Wow, this is such a treat! I definitely had certain songs in mind when I was writing my debut romcom, THE AUSTEN AFFAIR, and I’m so excited to get to share that thought process with you. So sit back, relax, and let me walk you through a very surreal plotline (two feuding co-stars on the film set of a Northanger Abbey film adaptation get zapped back in time to the real Regency period, stumble into stealing an ancestor’s identity and faking an engagement to blend in with country society, and ultimately see past their bad first impressions to find a deep and abiding love, Pride & Prejudice-style) entirely through song.
“Hollywood” by Jukebox the Ghost
If THE AUSTEN AFFAIR were ever made into a movie, I would hope that this song would get played over the opening credits. It’s the first song I always queued up when I wanted to get in the right frame of mind to draft this book, because it so perfectly encapsulates Tess’ point of view in the opening pages: “You want me pounding on the church door / singing from the streetlight / Oh it’s the kind of love that doesn’t exist anymore.” She’s literally a Hollywood actress, so of course she’s infatuated with movie love—big gestures, swelling music, sizzling chemistry. And that goes double for her as a fan of Jane Austen. I think Tess feels as a lot of modern women feel; an aching longing for an old-school romance that’s more prevalent in historical novels than in real life.
“Waterloo” by ABBA
If “Hollywood” were to play over the opening of this hypothetical film, “Waterloo” absolutely needs to be the soundtrack to the credits. (Maybe with one of those silly, goofy sequences where the whole cast breaks character to dance and sing along??) Not only does this ABBA classic reference the historic battle against Napoleon that makes it possible for Hugh to impersonate his great-uncle when they get zapped to the past, it’s also got the most flawless line for a novel about time travel: “The history book on the shelf / is always repeating itself.” All that, plus the theme of love being a battle that you lose when you give in to the feeling…which in itself becomes a kind of victory? This bop couldn’t be more fitting.
“London Boy” by Taylor Swift
This happens to be the only song on this list that I actually reference in the novel! I’m a big Taylor fan myself and while this might not be her most acclaimed album, Lover has been my favorite for a long time. Not only is Tess the exact kind of person who would know Taylor Swift’s discography like the back of her hand, she’s also got the personality type of someone who makes the best of whatever situation she’s stuck in, à la, “Show me a gray sky, a rainy cab ride / Babe, don’t threaten me with a good time.” Tess Bright will romanticize the rain, and you cannot stop her. Plus, she has a great “American smile,” and Hugh canonically grew up in the Crouch End neighborhood of London. It’s all buttoned up, folks!
“Where You Lead” by Carole King
In this post-Gilmore Girls age, have you ever stopped to really listen to the lyrics of this Carole King ditty? You might be surprised to find it’s about a romance and not about an inseparable mother-daughter duo. But you can’t stop progress, and after its years as a famous theme song, “Where You Lead” has taken on a life of its own! I definitely envisioned Tess and her mother as having a Lorelai-Rory style relationship, and since the loss of her mom, Tess has been dreaming of a real place to belong. I like that this song can pull double-duty, representing both her love for her mom and the new love she finds with Hugh, which will lead her on adventures she never imagined for herself: “I always wanted a real home with flowers on the window sill / But if you wanna live in New York City, honey, you know I will.”
“The Book of Love” by The Magnetic Fields
Now, this song is total Hugh: “The book of love is long and boring / No one can lift the damn thing / It’s full of charts and facts, and figures / And instructions for dancing.” Hugh Balfour is a character who has been told that he’s boring, who has memorized a lot of charts and facts, and really needs some dancing lessons. But when he meets his match in Tess, he blossoms. And all those things that make him appear rigid actually turn out to be some of his most lovable qualities. He’s all about substance, not flash. (Also, because I was originally introduced to this song through the Peter Gabriel cover on the Scrubs series finale, I tend to think of “The Book of Love” as the ultimate “quiet happy ending” song.)
THE AUSTEN AFFAIR by Madeline Bell
Two feuding co-stars in a Jane Austen film adaptation accidentally travel back in time to the Regency Era in this delightfully clever and riotously funny debut
Tess Bright just scored her dream role starring in an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey. It’s not just the role of a lifetime, but it’s also her last chance to prove herself as a serious actress (no easy feat after being fired from her last TV gig) and more importantly, it’s her opportunity to honor her mom, who was the biggest fan of Jane Austen ever. But one thing is standing in Tess’s way—well, one very tall, annoyingly handsome person, actually: Hugh Balfour.
A serious British method actor, Hugh wants nothing to do with Tess (whose Teen Choice Awards somehow don’t quite compare to his BAFTA nominations). Hugh is a type-A, no-nonsense, Royal Academy prodigy, whereas Tess is big-hearted, a little reckless, and admittedly, kind of a mess. But the film needs chemistry—and Tess’s career depends on it.
Sparks fly, but not in the way Tess hoped, when an electrical accident sends the two feuding co-stars back in time to Jane Austen’s era. 200 years in the past with only each other to rely on, Tess and Hugh need to ad-lib their way through the Regency period in order to make it back home, and hopefully not screw up history along the way. But if a certain someone looks particularly dashing in those 19th century breeches…well, Tess won’t be complaining.
A wickedly funny, delightfully charming story, The Austen Affair is a tribute to Jane Austen, second chances, and love across the space-time continuum.
Romance Historical [St. Martin’s Griffin, On Sale: September 16, 2025, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781250373519 / eISBN: 9781250373526]
Buy THE AUSTEN AFFAIR: Amazon.com | Kindle | BN.com | Apple Books | Kobo | Books-A-Million | Indie BookShops | Ripped Bodice | Walmart.com | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR
About Madeline Bell
Madeline Bell grew up in Poughkeepsie, NY and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University. Writing as Christine Calella, she is the author of two YA novels, The Final Curse of Ophelia Cray and Liar’s Kingdom. Like any rom-com heroine worth her salt, she is a lovably clumsy New Yorker with an office job in a creative field.
No Comments
Comments are closed.