Alarmingly Charming

Austen in Austin #1.4

by Debra E. Marvin

This fourth Austen in Austin novella is based on Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey

As travel companion to her condescending cousin, Philadelphian Kathryn Morton dreamily anticipates a week in the Wild West as the best cure for meekness. After a long rail journey and a steady diet of gothic dime novels, she shivers, despite the Texas heat, at the ghastly tales of the Austin Axe Murderer. Kathryn has little time to fret, given the competing attentions of quiet rancher Harmon Gray and elegant gentleman Jonathan Wellington. With her new-found confidence and her boundless imagination, she sets out to solve the mystery of Hyde Park Cemetery before another student flees Austen Abbey. Only then can she return home to her English-born parents as an independent American woman. A woman in love. But on the stormiest of nights, Kathryn learns that solving the mystery may destroy a future with the man she’s fallen for in a big Texas way.

Genres: Fiction

85 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2016

About the author

Debra E. Marvin tries not to run too far from real life but the imagination born out of being an only child has a powerful draw. Besides, the voices in her head tend to agree with all the sensible things she says. She'd like to live a wee bit closer to her grandchildren, but is thankful that God is in control, that He chooses to bless us despite ourselves and that He has a sense of humor.

Other than writing light-hearted romances and gritty gothics, she has rather normal obsessions such as fabric, peanut butter, vacations, British dramas, and whatever mystery series she's currently stuck on.

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Reviews

[Ahnya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Part of the Austen in Austin series. Set in post Civil War Texas, Kathryn Morton is accompanying her young cousin Jane Radcliffe to finishing school. There she meets a handsome "cowboy" Harmon Gray. She instantly falls for him, though admittedly it could be because of the western romances she reads, the trouble is believing he is interested in her as well.

I neither liked nor disliked it. Nothing stood out as being particularly bad, but also nothing stood out as being good either. The characters were not the usual ones I am used to from Northanger Abbey, but they weren't bad. Again nothing really stuck out to sway me either way.

[Paula Shreckhise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story based on Northanger Abbey. But the story is brought into Austin Texas of 1880’s.

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Austen retellings and works based on her novels can be a mixed bag, and I approach them all cautiously for that reason. Happily, I have found a novella collection that is a worthwhile and entertaining read, and this particular novella is part of it, though it can be read as a standalone.

Kathryn is a sympathetic, if sometimes frustrating, character, much like the original Catherine. Virtually unnoticed by males for much of her life, she is understandably confused and torn by the attentions of two men and the interference of her pretty cousin. Her naïve questions about ranching, cattle, and life in Texas made her relatable, too, at least for a city girl like myself.

The tension between the fictional world and reality plays well in this novella, just as it does in Austen’s Northanger Abbey, where the line dividing the two becomes rather thin at times. Words are important in this tale: written words, those spoken, and even those left unsaid. Wordplay lends a fun atmosphere to this particular story, but there are also many truths waiting to be found within its pages, too, for those who dig a little deeper.

I loved the tongue in cheek references to reading too much, the nod to fictional heroine Elizabeth Bennet always knowing what to say, and the gift of another Austen novel to Kathryn. These kinds of details added to my enjoyment of this sweet tribute to Austen's writing. I would highly recommend this novella to fans of her work and also those who enjoy Texas-set historicals. Both groups will find an enjoyable novella here.

I received an electronic copy from the author in exchange for this honest review. All of the opinions are my own, and I have received no further compensation for sharing them.

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just knew this one was going to be adorable and engaging when I saw the blog posts on it. Because hey there, Jane Austen and Wild West? Had to read it. And it was especially fun as this was a retelling of Northanger Abbey and you don't see many of those.

Shy, lacking in confidence, Kathryn Morton, gets to accompany her wealthy, pretty and popular cousin on her journey to Austin, TX where Jane will attend the private ladies' academy that is known as Austen Abbey. Kathryn enjoys dime novels and is fanciful about the Wild untamed West and cowboys. She soon feels like she stepped into one of her stories when a fashionable gentleman and a cowboy both vie for her attention. And then there is the local murder mystery involving ghosts at the cemetery. Can plain, wallflower Kathryn have an adventure that will prove to herself that she can be more?

It was sweet and I enjoyed watching Kathryn tentatively bloom in her new situation even while she doubts herself. She doesn't see herself well and doesn't realize that she has an influence for good with those around her.

While I could see the parallels to Austen's classic story, I could also see that this was creative and original in its own right.

Recommend it for those who want a quick, sweet cozy read particularly if they are Austenesque fans and are intrigued by one of her stories set in a different era and place.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Austen in Austin, Volume 1, is the first 4 of 8 retellings of Jane Austen's books, set in Austin, Texas, in the 1880s. Each one is a sweet Christian romance written by a different author. But the authors must have talked when they put the collection together, because many of the characters between the different stories know each other. Also, many of the characters have a connection to a finishing school called Jeannette C. Austen Academy for Young Ladies.

Alarmingly Charming by Debra E. Marvin, based on Northanger Abbey. Bookish Kathryn comes to visit Austin, Texas, from Philadelphia, and she lets her imagination get away from her while investigating the mystery concerning a local cemetery.

I always liked Northanger Abbey because I thought it was ironic in many ways. This retelling didn't capture the irony as well as the original, but it did retell most of the other details splendidly. I very much enjoyed this romance novella and the characters in it.

I received a complementary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not compensated to review it, and all opinions are entirely my own.

[writer... · Rating 4 out of 5]

Austen in August short story from Austen in Austin 1st collection.