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Jane Austen wrote twelve chapters of a novel before she died. Evidently she at first thought of calling it "The Brothers" but the family decided to call it "Sanditon" since that is the primary setting of the fragment. All who love Austen's writing should read this last unfinished piece as she is still at the peak of her literary powers and one senses that we have here a potential masterpiece.
Still, there is a feeling of disappointment that it ends after those twelve chapters leaving us on the border of an undiscovered country. Hence, there have been some attempts to "complete" the story as Austen might have intended. This has been attempted with an earlier unfinished novel, "The Watsons" In that case, however, Jane simply lost interest in the book and later told one of her nieces how she had planned to complete the story. Thus, those who have completed the book (including one of the descendents of the Austen family) are on fairly firm ground as to the plot. This is not the case with "Sanditon". Any completion is going to be purely the opinion of the author.
I have just finished "A Return To Sanditon" by Anne Toledo. Her completion attempts to recreate the settings, character types, relationships and dialogue style which appear in Jane Austen's works. But she fails to generate the sharp irony that is so much a part of Jane Austen's vision of her world. Her heroine, Charlotte, is nice, gentle, and child-loving--altogether too much so! Some of the scenes don't ring true. Yes, bathing machines existed in the 18th century, but I somehow doubt that Austen would have used one as a setting for the formation of a friendship. There are characters who are thrown in without a great deal of point--Jane Austen was very adroit in making efficient use of even minor characters.
Toledo gives us a rather gentle completion that is pleasant to read but is certainly lacking the sharp edge that Jane Austen would have provided.
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