"Drawing her plot from events described in the diary of Jane Austen's niece, Fanny, Hornby imagines the early life of Fanny's governess, Anne Sharp, who forged a close friendship with Jane. The pleasure of this novel lies in its quietly satisfying portrait of a woman facing social prejudice and ill health, yet gradually coming to realize her own worth."-- "The New York Times Book Review"

"Few writers are as perspicacious or half as delightful as Hornby."--Karen Joy Fowler, international bestselling author of The Jane Austen Book Club

"Tremendous. Darker than Miss Austen but rendered with her characteristic lightness of touch and quick wit."--Nigella Lawson, acclaimed food writer and television cook

"Hornby's Austen books are funny, bittersweet family sagas, impeccably researched and lavishly imagined."-- "The Times (London)"

"Has all Austen's wit and unnerving powers of observation with an extra twenty-first century zap."--Ferdinand Mount, author of Big Caesars and Little Caesars and Kiss Myself Goodbye

"Combines meticulous period research with a fine feeling for the characters' inner lives, hopes and fears."-- "The Daily Mail"

"Gripping and moving and also so sharp and funny. I loved it!"--Sabine Durrant, author of Lie with Me

"An affecting, and even somewhat feminist, return to the world of the Austen family and its offshoots. There's a method to the author's impeccably researched look at 19th-century manners: Not only does she get to the titular event (never fear, there's an Austen-worthy young gentleman involved), but she shows the choices available to the era's women. Austen herself would approve. Janeites, rejoice!"-- "Kirkus Reviews"