Jane & the Final Mystery

Since the publication of Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor, the first novel in the Being a Jane Austen mystery series, Stephanie Barron has offered readers a pitch-perfect rendering of the great author as indomitable amateur sleuth. The series' fifteen novels have brought to life fifteen years of Jane's career and Regency milieu, infusing each murder investigation with rich period detail drawn from the author's own letters.

But now it is the spring of 1817, and Janeites know that the great author's story is drawing to a close. Jane's health has taken a turn for the worse, threatening to cease progress on her latest manuscript. When her nephew Edward brings chilling news of a death at his former school, the elite Winchester College, not even her debilitating ailment can keep Jane from seeking out the truth, especially since it means clearing the name of a dear family friend.

Jane takes up lodging near the idyllic college in order to untangle the duplicitous testimonies that surround the prefect's untimely demise. But Winchester College is a world unto itself, with its own language and rites of passage, cruel hazing and dangerous pranks. Can she discover the truth before her illness gets the better of her? Fighting against time and her failing body, Jane has one last chance to apply her magnificent skills of deduction to the pursuit of justice.

March 1817: As winter turns to spring, Jane Austen's health is in slow decline, and threatens to cease progress on her latest manuscript. But when her nephew Edward brings chilling news of a death at his former school, Winchester College, not even her debilitating ailment can keep Jane from seeking out the truth. Arthur Prendergast, a senior pupil at the prestigious all-boys' boarding school, has been found dead in a culvert near the schoolgrounds--and in the pocket of his drenched waistcoat is an incriminating note penned by the young William Heathcote, the son of Jane's dear friend Elizabeth. Prendergast had been widely reviled for his ruthless bullying. Has William exacted revenge on his tormentor, or is there a larger conspiracy looming?

Jane takes up lodging near the idyllic college in order to untangle the duplicitous testimonies surrounding the prefect's death. But Winchester College is a world unto itself, with its own language and rites of passage, cruel hazing and dangerous pranks. Can she clear William's name before her illness gets the better of her?