Reviews - The Other Bennet Sister

2.08k reviews for:

The Other Bennet Sister

Janice Hadlow

4.11 AVERAGE

carolynkwolff's review against another edition

4.25

emotional hopeful informative reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

kaitykat's review against another edition

5.0

“From you, I have learned it is not enough to simply experience feeling. You showed me that one must find the courage to act upon it. There are times when happiness must be fought for if we are to have any chance at all to achieve it.”

This book was so beautiful and is such a treat for any fan of Pride & Prejudice. This book focuses on Mary Bennet, the middle daughter in the Bennet family, who prefers her piano and books to people. The entire book is in her perspective, the first half of the book retelling the events we all know happen in the original book, and the second half focuses on Mary’s life once her sisters have gotten married. The characters were written so wonderfully and truly immerses the reader into the story. This book made me smile, laugh, cry, and even upset me at times - a la Mrs. Bennet, but I loved every moment.

I related to Mary in a lot of ways, as I usually do with these types of introverted, lowkey anti-social characters, so this book brought a lot of hope and comfort to me. This book was also a bit long but I really didn’t want it to end. I got so wrapped up in Mary’s life that I wanted to stay and experience more of it! This is such a special book and I truly loved my time spent with Mary Bennet, who deserves all the happiness. 5 stars! ✨

gretchen_ronnevik's review against another edition

4.5

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

I’m not usually into Austen fan fiction, but this was recommended to me many friends. It did not disappoint. It was super fun.

dragonflymorning's review against another edition

4.0

hopeful reflective medium-paced

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I really enjoyed this redemption of Mary Bennet. The thought Janice Hadlow put into what would make the "plain" Bennet sister so strict and pious was spot on as a rewriting and the second half of the book, which treads into post P&P territory, was so well done. The pacing seemed to drag a bit in the middle section as Mary is not really involved in the P&P finale and we begin her life as the last unmarried Bennet, but I thoroughly enjoyed the reading anyway.

coramabry's review against another edition

5.0

I cannot BELIEVE how invested I got in this book! I will admit I only chose to read it because I can never get enough of Jane Austen or Austen-esque books. I didn't expect to enjoy it much because, after all, how could a story about Mary Bennet of all people possibly be engaging or entertaining?

I was so wrong on all accounts. I will never look at Mary Bennet the same again and I can say that her story was more satisfying in many ways than those of Jane and Lizzie. Watching Mary struggle to find her place in the world, navigating life's hardships without the benefits her sisters or other women had, was so touching and really made me think differently about her. I was so proud of her and kept rooting for her throughout the entire story, even when she had almost given up on herself.

Janice Hadlow made the emotional aspect of this book easy to grasp. I laughed, cried, gasped, and more - it was as if Mary was my best friend and I was listening to her tell the story of her life. I think it would be just about impossible for anyone to read this and NOT love Mary at the end. She is certainly my new favorite Bennet sister!