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The Trouble With Mrs Montgomery Hurst

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The Trouble With Mrs Montgomery Hurst

By: Katie Lumsden
Narrated by: Olivia Vinall
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.


A love letter to Jane Austen and Elizabeth Gaskell, The Trouble with Mrs Montgomery Hurst is a witty novel of manners and gossip, class and family, scandal and romance.
1841
The trouble with Mrs Montgomery Hurst is not Mrs Montgomery Hurst – as young Miss Amelia Ashpoint well knows.
The real trouble is the polite society of Wickenshire, with its inescapable gossip about the arrival of the new Mrs Hurst and – whisper it – her three children from a previous marriage.
In Wickenshire, nobody’s business is their own. And in this strange match, the local families sense scandal – and they will do anything to expose it.
Meanwhile, Amelia Ashpoint, though handsome, clever and rich, is avoiding talk of marriage at all costs.

For while society expects Amelia to marry well, her heart is drawing her in a very different direction . . .


'Romance and scandal abound in this compelling period drama . . . Recommended for all lovers of Regency historical fiction' LAURA SHEPPERSON, author of The Heroines

'Warm and witty, with a wonderful cast of quirky characters whose company I found irresistible' JESSICA BULL, author of Miss Austen Investigates

©2024 Katie Lumsden (P)2024 Penguin Audio

 Genre Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Regency Witty Heartfelt

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Critic reviews

An insightful and compassionate tale of a Victorian county town and the people who live there. Romance and scandal abound in this compelling period drama, and Lumsden is not afraid to explore the issues Jane Austen could only hint at (LAURA SHEPPERSON)
Warm and witty, with a wonderful cast of quirky characters whose company I found irresistible (JESSICA BULL)
A feast of clever wit and lovingly drawn characters, this is an absolute treat for fans of Jane Austen - or anyone looking for top-rate storytelling. I haven't felt such unadulterated pleasure in a book for ages (HESTER MUSSON)
Rich with scandal, romance and social mores, The Trouble with Mrs Montgomery Hurst is a total delight! Threaded with a biting humour reminiscent of Austen, it proves both poignant and thought-provoking as it exposes the bitter realities hidden within many nineteenth-century classics. (ANITA FRANK)
An intriguing delight, with scandal, gossip and romance, and a cast of characters Jane Austen would be proud of. (ESSIE FOX)
I loved this exquisitely crafted, sweeping Viennese Waltz of a book by Katie Lumsden. It propels you beautifully into a 19th century world of vivid characters and intricately interwoven storylines, echoing the best of Thomas Hardy, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Anne Brontë and Jane Austen, but singing with modern heart and empathy. By the end of the book, I was deeply enmeshed in the lives of its characters and heartily sorry to see it end. Enter the county of Wickenshire at your peril, because you will never want to leave. (HANNAH DOLBY)
Sheer delight! A glittering comedy of manners told with spiky wit, an eye for social critique, and (of course) a terrific sense of irony. It is impossible not to be swept off one’s feet by the elegance and rich music of Katie Lumsden’s prose (TOM MEAD)
With its witty writing, memorable characters, and meticulous plot, this is definitely a future classic. I absolutely loved it (EMMA MEDRANO)
An absolute dream of a book. The Trouble with Mrs Montgomery Hurst has a compelling storyline that kept me gripped to the last page, and beyond. It’s one of those books that plays on your mind, making you wish there was more left to read. It covers what could be familiar ground for historical fiction – wealth or the lack of it, social class, marriage prospects – but in fresh and surprising ways. The prose is flawless, and the author handles her large, diverse cast of characters with a deftness of touch that is evocative of Jane Austen. I think this book will establish her - deservedly - as one of our best historical fiction writers. (ANNE CORLETT)
Run don’t walk to get your copy... Katie has created a vivid community and deftly surfaced the undercurrents bubbling beneath classic novels. Pitch-perfect Cranford vibes - I read every page with a smile on my face. (Lianne Dillsworth)
All stars
Most relevant
Absolutely loved this. The characters are wonderfully constructed with their lives intertwined and the plot ticks along beautifully. If you're a fan of any Austen novel or Gaskell's Cranford it's a must. I'd love to see it turned into a TV period drama and feel it's the kind of novel where a sequel would fit well too. It left me wanting to know more about the characters' lives and the place they live. Narration was perfect too.

Would make a perfect TV period drama

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Well written and true to the period. The characters are well drawn and very believable and the plot engaging.

Unusual and engrossing

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A story very much in the same style as Jane Austen - with less wit, but excellent relationships and growth of the characters. Will definitely reread.

A perfect homage to Jane Austen

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A really great homage to Austen and Gaskell which manages to grapple with the serious issues at the heart of Victorian society while still being extremely fun!

Fantastic

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This author will join the ranks of writer of audiobooks I will return to and listen again and again. Among these are the works of Georgette Heyer, Anthony Trollope Dickens and more modern writers Sophia Holloway and Jane Dunn. This writer is British and this in itself is an advantage as far as historical romantic fiction goes. The genre is crowded with Americans who don’t take the trouble to check details of flora and fauna and use American idioms. Katie Lumsden makes an excellent beginning. I believe this is her second book and I heartily recommend it. A pleasing leangth, interesting characters and a good plot with a few unpredictable twists and turns. The writing style is attractive and the narrator faultless. It also has a satisfying ending which ties up all loose ends and doesn’t leave us high and dry with a final kiss or a wedding. I will look out for her next book with eager anticipation

Excellent new writer

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