I'm so grateful to Netgalley and Devoney Looser for the chance to review this incredible work of historical fiction. The Porter sisters have clearly not been given their due for their literary and cultural contributions. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of information available about their lives and correspondences. This book is well paced, well researched, and does a remarkable job at bringing the women and their impact into clear focus. I can't recommend this highly enough to fans of Austen and Bronte.

Before Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters, or the historical novels of Walter Scott, there were the Porter Sisters. Jane and Anna Maria Porter were born in the waning days of the reign of King George III and English control of the American colonies. They were two girls of the five children born in Durham in northeast England. Their father, a surgeon, died about a year after Maria was born. From then on, the family would move fairly frequently, in search of stability and livelihoods.

At the time, in the absence of a father, society expected the male siblings to take care of the family at home, until the sisters married and became the ward of their husbands. The three Porter brothers chose various paths in an attempt to support their family. However, the sisters were not going to wait around for that to happen. Anna Maria published her first book at age 14. Jane was submitting poems to literary journals under assumed names. Anna Maria was a busy and prolific writer. Jane worked at a slower pace but her works were incredibly popular.

Robert Ker Porter shared similar artistic and creative sensibilities as his sisters. He was a talented painter from an early age, a talent that was encouraged. He was noted for his early success as a painter of panoramic battle scenes. These massive realistic scenes were more than 100 feet long and surrounded the viewer’s peripheral vision. It was an immersive experience. Unfortunately, he did not find judicial uses for his newfound wealth and fame. He did what most twenty-somethings did – had too much fun. His life would take numerous left turns, from running to Russia to escape debtors prison, wooing a princess, befriending Tsar Alexander I, and becoming British consul to Venezuela.

Jane’s first novel Thaddeus of Warsaw (1803) was a runaway bestseller for the era. It was an historical epic romance set in Poland and Britain, based on first-hand accounts from soldiers and citizens. Thaddeus was written to be a pure hero, displaying perfect bravery and honor. The novel also eschewed the values of constitutional democracy versus the imperialism of Napoleon. Despite the multiple printings and astronomical sales, Jane Porter earned little of the money the book brought in. The copyright was largely owned by the publishers.

Jane’s book The Scottish Chiefs (1810) was a historical romance featuring William Wallace. It was again wildly popular, and often cited as the book that inspired Walter Scott to write the Waverley novels. It was also subversive to some.

Napoleon became so concerned about the possible influence of The Scottish Chiefs on his ability to retain power, presumably because of its celebration of those who resist invasion, that he commanded the French edition to be destroyed. Maria, as ever, was Jane’s greatest admirer. She compared the pure passages of beauty in her sister’s novel to the writings of Shakespeare. Across the nineteenth century, The Scottish Chiefs never fell out of print. ~ Loc. 4967

This is a situation the sisters would repeatedly encounter during their literary careers. Writing themselves into illness, delivering manuscripts and editorial work constantly, then being paid a pittance for their work. Despite the setbacks, they seemed to always be willing to take pen to paper and try again. If they could just find the sweet spot of popular novel with fair publishing deal, they could live comfortably and without concern for eviction.

As it was, the sisters often visited the homes of distant relatives and family friends. There was a practicality to this — cost. One sister stayed home to take care of their mother, while the other became a household expense for someone else. In exchange for hosting one of the sisters, the hosts often expected some sort of consideration — help watching a child or assistance as a private secretary. In one case, Jane went to stay with the insufferable Reverend Stockdale with a promise to help him arrange his papers and compose his memoirs. One can only think of Eliza Bennet trying to refuse the attentions of Mr. Collins.

Devoney Looser traces the fascinating, if difficult, lives of the influential authors that have been largely overlooked, not least because of the long shadow of Sir Walter Scott. The women forged a new genre and paved the way for the likes of Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, and many more. It’s long past time these writers received their due and this biography goes a long way to dusting their reputations off.

My thanks to Bloomsbury for the e-galley, read via NetGalley.

Absolutely fascinating read so well written full of information about these two sisters.I learned a lot and really enjoyed a look into their lives and time.#netgalley #bloomsbury.

