Northanger Abbey

Synopsis

Jane Austen's first novel tells the story of Catherine Morland and her dangerously sweet nature, innocence, and sometime self-delusion. Though Austen's fallible heroine is repeatedly drawn into scrapes while vacationing at Bath and during her subsequent visit to Northanger Abbey, Catherine eventually triumphs, blossoming into a discerning woman who learns truths about love, life, and the heady power of literature. A satirical novel pokes fun at the gothic novel while earnestly emphasizing caution to the female sex.

Loved

• Okay I just adore this book and movie SO much. 

• I love the gothic feel to this novel. I love the classic feel of Jane Austen's novels, but Northanger Abbey was refreshing to add a tiny dash of gothic thriller and mystery. Imagine Pride and Prejudice but with flashes of highway men and vampires? Yes please! I really enjoyed the satire of how caught up society becomes in wild novels of sexy vampirism and romantic kidnappings- both in Austen's time and ours. I love that even Mr. Tilney admits to being completely enraptured in some of these novels and not being able to put them down :) 

• Speaking of Mr. Tilney, he is definitely my favorite Austen heartthrob. Yes, I said it. I like him even more than Mr. Darcy. I love Mr. Tilney's wit and ability to make fun of propriety while still being a perfect gentleman. I love his sarcasm and open humor. Don't get me wrong, I love all the other Austen men, but Mr. Tilney doesn't take himself as seriously as some of the others and he simply enjoys himself in whatever he's doing (when we first meet him he talks about lace with Catherine and her aunt! Mr. Darcy would have fainted on the spot). He does still have a tiny bit of broodiness because of the secret he hides about his family, which makes him the perfect complement of Northanger Abbey. (We can't have an old mysterious castle without a little broodiness right?)

• Catherine. Catherine is such a refreshing Austen heroine because she's honestly just nerdy. She is awkward, vulnerable and gullible, but honest and sincere. Once again, I will always love Elizabeth Bennett and Emma, but it's nice to have someone who doesn't always have the perfect witty retort or the social savvy to be hard-to-get. Catherine simply falls in any trap she encounters. I also love her Anne Shirley-style of daydreaming about terrible romantic things happening to her, which makes her so relatable and lovable (and a tiny bit frustrating at times). 

• The wit. This is true for all of Jane Austen's novels, but I just love the witty conversation. My favorite scene is when Mr. Tilney is first introduced and he if full of witty comments and jabs against propriety- "Now I must give one smirk, and then we may be rational again." I definitely believe much of the magic of Austen novels are in the quick-witted conversation and masterful use of dialogue- and Mr. Tilney is one of my favorite examples of this in any of her books.

Didn't Love

• Okay, you can hate me. But this is one of the very few times when I actually enjoyed the movie more than the book. Yep, I said it. I have loved the movies for years since my sister recommended it to me. Reading the book was so fun since I already loved the characters, but I felt like I actually got more of their personalities and how funny the book is by watching the movie. If I hadn't have seen the movie a bunch of times, I'm not sure I would've picked up on as much of the satire and wit, but maybe that's just me. Also, I am very biased because JJ Field plays Mr. Tilney in the movie, and JJ is my man. I may or may not be slightly obsessed with him :)

Content

• Language: 
• A few uses of "damn" and "hell."

• Sexual content: 
• Two characters have a scandalous affair and sleep together, then don't get married. The encounter itself is not described, just how they ended up together and the effects afterward.
• Catherine reads gothic novels that are quite provocative- she reads aloud descriptions of vampires seductively tying women to beds and sucking at their necks or tearing at their bodices. It's clear that Austen is making fun of these novels.

• Violence:
• No violence here :)

 Overall Thoughts

If you are an Austen fan, I definitely recommend this one. If you've never read any Austen before, I would start with Pride and Prejudice because that's her most famous and classic novel. But I love Northanger Abbey because we get a totally different feel than her other books. This does have the social commentary and social class issues, but it feels more focused on the gothic satire, which is very different and fun compared to her other books. This is probably the most "thrilling" of her novels, if such a term can be used to describe Jane Austen (I mean, I think it's thrilling when Mr. Darcy stares at Elizabeth from across the room, but I understand not everyone feels that way.) If anything, read this for Mr. Tilney because he is just wonderful and will make you smile at least once when you read this (and then watch it so you can see JJ ;)