Lies Jane Austen Told Me

July 3, 2017
Wright (Victoria’s Promise) does contemporary romance right in this diverting novel that takes the famous words of the queen mother of romance novels and throws them back in her face. L.A. marketing executive Emma Pierce has read every Jane Austen book cover to cover, but has failed to find her perfect Mr. Darcy. When she catches soon-to-be-ex Blake grilling fish (not a euphemism) with another woman, she gives up on following Austen’s advice or seeking romantic companionship, and decides to instead take this opportunity to reexamine and recalculate her priorities. That lasts only as long as it takes her to meet Blake’s brother, Lucas. Even as she falls in love with him, she can’t get past one incongruity in his otherwise spotless behavior. As for Lucas, he’s holding back in deference to Blake’s sincere regret for hurting Emma, whom he claims to still love. True love manages to surmount these hurdles in this enjoyable story with just enough heft. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties.

November 1, 2017

Emma Pierce is the chief marketing officer at Kinetics, an upscale, all-inclusive health spa and fitness experience in Los Angeles. She is also a devoted Jane Austen fan, but she has doubts about Austen's advice on love after belatedly taking her boyfriend Blake up on his invitation to visit him at his parents' San Diego home. She thought a proposal might be in the offing, yet once inside the gated manse, Emma seems to have surprised Blake, another woman is there for dinner, and the folks are out of town. Back at work, Emma is told to expect a new consultant with some East Coast perspective related to opening new Kinetics locations. And who is it but Lucas Hampton, Blake's brother, who has a compelling backstory of his own.

Verdict Wright's (Victoria's Promise) latest is a cute play on the world of Jane Austen and those who love her. The romance is sweet as sugar and takes a while to resolve, allowing for a bit of will she or won't she (or he, for that matter). Despite a minor gaffe in the spelling of "Bennet" (which this reviewer has been assured will be corrected for the next printing), this title is recommended where gentle romances have pride of place.-Bette-Lee Fox, Library Journal

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2017
Breaking up with someone is never easy, especially if you have been together a long time. But Emma Pierce realizes that she and Jane Austen must finally part company. Emma used to believe that Jane's books held the answers to every romantic question in her life until the night she showed up at Blake Hampton's family home expecting to receive a marriage proposal only to find her boyfriend busy serving his famous grilled fish to another lady. Throwing herself into her work seems like a logical way for Emma to get over her heartbreak, but she soon discovers that the new consultant her boss just hired to help her out is none other than Blake's brother, Lucas. Employing her own deliciously dry sense of wit, Whitney Awardwinner Wright deftly pays homage to the inherent romantic wisdom found in Austen's classic novels in this delightfully fun and refreshingly sweet contemporary romance.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)