Jan Hahn's Books

In her latest and much anticipated Pride and Prejudice variation, author Jan Hahn has boldly and daringly done the unthinkable…she has engaged Elizabeth Bennet to George Wickham! And she’s not just engaged – but secretly engaged! *gasp* Can you believe it? What on earth is Elizabeth thinking!?! 😉

I must admit I didn’t find Elizabeth’s behavior all that unfathomable. This is partly because Jan Hahn did an excellent job creating a believable sequence of events that gradually lead Lizzy into such a predicament. Lizzy doesn’t immediately accept Wickham’s proposals or request for secrecy, but she does eventually consent due to her compassion for Wickham and her inexperience with men (master manipulators like Wickham are definitely beyond her ken!). I think Elizabeth’s sympathetic nature, sense of justice (Lizzy champions the wronged!) and her belief that she may one day have a love match like her aunt and uncle (who she just discovered weren’t in love when they wed) also steer Lizzy on this unlikely path. Keeping secrets from her sister and engaging in a deception is definitely not a part of Lizzy’s character…but women everywhere often make mistakes for the men in their lives.

Read the rest of the review at The Secret Betrothal – Jan Hahn – Austenesque Reviews.

I loved this story! The Secret Betrothal is a wonderful retelling of Pride and Prejudice that takes us down a path different from the original. I love it when an author takes my two favorite characters and puts them in some new situations, just as Jan Hahn has done in this one.

What if, Elizabeth was so angry and hurt by Mr. Darcy’s “tolerable” remark and haughty behavior that she goes against her better judgement and accepts a man under conditions that she usually wouldn’t do? She lets her judgement of the man cloud her sensibilities, and she blindly accepts Mr. Wickham’s tales. And what if, knowing Mr. Darcy as well as he does, Mr. Wickham realizes there may be another way to seek his revenge…by taking away something that Mr. Darcy really wants. Elizabeth.

There is so much I enjoyed about this story! We all know Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth will have their happily ever after, but the fun is getting there! I loved watching Elizabeth learn what an honorable man Mr. Darcy truly is, and what a rogue Mr. Wickham is. In the end, I found myself wondering if Mr. Wickham could actually regret his past behavior, and if Elizabeth really could have made him a better man.

Read the rest at So little time…: The Secret Betrothal by Jan Hahn.

My Thoughts:

The Secret Betrothal by Jan Hahn is one of those books where, as a reviewer, you don’t want to give too much of the plot away and spoil it for readers.

What I will say is: In this P&P alternate path Elizabeth engages in a secret betrothal with Wickham. Yes, dear readers, you read it right. Lovely Elizabeth is engaged to Wickham, who for once isn’t portrayed as a complete villain, and she doesn’t tell a soul, not even her dearly devoted sister Jane.

Let me stress the point again: This is an alternative telling of P&P. Those of you who are P&P purists who want Elizabeth solely with Darcy may want to keep an open mind when starting the Secret Betrothal. Elizabeth and Darcy do get their HEA, but there is a whole lot of the wicked Wickham thrown in the mix, which I devoured like manna from above.

I will admit, when I started the book I was a little skeptical. I mean really, who wants to see Darcy’s hopes of winning Elizabeth’s hand crushed? I suppose the evil reader side of me kind of wanted to see Darcy squirm a little—I know, I know, I am sure vile emails will follow. But, admit it, you kind of want to see it too.

Although once I started the book, I was hooked. Having previously read Hahn’s novel, The Journey, I knew I was in for treat. Not only does Hahn write outstanding plots that stay true to the core of P&P, her male characters are some of the strongest that I’ve seen in Austen adaptations, which is one of the reasons you should add her novels to your Austen collection.

Read the complete review at Addicted To Jane Austen: The Secret Betrothal by Jan Hahn.

Marriage in Regency times was the rock that built Society’s foundation. Not only was it the most important step in a young woman’s life, the union could advance her family’s social standing and wealth. Throughout Jane Austen’s novels we are shown the maneuverings of families to obtain advantageous alliances for their children, so when we see the secret engagements in Emma and Sense and Sensibility, and their outcome, we know the risk and scandal that can ensue. With this in mind, I am both curious and uneasy by author Jan Hahn’s choice of The Secret Betrothal as a title of her new novel. Furthermore, in this reimagining of Pride and Prejudice, she has boldly chosen to explore what would happen if Elizabeth Bennet entered into one herself! Whatever would possess our favorite Austen heroine to take this risk—and what would Mr. Darcy do to save her from such a folly?

For reasons I shan’t give away here, Elizabeth must keep this betrothal a secret and when she was told she could tell no one, not even her beloved sister, Jane:

“…she felt a chill crawl up her back….Although he lacked fortune, it was due to no failing on his part, and he had the promise of an adequate future awaiting him. But the possibility of waiting two years provoked a sigh from deep within her. He had warned Elizabeth that they must avoid paying close attention to each other when in public so as not to raise talk among the gossips of Meryton. Being a sensible woman, Elizabeth knew that was necessary as talk of matches and mating was primary among Hertfordshire society. Still, it did not set well with her.” (63)

A chance meeting at Rosings Park, Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth re-new their acquaintance and he comes to find out soon after his unpropitious declaration of love that she is already engaged. Secretly engaged!

