An orange cat on the cover?! Count me in, I'm hooked! Fans . of well described, lovely settings, and marvelous character development will be so pleased. I'm looking forward to reading more books by Elizabeth Blake!

This is a new author to me. I loved the premise of this series, but it was just meh. I think it was just the constant Jane Austen references that wore me out. I never really connected with Erin and was happy to see this book come to an end. I won't be continuing with this series. Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was a quick fun read. I enjoyed the writing and the characters and would recommend it for sure.

This is a very clever, understated cosy mystery. And I mean understated as a compliment in that, as with Jane Austen’s own books, everything is subtle and underplayed which just makes it all the more effective. For example, this book is gently humorous. It’s not a ‘laugh out loud’ type read, but more of a ‘frequent quiet smile’, which I actually prefer and which is harder to sustain since it doesn’t rely on slapstick or cheesy situations for comedy .
The characters are equally subtle. Their personalities gradually emerge as they book progresses, rather than being described in full to us at the beginning. We get strong hints as to what they’re like – Farnsworth is a cat lady and Sylvia is bossy, for example – but there’s a lot more to them than that and we watch them all develop nicely. Erin is an interesting heroine, very much a Jane Austen heroine in that she’s not the sort that’s cut out to play a lead role. She’s an intelligent, thoughtful woman who prefers the quiet life. She’s likeable and we enjoy following the events that unwind around her.
Interactions are great. As in any group of people, within the very dedicated Jane Austen Society there are friendships and animosities, organisers and followers-along, ambition and apathy. The bickering and niggling is extremely life-like – well, it is for me living in a small French village where committee meetings see the full gamut of emotions being run through!

The use of quotes from Austen’s novels is a witty touch. As always the author has a light hand with this and doesn’t overdo it, just throwing in an appropriate quote to add a little richness.
Well worth a read, whether you’re a Jane Austen fan or not.

Not really what I expected. Not a bad book, just not as good as I wanted it to be... It's a murder mystery, and involves some people in a Jane Austen society. I think parts of it were a bit confusing to me. There was not as much "Jane" as I thought there would be, or at least not in the way I thought it would be. A pretty good mystery, though. :)

Princess Fuzzypants here: Boy, they take their Jane Austen very seriously in the small Yorkshire village where the story is set. Not only do many of the residents belong to the Jane Austen Society but it looks like one of the members is willing to kill for it. The unlikeable head of the group is poisoned during a meeting which means all the members attending are suspect. No one believes that the woman’s bullying tactics alone would be enough for murder. As Erin, the rather dishy DI and his Sergeant and assorted characters try to figure out who did the deed and why, the killer is becoming even more deadly.
In fact, Erin’s life is in danger as she tries to prove her best friend is not the perp. Her friend is the local crazy cat lady so there are lots of felines. There are also some colourful and eccentric characters of the human variety. They are not caricatures nor overtly funny. In fact, while I enjoyed the story, I could not say I laughed out loud or chuckled like I do with the Jaine Austen series.
Still I give it a solid four purrs and two paws up.

Pride, Prejudice and Poison by Elizabeth Blake is about a woman by the name of Erin who owns a book store in North Yorkshire, England. Her goal is to find out who killed the president of the local Jane Austin Society. During a meeting of the Jane Austin Society in Erin’s book store, the president, Sylvia Pemberthy, drops to the floor after being poisoned with a cup of tea. This is a well-written book. I enjoyed it. I didn’t appreciate all the Jane Austin quotes and feel like it took me out of the story at times. A few too many suspects and a surprise at the end. Erin helps the detectives solve the crime. Thanks to Net Galley for allowing me an advanced readers copy for review.

While I love Jane Austen and cozy mysteries, I just couldn't get into this story and put it aside after a few chapters. The characters were perhaps too true to life with all of the bickering, and if there's one thing I don't need more of in my life, it's bickering people...

Erin Coleridge is such a genuine character that I became vested in her quickly. DI Peter Hadley is portrayed well, balancing his job with a growing interest in Erin when she could be a suspect. I love Sergeant Rashid Jarral's character and hope to see more of him. The myriad of suspects and townspeople each have their motives and quirky personalities as you expect in a cozy, but they have some depth.

Kirkbymoorside (a real town in North Yorkshire) is a delightfully rendered setting that is like a warm blanket on a chilly night, you don't want to leave it. The plot seems simple but has a few surprises and twists. The pacing is spot on and kept my interest as new motives come to light.

The killer reveal was a surprise and handled well for shock value. The wrap up left me wanting more of Erin and to find out about her and DI Hadley.