I was attracted to this book by three things: 1) The cover was pretty. 2) The mention of Jane Austen. 3) Devoney Looser's name. I had read another of her books and a book about Jane Austen with an essay by Looser. I was not disappointed. Looser's writing is clear and descriptive and not overly academic.

Jane Austen was mentioned in the prologue in a letter between the sisters who are the focus of this book and I fully expected her to show up as an acquaintance. In fact, one or both of the Porter sisters had an extended stay in Bath during the time Austen lived there. They ran in a lot of the same circles. It seems odd that they didn't meet. But alas, she is only mentioned in passing as when Jane P. is asking to be allowed to dedicate a book to King George IV and the event is compared to when Jane A. dedicated Emma to the Prince Regent (same guy, different title.)

The lives of these two sisters were depressingly sad. They were always in debt and had useless brothers who made it worse. On the other hand, their letters, which are quoted throughout the book, show their rapier-sharp wit and an inclination to laugh at themselves as well as their company.

I had not heard of the Porter sisters before and I am grateful to get to know them through this entertaining biography.

Writing a biography of two women that most people today have never heard of in such a way as to captivate the reader from the get go is no easy feat, but it's one that Devoney Looser manages brilliantly. I hope that she succeeds in rekindling broader interest in the Porter sisters and their work and I'm very grateful to her for introducing them to me.

In the late 1970s when I was at university, my classes in the early novel didn’t include any mention of the Porter sisters. Austen had a year-long honors seminar. So, it’s remarkable to read how an author I had never heard of, Maria Porter, had been more famous than Austen. With her sister Jane, the Porter sisters published twenty-six books, selling hundreds of thousands of copies. They created the historical fiction genre. Sir Walter Scott saw their success and wrote Waverly, his fame overshadowing them.

Devoney Looser determined to give the Porter sisters a deserved biography. The story of these women, and their brothers and friends and romantic crushes, as dramatic and exciting as any fiction. It’s the story of brilliant, independent, high minded women who make every mistake imaginable in terms of where they gave their affection and loyalty. Who gained fame but struggled with homelessness and poverty. They met the most famous writers, actors, and titled people of their time, where admired by important men, were beautiful and intelligent, but never found love or riches. Every time it looked as if their fortunes were changing, their hopes were dashed. Their brother Robert was a gifted artist, successful for a moment, then in huge debt. He married a Russian princess, but had no fairy tale ending.

Jane Porter’s The Scottish Chiefs was Queen Victoria’s and President Andrew Jackson’s favorite book. It inspired Sir Walter Scott. Emily Dickinson owned Jane’s bestsellers. It was even included in the The Classics Illustrated Comics, No 67. And, it may be the uncredited inspiration for the move Braveheart.

Of course, the reason why we didn’t study the Porters at university was because they wrote historical fiction. My professor scoffed when I said my husband brought home a complete set of Scott, indicating that those books were not esteemed as literature.

During the writing of this book, I had moments when I wished I could shake these brilliant sisters by the shoulders and ask, “What are you doing?”

from Sister Novelists by Devoney Looser
Maria was the more outgoing of the sisters and fell in love easily. Jane was considered the more beautiful, shy and serious. They were exceedingly well-read. Influenced by Mary Wollstonecraft, they were proud of their independence. To be women and writers, with their names on their books, was still socially unacceptable.

They fell for charming, handsome scoundrels, preferring to see the best in these men.

Their fame and popularity brought entrée into the world of the wealthy and priviledged, while they economized and often went without necessities. Their friends had ‘colorful lives.’ They used their wide experience in their novels, thrilling readers while educating them in history. They believed that while entertaining readers, they could also inspire proper values and character.

I am not exaggerating to say that their lives were as full of tragedy, reversals, and serendipitous good fortune as any romance or soap opera imaginable. The stories of their brothers and their beloved friends are just as dramatic and colorful. I was riveted to the book, updating my spouse on the latest shocking episode.

This is a must read for anyone interested in women writers, the early novel, and women’s social history. Readers of history will gain insight into all levels of society.

I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.

This biography of the Porter sisters blows the lid off the lives of nineteenth century women novelists. These sisters were famous authors in Britain and America, publishing before, during and after Jane Austen's career, but, unlike JA, were destined to be forgotten after their deaths. Their fame is ascending again. Sister Novelists comes out October 25.

