Undercover - An Austen Noir in Austenesque Lovers TBR Pile Reading Challenge 2016

Mar 05, 2016 Sheila Majczan rated it it was amazing

Hold onto the edge of your seat and plant your feet firmly on the ground...and have a fan ready – this book is not one you will put down willingly. Start your reading early so as to be able to get some sleep that night.

Reading this story is like stepping off the edge of a precipice and not seeing where the bottom is. Fast paced, full of tense drama, blackmail, murder, guns, knives, Commies, McCarthy scare, seduction and mischief galore! A trip to Cuba involves Elizabeth showing Darcy many of the Hold onto the edge of your seat and plant your feet firmly on the ground...and have a fan ready – this book is not one you will put down willingly. Start your reading early so as to be able to get some sleep that night.

Reading this story is like stepping off the edge of a precipice and not seeing where the bottom is. Fast paced, full of tense drama, blackmail, murder, guns, knives, Commies, McCarthy scare, seduction and mischief galore! A trip to Cuba involves Elizabeth showing Darcy many of the skills she has learned as a PI and luckily a last minute rescue is staged.

This tale has our familiar list of characters: M/M Bennet and their five daughters, Charlotte, Fitzwilliam and Georgiana Darcy, and Caroline in a cameo appearance; while Charles plays his usual charming role. George Wickham shows up like that proverbial bad penny…in lives and places you had hoped were safe from him. There is no end to his liaisons, his connections, his corrupting influences and in the very end you will be just a little bit shocked as you read of the ways in which George has insured that this circle of acquaintances remembers him.

Elizabeth becomes a Private Investigator to search out what has happened to her best friend, Mary King. At the start of this narrative she has been missing for 18 months and Elizabeth is sure that she is dead but she wants closure and wants the culprit brought to justice. She has connections on the police force, Christopher Brandon, and with a certain secret police contact, Oscar, owner of El Barrio Restaurant in the Spanish Harlem. I loved how Elizabeth works her physical charms and teasing innuendos to gain information from “her men” yet lets them know that there are limits in her relationship with them.

As we first encounter her we read as she learns of her sister’s showing up in Oscar’s establishment with the very man Eli thinks may be responsible for Mary King’s disappearance. And when Elizabeth talks to Oscar she learns that a tall, dark and well-dressed gentleman from uptown had an argument with the man she is trying to track down. He is identified as a man by the name of Darcy. When E. checks the table Lydia and Wickham were sitting at she finds several clues; one of which leads her to the Kit Kat Klub. Visiting there she finds more than one revelation…and sees the man she suspects to be Darcy also in attendance. Here we read how both find an immediate attraction to the other despite each sitting in shadows across the room.

Be warned that this book has some very salacious scenes and that they are not all ones in the bedroom. “Action under the table” in this Klub…use your imagination as to what men might do while watching a striptease. This Klub is visited more than once and is the scene of more action; the exchange of money for a photo and a note with the address of a hotel in Cuba, two murders, and an under-aged stripper being found out!

The characters you think you know have different and/or exaggerated behaviors in this novel. And I applaud the author for her audacity in knocking one perfect “angel” off her pedestal. Oh, my, how the mighty have fallen – but you may find some humor after reading some many stories in JAFF where Jane is so good, so sweet that your thought may be, “It’s about time!”

Even the placement of Mary in her convent allows us to read of the final clue in one of the mysteries. Excellent choice for a burial ground. I was ROFL at the mention of Bill Collins. Too much!

Elizabeth and Darcy both have their histories in this detective thriller. But they also are pretty quick to share with each other, even in their shame and remorse of past actions and associations. And I loved, loved, loved Elizabeth’s demands for a proper proposal!

What more can I add: I have read and given all of Cat’s other books 5 stars…she writes the tone, the language, the culture and the political atmosphere of the 1950's here so well. I kept hearing Humphrey Bogart’s and Lauren Bacall’s voices in my head. I highly recommend this book. ...more

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Mar 04, 2016 Debbie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: jaff

What a page-turner! This lady dick, Eli Gardiner, is quite the gumshoe. She's investigating the disappearance of her good friend, Mary King, and finds herself up to her neck in a political conspiracy, Cubans and communists, a kidnapping, and two stiffs. She also finds herself in the bed of one Fitzwilliam Darcy, a really hot swell. The two connect the second they lay eyes on each other. Their attraction goes beyond keeping an eye on Slick Wick, her prime suspect. It turns out Darcy has an axe to What a page-turner! This lady dick, Eli Gardiner, is quite the gumshoe. She's investigating the disappearance of her good friend, Mary King, and finds herself up to her neck in a political conspiracy, Cubans and communists, a kidnapping, and two stiffs. She also finds herself in the bed of one Fitzwilliam Darcy, a really hot swell. The two connect the second they lay eyes on each other. Their attraction goes beyond keeping an eye on Slick Wick, her prime suspect. It turns out Darcy has an axe to grind with him, too. But this investigation hits too close to home; both have members of their families at risk.

