Book Review: The Rushworth Family Plot

The Rushworth Family Plot (Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney, #4) by Claudia Gray ~ 336 pages ~ published on 6/17/2025 by Vintage

Goodreads Synopsis:

The fourth book in the Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mystery series, which finds the amateur sleuths caught up in the whirlwind of the London Season—and in a murderous scheme involving the family of Edmund and Fanny Bertram

Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney understand each other perfectly; it’s a pity their families do not. A series of misunderstandings, misplaced pride, and—indeed—prejudice, has led their parents to deem the pair unsuited to wed. Now, with the Season approaching, Juliet’s grandfather, General Tilney, has sent her to London with a new wardrobe and orders to prove herself worthy of someone better than the snobby Darcys. Meanwhile, Jonathan has been forced to accept an invitation to stay in town with old friends Edmund and Fanny Bertram at the house of Edmund’s brother, Sir Thomas. Oblivious to and undesiring of female attention outside of Juliet’s, Jonathan is at risk of being ensnared by Caroline Bingley’s previously rebuffed plans to make herself—or her daughter—mistress of Pemberley.

But when Mr. Rushworth, the former husband of Edmund’s sister Maria, is discovered dead in his home, Jonathan and Juliet find themselves with problems far weightier than the marriage market. In one of the greatest scandals of its day, Maria abandoned her new husband in favor of the notorious rake Henry Crawford, and when he wouldn’t marry her, was forced to flee to the continent in disgrace. Now Maria is back, accompanied by a daughter she claims Mr. Rushworth fathered after their divorce—and who he wrote into his will just before his death. To spare Edmund and Fanny further social shame, Jonathan and Juliet must unmask a killer before the drama surrounding the Rushworth family fortune claims another victim.


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Book Review: The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh

The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh by Claudia Gray ~ 352 pages ~ to be published on June 18, 2024 by Vintage

Goodreads Synopsis:

The third book in the Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mystery series, which finds the amateur sleuths facing their most daunting challenge preventing the murder of the imperious Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

Someone is trying to kill Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Esteemed aunt of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, generous patroness of Mr. William Collins, a woman of rank who rules over the estate of Rosings Park with an unimpeachable sense of propriety—who would dare ? Lady Catherine summons her grand-nephew, Mr. Jonathan Darcy, and his investigative companion, Miss Juliet Tilney, to find out.

After a year apart, Jonathan and Juliet are thrilled to be reunited, even if the circumstances—finding whoever has thus far sabotaged Lady Catherine’s carriage, shot at her, and nearly pushed her down the stairs—are less than ideal. Also less than their respective fathers, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and Mr. Henry Tilney, have accompanied the young detectives to Rosings, and the two men do not interact with the same felicity enjoyed by their children.

With attempts against Lady Catherine escalating, and no one among the list of prime suspects seemingly capable of committing all of the attacks, the pressure on Jonathan and Juliet mounts—even as more gentle feelings between the two of them begin to bloom. The race is now on to provoke two one from the attempted murderer before it is too late—and one, perhaps, of love.


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Book Review: The Murder of Mr. Wickham

The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray ~ 400 pages ~ to be published May 3, 2022 by Vintage

Goodreads Synopsis:

The happily married Mr. Knightley and Emma are throwing a house party, bringing together distant relatives and new acquaintances—characters beloved by Jane Austen fans. Definitely not invited is Mr. Wickham, whose latest financial scheme has netted him an even broader array of enemies. As tempers flare and secrets are revealed, it’s clear that everyone would be happier if Mr. Wickham got his comeuppance. Yet they’re all shocked when Wickham turns up murdered—except, of course, for the killer hidden in their midst.

Nearly everyone at the house party is a suspect, so it falls to the party’s two youngest guests to solve the mystery: Juliet Tilney, the smart and resourceful daughter of Catherine and Henry, eager for adventure beyond Northanger Abbey; and Jonathan Darcy, the Darcys’ eldest son, whose adherence to propriety makes his father seem almost relaxed. In a tantalizing fusion of Austen and Christie, the unlikely pair must put aside their own poor first impressions and uncover the guilty party—before an innocent person is sentenced to hang.


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