Jane (1776-1850) and Anna Maria (1780-1832) Porter, novelists, had the most fascinating lives you could have in that era, without ever once getting rich or getting laid. 

Also unlike JA, and fortunately, no one destroyed their prolific letters, which scholar Devoney Looser studied to inform this biographical page-turner. We learn of their unique, successful, but almost continuously difficult lives, and that of their artist brother Robert Ker Porter. This story must be read to be believed. Full of details and insights into literature, theatre, money, relationships between classes and sexes of the era. Did I mention money, lack of? 

The events of Jane and Maria's lives somehow remind me of the musical of the (temporally overlapping) life of a recently celebritized American statesman, Alexander Hamilton. Lin-Manuel Miranda famously said, upon reading a biography of Hamilton, that he led "a hip-hop life", and then Miranda made some more history. I was reading along in Sister Novelists, thinking: if only the book had a duel. I'll leave that for your own discovery.

To borrow and adapt Miranda  ... [women] without a father / Got a lot farther by working a lot harder / By being a lot smarter / By being a self-starter.

Of course I'm not calling theirs a hip-hop life! This, my steamy streaming friends, is a Shonda life. Think a dreamy/gritty neon-hued series featuring the Misses Porter's creative lives; their genius, ambition, and rivalries; their scrambling to stay out of deep poverty, and (in the same episode), social encounters with nobility; their many optimistic - chaste - passionate - naive - doomed crushes, (#icanmakethebadguysgoodforaweekend) their un-genteel but necessary negotiations with men in pursuit of fair payment for their work and the individual and collective debt loads they carried as a family. Struggling a bit to find the #happilyeverafter, or even #HEAfornow, but #devoneylooser and the writers room can work that out. I have a few ideas if they'd care to ask.

More than the usual perfunctory thanks to the author, @netgalley and @Bloomsburypublishing for this stellar reading experience!

This is a well researched biography that finds a balance between the storyline and the bibliographic footnotes. I enjoyed learning about these novelist sisters, Jane and Maria, who preceded and influenced the Bronte sisters. Upon learning about their books and other writings, I am determined to read some of their works for myself.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for access to the ARC of this book.

I was so intrigued to pickup this book- two female authors who were at the top of the publishing world at one moment in time- now seemingly lost from most of history and fame. As an Austen lover I was really drawn to this book, which serves as a biography meets commentary of these sister authors.

The narration is strong, the authors voice is really well developed and the information on this family and the sisters- Jane and Maria was really interesting. Overall this was a fantastic book that explored the lives of these women on their literary journey, as well as the internal politics of their family and general social standing.

My only critique of this book is that I wish the author wrote with a bit more confidence. Since this biography is being written by reverse engineering letters, and other pieces of information throughout the sisters history, there are many instances where the author had to make inferences and assumptions about the women.
While not unheard of in any "thesis" based writing, the author would often condition these assertions instead of letting her research and citations stand on their own. For example there were many sentences throughout this book that were phrased "it is likely that the sisters did X" or "the sisters probably thought X." While this may be a subjective phrasing issue I feel as though the author would have come across as more confident in their research and assertions if the phrasing of these sentences was a bit stronger and more assertive. I found the conditional sentence structure to be a bit tedious and it happened often enough that I did make note of it.

Overall this book really is fantastic though, and the story of these sisters, and their brothers/family was exceptionally compelling. I would not have heard of these sister-writers if I hadn't picked up this book and would recommend this book to biography readers, literary history buffs, or any fans of Austen/Bronte.

This is a well-researched, in-depth look at the careers and personal lives of two prolific nineteenth-century authors whose influence and talent have been largely forgotten. The books of the Porter sisters came up in my reading about regency-era contemporary fiction, but I never grasped their reach of their renown.

Their letters are filled with humor and clever insight into their world that must have also come through in their fiction writing. I was floored at how their paths crossed with some of the notable characters of the late Georgian era and how their talents intersected with art, the theatre, and opera. The way that their former friend Walter Scott sidelined them after clearly being influenced by their historical romances infuriated me.

“It is monstrous how these poets play the vampire with our works,” Jane wrote to Maria.

