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    First Impressions
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    First Impressions
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    First Impressions
    Audiobook10 hours

    First Impressions

    Written by Charlie Lovett

    Narrated by Jenny Funnell

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Book lover and Jane Austen enthusiast Sophie Collingwood has barely started her new job at an antiquarian bookshop in London when two different customers request a copy of the same obscure publication: the second edition of Little Book of Allegories by Richard Mansfield. Their enquiry draws Sophie into a web of mystery surrounding the true authorship of Pride and Prejudice, with ultimately dangerous consequences.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW. F. Howes Ltd
    Release dateJun 4, 2015
    ISBN9781471299353
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for First Impressions

    3.5/5

    148 ratings14 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Alternating chapters: one is Jane Austen and the other is modern day Sophie working in an antiquarian bookstore in London. A couple men are looking for the same old book which leads Sophie in a search for why they are both interested and where the book is. Easy read, entertaining. Romance too.
    • 3/5
      Sophie Collingwood, a book lover and an Austen enthusiast is drawn into the quest to determine who first wrote First Impressions.
      In an alternative narrative is the story of a young Jane Austen's friendship with the clerie Richard Mansfield.
    • 4/5
      An enjoyable book - the 1796 section were plausible - Jane Austen's friendship with an older teacher - she helps him write a second edition of his boring allegory book, by adding a story that is the first draft of Pride and Prejudice. The current day intertwined story is more unbelievable; unscrupulous booksellers, murder, intrigue, seduction with the aim of finding the missing edition (that may show Austen plagiarised the story from Mansfield) but the heroine finds a letter disproving the allegation ..... but the scoundrel burns it, she is tied to chair and is saved at the last minute by her secretly wealthy admirer .... and they live happily ever after in "Mansfield Park" !!
    • 3/5
      Murder is not nice, ever. And yet cozy mysteries -- a popular sub-genre of crime fiction, often termed cosy crime in the UK -- absolutely thrive on murder -- their life-blood, as it were. Cozies are where violent death can be regarded with a polite shudder from the comfort of an armchair, perhaps curled up by a cheerful fire. Details are rarely visceral; the sleuth is usually a talented amateur; and the malefaction has a purely parochial significance. First Impressions certainly partakes of these aspects, but it also shares elements of the academic mystery: here the amateur detective is often a scholar, or the crime takes place in collegiate surroundings or some such bookish environment. In Lovett's novel the deed is done close by the well-stocked library of a bibliophile.But First Impressions includes yet another genre, the historical novel, because alternate chapters are set at the turn of the 19th century, focusing on the just-out-of-her-teens Jane Austen. But this is not a now fashionable mashup of Regency heroics and zombie apocalypse either: no, this is the follow-up to Lovett's The Bookman's Tale, his first whodunit with a literary theme.Imagine this: young Miss Jane, resident in Steventon in Hampshire, embarks on a friendship with an aged visitor to the locality, Richard Mansfield; a retired clergyman, he shares her enthusiasm for contemporary novels and encourages her in her ambition to be a published writer. Nearly two hundred years later Sophie Collingwood, contemplating a master's at Oxford while she assists in a London bookshop, is approached by two buyers; they want her to locate Richard Mansfield's A Little Book of Allegorical Stories, an obscure work published in Leeds in 1796. As we follow these strands separated by two centuries we begin to notice, in addition to the Mansfield connection, certain parallels: two young women