The episode opens with Isabella Fowle (Rose Leslie) dapping a cloth to an ill Cassandra Austen’s (Keeley Hawes) forehead. Cassandra tries to get up to get the letters. Isabella tells her there are no letters and she needs to rest. Cassandra pushes Dinah (Mirren Mack) away. Isabella tries to explain that Dinah is dabbing her forehead. Cassandra insists Isabella hide the letters as Mary Austen (Jessica Hynes) approaches in the hallway. Covering her mouth, Mary slips away. Dinah urges Isabella to send for Mr. Lidderdale (Alfred Enoch). Ignoring her pleas, Isabella orders her to go fetch ice. Dinah speeds past Lidderdale on her way to the big house. Cassandra complains of feeling cold and asks Isabella to help her. Dinah sarcastically says she brought the illness on herself. Isabella demands she be quiet before giving Cassandra a dose of laudanum. Cassandra calms down. In a flashback, Cassy Austen (Synnove Karlsen) and Henry Hobday (Max Irons) discuss young Anna (Vivien Battley) and her seashell collection. He says she seems melancholic. Cassy tells him that Anna’s mother died when she was small. She apologizes for the loss of his father. He lives in Derbyshire.
Frank Austen (Jake Kenny-Byrne) criticizes the character, Mr. Thorpe, in Jane Austen’s (Patsy Ferran) novel. She assures him that Mr. Thorpe doesn’t have the heart to board his ship. He contributes himself to her being unwed. She blurts out that Cassy has a new suitor before taking it back. Frank tells them that Henry inherited an estate in Derbyshire. Mrs. Austen (Phyllis Logan) is surprised. Cassy asks George Austen (Kevin McNally) to intervene. He admonishes Frank and Jane for making her feel uncomfortable. Jane refuses to give up until Cassy calls her out for lying. Later, Cassy tells Jane that she didn’t appreciate Henry accompanying them to the beach. Jane blames it on Frank but Cassy doesn’t buy it. She believes Cassy is faultless and deserves better than our wretched future. Cassy points out the good things in their lives. Jane urges her not to let an opportunity pass by because they will be poor.  Back to the present, a very ill Cassandra expresses her desire to die in her own bed. Isabella refuses to let her die. Lidderdale stops by to check on them. Isabella assures him that they are okay and asks about the diphtheria in the village. He says it is on the wane. She asks if Beth Fowle (Clare Foster) has been helping him tend to the sick. He tells her that Beth has been very helpful. She describes Beth as competent. He agrees and asks about Cassandra. She declines to tell him about Cassandra’s illness. Isabella reads to Cassandra.
Standing near the window, Cassandra looks at Isabella asleep in a chair. In a flashback, Henry invites Cassy to accompany him for a walk. She accepts. Mrs. Austen and Jane watch them through a window. At the beach, Henry takes Cassy’s hand and professes to have loved her from the moment their hands touched for the first time. He offers himself to her. Cassy remembers Fowle (Calam Lynch) urging her to marry someone else if he doesn’t return from the West Indies. She vows to marry only him. Back to the present, Cassandra is at the church where she made the vow to Tom. In a flashback, Cassy tells Jane that she refused Henry’s offer of marriage and insists on not telling Mrs. Austen. Jane asks what is wrong with Henry and what more could she ask for. Sobbing, Cassy tells her about her promise to Tom. Back to the present, Isabella and Dinah are relieved to find Cassandra at the church. Dinah places a cape over her shoulders. Cassandra tells Isabella that she is indebted to her for saving her life. Isabella says it was her own doing. Cassandra suggests she was born to care for the sick. Isabella claims it was something she wanted to do but now, it is too late. A short time later, Mary enters the room before Cassandra can shut the drawer with Jane’s letters. Mary pulls a chair up to the door which she left open. She asks Cassandra if she feels guilty for inconveniencing them. She recalls her face ache while visiting London but no other illnesses. Mary suggests she knows where Eliza’s letters are because she spoke of them in her state of delirium. Cassandra denies any knowledge of the letters.