I had been immersed in several historical mysteries and wasn't sure if a modern mystery would keep my interest. This book did the trick. I couldn't help but feel like this was remeniscent of Miss Marple only with a younger heroine and updated writing style. The Jane Austen Society provided a great theme to build the mystery around. I think any cozy mystery fan will enjoy this new series.

Rating: Near Perfect - Couldn't Put it down. Buy two copies, one for you and one for a friend.

A charming read. If you are a massive Jane Austen fan, you will love the book. If you have not read any of her books, you may not like the continuous references.
But regardless, it was lovely to read a cosy book with murder on the side.

This was a fun, cute cozy mystery! I love the theme throughout, and I will definitely be continuing with the series.

This was my first Elizabeth Blake book and I enjoyed. I like the setting and the characters. I also liked how the series is set around Jane Austen. The mystery was interesting and I was engaged through most of the story. I did drag a little bit, but I still enjoyed the book. I will definitely check out the next book in the series.

The Jane Austen Society in Kirbymoorside is all in uproar. Some older members of the society want to stick with rules and ceremony, while newer members don't mesh with the current society president. Silvia is rude and a total control freak. Every meeting descends into petty arguments and insults. Erin Coleridge doesn't enjoy the drama. She just wants to enjoy running her used book shop in the village. The drama kicks up a notch when a society member is murdered. Erin jumps in to do a little sleuthing to clear a friend of suspicion.

I like the quirky characters in this first book of the Jane Austen Society Mystery series. I did feel a bit sorry for most of the members of the Austen Society as their meetings descended into complete chaos. I did applaud the members who managed to sneak Jane Austen quotes in amid the in-fighting. At times, all the quotes and references did get to be a bit much....but it's all in fun when it's a cozy mystery. I just chalked it up to residents of Kirbymoorside being JA Superfans who love to pepper their conversation with literature references like my husband and I throw out random movie or Monty Python quotes.

Erin is an interesting main character. She just wants a peaceful countryside life running her bookshop and enjoying her cottage. But she's willing to sacrifice her peace to help a friend and put the village back to rights after a murder. The quirky village side characters really add to the story. The mystery moved along at a nice pace, peppered with lots of Jane Austen references. There are plenty of suspects and twists along the way. Nicely done!

All in all, an enjoyable cozy mystery. I'm always up for reading anything Jane Austen related. :) I will definitely read more books in this series.

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

Cozy mysteries featuring books, booksellers and book clubs earn automatic brownie points. They just go together. Throw in the cat on the cover and it’s even more shiny.

Pride, Prejudice and Poison focuses on a bookstore owner who is part of a large book-club where not everyone gets along. In fact, the president of the society gets murdered. The MC Erin decides to do a little investigating of her own to clear her friend’s name when the police suspect someone too close to home.

These folks are clearly Jane Austen fans since they quote her works throughout the book in random life situations. The small group of friends surrounding the MC are almost eccentric, which is a clever way to keep the story interesting when the girls are just chatting it up and musing about life. While I’m not as big an Austen fan as the characters (or most readers), the characters are well-written and hide small-town secrets.

The book opens on a humorous note - it doesn’t really stick with that but the writing works well and it stays intriguing. A layered cozy mystery. It’s hard to guess the culprit, there's an obvious mislead in the middle and other clues that may either misdirect or (gasp!) point the reader into the right direction.
The book felt a little long for its type and form, though, so I did get impatient with it at times. I also found it unlikely how much the police revealed to Erin during her investigations and how open they were to involving her and her thoughts. Still, a little unrealism is expected with these, particularly since law enforcement usually ends up part of a romance sub-plot.

Disclosure: Thanks to Crooked Lane Books for a copy through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own.

This charming cozy mystery and murder story was full-flavoured and moreish! Set in Kirkbymoorside, a North Yorkshire English village, the local Jane Austen Society comprises a contrary group of fans. During a contentious monthly meeting the president, Sylvia Pemberthy, is poisoned. The main character, Erin Coleridge, runs the local secondhand bookshop, also selling coffees and teas and is something of a young, Miss Silver. She knows all of the villagers and there are certainly plenty of eclectic, eccentric characters. The two York based detectives, DI Peter Hadley and DS Rashid Jarral, are superbly drawn characters, too - winsome and alluring, yet also serious. The mellow, subtle plot and the effervescent conversation made for a few hours of very enjoyable, worthwhile reading with a satisfactory end.

A delightful, cozy mystery, Pride, Prejudice and Poison is the perfect book to read, curled up on the sofa after grabbing a steaming mug of hot chocolate with cream and sprinkles. It's a novel that any Jane Austen fan should adore, with plenty of quotes and references along the way. A great start to a new series, and I'm eager for the next one!

