Persuasion by Jane Austen Narrated by Mike Read

 I enjoyed this very much and I want to listen to it again! Mike Read has a soothing voice with a cut-glass English accent, eminently suitable for a book by Jane Austen. I felt that I actually absorbed more of this moving story when I listened to it being read, rather than reading it.

The last finished work by Jane Austen, the tale concerns Anne Elliot, a sweet and clever woman, who has lost her 'bloom', and is regarded as being on the shelf at 27.  She refused to marry Frederick Wentworth when she was only 19, because of the persuasion of her good friend and mentor, Lady Russell, and has regretted it ever since. She has a haughty, and silly family to put up with, especially her father, the Baronet. He is being overcome by the machinations of the gold-digger, Mrs Clay.  

When the family has to move to Bath, Frederick, now a naval captain with money from his expeditions and prizes, reappears, but he appears to take a great interest in young and flirtatious Louisa Musgrove, one of Anne's sisters-in-law. However, Mr Elliot, the heir to the family, also makes an appearance, and he shows Anne attention.  Can Anne recapture handsome Frederick's heart? 

Perhaps the deepest of Jane Austen's novels, this book has many themes, including the dire effects of persuasion on young minds, the rise of modern professions, the growing freedom of women, and snobbery and class.

I received this audio book from Thomas Nelson through Net Galley in return for an honest review.