Jane and Maria Porter paved the way for later female writers to be respected and admired in their field and to take control of their own careers. They were supposed to be ashamed that as women they were paid for their work or had ambition, or even dared to publish under their own names. The sexism they faced in their personal lives and professional pursuits is both jarring and yet still relatable to any woman who reads about the Porter sisters today. One wonders what they could have produced if they hadn’t been constantly interrupted, preoccupied by their family’s debts, and compelled into the aid of others. As prolific and talented as they were, they could never earn enough to cover their expenses, and they and their mother were almost hatefully mistreated by their brothers who, in this time, had a moral responsibility to provide for them.

Devonney Looser’s curiosity, passion, and humor come through in this investigation. Anyone claiming to value nineteenth century female authors should know the Porter sisters, and Sister Novelists is a fantastic introduction to these talented and overlooked women.

Devoney Looser's Sister Novelists is an in-depth look at sisters Jane and Maria Porter, a pair of novelists I, admittedly, had not heard of prior to picking the book up. I have a pretty amateur interest in Regency era history and literature--insert necessary Bridgerton reference here--and this book was a fantastic entry point for more intermediate research. Much of the book referenced names of people, places, and media I was unfamiliar with, but Looser presents the information in such a way that is easy to follow without having to water it down. Her passion for the Porter sisters' work was evident from the first chapter, wherein she laments the fact that history has, unfortunately, seemed to forget the sisters behind.

I will say, while Looser's research was clearly extensive and fueled by a respect for the novelists, I do believe it could have been a bit more concise. At nearly 600 pages, Sister Novelists was definitely an intimidating read at first. You get a lot of backstory, however, on not just sisters Jane and Maria, but on other members of the family--namely their brother, Robert--and historical context to support readers' understanding of the times. The historical context that Looser gave was especially compelling; beyond one class on eighteenth-century novels I took in undergrad, my understanding of writing and social conventions in this time frame is pretty basic.

Despite the length, Sister Novelists is well worth the read for an aspiring novelist, history buff, English major, or otherwise interested party. Delving into the Porter's lives, through Looser's eyes, opened up conversations beyond what is going on in Jane or Maria's day-to-day life. The book made me question what it means to have a legacy to leave behind. For writers so prolific in their day, why have we not continued to read their works? Why have we kept Jane Eyre or Persuasion stocked on bookshelves, but not Thaddeus of Warsaw or The Scottish Chiefs? In two-hundred-years time, who will be the writers we remember? I can think of modern writers I think will continue to be read for years to come, but if not Jane or Maria, who is to say Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie or Haruki Murakami or some other big name might some day have a similar book written praising their since-forgotten talents?

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publishers for giving me the opportunity to enjoy the ARC edition of Sister Novelists: The Trailblazing Porter Sisters, Who Paved the Way for Austen and the Brontës. This is one I will be thinking about for a while to come. 5 stars out of 5, all the way.

This was an absolutely fascinating biography. I learned so much! This is one I'll return to again and again. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

Sister Novelists: The Trailblazing Porter Sisters, Who Paved the Way for Austen and the Brontës by Devoney Looser is an amazing look into an impressive pair of women who were sisters, authors, and true talents that lived before their time.

It is such a true shame that these truly talented women have been largely forgotten over time versus and amongst some of their peers that appeared on the scene chronologically around the same time/slightly afterwards during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It is also equally sad that I had not heard of Jane and Anna Maria Porter until I picked up this book…and I intend on changing that asap.

The author does an amazing job with her obvious passion and research to reintroduce to the whole world this talented duo that churned out so many novels during the era of great writers (Regency England). I was able to learn all about their origins/family, their schooling and upbringing, their many travels between England, Scotland, and Ireland, and some of the breadth and depth of pool of talent that surrounded them.

I was able to find out more about their works, their accomplishments, the troubles that they experienced, and what occurred so that their legacy is minimized in the mainstream culture versus their counterparts.

I will leave the reader with a few questions unanswered to keep it fresh and interesting…like…what does Walter Scott have in connection with said writers…Thaddeus of Warsaw…The Scottish Chiefs…and how did it all end?

Just fabulous.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Bloomsbury Publishing for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 10/25/22.