Sense and Sensibility (1811)
Girl falls for a cad, stands in rain, gets cold, almost dies. Her sister doesn’t say much.
Best quote: ‘Know your own happiness. You want for nothing but patience–or give it a more fascinating name, call it hope ’
Pride and Prejudice (1813)
Feisty girl dislikes sexy, proud man. There’s lots of tense dancing.
Best quote: ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife’
Mansfield Park (1814)
Boring heroine pines after even more boring hero.
Best quote: ‘A large income is the best recipe for happiness I ever heard of ’
Emma (1815)
Matchmaking is tricky when your best friend is in love—with every man she meets.
Best quote: ‘If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more’
Northanger Abbey (1817)
Country girl thinks that men who live in big, scary abbeys must be murderers.
Best quote: ‘The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid ’
Persuasion (1817)
Woman turns down poor man’s proposal. Eight years later, he’s rich. Game on.
Best quote: ‘I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives ’
Jane Austen's kitchen gardens
Bryan Kozlowski reveals Jane Austen's love for the kitchen garden.
Which Bennet sister are you?
The Bennet sisters in Pride and Prejudice are some of Jane Austen's most memorable creations - take our quiz and
-
Merlins: Britain's smallest bird of prey is a 'swerving, zigzagging, 240mph weighted missile' that's gutsy enough to chase off a golden eagleSize doesn’t matter when it comes to the fighting spirit of the tiny merlin, a fierce parent and favoured hunting accessory of Mary, Queen of Scots.
-
The greatest moment in the life of Jessie Owens: Country Life Quiz of the Day, June 13, 2025Breathtaking athleticism and Shakespeare's birthday are among the questions in the final quiz of the week.
-
London as you've never seen it — and as you'll never see it againThe East End of London has changed rapidly in recent years, but photographer Paul Trevor chronicled it from the 1970s to the 1990s. His images have been collected in a new book, Market Day.
-
The 'holy grail' of JRR Tolkien's letters are up for sale, showing his anger at his editors and the 'priggery' of Sherlock HolmesBayliss Books are selling the biggest collection of Tolkien first editions and personal letters to come up for sale in twenty years. Annunciata Elwes takes a look.
-
A look inside Derek Jarman's Prospect CottageA new book by the photographer Gilbert McCarragher will give readers a first-look inside Derek Jarman's famous home on the shingle of Dungeness.
-
The rare images of J.R.R. Tolkien which caused a sensation at auctionPamela Chandler's portraits of the great J.R.R. Tolkien went under the hammer recently, almost doubling the estimate set by the auctioneers.
-
Anne Glenconner: How rehabilitating Princess Margaret made her a literary phenomenon on the cusp of her tenth decadeAnne Glenconner, the former lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret who has become a publishing phenomenon, speaks to Flora Watkins about finding fame late in life. Main photograph by Hal Shinnie.
-
Charades: An exclusive Rebus short story for Country Life at Christmas, by Ian RankinJohn Rebus finds the truth behind a festive parlour game in this short story, written exclusively for Country Life by Ian Rankin.
-
Behind the names: The Austen characters you need to knowFeisty feminist heroines and dashing handsome heros.