I hesitate to call this a true Pride and Prejudice variation because many of the characters are so far removed from their usual roles, though they retain some characteristic personality traits. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet's excuse for not knowing exactly what their daughters are up to is that they're both lushes, so they've got no clue that Elizabeth isn't working for Macy's and that Lydia isn't just a hat check girl at a nightclub. Mary is a nun. Jane is stunningly beautiful and already married to Bingley, but she and Elizabeth are far from being close even though they're sisters. Charlotte is one of Elizabeth's best friends. Darcy's little sister Georgiana is sheltered, naive and gullible. Some new characters figure into the case, too.

Even though the world Elizabeth and Darcy move in during this story is scary, the writing seems too elegant and "pretty" in many of the passages to be convincingly noir. I actually pulled out my well-read copy of The Big Sleep to see why I didn't feel the same level of darkness as I read this. Ms. Gardiner does have the gumshoe lingo down and even provides a handy glossary. (You'll find it at the back of the book). She has great descriptions of the seedy hell-holes Elizabeth and Darcy are nosing around in, and most of the action occurs at night on dark streets with dim street lights and fog. However, this IS in third person, while Chandler's book uses the voice of the private dick, Philip Marlowe, to tell his own story. It makes sense that he sounds hard-boiled, because he is. Elizabeth may be a femme fatale- and she sure proves it many times throughout the story- but at heart she's a cream puff, so the slightly softer edge fits. It would be criminal to bump my rating down because it's too nicely written, so I'm not!

The heat factor between Darcy and Elizabeth is steamy, and most JAFF lovers seem to consider that the most important element in a good Pride and Prejudice knock-off. "Smoldering" is the word most often used to describe him here, and once he and Elizabeth get together, it's a full-blown conflagration. ...more

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Mar 04, 2016 Claudine DiMuzio / Just Jane 1813 rated it it was amazing

Shelves: just-jane-1813-alternate-era

When Lydia Bennet is seen with George Wickham, nearly two years since his last appearance, can private eye Eli Bennet save her sister from Slick Wick?

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Source: I received an ARC of this book from the author for a fair and honest review.

No one knows Hell’s Kitchen, NYC like private eye, Eli Bennet; sexy and curvaceous on the outside, smart and full of moxie on the inside. When George Wickham, aka Slick Wick, reappears in Spanish Harlem almost two years after the disappearan When Lydia Bennet is seen with George Wickham, nearly two years since his last appearance, can private eye Eli Bennet save her sister from Slick Wick?

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Source: I received an ARC of this book from the author for a fair and honest review.

No one knows Hell’s Kitchen, NYC like private eye, Eli Bennet; sexy and curvaceous on the outside, smart and full of moxie on the inside. When George Wickham, aka Slick Wick, reappears in Spanish Harlem almost two years after the disappearance of Mary King, Elizabeth is hot on his trail. The fact that he’s been seen with her sister Lydia only adds fuel to her fire. Is he leaving a trail hoping she will follow them or does he have other plans for Lydia? And why was he seen arguing at the El Barrio with Fitzwilliam Darcy, the wealthy, brooding, aspiring politician who prefers to keep his private life undercover?

There’s a reason that the first alternate era JAFF book I ever read was Cat Gardiner’s book, “Lucky 13,” and why her last book, “Villa Fortuna” earned a Just Jane 1813 2015 Reviewer’s Favorite Award for Favorite Modern JAFF story. Ms. Gardiner knows how to take the essential elements of Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” and reimagine them within an alluring new era. This time, she’s decided to take Austen’s characters where they’ve never been before; Hell’s Kitchen, NYC, during the early 1950’s, at a time when every woman knew her place was at home, with her man and her family. Every woman, that is, except for the sexy gumshoe, Eli Bennet.

Ever since the disappearance of her friend, Mary King, she’s left the case wide open, eagerly anticipating the day when she can find George Wickham and gather the leads she needs to bring Ms. King safely back home to her parents. Now that Slick Wick has been seen in some of the seediest places in NYC, she’s hoping she can solve the case. But when she becomes involved in Fitzwilliam Darcy’s tangle with Slick Wick, will she be able to solve the one crime that’s been tugging at her heart without losing herself in their games of deceit and corruption?

