(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters.)

S: My question has been answered: Mr. Elliot is a widower. I feel a little better about him now that I know that if he is pursuing Elizabeth again, or perhaps Anne, his first wife is no longer living. My gut instinct is that he just wants the Elliot money and estate, although I fully acknowledge that I am making a rather large assumption which, as I have been saying for a while, is one of the things that annoys me most about a lot of the characters in this story.

I tell you what, though; this family is continuing to drive me up the wall. I’m with Anne on how it looks for the Elliots to secure knowing the Viscountess after all these years – it is really too much and just doesn’t look good. Not that we need necessarily worry about what others think, but at the same time we have to have integrity, and Sir Walter and Elizabeth are not quite doing that. It just doesn’t seem prudent the way they’re going about it.

Also, it does appear that Mrs. Clay is not to be trusted. I’m still not sure about Mr. Elliot, but we’ll see. 

R: This chapter made me like Mr. Elliot! Especially the conversation at the end between him and Anne. It’s difficult to tell whether he is showing romantic interest in Anne or not. If he is, it’s very subtle. He doesn’t have any real motivation for having to marry Elizabeth because he’s already the heir to the estate, so I could see him pursuing Anne simply because he likes her. I had forgotten about Mrs. Clay until she was mentioned here, and we have also had new characters introduced – Lady Dalrymple and her daughter – who are other cousins of the Elliots. 

S: I am so glad we get a break from the Elliot family and am happy it comes in the form of Anne reconnecting with her governess and her old schoolmate. It makes me even happier that, even though Mrs. Smith is poor, Anne obviously doesn’t care about that as much as her father and sisters do. Also, I’m happy that Anne feels about Mr. Elliot the same way I do. Really, who is he?

R: Anne’s family is driving me crazy! They are so shallow and rude. I was surprised by the introduction of yet another new character, but I like that it’s Anne’s old school friend and that they’re able to renew their acquaintance. This chapter also increased my appreciation for Mr. Elliot, despite Anne’s hesitation over his character. She might be right about him, but currently, I agree with Lady Russell that he might make a good match for Anne. I was a little surprised that Anne does have some strong feelings about returning to her home and possibly becoming Lady Elliot, though her practicality rears its head again. We also see that Anne definitely still has feelings for Frederick. One line particularly caught my attention; a description of Anne in contrast with her school friend Mrs. Smith: ‘Twelve years had changed Anne from the blooming, silent, unformed girl of fifteen, to the elegant little woman of seven-and-twenty, with every beauty except bloom, and with manners as consciously right as they were invariably gentle…’ My first thought was wondering what Austen means by ‘bloom’ as a description, and whether Anne really lacks by lacking said bloom when the description still calls her elegant and beautiful. 

S: It’s a pretty description.

In Chapter 18 the plot thickens, and I see my guesses were correct that Louisa and Mr. Benwick end up together, although it still seems to me that that whole side story moved a little too quickly.

The way Admiral Croft speaks at the end of the chapter makes me think that he and Mrs. Croft really like Anne and hope that she and Frederick end up together. 

R: Well, Admiral Croft seems to be a big old gossip! But I’m glad that he assures Anne that Frederick isn’t upset by Louisa and Captain Benwick becoming engaged. And now we have the setup for Frederick and Anne to be in each other’s company again, if he accepts the Admiral’s invitation to visit them in Bath. I wonder if Anne is still apprehensive about seeing him or if she’s more comfortable with the idea now.

S: I laughed at Admiral Croft talking with Anne; it was so funny to me. It felt almost as though he was actually being more of a father to her than her own father. I was not expecting that Frederick and Anne would meet again so soon. Of course, since he’s now free, Anne is very excited and confused. Mrs. Smith’s statement about Anne not spending a lot of time with her after the concert is strange and there has got to be history there with either the Elliots or Lady Dalrymple. 

R: Anne definitely seems to be thinking of trying to renew her acquaintance with Frederick! It’s difficult to know what he’s thinking, but he at least doesn’t seem opposed to it. Austen appears to be setting up Mr. Elliot as a rival for Anne’s affections. It will be interesting to read how it all plays out!

S: I am so happy that in Chapter 20 Anne and Frederick see each other and have a conversation, but my goodness Frederick needs to get a grip. He is assuming so much about Anne and Mr. Elliot. I wonder, based on Mr. Elliot’s statement about how he already knows a lot about Anne’s character, if he and Frederick have a past friendship. 

R: I wondered the same thing, but then the end of the chapter when Frederick leaves leads me to think that they must not already be acquainted. I was so excited at the beginning of the chapter when Anne and Frederick finally got to speak and clear the air a bit. I was correct, however, about Mr. Elliot being set up as a rival.

S: It’s difficult to believe there are only four chapters left!