Lady Susan

For such a short novel, Austen packed a lot in. I enjoyed the epistolary style, the to-ing and fro-ing of gossip and scheming, the outrage at other people's behaviour. I found the lack of descriptions of houses, balls, soldiers and country mansions refreshing, and appreciated the definition of the characters through other people's perceptions of them rather than a straight narrative description. Perhaps because the titular character is in her mid 30s, the book seemed more mature than the other Austen books I've read. Lady Susan is a horror but she's also very winning. I think I would have enjoyed her company. She's like my other favourite Austen characters, Lizzie Bennett and Emma Woodhouse - feisty and impetuous, but with the added show more naughtiness of being a marriage wrecker and arch manipulator. I should disparage her, but she's too much fun! show less

As usual, I'm not giving a synopsis fo the story, just my reactions.

This Jane Austen novella is not as accessible as her other writings, since it is all written in rather long-winded letters, all telling and no showing (action, dialogue, etc.). However, Austen is so clever in this device. Rather than show how horrible Lady Susan's actions and intentions are, we read between the lines in her letters and in others' more straightforward words. Soon she is revealing herself as the manipulative sociopath she is, totally lacking conscience and concern for others.

It was fascinating to me that Jane Austen would be so familiar with this behavior! I'm curious who she modeled Lady Susan after, as it seems impossible to write this perfect show more portrait of a sociopath back in the 1790s without meeting one. show less

This short epistolary novel covers the doings of Lady Susan Vernon, who unlike other leading Austen female characters, is a thoroughgoing nasty job - deceitful, manipulative and entirely self-centred, particularly in the case of her daughter Frederica. Her cynical and cold treatment of her still shocks even 230 years on. Considering this was written when the author was only around 15-16, it shows a maturity of writing not far short of her adult full novels. Well worth a read.

Oh, this was delicious devilry. I think I read that Ms. Austen wrote this at 19 or something, and it was not published until after her death. She must have had so much fun creating such an unscrupulous, conniving, manipulative character as Lady Susan, who shamelessly flirts and schemes in order to secure a wealthy marriage for herself and her daughter. The book is epistolary in form, and the ensemble narration was the perfect way to experience Lady Susan's underhandedness, her relations' outrage, her objet d'amour's enchantment, and her poor daughter's helplessness. A quick read, and so much wicked fun!

This small epistolary novel is a bit different from Austen’s other work. The title character, Lady Susan, is a manipulative selfish woman who is hard to like. She has almost no regard for her daughter Frederica and is doing her best to marry her off to the first man who comes along.

Lady Susan is used to always getting her way. She uses people to further herself and then when she is finished with them she moves on. The story revolves around her efforts to seduce and marry a young wealthy man. Through the observations and letters of those she comes in contact with we learn that everyone is concerned she might succeed. They warn the man in question, but he’s blinded by infatuation.

We don’t have long enough to become attached to any show more of the characters, but it’s still interesting to see how it unfolds. I thought the ending was wonderfully just and was happy with the book overall.

BOTTOM LINE: If you’re an Austen devotee it’s a must. Though the story isn’t as good, it’s fun to see Austen try a different style and exercise her writing skills. For anyone new to Austen I would say skip this one and start with one of her well-known novels.

“Where there is a disposition to dislike, a motive will never be wanting.” show less

I got a kick out of the snarky little novel Lady Susan by Jane Austen. It manages to turn traditional romantic themes upside down. I'm not a big fan of epistolary novels, but here the letters back and forth effectively convey the main players' different perspectives and perceptions, as widowed Lady Susan works her mercenary schemes to land her and her daughter rich husbands, while others seek to thwart her. Lady Susan is in her early 30s, and is attractive, perceptive, intelligent, and witty. She also is totally focused on #1, and can seemingly talk any fool of a man around to seeing things her way. She typically has her eye on much younger men, making her an intriguing opposite to standard older male/younger female relationships like show more that of Colonel Brandon and Marianne in Sense and Sensibility. Mrs. Vernon's young brother Reginald, for example, is adamantly set against Lady Susan after hearing tales of her villainy. "She (Lady Susan) does not confine herself to that sort of honest flirtation which satisfies most people, but aspires to the more delicious gratification of making a whole family miserable." However, once Lady Susan cleverly and modestly provides her side of things, he is smitten. Lady Susan is quite frank about her pulling of men's puppet strings in her letters to her friend Alicia, and concludes, “There is exquisite pleasure in subduing an insolent spirit, in making a person pre-determined to dislike, acknowledge one's superiority." Mrs. Vernon sees through Lady Susan immediately, but despairs of making any of the mesmerized menfolk understand there is a wolf among them.

It was a pleasure, as always, to read Austen in her cynical, gloves-off mode. She obviously had affection and admiration for the devilish Lady Susan. show less

I hadn't read an epistolary novel (well, in this case novella) for a long time and enjoyed hearing a young Austen play with the form. Also, Lady Susan is AWFUL in that delightful way of, say, Austen's Mrs. Elton, Edward in Heyer's Venetia, various aunts in Wodehouse, where the writer is clearly relishing in the awfulness of a character who would NOT be funny if encountered in the wild. An entertaining, very quick read.