The Watsons Jane Austen's fragment continued and completed by John Coates

by Jane Austen, John Coates

In this continuation of Jane Austen's fragment, John Coates was presented with the beginning of a good story and a number of promising characters. There is a charming if rather correct heroine, Emily Watson, who returns to her family after a long absence to renew acquaintance with her ailing father and her three unmarried sisters; an awkward peer, who pays Emily marked attention, and his friend, a flirtatious bachelor; a highly eligible clergyman; and an almost unlimited quantity of officers from the local garrison. The chief characters meet at the first ball of the season in the town of Dunford in Surrey, and from this encounter develops a story which is a fresh and lively creation in its own right, not just an imitation of Jane Austen's other novels.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance, Classics, Fiction

318 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1958

About the author

Jane Austen was an English novelist known primarily for her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment upon the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage for the pursuit of favourable social standing and economic security. Her works are an implicit critique of the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th-century literary realism. Her deft use of social commentary, realism and biting irony have earned her acclaim among critics and scholars.

The anonymously published Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1816), were a modest success but brought her little fame in her lifetime. She wrote two other novels—Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1817—and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but died before its completion. She also left behind three volumes of juvenile writings in manuscript, the short epistolary novel Lady Susan, and the unfinished novel The Watsons.
Since her death Austen's novels have rarely been out of print. A significant transition in her reputation occurred in 1833, when they were republished in Richard Bentley's Standard Novels series (illustrated by Ferdinand Pickering and sold as a set). They gradually gained wide acclaim and popular readership. In 1869, fifty-two years after her death, her nephew's publication of A Memoir of Jane Austen introduced a compelling version of her writing career and supposedly uneventful life to an eager audience. Her work has inspired a large number of critical essays and has been included in many literary anthologies. Her novels have also inspired many films, including 1940's Pride and Prejudice, 1995's Sense and Sensibility and 2016's Love & Friendship.

Reviews

[Gavin Hetherington · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read 'The Watsons' as part of my reading all of Jane Austen's works video project on YouTube, check it out: https://youtu.be/uzCCZOE-RSM

[Elizabeth George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jane Austen completed only the first six chapters of this novel. She was three paragraphs into Chapter 7 when she set the book aside and never completed it. John Coates takes it the distance, adding several characters and developing others more completely. Most notable is the wonderful Lady Osborne. The problem I had with this book has nothing to do with the style of the writing but with what seemed to me to be a character fairly shouting that he was to be the hero of the tale while the author--Coates, not Austen--decided to make another character the hero. The difficulty he created for himself, having made this decision (Austen gives no hint as to which of the male characters it should be), is that the other potential hero is charming, compelling, and unforgettable while the chosen hero is...meh. I actually had to go back and try to find him in the earlier pages of the book to try to figure out why Emily Watson was in love with him. Frankly, I still don't get it. It seems she was in love with him because Mr. Coates decided she would be in love with him. The story is nonetheless both interesting and entertaining. Since it exists only in a fragment, I hope someone else takes it on someday and gives us something makes a little more sense.

[Meredith (Austenesque Reviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Austen's fragment The Watson's was published posthumously by J. E. Austen-Leigh and few attempts have been made to complete it. One such attempt is by Joan Aiken entitled The Watson's and Emma Watson first published in 1996 (reissued in 2008), another is this hard-to-find book by John Coates published in 1958. Jane Austen's original fragment consists only of 6 complete chapters and a few paragraphs. While that may seem to some to be too short to determine Ms. Austen's intended direction, John Coates audaciously attempts to complete this fragment while maintaining Jane Austen's well-known witty repartee and fleshing out the lovable cast of characters she introduced.

Mr. Coates does make some changes in Jane Austen's original fragment (such as changing the heroine's name to “Emily” instead of “Emma,” and changing Austen's use of the word “chair” for an equipage to “gig”). He includes a post script at the end of his novel as an explanation of the changes he made in the fragment. His style in the novel and his tone in the post script show the reader that he treated Austen's work reverently and admiringly.

The Watson's are a family that consists of four unmarried daughter and two sons (one married and one not). The father of this clan is very depressed since his wife's death and does not go out in society. Emily, our heroine, has not been apart of this household; she has been raised by her wealthy aunt and uncle (sort of like Fanny Price). Thus, Emily, the youngest child, has received a more genteel and refined upbringing then the rest of her siblings. However, Emily is to return home, at the age of 19, after spending 14 wonderful and happy years with her aunt because her aunt has remarried an Irish captain. Emily is happy to be re-introduced to her family which she hardly knew before she left and did not keep a correspondence with. Her eldest sister, Elizabeth, sees to all the domestic responsibilities of the household, she is practical and warmhearted. Penelope, the second eldest sister, who has the acerbic wit of both Jane Austen and Elizabeth Bennet, is pert and lively. Margaret, in my opinion, is a character that we are not to like; she is self-absorbed, petty, and disagreeable. (She reminds me of Mary Musgrove). Emily is all that is proper and prim; she endeavors to be an example of a correct and well-mannered young lady.