“Undercover” takes readers from the smoke-filled nightclubs of NYC to the sizzling scenes at the Tropicana in Havana, Cuba, as Eli and Darcy race against the clock to stop another young lady from the treacherous schemes of Slick Wick. Yet, this time, Slick Wick isn’t acting alone, and now that some lethal Russian Communists are involved in his dangerous plots, the stakes are higher than ever before! Filled with delicious diversions and bold adventures, “Undercover” shows us how Ms. Austen’s characters neatly transform themselves into an intriguing cast of players in this Austen-inspired noir story.

Ms. Gardiner’s Darcy and Elizabeth sizzle together as the unlikely couple who just can’t get enough of one another. Once Darcy falls for the bait and finds himself at Eli’s doorstep, all bets are off that Manhattan’s most eligible bachelor has solemnly sworn off matrimony for life. But will a man like Fitzwilliam Darcy get serious with a gumshoe from the wrong side of the tracks?

Cat Gardiner takes us to the very edge of our sheets and then gently reigns us back in during Darcy and Elizabeth’s steamy hot love scenes. Their relationship practically smolders through the pages as the sexy couple entertains us with their special brand of magnetic sex appeal. I found their relationship equally rewarding on an emotional level, as Darcy and Elizabeth grew to respect and trust one another other without trying to change or compromise each other. I loved how Elizabeth’s career choice was developed throughout the story, demonstrating how, once again, Darcy and Elizabeth refused to conform to society’s expectations during a time when there were limited options for women outside of the home.

The imaginative ways that Cat incorporates Austen’s supporting characters into her story provide a nice balance of humor and intrigue into her plot. Although the relationships between the Bennet sisters are quite changed from canon, I really found these differences to be welcomed and liberating. We are even treated to some appearances by a couple of Austen’s other well-loved heroes.

Ms. Gardiner’s book also includes a glossary of terms dedicated to this time period, which serves as a resource to help readers navigate their way through specific terms and phrases that help to bring this era to life. She has also once again created the ultimate digital treasures to enhance our reading experience of “Undercover.” Here, and in the inside of her ebook, she shares her “Undercover” Pinterest board, her energetic “Undercover” Spotify playlist, and her “Undercover” YouTube video playlist. These features are a great way to immerse yourself in the settings throughout this story. ...more

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Mar 04, 2016 Sophia rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-mystery-suspense, jane-austen-austenesque

In the era of the Golden Age of Radio, Detective Noir, McCarthyism, Korean Conflict, dark streets of Hells Kitchen, pre-communist Cuba, and NYC nightclubs like The Stork Club and the Copacabana, this creative and talented author sets her Jane Austen Meets Hard-Boiled Detective Fiction.
I grew up on old-time radio broadcasts and black and white detective shows so this was a treat not to be missed. And sister (or brother, EO, here), let me tell you, this nostalgic visit to the past did not disappo In the era of the Golden Age of Radio, Detective Noir, McCarthyism, Korean Conflict, dark streets of Hells Kitchen, pre-communist Cuba, and NYC nightclubs like The Stork Club and the Copacabana, this creative and talented author sets her Jane Austen Meets Hard-Boiled Detective Fiction.
I grew up on old-time radio broadcasts and black and white detective shows so this was a treat not to be missed. And sister (or brother, EO, here), let me tell you, this nostalgic visit to the past did not disappoint.

The story opens with lady dick, Elizabeth Bennet, between cases of tailing suspected cheats, skips, and thieves, pursuing answers to a cold case that is eating at her. Her best friend, Mary King, has been missing for months and Eli has strong suspicions that the man, George Wickham, who seduced every woman in the neighborhood, including Eli and her gorgeous older sister before absconding with her dad's cash drawer, seduced Mary and then killed her. Eli started her detection agency because she was determined to track down Slick Wick and maybe leave enough of him for justice to have her day.

Wickham has been lying low for months, but finally Eli gets word through one of her reliable sources that he's back and has a dame on his arm that looks much like her sister, Lydia. Eli tracks him to a strip club and there encounters an uptown cream puff man who sits in the shadows and also seems to be interested in Wickham's shady activities. Darcy is a distraction and maybe a dangerous one because Eli isn't sure how he is connected to her prey.

Darcy is floored by the appearance of the seductive bombshell that he spots right away at the club. Wickham has threatened blackmail over something from Darcy's past that will submarine his political chances in his run for the Senate and has also been nosing around Darcy's younger innocent sister now that Georgiana controls her trust fund. Not going to happen. Darcy will get enough on Wickham to turn him over to the Navy for that long awaited court-martial. But what about the gorgeous vixen who spies on Wickham and gets close enough to Wickham's exchange with the Russian? Worth the pursuit for sure, but the cool femme fatale doesn't get to have his secrets.

