The Elopement

Gill Hornby plunges us into the lives of the Austen family during the early 19th Century, where an unconventional marriage divides a family and turmoil ensues.

A richly imagined family saga, love story and social comedy – Times
Gripping and moving and also so sharp and funny. I loved it! – Sabine Durrant
Has all the wit and wisdom of a Jane Austen novel – Red

'It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.'

1820. Mary Dorothea Knatchbull is living under the sole charge of her widowed father, Sir Edward — a man of strict principles and high Christian values.

But when her father marries Miss Fanny Knight of Godmersham Park, Mary's life is suddenly changed. Her new stepmother comes from a large, happy, and sociable family, and Fanny's sisters become Mary's first friends. Her aunt, Miss Cassandra Austen of Chawton, is especially kind. Her brothers are not only amusing, but handsome and charming.

And as Mary Dorothea starts to bloom into a beautiful young woman, she forms an especial bond with one Mr Knight in particular. Soon, they are deeply in love and determined to marry. They expect no opposition. After all, each is from a good family and has known the other for some years.

It promises to be the most perfect match. Who would want to stand in their way?

Praise for The Elopement

Hornby's Austen books are funny, bittersweet family sagas, impeccably researched and lavishly imagined – The Times
Tremendous . . . Darker than Miss Austen but rendered with her characteristic lightness of touch and quick wit – Nigella Lawson
Has all Austen's wit and unnerving powers of observation with an extra twenty-first century zap – Ferdinand Mount
Few writers are as perspicacious or half as delightful as Hornby – Karen Joy Fowler
A captivating return to the world of the Austens – Woman & Home
Combines meticulous period research with a fine feeling for the characters' inner lives, hopes and fears – Daily Mail