obsessed by stories, the close friendships with a much older kindred spirit (Jane's Reverend Mansfield, Sophie's bibliophile uncle, Bertram) and a predisposition for the gentility of rural life. But for both Jane and Sophie there is also tragedy mixed with personal guilt.As we progress through Lovett's First Impressions (the title is, of course, that of an early draft of Austen's Pride and Prejudice) we shift between the points of view of the fictional Jane and that of Sophie, a blessedly proactive protagonist. As first impressions can always mislead us Lovett is clearly signalling that we can't take things for granted. Is the assignation in the garden what the young Jane thinks it is? Is Uncle Bertram's death from a fall an accident or truly murder? Are the two young men whom Sophie meets, seemingly by chance, really what they appear to be? Is Busbury Park, where all strands are finally tied up, more like Northanger Abbey, Pemberley or Mansfield Park?This cozy deliberately sets out to be a distorted reflection in a glass. Lovett carefully weaves together literary clues, timelines, cross-references, intrigues and red herrings to make this a pleasant enough read -- aided, despite her klepto tendencies, by the likeable Sophie -- though I found I started to lose interest roughly two-thirds of the way through once I'd worked out where things were heading. I was also more than mildly irritated (as I was in his previous novel) by Americanisms such as "gotten" and "drapes" in the mouths of British speakers.Above all I was not in the least convinced by his portrayal of Jane. What we know of her is that she was immensely sociable, but Lovett portrays her as one who was only able to confide a dark secret, which she'd kept from her schooldays in Reading, to a retired clergyman, a man moreover whom her family were never allowed to meet, and whose name was her last utterance before she died (her "Rosebud" moment, perhaps). My credulity was not only strained but broken irreparably at this point. Not nice, any more than murder is.
    • 4/5
      Two men looking for a rare book, look to bookseller Sophie to solve many mysteries concerning Jane Austen.Each chapter alternates between present day and Jane Austen's friendship with an elderly cleric and their shared love of reading and writing.OK read, but not for the purists
    • 3/5
      *I received this in a Goodreads “First Reads” giveaway*

      Sophie Collingwood grew up in a house where the library door was usually locked and the room itself was used to impress guests. No one ever read the books. Sophie never understood this, as she was an avid reader who would have loved nothing more than to hide herself away in the library amongst all those books. As a young girl Sophie was invited to visit her Uncle Bertram in London and Uncle Bertram LOVED books, believing they were meant to be read. Over the years Sophie and her Uncle developed a close relationship as he taught her all about books and shared his books in particular. After University Sophie moves to London and begins working at an antique booksellers, where she receives two unusual requests for the same rare book. This book my prove that that Sophie’s literary heroine, Jane Austin, may have plagiarized Pride and Prejudice. And so the hunt begins … will Sophie be able to prove Ms. Austen was the original author of the famous work or will she have to discredit her?

      After reading The Bookman’s Tale I was quite excited to receive this in the giveaway. Unfortunately I did not get to it as quickly as I had hoped and it languished on the shelf for a couple of months (sorry Goodreads). I am sorry I waited to read it. Once again Mr. Lovett weaves together the past and the present to give us an enjoyable book. A little bit of literary history, a little bit of intrigue and a little romance make for a very enjoyable read. Although The Bookman’s Tale remains my favorite of the two, if you read and enjoyed that one you will undoubtedly enjoy First Impressions as well.
    • 4/5
      I often find stories when stories alternate between time periods it feels like a contrived technique. In First Impressions however the technique works and feels integral to the story.