Cassandra reads another of Jane’s letters. Jane tells Eliza about Cassy declining Henry’s hand in marriage. She insists Cassy is in love with Henry who could have secured her future. Frustrated, she cannot comprehend by Cassy chose insecurity. Upset, Cassandra questions how Jane could think such and write it. Jane criticizes Cassy for denying herself the pleasures of life. Cassandra claims to have rejected the marriage proposal for her. Jane asks Eliza to help her release Cassy from her unspeakable promise to Tom. In a flashback, Jane gets upset when she finds Cassy straightening her desk. She quickly apologizes and contributes her foul mood to Mary’s impending visit. Jane insists on writing to Catherine Bigg-Wither (Ellie McKay) and Althea Bigg-Wither (Ruby Richardson). Later, they arrive at the Bigg-Wither estate in Hampshire. While out for a walk, Jane admits to finding it difficult to be cross there. Over dinner, Jane asks Lovelace Bigg-Wither (Simon Hepworth) if he enjoys the seaside. Harris says no. Cassy says the sea is supposed to provide health benefits. He warns that the sea would as soon kill her as to look at her. Lovelace blurts out that he is an admirer of the sea. After dinner, Jane tells Cassy that she drank too much wine but may need it for courage and makes eye contact with Lovelace. Althea Bigg-Wither (Ruby Richardson), Cassy, and Catherine sit quietly while Jane plays the piano. Harris tells Jane that Lovelace requests her to join him in the dining room. Later, Lovelace announces his engagement to Jane. Catherine and Althea are thrilled. Once alone, Cassy criticizes Jane for accepting Lovelace’s marriage proposal when she doesn’t love him. She says it goes against everything she writes about. Jane insists love is impossible without money and with it, love can possibly grow. Cassy asks if she could ever love him. Jane says not likely but she had to secure their futures. Stressing over the responsibilities of being married to Lovelace, she begins to regret her decision. The next morning, Jane speaks to Lovelace before departing for home. The carriage ride is quiet.
Back to the present, Cassandra is clearing out a bookshelf when she discovers four of Jane’s novels. In a flashback, Mary and James Austen (Patrick Knowles) arrive. Jane questions why they never brought Anna. Cassy suggests Mary feels the need to compete with Jane who has the ability to make people laugh. Jane says being married to James has gone to Mary’s head. Cassy overhears James expresses his desire to have a bigger role in the church. George believes he will make an exemplary rector to the parish. Mary reminds James of the house. James says with their growing family. She blurts out they have a child now. Mrs. Austen insists they not forget Anna. James suggests they consider downsizing. George agrees to talk it over with Mrs. Austen. Cassy decides not to tell Jane. Jane puts her finished novel into a box and sends it to the publisher. Back to the present, Isabella watches as her belongings are packed onto a wagon. Cassandra has a flashback of Jane grabbing a box containing her works from a man. Cassy assures her that she will survive the move. Later, Mary smiles as a somber Mrs. Austen, George, Cassy, and Jane board a carriage. George urges Mrs. Austen to consider it as one of Jane’s new chapters which is sure to have a good ending.
In the present, Mary complains about Dinah being the worst servant. Cassandra is overwhelmed to see Anna (Carys Bowkett). Mary suggests they be glad Anna’s romantic interlude amounted to nothing. She searches Cassandra’s room for Jane’s letters to no avail. As Isabella starts to read, Mary warns that it may be their last opportunity to talk. They briefly discuss the Austen intelligence. Cassandra describes Jane as a perfectionist. Mary claims Jane was unkind to her. Anna recalls treating her stories like she was a proper writer. Mary tells Cassandra that Jane didn’t take her leaving Steventon very well. In her letter, Jane tells Eliza that they made it Bath. She criticizes Mary’s eagerness to move into their house and steal their possessions. Cassy pleads with Jane to get out of bed and make the best of it. Back to the present, Cassandra claims Jane wasn’t the only one who suffered greatly after leaving Steventon. She stresses the importance of Isabella finding a place to call home. In a flashback, Jane receives notification from her publisher, Mr. Crosby that her novel has been accepted for publication. She will receive 10 pounds for her work. Jane immediately gets to work on her next novel. George suffers an attack. He asks Casey to take good care of Jane. She promises to do it.
Cassandra visits the school where Beth teaches. Beth says her days are long and she generally sleeps at the school. Cassandra asks for her help in securing Isabella’s future. Beth asks if it was Isabella’s idea for her to come. Cassandra says no. Beth asks why it matters to her. Cassandra admits to promising Fulwar Fowle that she would make sure Isabella is settled with Mary Jane Fowle or her. She hopes Isabella can live with Lidderdale and Beth after they are married. Beth assures her that she has the wrong sister.
Miss Austen Review
Jane’s letters are put on the back burner for some not-so-interesting side stories. It is tempting to fast-forward through the present-day scenes. Not only do they add very little to the story, there is little connection to the characters. To me, the only characters that matter are Cassy and Jane. The past and present versions of Mary create conflict and tension. I would love to know more about the strenuous relationship between Mary and young Anna. With only the finale left, it is doubtful we will ever find out. The episode deserves a 5.5 out of 10.
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Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.