Starred review from July 4, 2011
Set in 1813, Barron's excellent 11th Jane Austen mystery (after 2010's Jane and the Madness of Lord Byron) takes Jane to Kent for a lengthy stay with her brother Edward at his estate. When the body of a man, shot in the chest, is found on the Pilgrim's Way that dates to Chaucer's time, Edward, as first magistrate for the area, must investigate. Fortunately, he has his keenly observant sister to assist. As the case progresses, Edward fears that it may be "my duty to hang one of my friends before very long." Janeites will be pleased to see that Barron highlights the Austen family dynamics rather than the peccadilloes of the Regency's most privileged stratum, as she did in the previous two installments. They'll also enjoy tracing the parallels between the many distinctive characters and the inspiration for them in Austen's originals.