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It’s officially Austen Month here at Quirk (Jane Austen Cover to Cover is almost out!), and what better way to celebrate than to revisit one of the great authoress’s beautiful novels. All month long, I’ll be reading and recapping Northanger Abbey, Austen’s love letter cum parody of the gothic novels of her day. I plan on going chapter by chapter for the next few weeks, and please consider this your cordial invitation to join in, whether that means reading along, or just commenting!

First off, my credentials: I first picked up Pride and Prejudice when I was 13 years old after being told that it was a “difficult book” and I would “probably have trouble with it.” I blew through it, fell very much in love with Austen’s sardonic style, and felt extremely pleased with myself for having proven the naysayers wrong. (Has trying to discourage a bookworm from reading ever actually worked? I’m genuinely curious.) In the following decade I read Austen’s other novels, determined that Persuasion was probably my favourite, watched pretty much every movie adaptation available, and was informed that I most closely resemble Sense and Sensibility’s Elinor Dashwood by a Which Austen Heroine are You quiz. So yeah, pretty much an expert.

Let’s get right down to it, shall we?

Want to start writing fanfiction? I’m not going to tell you what to write about, but I will break it down into six simple steps. You’ll be creating stories that feature characters you love in no time at all.

At a wedding reception, you either love or hate the bouquet toss. If you're like me, you hate it, and you edge to the far back of the pack and try to hide behind someone taller than you. If you're lucky, there's someone at the front, poised like a linebacker. She is going to catch that thing no matter what, and you know you're safe and off the hook until the next wedding rolls around.

If you're unlucky, like me, or if you're the linebacker at the front of the group, accidents happen. One second, you're watching the bouquet fly through the air, and the next, you've an eye full of carnations. Thankfully, The Worst-Case Scenario Handbook: Weddings tells us how to handle such catastrophes.

Read on, and for those of you preparing for a wedding, enter our giveaway below. You can win copies of Wedding Dogs, The Bride's Instruction Manual, The Groom's Instruction Manual, The Newlyweds Instruction Manual, and Stuff Every Husband Should Know. We'll pick five winners early next week. 

The genius of Serial, a new podcast from the creators of This American Life, is right in its name: instead of telling a whole story at once, each episode reveals a little more about the 1999 murder of high-school senior Hae Min Lee and the ex-boyfriend who committed—or maybe didn’t? or maybe did?!—the crime. Naturally, this gets hugely addictive hugely fast, and the week between new installments suddenly takes foooooreeeeever. Help pass the time with these sinister nonfiction picks.

The weather is getting colder, which means scarf season is almost upon us. But you're bored with the usual fare–single-color pashminas with tassled ends, chunky crocheted infinity scarves. You want something fun, something different. Well, have we got the scarves for you.

THE COOKIE DOUGH LOVER'S COOKBOOK by Lindsay Landis ($3.99)
KINDLE / NOOK / KOBO / IBOOKSTORE

Food blogger Lindsay Landis has invented the perfect cookie dough. It tastes great. It’s egg free (and thus safe to eat raw). You can whip it up in minutes. And, best of all, you can use it to make dozens of delicious cookie dough creations, from cakes, custards, and pies to candies, brownies, and even granola bars. Included are recipes for indulgent breakfasts (cookie dough doughnuts!), frozen treats (cookie dough Popsicles!), and outrageous snacks (cookie dough eggrolls! cookie dough fudge! cookie dough pizza!).