Alright, so this was one that was pure and delicious sinfully sweet pleasure. I felt I was there- there in a shadowy, gritty NYC lower east side world with Eli and Darcy pursuing an ugly monster that seduces and preys on vulnerable, innocent women. The world is full of details from scene, to fashion, to background historical events, to dialogue, rhythm and tone. Each page is full of nostalgia so that as the reader, it felt like I was reading a reproduction of the real thing (this being noir fiction), but a really good one considering could only channel Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler.

Elizabeth shares the narration with Darcy, her thoughts echoing old hard-boiled detective fiction inner monologue. She is a woman in a man's world and she has the guts and moxie to pull it off. She is confident in her abilities and skills and not afraid to use sexual seduction as her biggest tool around the big sharks swimming around her. I loved that she had a night club owner and a tired, jaded, but honest cop in her corner (cop being a certain Christopher Brandon). She lives on her own in a seedy apartment and office in a rough part of town, but growing up with two alcoholics and indifferent siblings fighting for their own ticket out of their poor neighborhood taught her how to survive.

Darcy came from privilege though his father was morally bankrupt and his mother a bored socialite who felt trapped by the life and got out. Darcy escaped the stifling world of NY high society when he joined the Navy, but bad choices led him to return home calmer and wiser so he could take up the reins on the family fortune and responsibility of his much younger sister, when his dad passed. He wants to make a difference and be an honest politician and ethical businessman unlike his own father, but first he needs to deal with a blight on his past that just won't go away. I thought it was interesting to put Darcy in the Navy with Slick Wick his former CO and Wentworth as Darcy's old Navy friend while Charlie is his best friend growing up.

The two are a wary, reluctant team at first. Things heated up fast. Like reader might want to have a cold drink handy to cool down the sizzle coming off those pages. Feelings came into it fast, but conflict allows for the feelings to develop into respect and understanding as they work together. I found it done well that both struggled against traditional man/woman roles and the need to trust another with their pasts and vulnerable sides, but learned to accept, understand, and compromise- and yes, even apologize- when needed.

The murder mystery came late in the story after things built up to it, but it was only one element in the bigger suspense plot. There were a few suspects. It's not meant to be too challenging and the reader can enjoy figuring it out. The players in the murder mystery were a fun bevy of likely suspects because of the victim. And I was pleased to see how Elizabeth fared as a detective in action.

Now, on the family side of things. Darcy's tension with his sister over her being old enough to be trusted and him having to do that are tame compared to the dysfunction in ye olde Bennet homestead. The parents are disinterested alcoholics that expect Eli and the others to fend for themselves and send home the paycheck to dear old mom and dad. The oldest sister, Jane, is a vapid beauty and social climber who married for money (to Darcy's best bud, Charlie), the middle sister is a nun, the fourth sister is a starving artist in Europe (that Eli also helps enable), and the fifth is wild, hellcat Lydia who surprisingly turns out to be the most like Elizabeth. Eli is worried to bring Darcy home to the folks and rightly so, but he might surprise her and them.

So, in the end, this one was the Cat's Meow for me and I was tempted to flip back to the beginning and go right back into it or start digging through my Old Time Radio series on CD for a night of Phillip Marlowe, Boston Blackie, The Shadow, Charlie Chan, or Philo Vance. This one is for those who like a sizzling hot old time Noir Romantic Suspense. ...more

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Jan 05, 2017 Mary rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-2017

Dear Reader,

A very different type of variation,this story sees Lizzy playing the part of a P.I. determined to solve the disappearance of her best friend Mary King,who was last seen in the company of Wickham,who has since mysteriously gone to ground.

Said gentleman has tempted more than one willing,innocent young girl with his empty promises and charming smile,and as per his usual habit,he grows bored,and faced with responsibilities that a 'ball and chain' would incur,he moves onto fresher, more ...more

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Jan 02, 2018 Sara rated it it was amazing

Shelves: jaff-modern

This book will transport you to those good old days of black and white crime drama. The time period oozes effortlessly off of the page. The dialog is perfect for the period and the characters are amazing. Truly, I do not read much of this period but I highly enjoyed being transported. The portrayal of Darcy and Eli were spot on. The suspense was killer (like Eli's gams!). If you enjoy a great story, then this is the book for you. Very few errors it was such a breeze to read and if you are a litt ...more