Read the rest of the review at The Secret Betrothal: A Pride and Prejudice Alternate Path, by Jan Hahn – A Review | Austenprose – A Jane Austen Blog.

Review: An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn

Title: An Arranged MarriageAuthor: Jan Hahn
Publisher: Meryton Press
Publication Date: June 7, 2011paperback, 230 pagesISBN: 978-1-936009-14-5
Genre: Historical Fiction, Pride and Prejudice Variation
Source: From Publisher

Summary from goodreads:Can a marriage of convenience ever lead to true love? Immediately after Elizabeth Bennet refuses Mr. Darcy’s proposal at Hunsford, her father dies, leaving Longbourn entailed away and little fortune to sustain his widow and daughters. Six months later, the Bennet family receives a visitor with a most unusual offer that promises to save the family from financial and social ruin. Elizabeth’s sense of duty forces her to enter into an arranged marriage with a man she does not even like. Told from Elizabeth’s point of view, An Arranged Marriage is a compelling twist on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Can Elizabeth overcome her feelings of anger, resentment, and suspicion toward her new husband and – the most bewildering sensation of all – a growing attraction for the last man in the world she ever wished to marry?

via To Read or Not To Read: Review: An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012The Journey – Jan Hahn + GIVEAWAY!!!An All-Consuming Adventure of Danger and Romance!Rating: 5 out of 5 starsIn her second Pride and Prejudice retelling, author Jan Hahn not only takes our beloved Darcy and Elizabeth off course, she transports them to scenario rife with danger, tension, and romance.Because of Mrs. Bennet’s endless tirade over Elizabeth’s refusal of Mr. Collins, Mr. Bennet sends Elizabeth to London to stay with her Aunt and Uncle Gardiner, in hopes that his wife will soon reconcile herself to the fact that Lizzy will not be the next Mrs. Collins. Although not the arrangement initially agreed upon, Lizzy ends up traveling to London in Mr. Bingley’s carriage with only Caroline Bingley, Louisa Hurst, and Mr. Darcy. Between deflecting Caroline malicious barbs and avoiding conversation with the infuriating Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth can’t possibly imagine a more uncomfortable or unpleasant situation…That is until a band of highwaymen come and rob them all and take Darcy and herself as ransom…

via Austenesque Reviews: The Journey – Jan Hahn + GIVEAWAY!!!.

An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn

Mar13

Product Details

Rating: **** – 4.5 Stars

GENRE: Regency Romance

BOOK SUMMARY: Can a marriage of convenience ever lead to true love? Immediately after Elizabeth Bennet refuses Mr. Darcy’s proposal at Hunsford, her father dies, leaving Longbourn entailed away and little fortune to sustain his widow and daughters. Six months later, the Bennet family receives a visitor with a most unusual offer that promises to save the family from financial and social ruin. Elizabeth’s sense of duty forces her to enter into an arranged marriage with a man she does not even like. Can Elizabeth overcome her feelings of anger, resentment, and suspicion toward her new husband and – the most bewildering sensation of all – a growing attraction for the last man in the world she ever wished to marry? (Amazon.com Book Description)

REVIEWER COMMENTS: What a wonderful take on Pride and Prejudice. Hahn does an amazing job staying true to the characters and the dialogues of the time period, and offers a new twist on how Darcy and Elisabeth come to be the happily ever after Mr. and Mrs. Darcy.

via An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn | Sensible Romance.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn

An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn does not have a new premise for Austen fiction fans. The Bennett’s will be strained with reduced circumstances unless Lizzy agrees to marry Mr. Darcy. Lizzy agrees and heads off with Mr. Darcy and she is greatly uncomfortable with her new husband she barely knows except to hate. The story follows Elizabeth and Darcy as the misunderstand each other until Elizabeth finally acknowledges her deep feelings of love for Darcy.

via my little corner of the world: An Arranged Marriage by Jan Hahn.

The Journey, by Jan Hahn 2011 Reviewed by Christina Boyd

At last, at last. It’s arrived at last. Fans of Jan Hahn, author of An Arranged Marriage, winner of 2011 Best Indie Book award by Austenprose, have been all anticipation for the release of The Journey.This Pride & Prejudice twist begins shortly after the Netherfield Ball. After Miss Elizabeth Bennet refuses the toady Mr. Collins’ marriage proposal, Elizabeth escapes her carping mother and journeys to London for a visit with her aunt and uncle Gardiner at Gracechurch street. Reluctantly she travels with Mr. Bingley’s conceited, boorish sisters and the aloof, prideful Mr. Darcy, when suddenly highwaymen halt their carriage. Nate Morgan, handsome outlaw and leader of this band of thieves, on impulse abducts Elizabeth for his own diversion. Chivalrously Darcy offers himself as pawn in her stead, however, this scheme falls short –and to everyone’s astonishment, Darcy proclaims Elizabeth his wife!

via The Journey, by Jan Hahn – A Review « Austenprose – A Jane Austen Blog.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

An Arranged Marriage – Jan Hahn

An Arrangement She Cannot Refuse

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Diverging her path from Jane Austen’s just days after Darcy’s disastrous proposal at Hunsford Parsonage, debut author Jan Hahn delivers a riveting Pride and Prejudice variation that is full of conflict, deception, mystery, and romance.

via Austenesque Reviews: An Arranged Marriage – Jan Hahn.