Murder at Donwell Abbey (An Emma Knightley Mystery)
Vanessa Kelly is back with the second book in her Emma Knightley mystery series, but you don’t have to read the first one to follow and enjoy Murder at Donwell Abbey.
This book is set in 1816 after the events of Jane Austen’s Emma. Things in Highbury are going well as Emma settles into her marriage to George Knightley. They spend lots of time at Hartfield while work is done at Donwell Abbey to make it a more comfortable place to live. More excitement is soon afoot, though, as Emma’s father announces that he will soon marry the talkative Miss Bates! But before Emma or anyone else can absorb this surprise and start planning the wedding, tragedy strikes as a young servant named Prudence Parr is found dead at a party. Did she fall out of that upper-story bedroom window, or was she pushed? Law officials rule Prudence’s death an accident, but Emma is not convinced. She pokes and prods around town, uncovering suspicions everywhere, until finally Miss Bates herself teams up with Emma and together they try to solve what they are convinced is a murder.
Kelly’s writing is fun and easy to read while still nodding to Austen’s characterizations and style. It’s fun to “turn the page” after Austen’s book ends and see what married life is like for Emma and Knightley.