    • 4/5
      I had a lot of fun reading this book. I will admit that I went in skeptically since I am a huge Jane Austen fan and tend to be a little nit picky with anything that uses Jane Austen or her works. I was pleasantly surprised.It became obvious that Charlie Lovett is a fan of Jane Austen. There were many times in the plot where I was able to tell which Austen novel inspired it. I smiled when I found that the name of the bookstore owner Sophie works for was named Mr. Boxhill. (I see what you did there.)There were many times when the narrative of the story seems to mirror those of Jane Austen's in just subtle enough ways that it's not super obvious. Sophie is a smart and relatable character who tends to make some mistakes in her love life which, let's face it, who hasn't. There were times when I wanted to smack her upside the head to get her see what was directly in front of her, but not in a "I can't stand this character" way. More like a, "I have friends who have done stuff like this/I have done stuff like this so I want to save you some trouble" kind of way. She's quite a capable woman when it comes to research, however, her personal life becomes a little rocky since she's not great at picking up vibes. There isn't much I can say about Sophie's storyline without giving spoilers, but overall, the modern mystery of the authorship of one of literature's most esteemed authors is engaging.As for the Jane Austen sections, I thought it was an interesting interpretation of how Jane Austen may have been inspired to write her novels. While the idea that Jane Austen had some editing help from an older gentleman of her acquaintance my bother some, I don't find this a troubling idea. In no way does receiving editing suggestions make someone less talented. In fact, it makes them better. As for her "editor" being a male, this did not bother me either. I thought that it might, but considering the time period in which she was writing, this would be the most likely situation anyway. Also, I never got the impression that Mr. Mansfield had anything but the utmost respect for her writing and mind. I actually loved seeing this relationship take shape. It was a meeting of minds that was beautiful to read and made me hope the Jane Austen really did have this kind of relationship with someone.Overall, I found this book to be a fun read. There was mystery, drama, and best of all, Jane Austen. What more could a Jane Austen fan and bibliophile ask for?
    • 4/5
      A book that will appeal to book collectors and Jane Austen fans and to a lesser extent, mystery lovers. The novel takes place in two eras - the present and during the time of Miss Austen's life. The driving force here is a fictional relationship that Jane has developed with an elderly minister who becomes her muse, of sorts. The present day plot involves the search for a second printing of a book that the minister wrote that several people seem willing to stop at nothing to get the book. The question is why? I was interested but pretty much figured out the answers early on.
    • 3/5
      First Impressions, Charlie Lovett’s follow-up to his very successful debut novel The Bookman’s Tale, shares many similarities with its predecessor, the most obvious, of course, being its “bookish” theme. Once again, Lovett’s main characters are book people who are happiest when they are surrounded by books, their own or those they can find anywhere else. This type of book has developed into a recognizable sub-genre in recent years, one that has great appeal to the most avid of readers amongst us. For the most part, First Impressions delivers the goods. Despite being a little predictable because of a plot that readers of this genre have already become all too familiar with, that of a lost manuscript that could change the way the world looks upon a major literary figure from the past (in this case, Jane Austen), the novel gets off to a strong start. The set-up works beautifully, in fact, as we meet Sophie Collingwood, a young woman who has just taken a job in a London antiquarian book shop. Sophie loves her new job, particularly working the shop’s “want list” for customers hoping she can find the books they have been unable to locate on their own. And it turns out to be this same “want list” that will pull her into a mystery that could end up wrecking the reputation of her favorite author, Jane Austen.As the mystery deepens, Lovett alternates chapters from Sophie’s present day point-of-view with chapters set in 1796 and recounted through Jane Austen’s eyes. Tension builds as the two story lines begin to converge, Sophie starts to unravel the mystery, and Jane Austen delights in a new relationship with a man four times her age. This man, Richard Mansfield, as it turns out, is the author of a book (A Little Book of Allegories) that has the potential to ruin Jane’s literary reputation more than 200 years after its publication. Unfortunately, all of that well-constructed tension is squandered by the book’s rather farcical climax, a climax during which the novel’s characters morph into caricatures right out of a pre-talkie cliffhanger from some 1920s movie theater. The action grows so ridiculous at one point that the reader almost expects to find the heroine being tied to railroad tracks while her tormentor gloatingly twists his mustache as a speeding train comes barreling toward them. This jarring change of tone lessens the impact of the other eighty percent of the book, and that is unfortunate because, until that point, First Impressions was good fun.
    • 4/5
      Charlie Lovett has followed his The Bookman's Tale with First Impressions: A Novel of Old Books, Unexpected Love, and Jane Austen (Viking). Aside from the primal screams I must force myself to swallow every time an otherwise-sympathetic character in one of these novels steals a rare book or manuscript (surely, dear authors, there must be other ways to accomplish these things!) I quite liked this book as a biblio-mystery: it's got good characters, a quasi-believable plot, and a reasonable mystery with a healthy number of red herrings swimming around for good measure, even if the whole thing does follow a fairly obvious formula. I'm sure there's lots more fan service to Janeites in here than I caught, but the biblio-bits are quite nicely handled.
