The Meryton Murders

Mr. Darcy arrives at Longbourn, intending to correct the mistakes he made during his disastrous proposal in Hunsford. To his horror, he learns Elizabeth Bennet was killed in a ship’s explosion off the coast of France - in an apparent act of sabotage. Deep in despair, he travels in disguise to wartime France to seek out the spy responsible for her death. But a surprise awaits Darcy in the French town of Saint-Malo: Elizabeth is alive! Recovering from a blow to the head, Elizabeth has no memory of her previous life, and a series of mistakes leads her to believe Darcy is her husband.

Jane Austen's Emma has been described as a detective story without a body - except for those who read carefully, there actually is a body, and the potential for an excellent mystery story. Set about a year after Emma closes, The Highbury Murders pays homage to the wit of Jane Austen and the whodunits of Agatha Christie. You do not need to have read Jane Austen's books to enjoy this novel, but if you have - if you regret that she wrote only six - The Highbury Murders is a welcome extension to her world.   

Pride and patriotism lend fervor to greed and cruelty, and Fitzwilliam Darcy is caught at the centre of a decades-old international feud. Taken far from England, presumed dead by his family, and lost to all he holds dear, only one name remains as his beacon in the darkness: Elizabeth. Georgiana Darcy is now the heartbroken heiress to Pemberley, and Colonel Fitzwilliam her bewildered guardian. Vulnerable and unprepared, Georgiana desperately longs for a friend, while Fitzwilliam seeks to protect her from his own family.

Shortly after leaving Hertfordshire, Darcy receives word that one of the Bennet sisters is engaged to the obsequious Mr. Collins. Darcy, a rich and powerful landowner, knows Elizabeth is not a suitable match, but having already lost the battle with Cupid, he finds himself rushing back to the countryside. He is relieved to discover it is Mary Bennet who is destined to become Mrs. Collins. But his path to happiness is still far from assured. Darcy may have resolved his internal struggle to accept Elizabeth as she is, but he must now overcome a rival....

Vanity and Vengeance begins 10 years after Pride and Prejudice ended: Darcy and Elizabeth are happily married, but Georgiana (his beautiful and wealthy younger sister) does not seem interested in marriage; Lady Catherine’s daughter, Anne, has completely given up on her romantic hopes; and, Elizabeth’s sister Jane (happily married to Charles Bingley) has adopted an orphaned child. It is Georgiana’s interest in a poor and unpredictable young man, and the interest she arouses in a wealthy older man, that drives the story forward. 

Mr. Darcy hopes Christmastime will help him to forget the pair of fine eyes he left behind in Hertfordshire. When Elizabeth Bennet appears unexpectedly in London, Darcy decides to keep his distance, resolved to withstand his attraction to her. But when he learns Wickham is threatening to propose to Elizabeth, Darcy faces a crisis.  

Fitzwilliam Darcy is in a difficult situation. His father is pressing him to propose marriage to the last woman in the world he would wish to take as his wife. With a fortnight to announce his betrothal, he makes the acquaintance of Elizabeth Bennet, who is in a predicament of her own. Could Darcy be willing to consider Elizabeth as a solution to his problem and to hers? And can Elizabeth ascertain enough of Darcy's character to trust him upon nothing but a first impression? 

Chapter by chapter, these ladies of Rosings Park take turns telling the tale from the moment Elizabeth Bennet sets foot in Hunsford, changing everything. Is Anne heartbroken or relieved to discover Mr. Darcy will never marry her? As an heiress, even a sickly one, she must have other suitors. Does Lady Catherine gracefully accept the defeat of her original plan or keep conniving? Will Anne’s health ever improve? And what really happened to her father? 

President William Darcy has it all: wealth, intelligence, and the most powerful job in the country. Despite what his friends say, he is not lonely in the White House. He’s not. And he has vowed not to date while he’s in office. Nor is he interested in Elizabeth Bennet. She might be pretty and funny and smart, but her family is nouveau riche and unbearable. Unfortunately, he encounters her everywhere in Washington, DC - making her harder and harder to ignore.  

Six months after Pride and Prejudice, Darcy and Elizabeth are deeply in love. Elizabeth is planning her first ball at Pemberley, while Georgiana Darcy considers a life of spinsterhood. Wickham has used her so terribly, she cannot face another prospect. However, her handsome neighbor, Phillip Lawson, is a continual distraction. Then, Lydia Wickham arrives uninvited with an alarming announcement. Can the Darcy's love survive?

Pemberley’s ancient halls harbour many secrets. Which one will affect Fitzwilliam Darcy and the love of his life? How is Mr. Bennet to enjoy the comforts of a well-stocked library, when his wife’s premature demise had left him with the task of finding suitable matches for their daughters? And what of a misleading encounter on a muddy lane in Hertfordshire, that renders a country-town assembly rather more tolerable than some might have thought?  

Miss Georgiana Darcy is need of a companion, and she would much rather not have Mrs. Younge. The recently bereaved Miss Elizabeth Bennet is in need of a position. When she accepts the one Mr. Darcy offers, she finds herself in his near-constant company and gets to know him at his best. Not as he would present himself to strangers in some remote corner of Hertfordshire, but as his nearest and dearest know him. An excellent brother, landlord, master. A wonderful man, noble, kind and impossibly handsome. So who falls in love first? What of Mr. Wickham and his dastardly ploys? And how is a lady's companion ever to have a future with one who could marry into the best houses in the land?

When Elizabeth's father dies unexpectedly, she is surprised to find that the proud, arrogant Mr. Darcy wants to marry her - and even more surprised when her uncle tells her why. But after they are married she begins to see a different side of her husband. Darcy thinks that Elizabeth has married him for love, but slowly begins to realize that all is not as it appears in their marriage. Will he still love her when the truth is revealed? Will our two favorite characters overcome their misunderstandings and achieve a marriage based on more than duty and obligation?

Darcy has been bewitched by Elizabeth Bennet since he met her in Hertfordshire. He can no longer fight this overwhelming attraction and must admit he is hopelessly in love. During Elizabeth’s visit to Kent, she has been forced to endure the company of the difficult and disapproving Mr. Darcy, but she has enjoyed making the acquaintance of his affable cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. Finally resolved, Darcy arrives at Hunsford Parsonage prepared to propose - only to discover that Elizabeth has just accepted a proposal from the colonel, Darcy’s dearest friend in the world.

As Britain settles into a short-lived peace, the characters of Pride and Prejudice pick up very nearly where the novel left off, in a new series of stories focused on love and family. Elizabeth Bennet finds the joy of her marriage and honeymoon are followed by the demands of becoming Mrs. Darcy, all while helping her shy new younger sister come out into society.