Sense & Sensibility by Joanna Trollope

When I spotted Sense & Sensibility on The Lost Entwife,  I was immediately interested. I adore the movie version with Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant. I've attempted to read Austen's version a few times but the movie keeps rattling around in my head. I usually stop reading it so I can watch the movie again. I thought perhaps the "updated" version of Sense & Sensibility would be easier/more interesting to read. I was half right.

Trollope takes the same story, the same characters and drops them into modern day England. I enjoyed the feeling that these were the same characters I enjoyed before. But some of the things they do and the reasoning is harder to fit in modern society. The ladies Dashwood are displaced from Norland because Mr & Mrs Dashwood weren't married and his son, John, is the legal heir. Despite that John and Fanny have a home, they decide to reside in Norland. In Austen's book I could see that as a sign of wealth and privilege. Here it seemed selfish and rude. Fanny retains all her horridness and I delighted in despising her again. I enjoyed Marianne and Elinor as well. Margaret was hard for me to relate to. Sometimes I wished she'd just stayed silent.

I took me about half the book to get into Sense & Sensibility. Trollope's writing style reminded me a lot of Austen's. I think she remained very true to the spirit of the original while bringing into modern day. This is the first of Trollope's books I've read and I would like to read more by her. I'm also going to check out more the Austen Project. Others who shared their thoughts on Sense & Sensibility: The Lost Entwife, A Spoonful of Happy Endings, Novel Escapes, Laura's Reviews, and A Bookish Way of Life.
This is my second read for the Romance Reading Challenge.