Pemberley in Peril


Book Description

No one owns the future. Fitzwilliam Darcy, handsome, wealthy, heir to the vast estate of Pemberley, is unmarried after a six-year quest for the perfect wife. Elizabeth Bennet, lovely, intelligent and independent, is unmarried after a three-year quest for a husband who will appreciate her as an individual. When Darcy's father George is diagnosed with a fatal illness, he fears that if something happens to his son before another heir is born the Darcy line will end. Mr. Bennet, a highly successful London solicitor, fears his daughter would be destroyed by the life of a spinster. The fathers arrange a marriage between Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth, much to the consternation of the two young people. As the two principals attempt to find common ground for a marriage of convenience, Darcy's initial physical attraction to Elizabeth grows into admiration and love. Elizabeth, however, must grow past her anger and resentment to understand her own heart. But then, as the courtship progresses, a mysterious letter from a dead man brings the reappearance of Darcy's reclusive great-aunt, Lady Agatha Quintain, whose motives may not be as benign as they seem. And a series of robberies perpetrated by Darcy's old nemesis Wickham agitates high society and ends in the attempted murder of a family member, drawing Darcy into the pursuit. Joined by Colonel Fitzwilliam and a stranger with a personal vendetta against Wickham, they discover their quarry's long-standing grudge against his mentor puts George Darcy in immediate deadly danger. Now as Darcy and Elizabeth begin their lives together, Wickham's plan for revenge takes a murderous turn, while Lady Agatha follows her own plans to right an ancient wrong, whatever the cost to the Darcys. Thus is set in motion a series of devastating events that will force Darcy and Elizabeth to face a terrible secret from the past, with the power to threaten not only their marriage, but everyone and everything they love. And to ultimately put Pemberley itself in peril.




Tragedy at Piddleton Hotel


Book Description

Armed with a handbag and fuelled by cake, Annabel Churchill is a mature yet tenacious private detective. Together with her quirky sidekick, Doris Pemberley, she's determined to solve mysteries and chase down criminals in the sleepy English village of Compton Poppleford.




From This Day Forward


Book Description

(New cover, for the same book) A sequel to Jane Austen's 'Pride & Prejudice', inspired by the 1995 BBC adaptation and in its spirit,'From This Day Forward' explores life at Pemberley after Elizabeth Bennet's marriage to Fitzwilliam Darcy, and the turns their fates might have taken. On a crisp winter morning in a small country church, Miss Elizabeth Bennet married Mr Darcy – and her quiet, tame existence had abruptly changed. The second daughter of a country gentleman is now many different things, to different people. Beloved wife. Mistress of a dauntingly great estate. Reluctant socialite. Daughter. Sister. Cousin. Friend. Her world is very different too, touched by a series of events that the creator of'Pride & Prejudice' would have recognised. As the days of her married life go by, bringing both joy and turmoil, the man that stands beside her is her shelter and comfort in the face of family opposition, peril and heartbreak. Three very different Christmas seasons come to serve as landmarks to their lives and there are blissful days and times of sorrow at the old English country house. And before too long, a time would come when Darcy must decide if he is prepared to risk everything for the sake of a full life together - or succumb to the collection of his fears. "Quiet footsteps, eerily quiet, drew him from his trance. He looked up – and followed. The ghostly sound faded as he reached the eastern staircase and he took the steps two at a time, down to the very bottom. A madman's quest for he knew not what pushed him to the gallery. In the light of the moon, from her portrait, his grandfather's first wife looked down upon him with the deepest compassion. He dug his fingers in his hair. A long, dry sob racked his chest as he pounded the frame of the unfortunate woman's likeness, and broken gilt plaster fell to the floor. He covered his mouth with his fist, stifling the groan. And ran out of the deathly silent room, chased by his demons."




The Darcys of Pemberley


Book Description

A sequel faithful to Jane Austen's beloved masterpiece, Pride and Prejudice. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy have been married for almost a year, and their heated arguments are a thing of the past. All that passion is now directed into more satisfying pursuits. But how long can the honeymoon last? The couple's idyllic life together at Pemberley is jeopardized by the secrets they begin keeping from each other, the troubles of their closest friends, and the threat of a villain in their midst. Layers of seemingly innocent deception are building between Darcy and Elizabeth, threatening their relationship. He is conducting some covert business dealings that he's unwilling to share with his wife, and she likewise begins keeping things from him against her own better judgment. The couple also becomes embroiled in the tribulations of Mr. Darcy's younger sister, Georgiana, and his friend and cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. Fitzwilliam falls victim to their aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, as the object of her latest scheme to make a noble match for her daughter. The arrangement satisfies the ambitions of the couple's parents, but appears to hold little prospect of happiness for Anne and Fitzwilliam, who each harbor other romantic interests. During this same period, Georgiana runs the gamut of emotions as she comes of age. Her elation at her birthday ball soon crumbles when she learns the man she secretly admires is engaged to another. The excitement of a London season and the attention of two other eligible suitors cannot make her forget her disappointment over her lost first love. As the story progresses, the menacing shadow of Mr. Darcy's life-long nemesis looms ever-larger. By carelessness and design, Mr. Wickham and Lydia painfully intrude into the lives of the Darcys and the Bingleys, with disastrous results. The Darcys of Pemberley is the tale of two romances: the continuation of Darcy and Elizabeth's story, and the courtship of Miss Georgiana. For those of us who didn't want Pride and Prejudice to end, this charming novel gives the opportunity to learn what happens after the wedding, to revisit all our old friends and foes, and to share the next chapter of their lives. Ms. Winslow carries on the saga much as Jane Austen herself might have - true to her style, her sensibilities, and the delightful characters she created.




