Persuasion by Jane Austen,

Anne Elliot seems to have given up on present happiness and has resigned herself to living off her memories. More than seven years earlier she complied with duty: persuaded to view the match as imprudent and improper, she broke off her engagement to a naval captain with neither fortune, ancestry, nor prospects. However, when peacetime arrives and brings the Navy home, and Anne encounters Captain Wentworth once more, she starts to believe in second chances.

Persuasion is a more subtle novel than any of the other Austens I’ve read. It’s not as exciting but it’s still very enjoyable. Anne is more mature than Austen’s other heroines. She certainly regrets her past decisions but she doesn’t wallow in self pity or blame others for her choices. She’s an all around good person stuck with a family that don’t appreciate her and she is very relatable. I found myself genuinely wanting things to work out for her and that made the ending satisfying. I don’t know if I’d recommend this as your first exposure to Austen but it should not be overlooked.

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