The Invention of Charlotte Brontë

A New Life

By: Graham Watson

Narrated by: Jayne Entwistle

Charlotte Brontë had a life as seemingly dramatic as her heroine Jane Eyre. Turning her back on her tragic past, Charlotte reinvented herself as an acclaimed author, a mysterious celebrity, and a passionate lover. Doing so meant burning many bridges, but her sudden death left her friends and admirers with more questions than answers.

Tasked with telling the truth about Brontë's life, her friend, the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell, uncovered secrets of illicit love, family discord, and professional rivalries more incredible than any fiction. The result, a tell-all biography, was so scandalous it was banned and rewritten twice in six months—but not before it had given birth to the legend of the Brontës.

The Invention of Charlotte Brontë presents a different, darker take on one of the most famous women writers of the nineteenth century, showing Charlotte to be a strong but flawed individual. Through evaluating key events as well as introducing new archival material into the story, this lively biography challenges the established narrative to reveal the Brontë family as they've never been seen before.

©2025 Nydia Hetherington (P)2026 Tantor Media

A missed opportunity

I read everything I can about the Brontes. I honestly find them more interesting than their novels. I was genuinely excited about this one.

The choice of Jayne Entwistle as narrator was a hugely missed opportunity. While clearly successful on many other books, she was the wrong choice here. Her voice reads as a sweet grandmother and she has entirely the wrong accent for this specific book.

Imagine if they’d used someone whose voice reads as mid-20s, vibrant with a Yorkshire accent (versus Entwistle’s Lancashire accent).

It would have been as if Charlotte were telling her story. It would have really advanced The Reinvention of Charlotte Brontë.

What we got was predictable and honestly cliche.

Beyond that, this feels like a much more realistic portrayal of Charlotte, Arthur and Patrick…not always flattering. So happy to get something beyond closer to the real people. Warts and all!!

The biography we have been waiting for

The book is unbelievably fresh, even though its subjects have been dead for decades. It gives Charlotte Brontë a voice, a chance to narrate her own story in a sense, in the way that was never before observed. It is as if Graham Watson funds, produces and supports a huge theatre production or a huge tv series where he lets CB be the director and screenwriter of her own show. He doesn’t offer personal opinions or bias. The book is also in keeping with the Victorian language, while being very tangible for the current readers. The audio version was done beautifully, the narrator is slow and steady, and she is great in nuances that give the different impression for different characters, such as the affectation of Harriet Martineau or the hypocrisy of Patrick Brontë. Cannot recommend more!