Jane and His Lordship's Legacy: Being a Jane Austen Mystery [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Stephanie Barron (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2, 2005

In her latest enthralling adventure, Jane Austen finds herself the beneficiary of a most unusual legacy - and at the heart of a baffling case of avarice, adventure, and multiple murders. But first she must unravel the secrets of one of England's most trusted confidants and fascinating scoundrels . . . the man she loved. This is historical suspense at its finest, graced with the insight, perception, and uncommon intelligence of its singular heroine.

Available only in Core 7.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Readers who hope to recapture, if only briefly, the pleasure of reading Jane Austen for the first time will welcome Barron's eighth Jane Austen mystery, set in the summer of 1809. Jane and her mother have just settled at Chawton Cottage, the country house that will be Jane's last home, when she's surprised by the delivery of a bequest from the late Lord Harold Trowbridge, who was murdered at the end of Jane and the Ghosts of Netley (2003). No sooner has Jane established that the Bengal chest is filled with his lordship's personal papers than she discovers the mutilated body of a laborer in the cottage's cellar. Jane once again turns sleuth, investigating not only the murder but also rival claims to two different estates in the neighborhood, a bank robbery and a local man's disappearance. The author expertly weaves the tale's disparate elements, sympathetically sketching in such secondary characters as Jane's mother and brother Henry, on both of whom she casts an ironic eye. As usual, Barron has masterfully imitated Austen's voice.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Barron's eighth Jane Austen mystery finds Jane mourning the death of the man she loved, the gentleman rogue, Lord Harold Trowbridge. Jane and her mother have just arrived at their new residence, Chawton Cottage, when Jane is greeted with two surprises: Lord Harold has willed her a box containing his personal correspondence, and the body of one Shafto French is lying in Chawton's cellar. Both discoveries bring trouble to Jane's door, not the least of which is resentment from Lord Harold's family, who object to Jane being given the papers. Jane can't help but be curious about the papers and the murder, leading her to read the former and attempt to solve the latter. Other problems loom as well: a local man named Jack Hinton thinks the deed to Chawton Cottage should be his. Barron's latest, featuring plenty of drawing-room intrigue and long-buried family secrets, will continue to please both historical-mystery readers and the ever-going Austen fan club. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 445 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press; 1 edition (August 2, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786278382
• ISBN-13: 978-0786278381
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,353,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

STEPHANIE BARRON

Stephanie Barron is a graduate of Princeton and Stanford, where she studied history. THE WHITE GARDEN is her twentieth novel, but she is perhaps best known for the critically-acclaimed Jane Austen Mystery Series, in which the intrepid and witty author of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE details her secret detective career in Regency England. JANE AND THE MADNESS OF LORD BYRON, the tenth Austen mystery, is forthcoming from Bantam in October 2010. A former intelligence analyst for the CIA, Stephanie--who also writes under the name Francine Mathews--drew on her experience in the field of espionage for such novels as THE ALIBI CLUB, which Publishers Weekly named as one of the fifteen best novels of 2006. She lives and works in Denver, CO.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a wonderfully engrossing read, March 26, 2005

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jane and His Lordship's Legacy (Jane Austen Mystery) (Hardcover)

The joy in reading Stephanie Barron's excellent Jane Austen mystery series, for me, lies not always in the mystery at hand (though they are rather good), but rather in the manner in which Ms Barron has successfully and brilliantly captured the inimitable Miss Austen's prose style, the manner in which she describes scenes and incidents and the manner in which she vividly portrays her characters. No one, to my mind, has ever successfully recaptured Jane Austen's voice to such an extent. And Stephanie Barron deserves all the praise for her hard work (I especially enjoy all those footnotes) and all her meticulous research. "Jane and His Lordship's Legacy," the latest Jane Austen mystery, was a joy to read. It takes place in 1809, when Jane and her mother had moved to the village of Chawton in Hampshire, where Jane's brother, Edward, owns property.