    • 4/5
      I love Jane Austen's novels although I wouldn't call myself a diehard fan, and I do occasionally read one of the books that have proliferated like mushrooms since the BBC and Colin Firth propelled her back into the limelight in 1995. After finishing Charlie Lovett's book, I loved it. I loved Sophie's relationship with her Uncle Bertram and their mutual passion for books. I loved learning about rare books and printers and old documents long forgotten in library archives. I got caught up in Sophie's quest to find out if Jane Austen was a plagiarist. It was only after those first impressions faded that I really began to mull over what I'd read, and that's when my opinion began to change slightly.Lovett's tale is told in alternating chapters, Sophie's in the present day and Jane's between the years 1796 and 1817. Due to the 200-year differences in the spoken language there is never any difficulty in knowing if you're reading about Sophie or Jane. First Impressions is alive while Sophie's uncle lives. Every bit of Lovett's passion for books glows on the page, and I read that section with a big smile on my face. Jane's chapters are strong throughout. The author uses quite a bit from the historical record that anyone even vaguely familiar with Austen will recognize. I enjoyed the friendship between Austen and the elderly clergyman Richard Mansfield-- a kindred spirit who (for the purposes of this book) was Jane's sounding board when she was uncertain about her writing. Although in my mind the outcome was never in doubt, I also enjoyed reading Sophie's quest to prove that Jane Austen was not a plagiarist. The problem I found that I did have was with Sophie herself. After Uncle Bertram's death (which happens very early in the book), Sophie soon has two handsome men after her, and her chapters begin to dip too far into chick lit for my taste. It was obvious to me which man she should fall for, so the similarities with Stephanie Plum's inability to choose between Moretti and Ranger were unwelcome. There was also the matter of Sophie's ethics. She has a sense of entitlement that does her no credit, and the first time she steals something, I was flabbergasted.Fortunately Sophie isn't the only character in the book. Her sister Victoria, her Uncle Bertram, Jane and Richard Mansfield-- thankfully they all outweighed my opinion of Sophie, and they along with an intriguing story line are the reasons why I still found a great deal of enjoyment in reading this book. One questionable apple doesn't always spoil the barrel.
    • 4/5
      It's no secret that I love Jane Austen and that I am like a fly to honey with any and all Austen related books. The only thing that really gives me pause is when the word "mystery" is appended to one of these books (well, that and zombies but since there's no way I'm reading about zombies under any circumstances, it's hardly worth mentioning). I am not really a mystery reader so I have to think long and hard about reading something so clearly outside my happy zone. I am so glad that I pushed past my reservations and picked up Charlie Lovett's new novel, First Impressions, a love letter to book collectors and a fascinating "what if?" literary mystery about Jane Austen and the authorship of Pride and Prejudice. Told in a double stranded narrative set now and when Jane Austen was a young woman, the novel is a delight. Sophie Collingwood has finished school and doesn't quite know what is next for her when she meet brash American Eric. She is put off by him but somehow intrigued as well. As he is about the leave England, she doesn't have to think too hard about him even though he tracks her to her family home and alienates her father. She intends to discuss the paradox of this man and what shape her future should take with her much beloved bachelor Uncle Bertram, with whom she has always had more in common than with anyone else in her family. But then Bertram dies in what, to Sophie, is a suspicious fall. She is devastated and then surprised when she discovers that Bertram left his flat and his extensive and personally valuable library to her, his fellow bibliophile. And so Sophie's future takes an unexpected turn as she determines to move into Uncle Bertram's flat. She is blindsided though when she discovers that his gorgeous library, the one that has been her own inspiration for so long, has been liquidated in order to pay off debts and she vows to track down at least the most important of the books from his library, the ones he chose each year from the locked and inaccessible library at her own family home as a Christmas gift. She also turns to one of his friends, an antiquarian bookseller who hires her on the spot to work in his shop, giving her the chance to be surrounded by books and