Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price

Add Pride and Premeditation, a “Jane Austen Murder Mystery” to your YA shelf for a light, amusing summertime diversion.

Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price. HarperTeen, 2021, 354 pages.

Reading Level: Teen, ages 12-15

Recommended for: 14-up

Elizabeth Bennet is as sharp as anyone in her father’s law firm, Longbourne & Sons, and much more so than the odious Mr. Collins. Yet, even though her father values her acumen, there’s no chance of his making her a partner in the firm—not in Regency England! But when Charles Bingley, of Netherfield Shipping, is accused of murdering his brother-in-law George Hurst, Lizzie sees an opportunity to grab a juicy case. The attractive Mr. Bingley convinces her he is innocent, but fortunately he has an attorney already: a Mr. Darcy, of Pemberley & Associates, who is also Bingley’s closest friend. Too bad Mr. Darcy is cold-hearted snob, else he and Lizzie might have worked together on the case. But if she can’t defend it, perhaps she can solve it.

The clever use of Austen characters and place names will amuse at least some Austen fans, even though the story doesn’t proceed along similar lines. It’s a murder mystery, after all. Sparks fly between Elizabeth and Darcy, of course, but by the Finis, they are sparks of a different kind. Of course. Don’t expect sharp observation of the Austen kind, but Lizzie gets off some witty one-liners. Also, though she frets about her limitations in this man’s world, the most blatant feminism is reserved for a less-than-admirable character.  

Consideration:

• Some misuses of God’s name, not uncommon for the time.

Overall Rating: 3.75 (out of 5)

• Worldview/moral value: 3.5
• Artistic/literary value: 4

Read more about our ratings here.

Also at Redeemed Reader:

• Reviews: Pride and Premeditation joins the many other P&P remixes and retellings and knockoffs, including Pride, Prom and Prejudice, Enthusiasm, and A School for Brides.
• Resource: See our perennially-popular Mystery Book List!

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