I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Portraits of Pemberley
by Elizabeth Gilliland
Series: Austen University Mysteries #2
Series Rating:
Published by Bayou Wolf Press on July 5, 2023
Setting: Louisana
Genres: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 285
Format: ebook
Source: Great Escapes Book Tours
Goodreads
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon
Also in this series: What Happened on Box Hill
After George Wickham is found tied up, naked, on the Austen University Campus Square, President de Bourgh gives student journalist Lizzy Bennet an ultimatum: Find out who committed the crime, or be expelled from the school. Lizzy must team up with some old friends (like the Austen Murder Club) and some new (like...Karoline Bingley?) to get to the bottom of the truth.
Complicating matters is the fact that the prime suspect is Fo-Hian Darcy. Darcy and Lizzy have a messy history, but even so, Lizzy just can't accept that Darcy committed the crime. An anonymous whistleblower tips off Lizzy about a secret website called the Portraits of Pemberley that may help her get to the bottom of the mystery--but discovering the truth about who's involved may very well challenge everything that Lizzy believes.The Portraits of Pemberley is Book 2 of the Austen University Mysteries series but can be read as a standalone novel. It combines plot points of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice with Sense and Sensibility (and characters from all of Austen's novels) in a modern-university setting, with mysteries.
The Portraits of Pemberley by Elizabeth Gilliland is a mystery filled with the social issues of today, set in an elite Southern university.
Will Lizzy figure out who assaulted Wickham before she or Darcy are expelled?
Elizabeth ‘Lizzy’ Bennet
Lizzy is our sleuth. She is a scholarship student living with the Dashwood sisters at the Delta Sorority House. She isn’t searching out a murderer, but she nonetheless is trying to figure out who would have assaulted George Wickham. The consequence of not cracking this mystery is being expelled from Austen University. Lizzy enlists the Austen Murder Club to help her find the true culprit.
This installment is from Lizzy’s point of view. It was nice to see what Lizzy is like in her voice. She is a bit naive when it comes to Darcy, though. I like the growth we see in Lizzy, Karoline, and Marianne throughout the story.
The Mysteries
A few things are being investigated in The Portraits of Pemberley by our Austen Murder Club.
- Who attacked George Wickham?
- Who is running the Portraits of Pemberley Nudie website on the dark web?
- Why are Darcy and Knightley doing at night walking around campus?
- Why is Willoughby ghosting Marianne?
- Who posted the picture of Marianne on the English department’s social media page?
- Who hit Marianne with a car?
- Why is Charlie back in town but not acting as himself?
- Who paid Marianne’s hospital bill?
Ms. Gilliland does an outstanding job of bringing all the clues together and answering most of the questions above. The one thing she didn’t unless I missed it, was tell who the driver was that hit Marianne and ran. A few of them, I figured out, but how exactly they got a specific individual to accept responsibility for one of the mysteries is beyond me.
I like how Ms. Gilliland stays true to the characters of Jane Austen. She has modernized them, but they are still familiar.
Four Stars
My rating for The Portraits of Pemberley by Elizabeth Gilliland is four stars. I found that the constant time hopping made me question the timeline and sometimes took me out of the story. However, I still enjoyed the story and recommend it.
Austen University Mysteries
Giveaway
Prize: Four eBooks and One Print copy of The Portraits Of Pemberley
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Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of The Portraits of Pemberley by Elizabeth Gilliland. Check out the other stops and giveaway if you have time.
Until the next time,
About Elizabeth Gilliland
Elizabeth Gilliland is a writer, Dr., wife, mom, and lifelong Jane Austen fan. She is a playwright (whose plays have appeared off-off Broadway), a screenwriter (with a master’s in screenwriting and production), an academic (with a PhD and a dissertation on Jane Austen adaptations), and now a published author! When she isn’t writing or grading papers, she is most likely reading a good book, binge watching the latest hit, working on a puzzle, or hanging with her cute kid.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- Jenz 2023 Cloak and Dagger
- Jenz 2023 Craving the Cozies
- Jenz 2023 Cruisin' thru the Cozies
- Jenz 2023 Finishing the Series
- Jenz 2023 Goodreads RC
Thank you for hosting, Jen! And good luck to all who enter the giveaway. I hope you enjoy!