Debut novelist Lauren Edmondson turns to Jane Austen for inspiration in LADIES OF THE HOUSE, a surprisingly fresh retelling of SENSE AND SENSIBILITY. She shifts the action from Regency England to present-day Washington, D.C., a place with a social scene every bit as byzantine and ruthless as that of the ballrooms of 19th-century London. In both, a single misstep can have devastating consequences, as 34-year-old Daisy Richardson discovers.

The privileged daughter of a powerful senator, Daisy’s life is upended when her father dies suddenly of a heart attack while in bed with his much younger mistress. But his sordid end is just the start of the troubles for Daisy, her romantic younger sister Wallis, and their oh-so-proper mother Cricket. Gregory Richardson has also been dipping into his office expense account to pay for his girlfriend’s cell phone, car and condo in Florida. Soon, federal agents are combing through the family’s financial records, and angry taxpayers are tossing bricks through their living room window. The family’s elegant Georgetown townhouse and beloved lake home are swiftly put on the market, which is how Cricket and Wallis end up sharing a modest apartment in Daisy’s building. But even more painful than the change in address is the cold shoulder the Richardson women get from old friends keen on avoiding the faintest whiff of scandal.

"Edmonson is hardly the first writer to drag Austen into the present day. But her effort fares better than some others, in part because she’s found a way to update the story of the Dashwood sisters in a way that feels modern without sacrificing the charm of the original tale."

Her father’s misdeeds even jeopardize Daisy’s job as the chief of staff to another senator. She is still employed, but is painfully aware that his political opponents wouldn’t hesitate to use her now-blemished background against her boss. “Folks are out for blood,” he tells her. “Since they can’t have Gregory Richardson’s, they’ll settle for yours.” Fortunately, Daisy still has her old friend Atlas in her corner, even if he is a journalist working on a story about her father. (Yes, she’s madly in love with him. No, he doesn’t know.) Meanwhile, Wallis escapes her grief by falling right into the arms of the son of a steely South Carolina senator from across the aisle, though both her family and his have doubts that the romance can last.

Edmondson is hardly the first writer to drag Austen into the present day. But her effort fares better than some others, in part because she has been able to update the story of the Dashwood sisters in a way that feels modern without sacrificing the charm of the original tale. Like her predecessor Elinor Dashwood, Daisy is the sensible one of the family, trying (often with limited success) to rein in the more romantic impulses of her mother and sister. Wallis, like Marianne, is the believer in true love, ready to hand over her heart to Blake Darley despite some major red flags. A few moments are directly borrowed from Austen, as when the Richardson sisters discuss the relationship between fame, money and happiness. “I don’t need a fortune to be happy. Just enough to be comfortable,” Wallis argues. “I think that your definition of comfort is my definition of luxury,” her more practically minded sister retorts, echoing her Austen counterpart’s declaration that “Your competence and my wealth are very much alike.”

But Edmondson adds enough of her own touches to make LADIES OF THE HOUSE much more than just a competent work of Jane Austen fanfic. Rather than having Blake beholden to a relative for his fortune, she makes him his mother’s political heir, forced to choose between love and his career. There’s a racial element at play here, too; the Darnleys are old-money from Charleston, with all the baggage that entails. His rival for Wallis’ affections is Black, the Army vet son of Collette Reed, a former Freedom Rider and judge on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Edmondson also gives more time to Cricket than is dedicated to Mrs. Dashwood in the original novel. We see clearly how she responds to her late husband’s fall from grace and why she made the decision to turn a blind eye to his infidelity. Meanwhile, Atlas’ girlfriend, Ari, is more sympathetic than SENSE AND SENSIBILITY’s conniving Lucy Steele.

These 21st-century versions of the Dashwood women wrestle with being forced to take responsibility for the mistakes made by the men in their lives. Daisy in particular feels a need to atone for Gregory Richardson’s crimes, especially when she learns that they are more extensive (and directly connected to her) than she was initially led to believe. There’s romance in LADIES OF THE HOUSE, but this is also the story of a woman learning to take charge of her own life, without apology.