Emily is introduced not only to her family, but all the inhabitants of her hometown. Emily is warned by her Elizabeth about Mr. Tom Musgrave's flirtatious habits and for this reason and she allows Margret the pleasure of chasing him. The first family of consequence, the Osbourne's, who previously had little to do with the Watson's, are now thrown together more because Emily is admired by Lord Osbourne. However, Emily finds that she is more attracted to Lord Osbourne's former tutor and present curate, Mr. Howard. A love triangle ensues in which Emily is in the middle and finds that her theories of puritanical deportment are failing her.

Emily and Penelope share a close relationship that is open, loving, and full of teasing. This is similar to other sisterly relationships we see in Jane Austen's works. Penelope becomes our second heroine and is one we can learn to love and admire as much as Emily. However, I felt at times, that the author focused more on Penelope and her story then he should have and less on Emily and her story then I would have liked. The same can be said for Emily's two suitors: Lord Osbourne and Mr. Howard, I think Mr. Coates characterization and development of Lord Osbourne is very satisfying and complete, I wish he did the same for Mr. Howard.

The story progresses at an agreeable speed and of course ends quite nicely with marriages and good outcomes for all. I applaud John Coates completion of the Watson's and found it to be very pleasing. The dialogue was entertaining and witty, the characters were lovable, humorous, and worthy of comparison to other Austen characters. I didn't notice a stark difference in the end of one Ms. Austen's work and the beginning of Mr. Coates', but I did feel a gradual loss of Jane Austen's tone by the end of the book. But who can write with Jane Austen's tone, style, dialogue, and characterization? (In my opinion he got 3 out of 4) I believe John Coates did a praiseworthy job and I recommend this book to anyone wanting to read a continuation of The Watson family. I also recommend Sandition, which I also felt was a admirable attempt to complete another of Jane Austen's fragments.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this finished work of Jane Austen, we have the family of the Watsons. Father, daughters Elizabeth, Penelope, Margaret and the youngest Emily (Emma). Their story begins with Emily returning to live at her family home, Stanton Parsonage, after spending the last 15 years living with her aunt and uncle. On the remarriage of her Aunt she leaves as her Aunt travels to Ireland, and she returns to Stanton.
An enjoyable re-read of this story.

[CindySR · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally finished. I was sick in the middle of reading this and I find it hard to read while feeling ill.
On top of that, it's really too long and drawn out a story to be very enjoyable. If not for the amusing and frank Penelope, it would have seemed even more of a slog. The ending was tied up neatly with ribbons and sweetness so that helped.

[Miloš Lazarević]

Ista priča…

[Kate Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Watsons was an unfinished manuscript left behind by Jane Austen. It has always caused us to wonder what would have happened had she finished it, so it was with delight that I found a very hard to find completion by John Coates. When I say hard to find I mean it’s out of print. I was lucky my library had a copy hiding in its midst’s.

Coates makes a change to our heroine’s name. Instead of calling her Emma he calls her Emily, which works just fine.

In the initial fragment we are led to understand that Emily had been raised by her Aunt who upon her second marriage went to Ireland effectively sending Emily back home to strangers. Mr. Watson is a sickly man who rarely leaves his room and Mrs. Watson is long since dead which is suggested to be the cause of Mr. Watson’s condition.


Emily comes from a large family---two brothers and four sisters. Her brother Robert is married to a simpering woman named Jane. The other brother Sam is practicing to be a doctor. Elizabeth, the eldest daughter, is in essence the lady of the house seeing to all the needs of the parsonage. Penelope is the teasing, witty one and Margaret is vain and self absorbed. What a cast of characters!

Tom Musgrave is considered a flirt a la Willoughby or Wickham. He gets his just desserts when he marries Margaret Watson as he is sure to be miserable in life now. Lord Osborne is the wealthy lord who sets his eye on Emily and proposes to her twice (both time refused), but in a charming twist he finds his heart has been claimed elsewhere for some time. It is Mr. Howard who ultimately wins Emily’s heart despite him only being a clergyman---what is wealth and status to true love?

In other words this is a cast of characters that only Austen could have introduced.

Coates created a balance between Emily and her Aunt and their more prosperous status than that of her family. However it was suggested that Jane spoke to her sister Cassandra and explained that Emily’s father Mr. Watson was to die and she was to be dependent on her snipping sister-in-law and brother. As I knew of this I was saddened to see Coates deviate from that path, but then that is what makes it a completion because we can only speculate how Jane herself would have ended it.


