I was hoping for! perfect for Austen fans would don't mind a little update to more modern sensibilities. it wasn't that the book didn't evoke Austenian writing -- on the contrary, it did very much so. It just went further into social issues that Austen had not discussed. I particularly enjoyed the discussion and handling of addiction. It is something that you see so little of (especially sympathetically) in media. truly what an homage should be!

Savvy readers will recognize the name Anne de Bourgh. Those who do know that she is the daughter of Lady Catherine from Pride and Prejudice. Lady C is the patron of Mr. Collins, he who married Lizzie’s best friend and is set to inherit the Bennet family home. She has also had strong control over her daughter Anne.

This novel imagines what happens to Anne. She becomes her father’s heir and makes a break, hoping to escape her laudanum based life and her mother’s influence. To find out what happens to her, read this book.

Molly Greeley is a writer who clearly enjoys the world that Jane Austen created. This is her second novel, following on The Clergyman’s Wife.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

The Heiress: The Revelations of Anne de Bourgh, by Molly Greeley, is a poor little rich girl story, set in Jane Austen’s world of Pride and Prejudice. Anne de Bourgh is the cousin of the famous Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, who plays only a small role in this tale.

As a fussy baby, Anne is treated with Laudanum drops to quiet her, and the daily drops continue well into her adulthood. As a result, she spends years in a haze under the strict control of her overbearing mother. She has little education and makes no decisions about her own life.

Readers will find the story of how Anne overcomes her addiction, takes her rightful place in the world, and finds love inspiring. Greeley’s writing is rich and moving, and hard to put down.

I have a love hate relationship with Pride & Prejudice retellings and spin-offs but this one was excellent. I love the story of Anne. It was clever and moving.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Heiress: The Revelations of Anne de Bourgh was an interesting retelling to dive into. My love for Pride and Prejudice will continue to grow no matter what because of my love of Elizabeth and Darcy. So to go into more details about Anne's own life, well I was dying to figure out what was wrong with her and what was going to happen as well.

I loved absolutely everything about Anne. At first, I was a bit skeptical because of how "sick" she was. Mostly because it seemed like the medicine that her mother, maid, nurse, and doctor were all for was definitely hurting her more than helping. It also seemed rather odd that no one in her family would step up and say something. Eventually her cousin helped out but by then it kind of seemed lame.

Anne was a strong and likable character. She definitely grew throughout the book and fell in love. Of course she had to deal with a broken heart or two along the way but once she knew what she wanted - she went for it whole heartedly.

This book was completely delightful and I loved devouring each and every page. I will admit though that the ending was bittersweet for me.

3.5/5

***Special thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

This is a Pride and Prejudice retelling of sorts, but can definitely be a standalone novel (I have not read P&P in years and had no problems)

I really enjoyed the gothic style themes and elements in this book. It really added to the novel as a whole and gave it a very unique literary "atmosphere" of sorts.

I absolutely LOVE historical novels and I find that it is so rare to find them with LGBT+ characters (unless they are romance novels which I would highly recommend). I was so happy that there was a wlw relationship in this book and it was done in such a beautiful way. We see these friends become lovers without all the self-deprivation that is to be expected in this time period.

The pacing was slow at first but picked up the pace, I found the pacing to be artfully done and it really enhances the story.

I would recommend this book

The story of Anne de Bourgh is truly a companion story for the much loved Pride and Prejudice. The journey you get to experience from Anne, from birth to death, is very touching. She did not have the easiest childhood, even coming from money. But as the story goes on you become more forgiving of her mother for the choices that were made.
Anne love story was so tragic and redeeming, if that can be a thing. She loved who she wanted to love and wasn’t going to be bullied into current era ideals. In this, Greeley seemed to mimic the moxie of Austen. Strong female characters always seem like a such a shock, but I love when the boundaries are pushed and we get to see true love, true friendship, true romance.
The last part was my favorite. It was written with such a poetic flare. You really took the journey with Anne and I will have those images in my mind for a while to come!

This was a standalone novel featuring the character Anne de Bourgh from Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice. The author wrote a captivating tale of a woman addicted to opium after being given it by her parents. Since drug addiction and treatment wasn't a thing back in this time period, Anne's struggles were realistically captured by the author.

Anne de Bourgh is the main character in this novel, originally appearing in Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. I found her story very refreshing, albeit sad.

She was given laudanum as a baby and continued into adulthood. During the novel she must decide whether or not to wean off the drugs, and also whether or not to follow the path laid out for her by her family at the time.

Will she bow to tradition or make her own path? I loved the results. In ways a very modern story while also firmly situated in the time period within which its set.

I did find the narration slow at times, which I imagine is due to Anne’s dependence on drugs. Overall a great read.

I love Pride and Prejudice and thought this was an interesting premise. What does the world look like through Anne de Bourgh's eyes?