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Mar 05, 2016 Meredith (Austenesque Reviews) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pride-and-prejudice, jane-austen

Elizabeth Bennet Solves Crimes as a Femme Fatale

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Whether it’s visiting a vibrant Italian-American salon in Elmont, New York, dancing the tango in Seville, or observing a steamy calendar shoot with hot NYC firefighters, Cat Gardiner’s contemporary Pride and Prejudice stories are incredible and memorable adventures. In her fourth book, Undercover, Ms. Gardiner takes readers on a sojourn to 1952 and introduces them to a world of fedoras, smoke, hot joints, and crime detecti Elizabeth Bennet Solves Crimes as a Femme Fatale

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Whether it’s visiting a vibrant Italian-American salon in Elmont, New York, dancing the tango in Seville, or observing a steamy calendar shoot with hot NYC firefighters, Cat Gardiner’s contemporary Pride and Prejudice stories are incredible and memorable adventures. In her fourth book, Undercover, Ms. Gardiner takes readers on a sojourn to 1952 and introduces them to a world of fedoras, smoke, hot joints, and crime detectives.

Elizabeth Bennet, a tenacious private eye with a copious amounts of moxie and brains, has been on the hunt for the man she believes kidnapped (and possibly murdered) her best friend. She met George Wickham years ago and she knows he is guilty of all sorts of crimes, but what Elizabeth doesn’t know is where is he now and what he did with Mary King? After receiving a tip from one of her reliable informants the trail for “Slick Wick” is hot once again. But there seems to be someone else interested in Slick Wick’s actions…the reserved and brooding Fitzwilliam Darcy, the wealthy son of a former senator. What is his connection to Slick Wick? What does he have to hide? You can be sure this clever dame will find out!

This recreation of Elizabeth Bennet is my hero! Career girl, independent, determined, and quick as a whip – she has the assets and charm to get whatever she wants from whoever she wants! I loved witnessing her close relationship with Oscar the restaurant owner and Detective Brandon (the only flat foot who respects her profession). They both flirt and tease, but I like how Elizabeth (even though she is a gorgeous siren with “a body made for sin”) doesn’t “give it up for just any man.” A true lady professional earning respect and achieving results in a man’s world – she is a marvel!

Other parts of the story that I thoroughly enjoyed were the atmosphere, the banter, and the sexy smoldering between Darcy and Elizabeth. I think Ms. Gardiner wonderfully captured the essence of a noir – her story was smoky, misty, and steamy. With her evocative language and descriptions, I imagined the story in black and white in my head with just small flashes of color for Lizzy’s ruby-red lips. Speaking of flapping lips, the quick and provocatively-charged exchanges between Darcy and Lizzy almost gave me whiplash! These two are definitely hard-boiled and their flirtatious banter and smoldering looks could heat up an igloo. Lizzy may be a femme fatale, but I think she’s met her match with this brooding and enigmatic Mr. Darcy! (Warning: contains intimate scenes and descriptions suitable for Mature Audiences.)

Now, while I absolutely adored this novel and thoroughly enjoyed the unique setting and inventive premise, I did notice that I didn’t feel as emotionally invested with these characters as I did with Ms. Gardiner’s previous novels. Both these characters were interesting and there were some mentions of their pasts, but I guess there wasn’t enough there to help me feel fully connected to them. I’m sorry to hold Ms. Gardiner to such a high standard, but it is her own fault! Her previous novels and complex characters were so captivating and consuming!

Communist schemes, sizzling chemistry, and solving crimes – Cat Gardiner’s Austen-Inspired noir mystery is an enthralling adventure that envelopes readers in the sights, sounds, and realities of another time and world. I loved the combination of intrigue, history, danger, and scorching-hot romance! Thank you, Ms. Gardiner for another supremely creative and engrossing tale!

PS – loved the glossary of crime detective terms! Super helpful! ...more

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Jun 24, 2017 Dung rated it it was amazing

Shelves: austen-inspried, favorite-austen-inspired

Love this reimagined P&P, I could see it playing out on my mind like a Dick Tracy film in black and white.

Such a creative and imaginative storyline. Love the glossary and all additional details of the Pinterest board and music list to enhance the reader's experience. ...more

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Mar 05, 2016 Teresita rated it it was amazing

Shelves: jaff

Thrilling and lovely

A marvelous mix of old school PI novel, adventure and sweet romance.

She can't go back to what she was before the war, a young woman looking for a husband, a house and 3.5 kids.

He needs someone that can bring forth the wonderful man he can be.

Amidst investigation and danger, they get to know and love each other...

Read this story, you'll find it delightful! ...more

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