Jane and the Stillroom Maid, Stephanie Barron
Jane and the Stillroom Maid, Stephanie Barron
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Jane and the Stillroom Maid
Being the Fifth Jane Austen Mystery

Author: Stephanie Barron

Narrator: Kate Reading

Unabridged: 8 hr 37 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/18/2000


Synopsis

Jane Austen as sleuth continues to delight in her latest adventure (after Jane and the Genius of the Place), which sheds new light on the author's travels in 1806. While enjoying a ramble in the Derbyshire hills near Bakewell (a town Eliza Bennett visits in Pride and Prejudice), Jane discovers the mutilated body of a young man. Jane's suspicions are roused when her escort, Mr. George Hemming, prefers to remove the unidentified corpse to Buxton, rather than Bakewell, and they increase when the body proves to be that of a woman dressed in men's clothing. Moreover, the corpse is identified as Tess Arnold, a servant at one of the area's great houses, whom Mr. Hemming should have recognized. As the compounder of stillroom remedies, Tess had a reputation as a healer, until accused of witchcraft. Rumors of ritual murder by Freemasons-who include most of the neighboring gentry-excite the local populace and jeopardize the investigation of the justice of the peace, himself a Mason. When Mr. Hemming disappears before the inquest, Jane and the justice turn for help to Lord Harold Trowbridge, a guest at the nearby ducal house of Chatsworth. Barron catches Austen's tone amazingly well. Details of early 19th-century country life of all classes ring true, while the story line is clear, yet full of surprises. The "editor's notes" that punctuate the text and old cures for various ills that open each chapter add to the charm. (Aug.)

About The Author

Stephanie Barron is the author of the standalone historical suspense novels A Flaw in the Blood and The White Garden, as well as the Jane Austen mystery series. As Francine Mathews, she is the author of several novels of espionage, including The Alibi Club. She lives in Denver, Colorado.Kate Reading is the recipient of three AudioFile Earphones Awards, and has narrated everything from Patricia Cornwell to George Eliot. Her favorite BOT recordings include Like Water for ChocolateMiddlemarch, and Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Times series, which she narrated with her husband, Michael Kramer.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Emma

The quality and research involved in this book means I really couldn’t give this book less than 4 stars. I don’t have an extensive knowledge of Jane Austen’s life, but I have read Lucy Worseley’s biography and much of the information in there is confirmed by this author. However for some reason I ha......more

My Rating: 4.5* "There are moments in life that should justifiably live long in memory - moments of experience so deeply felt, whether pain or pleasure, that they mark the human soul even unto the grave." (quote from the book) I am slowly working my way through this series. I had hopes of reading at l......more

Goodreads review by Sarah

This is an excellent series, featuring author Jane Austen as protagonist and amateur sleuth.......more


Quotes

Jane Austen as sleuth continues to delight in her latest adventure.

Barron catches Austen's tone amazingly well. Details of early 19th-century country life of all classes ring true, while the story line is clear, yet full of surprises.