Emma annoys me, and so unsurprisingly I didn't quite enjoy this as much as I wanted. I suppose the problem is that I find it almost impossible to relate to Emma's meddling ways and I don't understand her motivations at all. That in itself might have been part of the whole point of her characterisation - that she is an extremely flawed character, but I think Austen may have been a little heavy-handed with her, because she comes off as nearly unlikable to me. Then again, perhaps we're not supposed to like Emma in the first place, in which case Austen was successful, but then I have to wonder why would I read a book with a romantic heroine I don't like?

It didn't help that the story was a little slow to start, so it was a little hard to really get into the story. But other than that, the story itself is actually interesting, though in the end I still don't know why Knightley would even want Emma. She does change but it seems a little late. I would have liked the book a little better if I was a little more drawn in by the writing, which was long-winded.

All in all, not one of Austen's best works. It lacked the spark to draw readers in like Northanger Abbey or Pride and Prejudice.