Where True Crime Meets Jane Austen, by Jessica Bull

The Miss Austen Investigates series is my tribute to Jane Austen, telling the story of her life and work through the format of a murder mystery. I really wanted to capture the vibrant, witty, and joyfully irreverent woman I believe Austen was. I also wanted to tell her story, because it’s tempting to conflate Austen with her more privileged heroines and imagine her path to success was easy. 

All the things that stand in the way of her investigations are the same obstacles she faced in becoming a published author, and the unique qualities which enabled her genius in real life (such as her sense of justice, an innate understanding of human nature and a determination to succeed) allow her to solve the mysteries in my novels.

In this second instalment, a broken-hearted Jane Austen travels to Kent to look after her brother Neddy’s children and further her writing. She soon realizes it’s imperative she uncovers the true identity of a mysterious young woman claiming to be a shipwrecked foreign princess before the interloper can swindle Neddy’s adoptive mother out of her fortune and steal the much-anticipated inheritance all the Austen’s rely on.

As well Austen, there is another fascinating historical figure who inspired this novel. In 1817, a former servant girl, Mary Baker (née Willcocks), persuaded a Gloucester magistrate and his wife she was Princess Caraboo of the fictional island of Javasu in the Indian Ocean, and that she had been captured by pirates and escaped by jumping overboard in the Bristol Channel and swimming ashore.

Her ruse was eventually discovered but, rather than prosecute, Mary’s benefactress gave her some money to start afresh in America. Everyone who knew Mary said she loved to tell stories. It made me wonder, if Mary had been born into the class of women who were fortunate enough to receive an education, would she be remembered as another Jane Austen?

A Fortune Most Fatal will be published by Penguin Michael Joseph on 27 March 2025. Who are you, Miss Austen, but a young lady of little experience and no consequence?’ Welcome to Godmersham Park, 1797. Following many years apart, Jane Austen is set to spend the summer with her estranged brother, Neddy. As heir to wealthy widow Mrs Knight’s fortune, it is imperative that Neddy stays in his benefactor’s good graces. But upon arrival in Kent, Jane quickly realises Neddy is in dire need of her help. For a mysterious young woman named Eleanor currently resides with Mrs Knight – a stranger who threatens to swindle the inheritance for herself. Jane must uncover who Mrs Knight’s guest really is, to protect the fate of her entire family. When she discovers a series of threatening letters meant for Eleanor, her investigation takes an unexpected turn. Because the dangers aren’t just within the walls of Godmersham Park. Jane knows someone else is out there watching, waiting – but for what? Is this curious Eleanor friend, or foe? And can Jane solve the mystery, before danger comes for them all?

Jessica Bull lives in Southeast London with her husband and two daughters. A former librarian and communications consultant, she studied English literature at Bristol University and information science at City, University of London. A Fortune Most Fatal is the second novel in the Miss Austen Investigates series.

More information about Jessica Bull can be found on her website. You can also find her on Instagram @ jessicabullnovelist, on Facebook @JessicaBullAuthor and on Bluesky @jessicabull.bsky.social

Buy your copy: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/a-fortune-most-fatal-jessica-bull/7703849?ean=9780241642115

South Downs Crime & Mystery

Not the SCROOGE you thought you knew... Just in time for Christmas, available now to order at Amazon at a special price of just £1.99! The Humbug Murders is the first title in the new Ebenezer Scrooge Mysteries series by New York Times bestselling author L.J. Oliver. As the December nights grow long and cold in Victorian London, the Christmas geese are getting fat - as are the pockets of ambitious young moneylender Ebenezer Scrooge. In his Cheapside counting house Ebenezer receives an early-morning visit from his old mentor, Reginald Fezziwig. Not that strange, except that Fezziwig claims to be dead. Murdered, in fact. And his ghost predicts other victims will follow - including Scrooge himself - unless Ebenezer finds the real culprit. Aided by an unconventional female clerk named Adelaide Owen, the two mingle with some of the city’s most colorful characters - the Artful Dodger, Fagin, even a wily young reporter named Charles Dickens. But the truth is murkier than the Thames at twilight, and one misplaced word, one glance askew, and the ever-thrifty Scrooge and his fellow detective will be forced to pay the ultimate price...

