Which Jane Austen novel was her last completed work?

Persuasion was Jane Austen’s last completed novel.

Austen completed Persuasion in 1816, near the end of her life, and it was published posthumously on 20 December 1817, six months after her death. The title page was dated 1818, which explains why the novel is sometimes listed as an 1818 publication. It was issued together with Northanger Abbey, another early work that Austen had completed and revised.

The novel follows Anne Elliot, a mature heroine who is reunited with Captain Frederick Wentworth after breaking off their engagement years earlier. Its themes of regret, second chances, social pressure, and the influence of other people’s advice give it a reflective tone distinct from Austen’s earlier novels.

A frequent confusion concerns Northanger Abbey, which appeared in the same posthumous publication and is often mentioned alongside Persuasion. Northanger Abbey was completed earlier, however. Persuasion is generally regarded as Austen’s sixth and final completed novel, although she left the unfinished manuscript later known as Sanditon.