I really loved Paula Cohen's story set in Boca (http://www.vingle.net/posts/356672-Austen-Spinoffs-Pride-and-Prejudice-in-Boca-by-Paula-Marantz-Cohen) so I decided to read another Austen adaptation written by her!
This time it was "Jane Austen in Scarsdale, or Love, Death and the SATs." This story is based off of Persuasion, by Jane Austen. For those of us less familiar with Persuasion, let me sum it up in one sentence: girl meets less-than-promising boy who she abandons for what seems like a better choice, only to realize she has made an error. Sounds familiar, right?
Jane Austen in Scarsdale tells the story of Anne, a high school guidance counselor, who on the wrong advice of her role model and grandmother, casts off a man who could have been perfect for her. She must deal with his return, his fiancee, the stress of her job because of the students' fanatical parents in more.
Overall, this story was harmless and enjoyable: I wished we could have seen more of Ben throughout, but I thought that Anne's personality was well developed, and we were able to see the ways a high school guidance counselor really might struggle due to the over-attentiveness of parents.
Still, I found quite a bit lacking. Anne, for me, was a bit boring, and a bit forced: it seemed like Cohen was really worried about fitting the frame work of Persuasion, and the story itself might have been stronger if told without the constrains of Persuasion, even if that was the original inspiration.
I liked Jane Austen in Boca better, but this is still a fun, short novel to read if you're an Austen, or Paula Cohen, fan!
