Publication Date: March 4, 2024
Jane Fairfax knows she is truly fortunate. Most orphans face lives of hardship, whereas she was adopted by doting surrogate parents who elevated her place in Society and love her as their own. Yet even they cannot shield her from the grim realities of life without a suitable marriage. In moments of despair, Jane comforts herself with a well-worn that of a young man whose kind words when they were children once soothed her heartbreak. But now that boy has grown into a dashing gentleman—and their lives could not be more distant.
Frank Churchill is a prisoner of his station. His inheritance is held in the balance by his demanding aunt, and the weight of her expectations is suffocating him. But when a chance encounter brings the lovely Miss Fairfax back into his life, he discovers what it is to truly live. As the pair secretly become acquainted amid the confines of Society’s strict rules, their friendship blossoms into love. But in a world ruled by unyielding traditions, endeavoring to build a life together would mean inviting a scandal that would shake the very foundation of the ton.
If Jane Austen had written a prequel to her novel, Emma, I have no doubt that it would strongly resemble Robbin J. Peterson’s Finding Jane Fairfax. With its wonderfully developed characters and plot line true to the hinted at backstory in Emma, this book is a delightful telling of how charming Frank Churchill and the demure Jane Fairfax came together.
While the ending is known, the plot still winds its way through a maze of trials, tribulations, and uncertainties where the well-known outcome seems impossible to reach.
As children, young Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax meet purely by chance in a London store. When Frank assists Jane against ruffians, she gives him a treasured rock from Highbury, and Frank returns her gift with one of his monogrammed handkerchiefs. They come to an agreement to become “secret friends.” While Jane treasures this encounter, Frank soon leaves the memory behind as he becomes engulfed in his life at Enscombe and acceding to the demands of his domineering aunt.
While having watched Frank from afar at balls and outings of the London season, Jane is brought into close company with Frank in Weymouth. Their encounters serve to grow an increasing attraction between them. However, Frank’s friend, Thomas Dixon, has set his own sights on making Jane his bride and taking her back to Ireland. Cassandra Campbell, daughter of the family of which Jane is considered an “adopted sister,” has fallen in love with Dixon. Aware of Dixon’s attraction, Jane wants Cassandra to realize her own dream and marry Dixon for love. Jane’s heart steadfastly belongs to Frank Churchill even though she knows she is not a suitable match for him and is resigned to life as a governess.
Frank knows he’s falling in love with Jane, but he also knows he must adhere to his aunt’s wishes and selection of a bride in order to inherit Enscombe and the life for which he has been groomed.
As the plot thickens and circumstances deepen, it doesn’t seem possible any will realize their dream of marrying for love—whether now or love to come. Even knowing the ending as the well-known characters continue their story in Emma, Robbin J. Peterson does a masterful job of building a dynamic love story filled with suspense and uncertainty in Finding Jane Fairfax.
A Jane Austen-worthy prequel and thoroughly a delight, Finding Jane Fairfax is equally anxious suspense and a tender love story whose effort to realize a happy ending is well worth the journey. 
Robbin J. Peterson is the author of Going Home, Conviction, and 13 Days of Girls Camp. She earned her degree in English literature from Utah State University and her associate of arts degree from Snow College. She has six kids, plays the viola, and works as an elementary school librarian.