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

Despite the many cozies I've read, this might be the first British set one I've picked up, and the setting change made for an interesting read. There was a different flavor to it- the urgency felt a bit more reserved, but I will say that the questionable allowance of a layperson into a police investigation that often happens in cozy mysteries played out just as much in this story. I'd be interested in the next in this series, as the Jane Austen comparisons were entertaining and I think Erin has a lot of potential as a cozy protagonist.

"Pride, Prejudice and Poison" is the first in a "Jane Austin Society mystery" series by Elizabeth Blake.

Erin Coleridge’s used bookstore in Kirkbymoorside, North Yorkshire, England is a meeting place for the villagers and, in particular, for the local Jane Austen Society. At the Society’s monthly meeting, matters come to a head between the old guard and its young turks. After the meeting breaks for tea, persuasion gives way to murder—with extreme prejudice—when president Sylvia Pemberthy falls dead to the floor. Poisoned? Presumably…but by whom? And was Sylvia the only target?

Handsome—but shy—Detective Inspector Peter Hadley and charismatic Sergeant Rashid Jarral arrive at the scene. The long suspect list includes Sylvia’s lover Kurt Becker and his tightly wound wife Suzanne. Or, perhaps, the killer was Sylvia’s own cuckolded husband, Jerome. Among the many Society members who may have had her in their sights is dashing Jonathan Alder, who was heard having a royal battle of words with the late president the night before.

Then, when Jonathan Alder narrowly avoids becoming the next victim, Farnsworth (the town’s “cat lady”) persuades a seriously time-crunched Erin to help DI Hadley. But the killer is more devious than anyone imagines.
I had trouble getting into the book, the beginning is introducing us to the little British village of Kirkbymoorside, Jane Austin society. But the constant quoting soon became annoying for me, not sure why but it did. I did find once the murder happened, things began to pick up and the story got more interesting.

The mystery itself was well-plotted and include some good red herrings. It did keep me guessing whodunit till the end. Be nice to see how the relationship Erin and the handsome policeman Peter Hemming develops in future installments.

I will read the next installment as I do believe the series has potential. I recommend to cozy lovers especially those who love Jane Austin.

I requested and received an Advanced Reader Copy from Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this little visit to the Yorkshire countryside and could almost picture Erin's bookstore and cottage. The main characters of the Jane Austen Society were very enjoyable to get to know. I thought ten-year-old Polly was a good addition, what a hoot of a kid! I thought the mystery was well-plotted and written with some great red herrings. I didn't guess who the killer was. The showdown was quick but satisfying, and I can only hope that Erin might have a future with the handsome policeman Peter Hemming.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

I liked the Yorkshire setting, the bookstore and the use of the Jane Austen Society and a slightly diverse cast, but there were also a few things I didn't quite like about the book, such as the heavy use of tropes (both love triangle and dark and broody male love interests is one example). Also, it was okay to use a few Jane Austen quotes here and there, but it got old after a while.

Though I might add that I think this book series has potential and I would give it a shot at further reading.

Pride, Prejudice and Poison (A June Austen Society Mystery # 1)
Author: Elizabeth Blake
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: August 23, 2019
2 Stars


Pride, Prejudice and Poison is a cozy mystery that takes place in Kirkbymoorside, a village in North Yorkshire. Most of the key players in the book belong to the local Jane Austen Society. Their current president is Sylvia Pemberthy. Sylvia does not seem to be well liked, both for her governing skills and for personal reasons. When Sylvia winds up dead, there is a long list of suspects to be sorted through. That task falls to Detective Inspector Peter Hemming and Sergeant Rashid Jarral. Farnsworth Appleby becomes the prime suspect when it is learned that Sylvia had been poisoned, and Farnsworth was the one who had served her the tea. Erin Coleridge, a close friend of Farnsworth’s and crime aficionado, decides she must help prove Farnsworth’s innocence. Erin quickly learns that solving a crime is much harder than reading about one, and it is much more dangerous. DI Hemming works hard to solve the case before someone else is killed.

I went into this book with high hopes as I thought a mystery centered around Jane Austen and her novels sounded like fun. However, I didn’t particularly enjoy the first 2/3 of this story. The writing wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. The plot seemed slow, and the characters were hard to connect with, both of which made it difficult to focus on the story. The Jane Austen quotes were overdone and proved to be a hinderance to the story as well.

The last 1/3 of the book was pretty good. The pace picked up, and I found myself more invested in the story. I was anxious to learn the who and the why. I enjoyed how the author wrapped up the story.


Thank to Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC of this book. #NetGalley #PridePrejudiceAndPoison