About the Author

Stephanie Barron is the author of eight previous Jane Austen mysteries. She lives in Colorado, where she is at work on the next Jane Austen mystery.

Reviews

"Wonderful!"—Entertainment Weekly

"First-rate...Barron writes a lively adventure that puts warm flesh on historical bones. The nice thing is she does so in a literary style that would not put Jane Austen's nose out of joint."—The New York Times Book Review

"Wonderful!"-Entertainment Weekly

"First-rate...Barron writes a lively adventure that puts warm flesh on historical bones. The nice thing is she does so in a literary style that would not put Jane Austen's nose out of joint."-The New York Times Book Review

Adult/High School-This seventh Austen outing finds the writer and sometime detective recruited once again by Lord Harold Trowbridge. England is fighting France, and he has set Jane to spy on a new neighbor, Sophia Challoner, whom he suspects of spying for Napoleon. Due to a fortuitous riding accident, Jane befriends the woman and her companion, a mysterious young American. Suddenly, a covert and violent war erupts in the quiet seaside community when a ship of the line is torched and the shipwright, killed. Aside from the well-plotted story, Barron imparts details of 19th-century England: what was fashionable and forbidden, the importance religion played in the politics, and how women fared in a decidedly male-dominated society. In footnotes, she deftly explains unfamiliar terms and historical information not easily woven into the narrative. Teens will be captivated by this adventurous detective story filled with intrigue, romance, and the unique and resourceful heroine.-Jane Halsall, McHenry Public Library District, IL Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Series and historical fans are in for a treat. Jane Austen narrates her most recent adventure, wherein she journeys to the ruins of nearby Netley Abbey to secretly retrieve a hidden parcel for an acquaintance of some importance. She not only finds the parcel but also a dying man. With literate prose, this is a tasteful diversion. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.