Coates does an admirable job in keeping the transition between Austen’s fragment and his completion without any disasters. What is more is that every Janeite is sure to find similarities to other Austen characters in this book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and believe that even Jane herself would have been proud.


Final Recommendation: A book worth the read….if you can find a copy that is.

[Grace Rowland · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

This was such an interesting book to read. I bought this at my local used bookstore because it was marked scarce and I buy anything of Austen’s that I don’t already own, and I’m so glad I did. This particular version of “The Watsons” was published in 1958 by John Coates as a completion (and slight alteration) of Austen’s 1804ish fragment. I knew a bit about the fragment from her biographies but did not know as I read when the transition occurred, so I kept asking myself as I read if this sounded like Austen’s writing or felt like a story she’d have plotted, but I really couldn’t discern a switch. I was very surprised to learn that the transition in this version occurs only about a quarter of the way through, and that the fragment itself is altered a bit (in some ways more major, others quite minor). I think it’s these two factors that make this novel feel so cohesive and truly Austen-esque in many ways. I’m not a scholar, just someone who really likes Jane Austen, but this felt right to me for the most part. It’s not perfect, but I think it honors her intentions as far as we can know, captures her wit, and tells a story she might conceivably have told. Honestly, I liked it better than “Mansfield Park” on my last read. There was perhaps a bit more drama and intrigue than Austen’s novels typically have (a duel, a riding accident, a shockingly quick proposal), but it didn’t feel out of hand. The characters felt unique and not like prototypes of her later characters, which I think was partially due to Coates’ alterations.

Coates dedicates his book to the category of Janeites “whose delight in her books is equaled by their regret that her books are so few.” I definitely belong to that category, and I’m not a purist, so I was very happy to read this Austen-esque novel. I thought it was very well-done.

[Shala Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read. Coates does include the text Austen left behind, although he edits it quite a bit, inserting bits he needs to reshape the characters to suit his version of the story (and cutting out parts as well). Because of this the jarring moment when Coates completely takes over for Austen is less disruptive.

My main complaint about this book is that Emily's relationship with Lord Osbourne is thoroughly fleshed out, while she is barely on speaking terms with Mr. Howard for the first 2/3rds of the book. Seeing her suddenly end up with Howard in this book was difficult for me.

Penelope's character sparkles, which was unexpected, given the poor review Penelope receives by Elizabeth in Austen's original fragment. She's really quite funny. Perhaps she is overdrawn, given that Emily is supposed to be the main character, but I enjoyed her.

[Eevi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story. Austen's part of the manuscript ended near the beginning of the book, but I didn't realize it until I got to the end of the story and read the other author's (John Coates) note.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this John Coates version, the original fragment is changed somewhat from the way Jane Austen wrote it, but not so much to make it a very completely different story. I would suggest reading the other versions first, and then enjoy this one.

[Nellie Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is why you finish your work!!!

[Veronica B · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not so keen on reading unfinished works, but as a Jane Austen fan I really wanted to read her fragment The Watsons. I decided to give this completion by John Coates a try, and I was happily satisfied with the novel!

Austen lost interest in writing The Watsons around 1805, but not before sharing her plans for the rest of the novel with her sister. Coates decided to keep some of Austen's original plot points, but deviated from others. I enjoyed the story that Coates wrote, and I also enjoyed his writing style, which resembles Austen's well enough

I will admit that I was intrigued by Austen's original ideas and wonder how the novel would have turned out if Coates had followed her plot to a tee. That said, Coates was able to create an enjoyable story with many of the elements that fans have come to expect from Austen. The strictest Austenites should be aware that Coates edits Austen's original fragment, but that didn't really bother me because Austen would have eventually edited it herself. I think even Austen would have appreciated some of his changes.

While we'll never know what Austen's completed novel would have been like, this is a good alternative.

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's really disappointing. There was very little interaction between Howard and Emily (I don't know why he had to change her name to Emily. Another disappointment.) She spent soooo much time with Osborne, I thought the author forgot the intended plot for the book. It's basically a rehash of Persuasion. Emily-Anne Elliot, Mr. Elliot-Lord Osborne, Mr. Howard-Capt. Wentworth, Margaret-Mary Musgrave, Mrs. O'Brien-Lady Russell. But without Capt. Wentworth's fabulous letter. There was no romance or courtship, well not enough anyway. In Mansfield Park, even though Fanny wasn't interested in Mr. Crawford, we at least go to see him pay his addresses.

I'm not sure I can take another mediocre completion. I may shelve the Watsons and move on.

[Saila Routio · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning was intriguing and I wanted to know what happened to the characters, even knowing that Jane Austen did not finish this work and therefore the rest might not be as she envisaged.
The leap from Austen's masterly satire to just ordinary, rather dull narration that carried the story to the end is too big in this book. Such a shame.