Edward has decided to move his female relatives into his dead bailiff's cottage in Chawton village, thus displacing the bailiff's widow, and provoking much displeasure amongst the villagers. Jane, still grieving privately for the death of Lord Harold Trowridge, a gentleman with whom she had solved several mysteries, and whom she had come to love quite deeply, is quite thrown to discover that the villagers view the Austens with suspicion and displeasure; and further, that residing in Chawton is one Jack Hinton, who claims that he, and not Jane's brother Edward, is the rightful heir to all the Hampshire estates that Edward will inherit from his rich relatives, the Knights, who had adopted Edward at an early age as their heir. If that is not all, on the very day that the Austen women move into their new abode, Jane receives a visit from Lord Trowbridge's lawyer and learns that Lord Trowbridge has left her all his papers and letters, so that she may write a memoir of his life. Lord Trowbridge's relatives are in an uproar over the legacy and have allowed people to believe that Jane was once Trowbridge's lover. Undeterred by all the malicious gossip surrounding her (to her mother's chagrin), Jane is resolved to read Trowbridge's letter and diaries and to write memoir that he believed only she could write. But even before Jane can delve into his lordship's papers, she discovers the dead body of a labourer is her cellar. A coroner's inquest reveals that the dead man, Shafto French, was murdered. Who killed him, and why was he left in Austens' cellar? Even as a very curious Jane considers these questions, the chest containing Trowbridge's papers is stolen. This coincides with the arrival of the enigmatic Julian Thrace, a gentleman whom it is rumoured is the new heir to the Earl of Holbrook, and his half-sister, Lady Imogen (the Earl's acknowledged daughter), whom Julian would displace as heiress to her father's riches. Could the theft be tied to the newcomers' presence? The quiet village of Chawton is suddenly hopping with activity! Nonetheless, Jane is determined to solve the mystery of the dead man in her cellar and to recover her chest. And with both her brothers, Edward's and Henry's, help she just might do so...

Stephanie Barrons'Jane Austen series only seems to get better and better. Fast paced and thoroughly engrossing, "Jane and His Lordship's Legacy" was a treat to read from beginning to end. The mystery subplot was a little bare, but what made this novel work and a joy to read was how the author presented her characters and the straits they find themselves in. It was all very realistic and believable. I, especially, liked that both of Jane's brothers were prominently featured and that they assisted her without quibbling at all. The respect and affection they had for their sister was evident. At the same time they were not above teasing her wickedly when the occasion so presented itself. It spoke of the kind of relationship the Austens had, and made the book a more heartwarming read. All in all, a thoroughly pleasing read, not to be missed whether or not you're a Jane Austen fan.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Moving and Excellent Entry in this Series, March 6, 2005

By 

Dormouse23 (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jane and His Lordship's Legacy (Jane Austen Mystery) (Hardcover)

This latest book in the Jane Austen detective series is better than the previous entry ("Ghosts of Netley"). This book picks up with Jane and her mother moving into Chawton House - where Jane was to spend the last eight or so years of her life. Jane is, of course, mourning the death of Harold Trowbridge, but soon finds more than enough happening in Chawton to distract her. The family is given a cold welcome in Chawton, where her brother/landlord Edward Austen-Knight is held not to have paid sufficient attention to the villagers' needs. In addition, she is saddled with the bequest of Trowbridge's personal papers and the request to write his memoirs, not to mention a dead body in the cellar!

High points of this book: a well-plotted mystery with multitudes of suspects, the reunion of most of Jane's siblings as they help her figure out the mystery, riveting excerpts from Lord Harold's letters and diaries... do I need to add more? It's really good and, I would say, a high point in the series.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top notch, November 1, 2007

By 

Bookphile (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jane and His Lordship's Legacy (Jane Austen Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have enjoyed every one of Stephanie Barron's fine mystery series and this book is no exception. In fact, this may be my favorite of the series. The mystery is well-written but, for me, this is not the true attraction of the novel--and it never has been for this series. Rather, I am always enthralled by Barron's ability to bring Austen back to life.

Barron's grasp of Austen and her world is phenomenal. Her Jane always rings true and there are many echoes of the sentiments and expressions in this series that let the reader know that Barron is truly knowledgeable about her main character. That Barron has a great deal of affection for Jane also comes through and Jane comes alive as a witty, intelligent, and fascinating woman who is also flawed. Barron's Austen is not above bouts of pettiness and impatience and Barron serves Austen all the better for it. Anyone who enjoys and reveres Austen will likely enjoy these books immensely for Barron does an exemplary job of making Austen real and giving fervent Austen fans what they most crave--more of the fine brain and insight that characterize Austen's works. If we cannot have more Austen novels, we are yet very fortunate to have Barron's series.

What really sets this book apart is the maturity that Jane shows. Barron has deftly and seemingly effortlessly written a work that mirrors the sometimes melancholy, often bittersweet, and decidely autumnal feel that characterizes Austen's late work Persuasion. Barron's Jane is not sorry for the choices she has made but has seen much and has such a keen self-awareness that she knows all that she has lost. Though Jane's relationship with Lord Harold Trowbridge is fictional, the details of her dependence on her brothers and her frustrated attempts at publishing during her lifetime are not and Barron gives voice to Jane's feelings on these subjects.

Lest I give Barron short shrift, the central mystery of the story is well constructed and engaging. Barron, like Austen, shows the reader the constraints of the class structure of the day and the lengths to which people were willing to go to climb up the society ladder. Jane's bequest is both a blessing and a curse for it brings her closer to the man she loved and lost but it also imperils her because it contains provocative details that could make or break some of society's most powerful. At heart, this is a story of greed and ambition and though it is set hundreds of years ago its themes are still very contemporary.