Lady Susan
About this audiobook
This epistolary novel was probably written in 1794, but was not published until 1871.
Lady Susan Vernon, middle-aged and recently widowed, has retained her looks and appealing vivacity. She makes use of her bereavement and her loss of wealth by imposing herself on the hospitality of relatives, and by amusing herself in flirtation with the various men who fall under her spell.
Lady Susan has a daughter, Frederica, who is bashful and innocent—in stark contrast to her unfeeling and manipulative mother. Her mother is anxious to marry Frederica off to a spouse of appropriate wealth and social standing, and also, perhaps, to capture a new mate for herself.
The forty-one letters between the various parties in this tale of twisted courtship describe Lady Susan’s path to marital satisfaction for her daughter and herself.
About the author
Jane Austen (1775–1817) was an English novelist and is today considered one of the masters of classic romantic fiction.
Linda Barrans is a British narrator with a fondness for Jane Austen and Shakespeare. She wrote the Sam the Sheep books to make positive use of the time during COVID lockdown, and to give herself and her friend Cate Barratt a modern piece to record together.
Denis Daly is an audiobook narrator and codirector of Voices of Today, an Australian spoken word production house.
