Review by Lynn Lamy, December 18, 1997
I have enjoyed several of Jane Gillespie's novels, so I was looking forward to this sequel to Emma.  I was not disappointed.
Truth and Rumor, taking place twenty years after the action of Emma, deals mainly with the Eltons, the Martins, and their respective children.  Two more created characters of Mr. John Sharpe, the temporary vicar of Swanford, the village near Donwell Abbey, and a Dr. Daniel Gray, a stranger to the area.
The Eltons have one child, a daughter named Francesca (nicknamed Fanny by her school friends, much to Mrs. Elton's horror), who is as unlike her parents as it is possible to be.  She spends the earliest years of her education at Mrs. Goddard's, where she becomes fast friends with Harriet and Robert Martin's eldest daughter, Perdita.  Even Francesca's going away to school cannot cool their friendship, and they pick up right where they left off when Fanny comes home.  The Eltons do not much care for their daughter's association with the family at Abbey Mill Farm, but Fanny eventually breaks away from her parents' bitterness (with some advice from John Sharpe), and becomes a frequent visitor at the farm.
When a stranger, Dr. Gray, makes a brief visit to the area (assisting Perdita after a fall from a hay cart while there), rumors begin.  Mr. Sharpe is suspected (in a rumor put about by Mr. Elton, who has a grudge against Mr. Sharpe) of having seduced the Martin's second daughter (who has gone to visit her aunt in another town).  Dr. Gray is suspected of having seduced the same girl, and even Francesca's extended trip with her mother begins to be suspect.  Dr. Gray's position in all this?  He is the son of a well-liked and respected bishop whose late father left a legacy to a Mrs. Robert Martin of Abbey Mill Farm, and he has come to see who his half-sister is.  Matters are complicated when the good doctor falls in love with Perdita, who just happens to be his niece.
How this all resolves itself I will leave you to discover on your own.  It's not nearly as convoluted as it sounds.
The only disappointments in this book are minor.  Mrs. Goddard is said to be still running the school, which while not impossible, I thought a bit of a stretch.  Most of the characters walk between the villages of Highbury and Swanford; I hadn't pictured them being this close, but perhaps this is my own ignorance.  The characters Ms. Gillespie created are good; not deep, but believable.  The Eltons are bordering on bitter, but perhaps this is where 20 years together would bring them.  I liked Mr. John Sharpe and Dr. Daniel Gray, and I liked Fanny's quiet goodness. Mrs. Elton is still quite a horror, which I liked, and Harriet is much as you would expect her to be.
Overall, I would suggest giving this book a try if you come across it, and it's even worth borrowing on interlibrary loan.

Review by Linda Waldemar,  April 10, 2000
This was a very quick and easy read.  The main characters were Francesca Elton and Perdita Martin and the action takes place about 20 years after the end of Emma; the girls are seventeen.. The senior Eltons are very unpleasant people.  As one would expect, they do not approve of the friendship of their only daughter with the eldest offspring of Harriet (Smith) and Robert Martin. Mr Elton is characterised as a malcontented and ineffectual clergyman.  Augusta Hawkins Elton is ambitious and overbearing.  She is still trying, unsuccesfully, to be the leader of Highbury society and cannot understand why no one is influenced by her.  Francesca is their only child.  They are disappointed because she is a girl and because she is not remarkable in any way.
Harriet, the mother of four, is still remarkably pretty (although at bit plumper).  Robert Martin is a successfully farmer and is devoted to his wife and family.  Perdita is their eldest.  She met and became friendly with the young Elton when they were both at Mrs Goddard's school.  The Martins all love Francesca and call her Fanny.
The heroes are the Reverend John Sharpe and  Dr Daniel Grey.
This story has a very light plot involving misunderstandings based on failed rumours.  There is a slight mystery involving a stranger.  The story has a happy ending when all misunderstandings are cleared up and the young ladies end up with the men they love.  The Martins remain happy and the Eltons remain discontented.
Should you come across this book, give it a try.   You may find it slightly diverting.