Longbourn by Jo Baker
I really wanted to love this book however parts of it made me quite cross. The book is based around the lives of the servants to the Bennett family from Pride and Prejudice and I don't think that this link is a particularly good one, or indeed necessary. It would have been far better as a stand alone book about the lives of servants below stairs in a country house, any country house.
The way in which the Bennett family were portrayed made me dislike them greatly in places and their actions didn't fit all that well with the story being told, although I did guess the twist between upper and lower stairs. The characters of the servants were good but lacked a roundness and depth in places. I liked Ptolemy but thought his character could have been developed and expanded upon, he was also too conveniently placed at times. The character of Sarah was well written but some of her actions just did not ring true.
These are just my opinions of the book and I am sure others will love it. I'm afraid for me the book is not a keeper, it passed the time and was OK, it was the Pride and Prejudice link that ruined it entirely for me as that is one of my all time favourite books. The being said I didn't think much at all about Death Comes to Pemberley either - think I'll stick to the originals