3 h 28 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 3 h 28 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when a quiet fishing village becomes one man's grand seaside gamble?
Tom Parker stakes his money on turning Sanditon, a small place on the Sussex coast, into a fashionable resort. When Charlotte Heywood comes to visit, his enthusiasm meets her clear, observant eye. Around them gather people eager for health, company or gain, each with reasons to watch the others closely.
In Jane Austen's final unfinished novel, seaside ambition brings money, manners and imagined illnesses into sharp comic focus. Lady Denham holds a fortune others hope to inherit. Sir Edward Denham imagines himself a dangerous lover. Charlotte quietly takes their measure as this new social world begins to unfold. The story remains an opening, not a resolved plot.
What you’ll discover
- A clear-eyed young visitor Watch Charlotte meet schemers and flirts with a cool, amused eye.
- A village chasing fashion Follow Tom Parker's hopes for a seaside resort, with his money at stake.
- Fortune behind the manners Notice how Lady Denham's wealth draws the attention of those hoping to inherit.
- Health as social comedy Meet the Parker relatives, whose remedies and imagined illnesses offer fresh comic possibilities.
- A lover in his imagination Enjoy Sir Edward's vanity as fashionable reading feeds his grand ideas about himself.
Who will love it
Readers who enjoy sharp social comedy, lively talkers and gentle mockery of fashion will feel at home here. It suits anyone curious about how money, health and manners tangle together.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- An accident opens Charlotte's world
- Lady Denham's money draws a crowd
- Sanditon grows faster in Parker's imagination
- Sir Edward borrows passion from novels
- Diana's kindness thrives on being needed
- Illness offers comfort and importance
- Money reaches into every relationship
- Charlotte learns to look twice
- The town reveals its shared hopes
Who’s who
- Charlotte HeywoodA sensible, observant young woman of twenty-two who visits Sanditon as a guest and forms her own judgments about everyone she meets.
- Mr Tom ParkerAn enthusiastic landowner who has given his heart and fortune to building Sanditon into a fashionable seaside resort.
- Lady DenhamA rich, blunt old widow who owns much of Sanditon, loves money, and keeps her relations hoping for a share.
- Clara BreretonLady Denham's lovely, poor young cousin, who lives in her house and may inherit part of her fortune.
- Sir Edward DenhamA handsome baronet who talks in grand poetic phrases and fancies himself a dangerous lover, though he needs a fortune.
- Diana ParkerMr Parker's energetic sister, who counts herself an invalid and still rushes about arranging other people's affairs.
- Arthur ParkerHer sturdy younger brother, who treats illness as a reason for warm fires, good food and a quiet life.
- Sidney ParkerThe clever, fashionable brother who loves to tease the family and arrives in Sanditon at the hotel.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Sanditon in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Sanditon
by Jane Austen · 1925
A carriage tips over on a Sussex lane, and its passenger soon promotes a seaside town.
Medium level2–5 hours to read2 languages
Learn a language with medium classicsSpanishFrenchGermanItalianJapanesePortugueseEnglishHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
A carriage tips over on a rough Sussex lane, and the man who climbs out is delighted. His ankle is sprained, yet he sees luck in the spot, because he believes a surgeon lives close by.
Sanditon at a glance
- Reading time
- About 2 h1 h 35 min fast, 2 h 25 min slow
- Length
- 28,900 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1925by Jane Austen
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A wrong turn brings Mr Parker and Charlotte together
The story opens with an accident. A gentleman and his wife leave the main road for a rough lane and tip over on the climb. He sprains his ankle, yet he smiles and calls the spot a lucky one.
Help comes from the only gentleman's house on the lane. Its owner, Mr Heywood, offers kindness at once. The traveller asks for a surgeon, and Mr Heywood says there is none in the parish. The traveller pulls out two newspaper cuttings that advertise a medical partnership in Willingden. Mr Heywood solves the puzzle with a smile. There are two Willingdens, and the advertisement means the one seven miles away.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1925
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 2 h 15 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Austen, Jane. Sanditon. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/sanditon.
Austen, J. (2026). Sanditon. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/sanditon (Original work published 1925)
Austen, Jane. Sanditon. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/sanditon.
@book{austen2026sanditon,
author = {Austen, Jane},
title = {Sanditon},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/sanditon},
note = {First published 1925}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Sanditon
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Sanditon about?
Sanditon follows Charlotte Heywood, who visits a new Sussex seaside resort with Mr and Mrs Parker. She meets a rich widow, a baronet with fancy ideas, and a family of invalids, and she watches how money and fashion shape their behaviour.
Did Jane Austen finish Sanditon?
No. Austen wrote it in 1817, the year she died, and the text stops after twelve chapters. What she completed gives a full set of characters, settings and comic situations, so the pages that exist can be read and enjoyed on their own.
Who is Lady Denham in Sanditon?
Lady Denham is the rich, blunt widow who owns much of Sanditon and is Mr Parker's partner in developing it. Her relations, her first husband's heirs and the Denham family all court her hoping to inherit her fortune.
The author
Jane Austen
1775–1817 · English novelist
Jane Austen was an English novelist born in Steventon, Hampshire, in 1775. She lived in Bath, Southampton and Chawton, and died in Winchester in 1817. Her novels included Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1815). Northanger Abbey and Persuasion appeared after her death.
More by Jane Austen
See all their booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
