Lady Susan

by Phyllis Ann Karr

Beautiful, flirtatious, and recently widowed, Lady Susan Vernon seeks an advantageous second marriage for herself, while attempting to push her daughter into a dismal match.

311 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1980

About the author

Phyllis Ann Karr is an author of fantasy, romances, mysteries, and non-fiction. She is best known for her "Frostflower and Thorn" series and Matter of Britain works.

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Karr's novel is based on Jane Austen's "Lady Susan" about the beautiful, flirtatious widow who seeks an advantageous second marriage for herself while forcing a dismal match on her daughter Frederica. Unlike Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway's more recent "Lady Vernon and Her Daughter," Karr presents the characters pretty much as Austen conceived them, while presenting the story in her own voice and style. Sir Martin is quite stupid. Charles and Catherine Vernon are friendly relatives. Lady Susan is a proud, selfish, very loose woman.

The main places where Karr differs from Austen is in making a full character of Mr. Smith who is only mentioned once or twice in the novella, and by the changing the story's outcome. I personally did not mind either of these as Mr. Smith was a very likable gentleman, and I was greatly relieved at Frederica's fate in the end. Phyllis Karr's Mr. Reginald De Courcy was something of a cross between Edmund Bertram and Henry Crawford.

A pretty enjoyable read.

[Kirsten Feldman · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a book by Jane Austen. Big reader that I claim to be, shame on me for not noticing this before ordering it.