I read "Evelina" because of Miss Burney's supposed influence on Jane Austen. I found a comedy of manners, all right, but the comedy was pedestrian, the motivations nothing like those in Austen, the characterizations quite lacking when compared to Austen's.
I know it does no favor to compare something to Austen, but given the context, I make free to do so. Burney's humor is a one-note plink to Austen's rich and concordant arpeggio.
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