Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler

A must-read intriguing comedy!!by MinnesotaReader

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October 17, 2009: Laurie Viera Rigler has skillfully written an imaginative story portraying the humorous contrast in lifestyles between 19th and 21st century women. The tale begins as Jane Mansfield, a member of Regency England's aristocracy, awakens in the body of modern-day, Los Angeleno Courtney Stone. Finding herself in bewildering surroundings among mind-boggling modern conveniences, she goes from one comical situation to the next. Her experiences with such things as an alarm clock, tv and cell phone are simply hilarious. In spite of being confused and sometimes afraid, she begins to learn our present-day customs and gets excited by the many opportunities. A romance completes this thoroughly enjoyable story. Ms. Rigler is a brilliant storyteller who utterly captivated me from the very first page. Her descriptions of modern-day belongings with Jane's 19th century diction and vocabulary were laugh-out-loud funny. As delightful as this book was, it did impart plenty of timeless wisdom. We must learn to live in the moment, striving to move forward, rather than dwell in the past. Also, it's important to learn about ourselves and others before we jump to conclusions. I absolutely loved this creative, entertaining book and I highly recommend it!!

This is the parallel story to "Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict", where Courtney Stone awakens in 19th century England in the body of Jane Mansfield!

Worthy and Delightful Sequelby LHedgpeth

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October 15, 2009: Sequels or prequels can be a tricky thing. When the first book is well received, readers have an expectation that the next book will be just as good, perhaps even better. An author venturing into such territory takes a great risk. Laurie Viera Rigler took an even bigger risk as her primary demographic is Jane Austen fans. As one myself, we can be a demanding, unforgiving bunch with very high expectations. After all, any author willing to take characters (and beloved ones, at that) that Ms. Austen created herself, or make Ms. Austen directly or indirectly the subject of their book must be prepared to be compared to Ms. Austen in some fashion.

I adored Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict. I will say that I am a somewhat obsessive freak over time travel - - the idea, stories about it - - and you have read my profile, you know that I have a fascination with Jane Austen fan fic and sequels. Confessions (and Rude Awakenings) fit both molds for me. Ms. Viera Rigler made a wonderfully relatable heroine - - Courtney - - and her details of Regency life were a delight to read.

I was thrilled to hear of a follow up novel and Ms. Viera Rigler does not disappoint. Rude Awakenings is a fun romp of a read - - joining Jane Mansfield, who manages to find herself in Courtney's body, while Courtney s ostensibly in hers. The problem - - and fascination - - being that Jane is from 1813 England and is now in present-day Los Angeles. Her shock, awe and fear over our daily necessities like cars, televisions, phones and electricity is humorous and humbling. Of particular joy to me was Jane's thrill over finding out not only the author's name of her favorite book (Pride & Prejudice) but that she had written five more completed novels during her lifetime. Not only did Jane have to navigate a thoroughly modern world she had no experience with but also had to pick up Courtney's life with her friends, co-workers, a job, problems with her mother and a recently broken engagement.

Rude Awakenings was a worthy follow-up to Confessions, answering questions posed and left unanswered in the first book. Readers should be pleased not only with Jane's dilemma but also with a bit of further information given about Courtney as well as more character development for Jane herself.

This book was so good, such a fun read, that I raced through it in about two and a half days (and weekdays, while working). I would recommend it for all Jane Austen fans, fans of the Regency era or other historical fiction and especially anyone who has read Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict.