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175th out of 419 books
—
403 voters
Jane and the Stillroom Maid (Jane Austen Mysteries #5)
Jane Austen as sleuth continues to delight in her latest adventure (after Jane and the Genius of the Place), which sheds new light on the author's travels in 1806. While enjoying a ramble in the Derbyshire hills near Bakewell (a town Eliza Bennett visits in Pride and Prejudice), Jane discovers the mutilated body of a young man. Jane's suspicions are roused when her escort,...more
Hardcover, 288 pages
Published
August 1st 2000
by Bantam
(first published January 1st 2000)
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Pretty good book. It was kind of hard to get into.
Jun 06, 2012
Ivonne Rovira
added it
Jane and the Stillroom Maid is a nice comeback from the disappointment of the fourth installment in this otherwise spritely series. Unlike Jane and the Genius of the Place, the reason for the servant's odd dress isn't obvious from the very first. Indeed, I found myself being constantly surprised. You won't guess "who done it" until you're told in the very last pages.
As with all the Jane Austen mysteries, you'll find yourself enjoying the style and historical footnotes as much as the mystery itse...more
As with all the Jane Austen mysteries, you'll find yourself enjoying the style and historical footnotes as much as the mystery itse...more
Touring the Derbyshire countryside in the summer of 1806, Jane Austen, her mother, sister Cassandra and cousin Rev. Edward Cooper are staying at the Rutland Arms in Bakewell, in the Peak District. While on a day excursion out into the country with Mr. Cooper and his friend Mr. Hemming, the gentleman enjoy angling along the River Wye and Jane pursues her passion for a country walk, shortly ending in a disturbing discovery. A young gentleman is found “foully and cruelly” murdered on a crag near Mi...more
A couple of years ago, I really jumped into this series. I do not consider myself a mystery reader, but I really enjoyed these books. Perhaps it is because the main character is Jane Austen, and I have been known to enjoy an Austen book or two.
Jane, her mother, sister, and cousin are on a trip to Derbysire (which is beautiful country, I must add). On an afternoon of visiting the countryside, Jane discovers a dead, and mutilated body. It turns out that while on first appearing like a man, the tru...more
Jane, her mother, sister, and cousin are on a trip to Derbysire (which is beautiful country, I must add). On an afternoon of visiting the countryside, Jane discovers a dead, and mutilated body. It turns out that while on first appearing like a man, the tru...more
Hooray for a book I loved!
The concept sounds a little funny... Jane Austen as a accidental detective, but it worked. She was obviously a witty and bright woman so the thought of her curiosities being peaked to the point of investigation didn't seem so far fetched to me.
The author must be a Jane Austen historian because many of the characters/dates/locations are accurate accounts of Austen's life - what Stephanie Barron does is takes unaccounted time lapses of her life and fills them in with mys...more
The concept sounds a little funny... Jane Austen as a accidental detective, but it worked. She was obviously a witty and bright woman so the thought of her curiosities being peaked to the point of investigation didn't seem so far fetched to me.
The author must be a Jane Austen historian because many of the characters/dates/locations are accurate accounts of Austen's life - what Stephanie Barron does is takes unaccounted time lapses of her life and fills them in with mys...more
This book finds Jane in the Derbyshire countryside, enjoying the views, when she stumbles across a dead body. I'm not as pleased with this one as with any of the others (though we do, at least, get a large dose of Lord Harold) - the plot seems both too contrived and too dramatic, yet without enough tension to sustain it. Certainly the crimes were hideous, but I'm still not sure why it was "obvious" that it was all someone else's idea really. But read it for the delightful characters, visits to E...more
I suppose that having read five of these, I should be very generous with praise. Really, I wanted to like these, the premise is great, each installment is full of references only a true fan of Austen would recognise, either in discriptions or character's statements. I do appreciate them more than most Austen fan literature. However, I'm giving up the series. I'd rather read Jane's books again. The other reason is that the library is out of large-print editions after this one. I had been reading...more
Another what-really-happened book, the author claims to have come across a trunk of Jane Austen's letters that provide fodder for this series of books about Jane's life -- as a detective in Regency England. We follow Jane through her everyday life and trials as a spinster living with her mother on a limited income. We see Jane in love with a seemingly unattainable man. We find Jane involved in intrigue, state secrets, and a bit of mystery. (We find Jane writing her books in scraps of paper in-be...more
A little annoyed that this series keeps being presented as fact when it is woven out of whole cloth. However, I have found them to be very entertaining, thoughtful and complex reads. Definitely not cozy mysteries, but the opposite in fact.