to relish the hunt for special requests, including an odd request (or two) for a seemingly nonexistent second edition of a dry collection of morality tales by a nineteenth century cleric. In chapters alternating with Sophie's story is the tale of Jane Austen and her growing friendship with octogenarian Richard Mansfield, who has taken up residence not far from her family. He is a wonderful sounding board and keen critic for her writing, helping her to develop and improve her drafts encouraging her and becoming incredibly important to her over time. The two plot lines seem unrelated in the beginning aside from Sophie's love of Austen but they start to dovetail nicely as Sophie meets and gets involved with the very attractive Winston, the first person to ask her about the small book of morality tales. When she is given the same commission by a shadowy figure named Smedley, she has no idea where her search will lead, although the second plot line about Austen and the Reverend Mansfield and their close, confiding connection offers clues. As the two plot lines start to make sense together, the literary mystery confounding Sophie picks up in pace and tension. Readers familiar with the fact that the first draft of Pride and Prejudice was called First Impressions can hardly miss the unreliable nature of first impressions both in Sophie's tale and in Austen's and will appreciate the whisper of allusion. In pursuing the fictional question of authorship, Lovett has also drawn the reader's attention to the curious and fascinating idea of the printer behind the physical books and the printer's oeuvre above and beyond the worth of the works themselves. Lovett's description of Uncle Bertram's library and the impetus behind each book's inclusion in that library is completely intoxicating. There are some slightly outlandish coincidences necessary to drive the plot and the scenes in Austen's time aren't quite as compelling as those in Sophie's. But over all, this is a charming novel sure to appeal not only to lovers of Austen but to everyone who loves books and the adventures that they offer us.
    • 4/5
      I won this book through the Goodreads First Reads scheme.The story of Sophie, a Jane Austen fan, who starts working in a rare/second-hand bookshop, and is asked by two different clients on the same day (one charmingly and the other threateningly) to track down an obscure book of moral tales written by an unknown 19th century minister, Richard Mansfield. In each case the client is looking for the second edition and initially Sophie can find no evidence that a second edition ever existed. Chapters telling this story alternate with chapters describing Jane Austen's friendship with Richard Mansfield when she is in her twenties and he in his eighties. The two stories start to intersect as Sophie realizes she is being led to wonder if Richard Mansfield in fact wrote the first draft of "Pride and Prejudice" under the title "First Impressions".I enjoyed the humour of the opening chapters, those concerning Sophie's interactions with the American Eric, very much, but then Eric disappears for most of the book and the humour mostly goes with him. I also enjoyed all the descriptions of how book-lovers feel about books, e.g. the way Sophie's Uncle Bertram arranged his books in a sort of chain of associations and the way Sophie is only able to keep flirting with Winston by striving to ignore the fact that he has never read any Jane Austen. Despite the fact that Sophie spends the novel stealing books and archival material, she is appalled at the end by the idea that any of it might be destroyed. I liked Sophie's family background and the way that fed directly into the central mystery of the plot. I also appreciated the suggestion that an awful lot of mediocre literature was also produced in the 19th century.The Jane Austen sections were less engaging for me, although the tone and language in them were consistent and felt accurate for the period. The "who actually wrote the first draft" suspense was well-maintained and the sections dealing with how books were typeset and printed were very interesting.Things I didn't like as much included Sophie's clearly catastrophically bad judgment when it came to men - I was crying out to her that she had obviously picked the wrong guy all the way through - and she sleeps with one man repeatedly and then a few pages later realizes that she and a completely different man are in love with each other for ever. The whole book felt a bit longer than necessary and then the ending got a bit dramatic and unlikely (people got shot, people tied each other up, fires got set etc etc). My favourite part of this whole work, however, is the dedication:"FOR JANICE: Who will always be to me what Elizabeth is to Darcy".