Pride and Premeditation

If you like your mysteries paired with retold classics—think Jane Austen meets Agatha Christie for tea—I highly recommend this one! Price superbly captured the essence of Austen's characters and made them all her own. Instead of Bingley's purchase of Netherfield starting the story, he’s accused of murdering his brother-in-law. Quick-witted and resourceful Lizzie Bennet is eager to prove her worth as a solicitor in her father's barrister office and takes on the case to the prideful Darcy's dismay. Collins' character is just as cringy, and charming Wickham is a Bow Street Runner, helping Lizzie on her case. (You want him… show more.

The one irritant of the Jane Austen books is the (various) sisters’ insufferable lack of agency. They must wait around and do nothing while other people decide their fates. It might have been historically accurate, but it’s a bore. Pride and Premeditation gives our old friend Elizabeth a lot more to do—like solve crimes—than play pianoforte badly. A fun and hilarious love story and a bit of a thrill, too, this book rights another wrong of those classic historical moments and stories we love—and turns a humble story into one full of fun.