Three of Jane Austen’s classic novels receive a murder mystery makeover in this romantic and thrilling three-book series that’s perfect for fans of The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy and Stalking Jack the Ripper. In Sense and Second-Degree Murder, aspiring scientist Elinor Dashwood and her sister Marianne, a budding detective, work together to solve the mystery of their father’s murder.
When eighteen-year-old aspiring scientist Elinor Dashwood discovers her beloved father slumped over the desk of his office study, she knows his death means dire straits for the Dashwood women. To make matters worse, an outdated will entails his estate—including Norland & Company, the private investigation firm where her younger sister Marianne worked as her father’s partner and protégé—to their half-brother and his haughty wife, who waste no time in forcing the Dashwoods out of their home and into a cramped apartment on London’s Barton Street.
But before they go, the Dashwood sisters make a startling discovery that points to foul play, and the killer might be family.
Obviously, the girls must investigate. It could be dangerous; it could ruin their reputations; and most importantly, it won’t bring back their father. But if the Dashwood sisters can combine their talents and bring their father’s murderer to justice, it may bring them all some comfort—and it might even lead to love.
- Title: Sense and Second-Degree Murder
- Author: Tirzah Price
- Publisher: HarperCollins
- Publication Date: April 5th, 2022
- Genre: Mystery, Retelling, Historical Fiction
- Source: Netgalley / publisher sent ARC, (Digital ARC via Netgalley / Publisher/Author in exchange for an honest review)
- Targeted Age Range: Young Adult
- Content Warnings: Death of a parent (not on page – but the body is found, not explicit – chapter 1), mentioned past death of a parent, murder, poison, injury (sprained ankle, chapter 6, gun shot chapter 18), grief, mentions of post partum (chapter 9), discussions of medical animal testing (chapter 9), discussion of drugs and drug addiction, blood, breaking and entering, fire, guns and gun fire (chapter 18), surgery (on page, not graphic, chapter 19), vomit (chapter 20)
- Rating: ★★★★
If you’ve seen my Goodreads account lately, you’ll notice that I am in a regency era phase (or what I’m also calling a Bridgerton Binge). While I am quite enjoying all these regency era stories, I have been missing a good mystery, and Sense and Second-Degree Murder combines the two things brilliantly!
Sense and Second-Degree Murder centers around the Dashwood sisters — Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret — after the discovery of their father dead in his study. John, the girl’s half-brother, and his wife, Fanny, are to inherit their family estate and so they quickly kick the girls and their mother out of the house, forcing them to move into a much smaller apartment. However, getting kicked out of their home is the least of their worries. While the doctor is quick to dismiss their father’s death as a heart attack, Elinor and Marianne put their science and detective skills to work and quickly discover that their father had been poisoned. The Dashwood girls work together to discover the killer, but with every new discovery they find themselves in more danger. Can they find the killer before they strike again?
It’s no secret that I love Jane Austen, so this Jane Austen Murder Mystery series is one that called to me right away. I thoroughly enjoyed Pride and Premeditation, so I was very eager to get my hands on Sense and Second-Degree Murder and it did not disappoint!
This was a very cleverly crafted mystery! At the start of the book it seems like there is an easy culprit — they have means and motive, it had to have been them! — but as the story goes on, more layers to the mystery are revealed. There were a few things that I just didn’t see coming and hadn’t anticipated — I loved it! The reveal surprised me, but didn’t feel as though it came out of the blue, which is, in my opinion, a super important aspect of mystery storytelling. If the reader is going to be surprised by the ending, it must make sense and I’m very glad that this one did.
My favorite thing about Sense and Second-Degree Murder had to be the characterization! Price does a great job of honoring the source material while creating a new and exciting narrative. All the characters were fully developed, interesting, and felt reminiscent of their original counterparts, without being carbon copies.
I really loved how all three Dashwood daughters had something that they were passionate about — Elinor with science, Marianne with detective work, and Margaret with mysteries and storytelling. It was great to see all three of their skills and knowledge used to solve the mystery of their father’s murder. Additionally, I was so happy that even though Margaret was eleven, neither Elinor, nor Marianne treated her like she was too young to understand what was going on. They listened to her theories, discussed their plans with her, and kept her in the loop the entire time. As a younger sister myself, it meant a lot to me that Margaret’s older sisters listened to hear and clearly respected her.
Fanny was still the literal worst, John was right in character with having zero backbone, and I definitely had a soft spot for Edward. Lucy and Willoughby were especially intriguing and I really liked how they developed throughout the novel.
I loved Price’s addition of feminist themes through the Dashwood sisters and that she did so in a way that felt very authentic. Each of the girls had agency, spoke up for themselves, and demanded the respect that they deserved. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been reading a lot of regency era books lately, and unfortunately, have had to set aside feminism for some cringey storytelling, so it was a nice change to not have to do so while reading Sense and Second-Degree Murder.
Sense and Second-Degree Murder may have just been released, but I already can’t wait for the next book in this series. If you like regency stories and mysteries, I definitely recommend checking out the Jane Austen Murder Mystery series!
Links for Sense and Second-Degree Murder: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indigo
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Tirzah Price grew up on a farm in Michigan, where she read every book she could get her hands on and never outgrew her love for YA fiction. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and is a former bookseller and librarian. Now, she’s a contributing editor at Book Riot, where she can be found recommending books on the site, newsletters, podcasts, and social media accounts. When she’s not writing, reading, or thinking about YA books, she splits her time between experimenting in the kitchen and knitting enough socks to last the fierce Michigan winters.
Tirzah is pronounced TEER-zuh. Pronouns are she/her.