"Being unladylike feels so...exciting." ~Juliet Tilney
Claudia Gray's newest novel imagines a world in which the incorrigible Mr. Wickham gets his comeuppance.
All right, I'll admit, when I first heard about The Murder of Mr. Wickham (Vintage, May 3, 2022), I was intrigued. After all, I adored Pride and Prejudice and would play the movie (Matthew Macfadyen's Mr. Darcy, thank you very much) adaptation nearly every day as stress relief back in my teaching days.
I know I'm not alone in my love for this classic novel (though there is quite a robust debate of whether Colin Firth or Macfadyen is the true Darcy. Ahem, see above), and who among us wouldn't have wanted Mr. Wickham to be, well, "dealt with?"
But a young adult author, a Star Wars author was going to handle our beloved Jane's canon? Egads!
Well.
This book is FABULOUS. Really. A thousand apologies for my own literary snobbery and doubts before I knew anything about Gray or her work. It's like she sat down and wrote the exact book I wanted to read.
Oh, but perhaps I should explain what the buzz is all about in the first place.
Our story starts very simply: Emma and Mr. Knightly throw a house party at their estate, inviting all their friends - the beloved characters from Jane Austen's most famous books, including my favorites, Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam Darcy and Marianne and Colonel Christopher Brandon.
But trouble stirs when the dastardly Mr. Wickham shows up, scheming as always, and irritating everyone is his wake. It's clear that no one wants him there (uninvited, no less!), but no one really thought he'd end up...dead.
Unfortunately, just about everyone at the party has a motive for murder and it's up to the only two who don't - teenagers Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney - to figure out who amongst them is the killer.
Setting the book in 1820, Gray notes that she took the years each Austen book was published to age her characters. Thus, for example, we are able to meet Pride and Prejudice's Elizabeth and Darcy's (who are into their second decade of marriage) son Jonathan, while Sense and Sensibility's Marianne has just married Colonel Brandon.
And sorry, but was I not supposed to envision Alan Rickman on every page Brandon appeared on?
This was such a lovely tribute to Austen. The language, for me, was quite evocative of the books Murder is based upon, and it was just a joy to see characters I've come to love all interacting on the page. The mystery itself was quiet - you're not going to get a modern interpretation of a death full of blood and gore here; it's not a thriller in the sense of fast paced twists and turns. But for those of us who enjoy a peaceful (if murder can be, even of one of literature's most detestable characters) read, it's quite satisfying.
Gray did take some liberties on the page. Sleuths Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney (daughter of Northanger Abbey's Catherine and Henry) are of her own creation, and they are quite believably drawn into this story. It's also lovely to see what Elizabeth's and Darcy's marriage and family life is like. A loving friendship, not perfect, but a strong partnership. It's what any of us could hope for in our own lives.
As for the murderer? Well, of course I won't spoil that here, but it's not close to who I was expecting, yet it worked so incredibly well.
My one caveat: yes, I do want everyone to read this book. I've been talking it up to anyone who will listen. Yes, I'm a bit biased, because Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility are two of my favorite books and the film adaptations are ones I come back to again and again. With that being said, those who are not already familiar with Austen's works (either books or films) may struggle with this novel. It doesn't really dwell on deeply introducing its characters. Rather, it assumes the reader already has a familiarity with them.
Like the bookmark about the potatoes: if you know, you know, you know? (if you don't, run to the 2005 Pride and Prejudice film. Yes, even if you're Team Firth. Check out how Mr. Collins plays the awkward dinner).
Back to Mr. Wickham. Please do check it out, especially if you love quiet, historical mysteries and are a proud Janeite. You will not be disappointed.
But I've got to agree with Emma when all is said and done: "house parties are more trouble than they are worth...never, ever have another one."
A very special thank you to Laurel Ann Nattress of Austenprose PR for inviting me along on this blog tour and to Vintage for providing me with a copy of this book so I could review it for you. It's been an absolute pleasure!
AUTHOR BIO
Claudia Gray is the pseudonym of Amy Vincent. She is the writer of multiple young adult novels, including the Evernight series, the Firebird trilogy, and the Constellation trilogy. In addition, she’s written several Star Wars novels, such as Lost Stars and Bloodline. She makes her home in New Orleans with her husband Paul and assorted small dogs.
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