Jane Austen is visiting her brother and sister-in-law at Godmersham Park, when a mysterious lady is murdered at the Canterbury Races. As Justice of the Peace, Jane’s brother, Edward, must investigate the murder, and Jane is all eagerness to help solve the puzzle.

I really liked this story and the history behind it. There is quite a lot of real history woven into the story with Jane’s family and her acquaintances, but of course the murder mystery and Jane’s involvement in the investigation are entirely fictional.

The best part of this book is the close look at Jane’s day to day interactions with her family, her nieces and nephews, and especially her sister Cassandra. It’s fun to imagine what their family dynamic might have been like.
The murder mystery itself is good, but sometimes a little predictable. I was completely shocked at the ending though! I feel like the mystery could have been solved more satisfactorily. There are still some loose ends hanging around that bother me.

I love the formal writing style that mimics the Regency era language. The dialogue is fairly close to what a real conversation might have been like in that time period. It really immerses you in the history.