The Deception at Lyme


Book Description

While on holiday Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth Darcy investigate the murder of a woman whose body was found at the base of Lyme's famous sea wall as well as the prospect that Fitzwilliam's naval-lieutenant cousin may have also been murdered.




An Unsuitable Job for a Woman


Book Description

An Unsuitable Job for a Woman introduces bestselling mystery author P.D. James’s courageous but vulnerable young detective, Cordelia Gray, in a “top-rated puzzle of peril that holds you all the way” (The New York Times). Handsome Cambridge dropout Mark Callender died hanging by the neck with a faint trace of lipstick on his mouth. When the official verdict is suicide, his wealthy father hires fledgling private investigator Cordelia Gray to find out what led him to self-destruction. What she discovers instead is a twisting trail of secrets and sins, and the strong scent of murder.




Mr. Darcy and the Victim of Circumstance


Book Description

A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT-OR IS IT?At Pemberley with his sister Georgiana, Fitzwilliam Darcy rescues Elizabeth Bennet, the only survivor of a fatal coach wreck on the estate that kills her traveling companion and the driver. As she recovers, Darcy finds himself attracted to his guest, but her low social status silences his desires. Soon Darcy discovers the wreck was no accident, but the work of his old nemesis George Wickham, drawing him into the official investigation. While Darcy gathers evidence of the crime, his friend Charles Bingley falls in love with Elizabeth's sister Jane. Bingley leases an estate near her home in Hertfordshire, bringing Darcy once more into contact with Elizabeth. After Wickham is captured by an intrepid Bow Street investigator, the monstrous motive for his crime is revealed, and he is arrested for murder. Meanwhile, Bingley secures Jane's hand, forcing his friend to confront his reservations about Elizabeth. Feeling he is free of Wickham's shadow, Darcy follows his heart and proposes to Elizabeth, and the double wedding of the two sisters goes forward.But then, unforeseen problems arise. A vitriolic attack by Bingley's sister Caroline, long obsessed with Darcy, shocks Elizabeth. Georgiana has a distressing secret she is afraid to share with her brother. And Darcy's aunt, Lady Catherine deBourgh, exhibits bizarre symptoms that force her brother, Lord Matlock, to intervene before a major scandal damages the entire family, threatening Darcy's and Elizabeth's future.Now, as the newlyweds settle at Pemberley, Wickham goes on trial, and Darcy must testify against his one-time friend, sealing Wickham's fate. With Wickham sentenced to die, honor, treachery and one last act of evil force a crisis no one could have imagined, and bring Darcy face to face with death.




Suspense and Sensibility or, First Impressions Revisited


Book Description

Fresh from the curious and unsettling matter of Caroline Bingley (as related in Pride and Prescience), Mr. and Mrs. Darcy have every intention of enjoying their still newlywed status at Pemberly until they are confronted with another mysterious situation ... one of Suspense and Sensibility. Elizabeth Darcy and her beloved husband Fitzwilliam are taking on the responsibility of finding a suitable suitor for Elizabeth's younger sister Kitty, thereby assuring her a proper place in society. The angels smile on the young and a perfect match is found, and wedding plans are soon under way. Suddenly a change in personality occurs in Kitty's soon to be model husband--a change so striking as to jeopardize not just the Darcys' social standing, but their lives as well. A mysterious mirror, an insidious reprobate from the past, and matters far beyond the social circles around Pemberly all come into play in a dangerous puzzle, where the consequences may be the exchange of a soul for a soul. Once again the Darcys take center stage as the Regency era's answer to The Thin Man's Nick and Nora, searching for truth between tea times, amid the social whirl of Jane Austen's England. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.




The Suspicion at Sanditon (Or, The Disappearance of Lady Denham)


Book Description

The Suspicion at Sanditon, the next adventure in Carrie Bebris's award-winning Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery series takes Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth Darcy to Sanditon, the setting of Jane Austen's final work. There, accompanied by their friend Miss Charlotte Heywood, they encounter an array of eccentric villagers and visitors. Among Sanditon's most prominent residents: Lady Denham, a childless, twice-widowed dowager with a fortune to bequeath and a flight of distant relations circling for a place in her will. The Darcys have scarcely settled into their lodgings when Lady Denham unexpectedly invites them to a dinner party. Thirteen guests assemble at Sanditon House-but their hostess never appears. As a violent storm rises, a search for Lady Denham begins. The Darcys, like most of their fellow attendees, speculate that one of her ladyship's would-be heirs has grown impatient .?.?. until the guests start to vanish one by one. Does a kidnapper lurk in the centuries-old mansion, or is a still more sinister force at work? As the night grows short, the dwelling's population grows thin, and tales of Sanditon House's storied past emerge, Mr. and Mrs. Darcy find themselves leading a desperate effort to discover what has happened to Lady Denham and the missing guests, before they all-perhaps even Elizabeth and Darcy themselves-disappear. The Regency era's answer to Nick and Nora Charles, the Darcys once again demonstrate their quick wits and signature wit as they search for the truth-universally acknowledged and otherwise. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.




Postscript from Pemberley


Book Description

Seventh in the bestselling Jane Austen sequel series from Australia