It is a truth universally acknowledged that a mother in possession of two single daughters will not rest until both daughters are wed.

Even if one of the daughters—me, Phaedra Brighton—is a professor of English Literature and a Jane Austen scholar with a satisfying career. And, more recently, a reluctant amateur sleuth.

It’s Thursday morning, and my mind is filled with questions. Where are my notes? When will my mother stop plaguing me about finding a husband? Why did I choose today, Dean Carmichael’s monthly faculty meeting, to oversleep?

I’m tempted to throw on khakis and a cardigan, but I have a lecture scheduled at one and don’t like to disappoint my students. I shimmy into a chemise, pantaloons, and a green Empire waist gown, followed by ballet slippers, my reticule, and . . .

My cell phone rings and I snatch it up from the hall table. “Mom? What is it? I’m running late.”

“I won’t keep you, Phaedra. I just want to know if you’re still coming to dinner tonight.”

I rush into the kitchen and fling kibble into Wickham’s bowl, receiving an affronted stare from the Himalayan cat as I set a dish of fresh water on the floor before him. “I suppose so. Why?”

“No reason. Just confirming. We’re having your favorite, meat loaf. See you tonight!”

I haven’t liked meat loaf since I was eight years old, but I don’t argue. I promise to be there at seven and end the call. After tying a bonnet under my chin, I head out the door and slide behind the wheel of my Mini Cooper. Not the easiest thing to do in an ankle length Regency gown.

I arrive at Somerset University in record time, park, and race inside the Humanities building. The meeting is in the second-floor conference room and the door is already closed. I remove my bonnet, drag in a calming breath, and ease inside.

Six pairs of eyes follow me as I proceed down the length of the table in my silk slippers to the remaining empty seat. Mark Selden, newest addition to the faculty and a man who considers himself God’s gift to academia, lifts his eyebrow as I pass.

Dean Carmichael is writing on the whiteboard and discussing the quarterly budget.

I slide into a chair, hoping he won’t notice. Lucy Liang, professor of Modern and Post-Modernist Literature and my closest friend, shoots me an infinitesimal frown from across the table.

“Professor Brighton.” Carmichael turns around. “Thank you for joining us. Did you travel by carriage this morning? Stumble across a murder on the way in?”

Over scattershot laughter, I force a smile. The Dean is quite the wit today. “I overslept. My apologies.”

One hour, two texts from my mother, and several budget cuts later, the meeting ends with a reminder that the faculty Christmas party is Friday evening at the Carmichaels’. With the tacit understanding that everyone had better be there.

I make my way to Lecture Room 3 to address my first-year Nineteenth Century British Literature class, remain behind to answer questions, and duck into my office for a late lunch at my desk.

My mother calls. “The new bridal magazines are here. I pulled a few for you to look at.” In between chairing the historical society and matchmaking, she assists my father at his bookstore, The Poison Pen.

“I’m not getting married. Why would I want to look at bridal gowns?”

After helping the Somerset County police solve a murder last spring, I should’ve picked up on my mother’s clues. Confirming my presence at a casual family dinner? Dropping not-so-subtle hints about wedding gowns?

I push my suspicions aside and focus on grading the stack of essays on my desk.

It’s after six when I get home. With no time to change, I feed an aggrieved Wickham some kibble and a half-can of salmon and head to my parents’ Victorian townhouse.

I let myself in and pause at the bottom of the stairs. The first-floor bookstore is closed but conversation and laughter drift down the staircase. One of the voices is male and distinctly British. My fingers tighten on my car keys.

She wouldn’t. I march up the stairs and halt as I reach the kitchen.

She would. Mark Selden, Professor of English and Comparative Literature, Oxford-educated Shakespearean scholar and the bane of my university existence, looks up, drink in hand and a smirk on his handsome face.

“Professor Brighton. Still traveling by carriage, I see.”

And you’re still an ass, I nearly say, but don’t. “We broke an axle. So inconvenient.”

A mischievous gleam lights his eye and he lifts his glass. “Indeed.”

“Phaedra’s always running late,” my mother says, “aren’t you, darling?” She pours me a glass of white and hands it over.

And you’re always throwing unattached men at me.

I thrust my murderous thoughts aside, affix a smile to my lips, and take the chair Mark holds out for me.

“Thank you.” I can put up with him for one evening.

But my mother has a lot to answer for.

---

Pride, Prejudice, and Peril, A Jane Austen Tea Society Mystery #1
Genre: Cozy
Release: December 2021
Purchase Link

Jane Austen meets reality TV and murder in this quirky cozy mystery—the first in a new series!

Phaedra Brighton is perfectly content with her life of lecturing college students, gossiping with her best friends, and dreaming of Mr. Darcy. As a young, respected (if somewhat peculiar) English professor, her expertise lies in all things Jane Austen—but she knows that the closest she’ll ever get to being a real-life Elizabeth Bennet is in her dreams.

When “Who Wants to Marry Mr. Darcy,” a new reality TV show, starts filming at her best friend Charlene’s estate, Phaedra is intrigued. And when the producer asks her to lend her Austenian knowledge as a consultant on the show, she’s over the moon. But on the first day of filming, when Charlene’s new husband is found electrocuted and Charlene herself is accused of the crime, Phaedra comes crashing back to reality.

With murder on the syllabus and her best friend in dire straits, there’s no Mr. Darcy around to help Phaedra—she’ll have to get to the bottom of this mystery herself.

---

Meet the author
Katie Oliver is the Amazon bestselling romance author of the Dating Mr. Darcy and Marrying Mr. Darcy series. The first book in her Jane Austen Tea Society Mystery series, Pride, Prejudice, and Peril, was published by Berkley Prime Crime in December 2021. She currently resides in South Florida with her husband, a computer, and an ever-growing stack of cozy mysteries waiting to be read. Learn more about Katie and her books at katieoliver.com, on Twitter at @katieoliver01, or Facebook at KatieOliverWriter.

All comments are welcomed.