I haven't read Pride and Prejudice and don't normally read books of this genre. I found the book to be very well written with excellent, believable characters. I did get a little bored about halfway through but persevered with it and it picked up again. I would recommend this, especially if you like Pride and Prejudice and romantic tales.

I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters are believable and the language as well as the story flows beautifully. The author manages to make the daily lives of the Bennets frivolous and inconsequential in comparison to the servants, which I found refreshing, and there are a few surprising revelations and interesting plot lines along the way.I would hesitate to give away any of the story, and put any notions of Downton aside!

I was not prepared to like Longbourn as much as I did, purely because I thought it was an attempt at sequel to Pride and Prejudice. Previously I have found sequels by different authors to be disappointingly reliant on the readers fondness for the original book. However, Longbourn did not rely at all on P&P other than to borrow the setting and a few characters. The P&P storyline is only incidental and provides additional interest rather than a prop. The heroine of the book - Sarah - is one of the staff at Longbourn, home of the Bennets. The story starts when a mysterious young man appears, seeking employment and is taken on by Mr Bennet. Alone of the household, Sarah mistrusts him and spends what little time she has trying to fathom out his secret. The rest of the staff seem taken in by his charms. Can Sarah uncover the truth before she too falls under his spell? The daily lives of the servants, their tasks and tools, the locality is painstakingly researched and gives this story its substance and authenticity. This is the real strength of the book where the plot, though good, is not particularly original or exciting. The author has clearly spent a lot of time ensuring that the content of her book was factually accurate and we learn not only about the lives of domestic servants in rural England but also about some far reaching political events of the time. If you are interested in this period or enjoy historical novels, this is the book for you.

I loved pride and prejudice while growing up, and this was a lovely twist on the classic, but needs to be read by not judging on the classic to appriciate the benefits of this book as a stand alone book.

It took me a while to get into this book but I'm glad I stuck with it as from about a third of the way through you really start to race through it. As a fan of Jane Austen I was intrigued by the idea of Pride and Prejudice being re-told from the point of view of the housemaids and housekeepers. I didn't realise just how much of a re-telling it would be! I think I would find it hard to read Pride and Prejudice in the same way again. Longbourn is such a different novel: yes there is still romance and tales of family but it is far less sentimental, containing some truly gritty and horrible sections. I know this was not Baker's intent as she stated how much of a fan she is of Austen's work but it made me feel as though Lizzie and Jane's stories were trivial in comparison to that of Sarah and Mrs Hill. However if you are an Austen fan, don't let that put you off! It is a great book that is well worth the read and it does present some vulnerabilities of well-known characters I thought I had seen every side to. Whilst it slightly challenged my enjoyment of Austen it also made me want to go back and re-read so I don't think that's a bad thing. If only the first third of the novel was as engaging as the rest!