I do enjoy the portrayal of the manners of Jane Austen's time. Whether she would ever actually participate and involve herself in solving murders is really beside the point. Suspense your qualms or questions revolving the truth of the stories. Just enjoy them....more
I do enjoy the portrayal of the manners of Jane Austen's time. Whether she would ever actually participate and involve herself in solving murders is really beside the point. Suspense your qualms or questions revolving the truth of the stories. Just enjoy them....more
Jan 19, 2013
Georgiana 1792
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
old-friends-new-fancies,
giallo-storico
Il ricordo di Georgiana
In questo romanzo Stephanie Barron ci trasporta nel periodo che Jane Austen trascorse in Derbyshire con sua madre e sua sorella nell'estete del 1806, dopo la morte del Reverendo George Austen. Recatesi in visita ad Hamstall Ridware, in Staffordshire, dove il cugino Edward Cooper era parroco, le tre donne si ritrovarono a dover sfuggire a un'epidemia di pertosse che colpì la famiglia Cooper, rifugiandosi in Derbyshire. Qui Jane Austen visitò Chatsworth, l'ancestrale dimora...more
In questo romanzo Stephanie Barron ci trasporta nel periodo che Jane Austen trascorse in Derbyshire con sua madre e sua sorella nell'estete del 1806, dopo la morte del Reverendo George Austen. Recatesi in visita ad Hamstall Ridware, in Staffordshire, dove il cugino Edward Cooper era parroco, le tre donne si ritrovarono a dover sfuggire a un'epidemia di pertosse che colpì la famiglia Cooper, rifugiandosi in Derbyshire. Qui Jane Austen visitò Chatsworth, l'ancestrale dimora...more
This is the best Jane Austen mystery thus far. It combined Darbyshire and the family of the Duke of Devonshire, as well as Jane's friend Lord Harold Trowbridge. I particularly enjoyed it because of research I have done on Lady Caroline Lamb (who is not in this book, but who is related to the Devonshire menage) so I knew the characters of that family. I also enjoyed it as a physician as it concerned the practice of medicine and what we would now call "Alternative Medicine". A wonderful book!
The plot lags and it's really boring in the middle, and the language bogs you down more than in any of the other books - it's much tougher than Austen's. And there's a character named, very unfortunately, "Hary-O," but don't let that deter you. It's a good start to the series, even though it's the fourth or fifth. If you like Austen or if you like mysteries and historical fiction, you'll like this.
Jane is visiting her cousin. As they are walking in the hills,she comes across a body. Leave it to Jane to do that. A feature of the murder is the mason leads. And then it is discovered that the young murdered man is actually a woman. A woman who works as a maid nearby. Jane is able to ferret out who did it,how it was done and when. But not before someone else is killed.
Stephanie Barron is really skilled at the depiction of time (era), culture and sensibilities. Her way of handling Austen's England is so good that I have to keep reminding myself that the words are by a contemporary author. I am really enjoying her characterizations, her dialogue, how well she captures the nuances of mannerisms, the repartee between characters. Really marvelous!
Gobbled it down (as noted earlier, these are my substitutes for sweets). Love the herbal concoctions & the terrible foreboding connected to them.
I also really like it that Barron is giving us more & more class conflict as these novels progress, more developed characters who are in the "lower" classes, & the completely taken-for-granted snobbery of those more fortunate.