This is a novel of self-discovery, of Anne finding her way free of the "medicine" she's been prescribed her entire life so that she can be in control of her life and actually live. With a clear head, Anne can experience the world and herself for the first time. We see Anne's childhood through glimpses of her medicated state. She struggles to interact with others and the world, and is kept secluded in Rosings Park, deemed too delicate and fragile to do very much. Nor does Anne expect much from herself. She believes the stories told to her about herself and expects that when she marries her cousin Darcy, he will be take over the responsibility of Rosings Park, in addition to his own estate. Because even though Anne is the heiress, no one - with the exception of her governess, Miss Hall - believes Anne capable of such a daunting responsibility.

After decades under the numbing influence of laudanum, Anne decides to stop taking it. She seeks solace in London, under the care of her cousin John and his wife. After a few harrowing days, Anne is clearheaded and, for the first time, can see a world other than Rosings Park. Slowly, she discovers her appetite and the wonders of a body that is nourished and awake. She makes friends and falls in love. Eventually, Anne takes up her rightful place as mistress of Rosings, which requires her to do battle with her formidable mother. Anne rises to the occasion, finding that she is far more capable than anyone, including herself, gave her credit for.

While it was necessary to create a background of Anne's life and to show the shape of her childhood, I did the find the start of the book to be a bit slow. However, it picked up once Anne decided to take more control over her life. Her struggle of figuring out how to be in the world is relatable to anyone who has struggled with what it means to run your own life.

Even in Anne's laudanum stupor, she finds her romantic interests don't match with expectations. Though, it becomes much clearer when she is no longer addicted and living in London. Anne's crush on her governess, Miss Hall, led to uncomfortable moments but in London Anne is able to find someone who shares her attraction. Anne and Eliza are such a good match. I loved Eliza's big, open personality that allowed Anne to feel comfortable being herself. Anne is awkward and uncertain, having little experience in social situations, but Eliza finds it charming. There is a clear connection between them and it is satisfying to see them come together. The heartbreak of their parting and the sweetness of their reunion felt realistic and also made a very satisfying ending.

Even if you aren't a Pride and Prejudice lover, you should read this book. It's not just the story of Anne deBourgh, a minor character in P&P it's the story of the plight of women in the Regency Era. From P&P we all know the forceful personality of Lady deBourgh who, to the detriment of her daughter's health, believes she is right. From Regency Era medical practices to the status of women who have no money or rights of their own. This is an amazing story of how Anne matures and works to give herself a fresh start at living a full life. Lizzie and Darcy have short cameos in the plot, but they do not overtake the story line.

Thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for this great read!

The Heiress in question is Anne De Bourgh, a character in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She is a very minor character in P&P- she doesn’t even speak in the novel once. I have always felt slightly bad for her, but had never really thought about her beyond her role as victim of her mother’s bullying ways. Because she plays such a minor role in P&P, you really don’t need to know anything about her or that novel to enjoy this story.

When Anne was born, she was a fussy baby and her nurse gave her laudanum – a favorite remedy of the Regency era. She was deemed “delicate” and her health “fragile”, so they continued to give her laudanum for many years, as not much was known about its addictive qualities. She has a governess who tries to point this out to her, but of course, she has no power to help Anne change.

In her late 20’s, Anne decides to take control of her life. She seizes a chance while her mother is away to flee to her cousin John in London (Colonel Fitzwilliam to those familiar with P&P). She immediately goes into withdrawal but fights her way through it.

Anne then truly starts her life in London. She finds love, though not in a conventional sense. She finds her strength, and in the end, she finds a way to stand up to her mother and take her rightful place as heiress of her estate, Rosings Park. The ending is beautifully written. I may or may not have cried (I cried).

If you like historical fiction, if you like Jane Austen and want to think about one possible story for Anne De Bourgh, or if you just like a story well-told, then this book is for you.

Jane Austen, but make it gay. That’s it. That’s the summary. JK, but do you really need to know anything else? Because I sure didn’t.

This is an awesome reimagining of the life of Anne de Bourgh, Darcy’s original intended. A fussy baby, Anne’s doctor prescribed laudanum, and she is raised on the drug as a sickly child and young woman. Darcy has no desire to marry Anne, and when her father dies, leaving her his vast fortune, she travels to London to visit her cousin, Colonel John Fitzwilliam, and kick her dependence on laudanum once and for all. She finds she has no need or want of a husband and finds herself with feelings for her new friend. She’ll have to stand strong to defy the expectations of her mother and society to not marry and run her estate herself.

I flew through this book in a day. I am a huge fan of retellings, especially involving strong ladies, and bonus points if there is queerness mixed in. This book ticks all of those boxes. I loved the characters, especially Anne, and her drive to step out of the frail box she’d been put in all of her life. John Fitzwilliam and his wife were strong allies and good people, and even though I was worried about the potential ending for bucking society during this time, I was fully in it and rooting for Anne the entire time. Plus, peep that beautiful cover.

This one is freshly out, and I’m sure fans of literary fiction will be talking about it, so keep an eye out for it at your favorite, local bookstore or request a purchase though your library.