Special Offer on the Mr and Mrs Darcy Series For a limited time, you can enter the wonderful world of Mr and Mrs Darcy for only 99p! Mr & Mrs Darcy, the joyous newlyweds from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, have not even left for their honeymoon when they find themselves embroiled in a mystery involving one of their wedding guests. The lovely Caroline Bingley is engaged to marry a rich and charismatic American. Unfortunately, this windswept courtship is marred by many strange events - nocturnal wanderings, spooked horses, carriage accidents, and even an apparent suicide attempt. Soon the whole Bingley family seems the target of a mysterious plot, with only the Darcys recognising the danger. Sinister forces are afoot and the Darcys must get to the bottom of this mystery before the blushing bride descends into madness - or worse. And, if you fall in love with this charming series, the next two books in the series, Suspense and Sensibility and North by Northanger are only £1.99. Enjoy! South Downs Crime & Mystery is a new independent publisher of cosy, historical and golden age mysteries. We believe crime doesn't always have to be bloody and that great characters, settings and plot are what make mysteries so satisfying. Over the coming months we'll be announcing more wonderful titles and more offers. If you'd like to be kept up to date, please like the Facebook page.

Val McDermid and Jane Austen pair off!!!

Fans of Jane Austen and  Val McDermid   will be pleased to learn that in Spring 2014 HarperFiction will publish a contemporary re-working of Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey by Crime Writer Val McDermid.

Shots were delighted to receive the press release below from HarperFiction!

HarperFiction announces the latest pairing in the Austen series: Val McDermid & Northanger Abbey 

Val McDermid is to write a contemporary re-working of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey – the latest author to be confirmed in this major series.

Louisa Joyner and Julia Wisdom have acquired World All Language rights from Jane Gregory in Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid as part of a series of six novels teaming up authors of global literary significance with Jane Austen’s six complete works. This, the latest book in the series, is planned for publication in Spring 2014. 

Louisa Joyner, Editorial Director, said: ‘There is so much scope for reinvention in this often misunderstood novel and the idea of Val McDermid breathing life into it by bringing her literary expertise as the pre-eminent crime writer to re-ignite the novel’s fear factor is incredibly exciting.  Our stated aim is to create a series where each novel is a publishing event in its own right, and Val McDermid firmly establishes these partnerships as a literary force to be reckoned with.’

Julia Wisdom, Publisher, Crime & Thriller, said: ‘What bliss – a novel that brings together two of my all-time favourite authors, Jane Austen and Val McDermid.   It’s a mouth-watering prospect, not least because we can expect the unexpected from Val, a genius at creating suspense, a plotter par excellence and a crime writer whose creative imagination and versatility are second to none.  I have no doubt that Northanger Abbey as re-imagined by Val McDermid is going to be wonderful, and we are all thrilled to be publishing it.’

Val McDermid’s comment: 'I was surprised and delighted to be asked to come up with a contemporary take on Northanger Abbey. Well, actually, I was gobsmacked, but that's obviously not the sort of word you'd find in the pages of Jane Austen. I've always enjoyed Austen's work, not least because it still feels relevant to our lives, and Northanger Abbey offers tantalizing possibilities to a modern writer. It's lively, satirical and holds out the opportunity for a genuine frisson of fear. I've always enjoyed challenging myself in my writing, and this will definitely make demands on my imagination and my craft. I can't wait to get started.' 

HarperFiction publishes Joanna Trollope’s Sense & Sensibility  in Autumn 2013 to launch the series. Curtis Sittenfeld’s Pride & Prejudice will be published in Autumn 2014. Conversations are ongoing as to the other literary pairings and further announcements will follow.

For more information please contact Liz Dawson on Elizabeth.dawson@harpercollins.co.uk / 0208 307 4412