I also really like it that Barron is giving us more & more class conflict as these novels progress, more developed characters who are in the "lower" classes, & the completely taken-for-granted snobbery of those more fortunate.
This is turning out to be an enjoyable read. The first few pages were annoying (with the dorky cousin Rev. Cooper singing) and then they stumble upon the dead body and the plot moves right along.
One in a series, I had previously read the 2nd title by Barron, Jane and the Wandering Eye, set in Bath. At the time, I had just been to Bath but had not read that much about it, so I did not enjoy the mystery novel that well.
With this current title, Jane and the Stillroom Maid, I am connecting better wi...more
One in a series, I had previously read the 2nd title by Barron, Jane and the Wandering Eye, set in Bath. At the time, I had just been to Bath but had not read that much about it, so I did not enjoy the mystery novel that well.
With this current title, Jane and the Stillroom Maid, I am connecting better wi...more
Very amusing, if you like mysteries with a theme and Austen appeals then you'll like this. It's not to be taken overly seriously but for it's genre it's an easy and amusing read and I found it just right for what I was looking for-- a bit of brain candy to amuse.
Quick, entertaining read. The main character is spirited and clever, but how much resemblance she bears to the real Jane Austen is certainly debatable. The same could be said for the other characters.
This was an excellent book. It was another Jane Austen as Sherlock Holmes type mystery. It kept me interested and the story line moving. My only complaint was the attempt at a romance between Jane and Lord Harold. I rather like their meeting of the minds and less romantic possibilities. It doesn't really fit with Jane's true life.
Another intriguing mystery, 5th in the series with Jane Austen as the investigator with a classic touch. I always learn new little bits when I read these books about England of early 1800's. I did not know what a stillroom maid was until now. The one in this story comes to a bad end but not before she has concocted her potions for many others. Jane, her mother and sister are in Bakewell when trouble happens and in between the social happenings, Jane is intently endeavoring to solve the murder my...more
These books are based on letters that Jane Austen wrote (supposedly) to family members and traces some of her footsteps. Each book is a mystery, which Jane sets out to solve. These are fun reads. :)
I found all the characters rather confusing. Also missed the great number of footnotes. Felt there could have been more. On the plus side Lord Harold is present for most of the book and the ending is a surprise.
An excellent mystery in a series that improves as it ages. Highly recommended.
Fun, my favorite writing style. Good Regency-era fluff.
A bit too predictable. But the voice is still spot on.
Wow. This one didn't totally suck. In fact, it was readable. Upgrade!
A completely enjoyable mystery.
Pleasant light mystery.
Not my favorite but still a good read.
The next in the series of Jane Austen as the star of the show solving mysteries and murders in her seeminly quiet, ordinary world.
Jane is a wonderful character, and in Stephanie Barron's skillful hands, you not only get to enjoy a fun mystery, but you learn about Jane Austen's life, with actual characters, places and events in Jane's life being sprinkled into the story.
If you enjoyed Jane Austen's books, you will love Jane in the lead role.
Jane is a wonderful character, and in Stephanie Barron's skillful hands, you not only get to enjoy a fun mystery, but you learn about Jane Austen's life, with actual characters, places and events in Jane's life being sprinkled into the story.
If you enjoyed Jane Austen's books, you will love Jane in the lead role.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jane Austen Sequels: Jane and the Stillroom Maid: Being a Jane Austen Mystery #5, by Stephanie Barron | 1 | 1 | Oct 26, 2012 04:36pm |
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Stephanie Barron was born Francine Stephanie Barron in Binghamton, NY in 1963, the last of six girls. Her father was a retired general in the Air Force, her mother a beautiful woman who loved to dance. The family spent their summers on Cape Cod, where two of the Barron girls...more
More about Stephanie Barron...
Stephanie Barron was born Francine Stephanie Barron in Binghamton, NY in 1963, the last of six girls. Her father was a retired general in the Air Force, her mother a beautiful woman who loved to dance. The family spent their summers on Cape Cod, where two of the Barron girls...more
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