Crime and Prejudice: A playful peek behind the scenes of Jane Austen's world

by Julia L. Miller, Melanie Crawley (narrator), Latte Goldstein (illustrator)

“With subtle wit and uncanny ventriloquism, these vignettes of Austen’s characters deepen our understanding of her novels, while effortlessly entertaining us. Delightful!” — Stephanie Barron, author of the Being a Jane Austen Mystery series

What if the beloved characters in Pride and Prejudice were lawbreakers?

The twelve stories in Crime and Prejudice imagine a deliciously seamy underside to Jane Austen's world. Arson, highway robbery, petty crime and murder mingle with fox-hunting, bawdy-houses, gaming-tables and transportation to Australia in these tales recounted to Elizabeth Darcy by her friends and family.

Discover why Mr. Bennet became a pug owner and a poisoner; how Elizabeth Darcy started a riot while agitating for women's enrolment at Cambridge; where Caroline Bingley found forbidden love; and, of course, when Mr. Darcy actually came by his wet shirt.

The Crime and Prejudice short stories are playful, subversive, but faithful to the spirit of the original characters and their author's acerbic wit. These people are flawed, like us, but endearing in their struggles to overcome their limitations, particularly those placed on women in Regency England. For ultimately, it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single woman in possession of a good fortune has no want at all of a husband.

If you like Richard Osman and Alexander McCall Smith, and love Jane Austen, Crime and Prejudice is for you!

Shortlisted for the Comedy Women in Print prize, 2025

Finalist in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards audiobook category, February 2025

"The stories in Crime and Prejudice are wickedly funny in a way that Jane Austen would enjoy. Julia Miller has combined meticulous research into the seamy side of 19th century England with a faultless ear for the voices of the characters of Pride and Prejudice to create for each one a plausible, or at least possible, afterlife that readers will find amusing and sometimes moving." — Dr Gillian Dooley, Author of She Played and Jane Austen and Music

"A very enjoyable read. Julia Miller's stories are pure Austen in style and substance. Bingley would approve!" — Crispin Bonham-Carter, Mr Bingley in the BBC 1995 series of Pride and Prejudice

"Delightful vignettes set in a literary world, Jane Austen's, that the author clearly knows inside out and wickedly subverts at every opportunity. Crime and Prejudice displays a refined sense of mischief and a complete mastery of Austen-esque style and tropes. Congratulations to Julia L. Miller!" — Martin Langfield, bestselling author of The Malice Box

"I’ll be d___! A most thoroughly ingenious collection, which instantly put me in an even temper. Capital!" — Professor Paul Baker, author of Fabulosa! The Story of Polari, Britain's Secret Gay Language

Genres: Retellings, Historical

171 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 8, 2024

Reviews

[Heather Moll]

A series of loosely connected and quirky stories with your favorite P&P characters acting badly. A tongue-in-cheek read and don’t think too hard about canon personalities and details. Some were funny, some were downright cringy, and some dark. It’s a little disjointed and the characters’ voices aren’t super consistent story to story or with canon. Austen superfans should go in with a willingness to suspend belief and be entertained.

I received an ARC from NetGalley

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was absolutely hilarious, and if you are a fan of Jane Austen's characters, this is definitely something you should read. The book reads like a series of confession letters, and Miller did an excellent job of sticking to the already established personalities and tendencies of Austen's characters. The scandal and ignorance of some of the characters truly had me laughing out loud, and by the end of the book I still wanted more. I was able to read a copy of this book through NetGalley, and I hope other readers find it as enjoyable and hilarious as I did.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC
4 of 5
Recommend to Jane Austen fans who like what-ifs.
I love Austen, and am among many fans who enjoy reading the odd 'spin off' or 'what if' involving her characters. P&P does seem to be the fav book for this kind of 'fanfic'.
That being said, if you are one of us, you should enjoy this collection of short stories that imagine other interests for the most famous P&P characters. The voices of the characters are a bit uneven, but the writing is clever and it's a quick read - would be great to take along on a holiday plane/train/automobile trip. It was fun to see the author giving so many 'minor' characters their own voices and stories.
I appreciated that the ebook I received for review was nicely formatted and had easy to adjust reading settings (font size, etc.)
Caveats: If you've never read Pride and Prejudice, this book will make no sense to you. Mild suggestions of sexual situations.

[Samantha Cosgrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crime and Prejudice by Julia L. Miller gives us a glimpse into the real world behind Jane Austens stories.
It's a very easy read that deepened my forgotten appreciation for Jane Austen.
It gave me a whole new twist on the story I read in my teens and had long left on a shelf collecting dust.
Seeing characters that are familiar but in different situations was really something special.
I look forward to seeing what Julia writes next and if she will possibly make this into a series of reimagined/behind the scenes classics.

I know this book is obviously going to draw in Austen fans, but I believe this book would be great for fans of many other genres.
If you are a fan of history, crime or culture this book would also be great for you!


Thank you to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and Julia L. Miller for this ARC in exchange for my honest review

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written anthology of twelve short stories I think any fan of Jane Austen would enjoy if they're willing to suspend their disbelief. The situations the characters find themselves in are unique and outside the norm, but their original personalities do still shine through for the most part. The crimes include causing a riot, involvement in a shooting, arson, running a house of ill repute, and thievery. I found the writing of these stories to be smart and humorous and true to Austen's world. It had to be thoroughly researched to result in such believable stories. It's been years since I read Pride and Prejudice, but it'll be back on my TBR list after this.

I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love Jane Austen then you'll really enjoy this new take on her world. Miller takes familiar characters and settings from Pride and Prejudice and in a series of linked short stories entangles and extends them into the unfamiliar contexts of crime, law breaking and dissent. It's beautifully done and extremely well-researched. Miller captures the Austen style immaculately and populates her stories with all kinds of sly references and subtle jokes. The effect is truly comic without in any way undermining or coarsening Austen - Miller is, after all, a self-confessed Austen fan. Excellent stuff that deserves a wide readership.

[Hannah Watson]

It is a truth universally acknowledged that if you put a spin on any Jane Austen novel, it’s sure to sell. This one is a collection of short stories of characters from Pride and Prejudice ‘stooping’ to a life of crime. Rioting in the street, arson, petty theft and highway robbery are some examples.

I found this collection a little odd and disjointed from my experience of the characters. I’m not fully convinced they’re a true representation of the original characters. It may be a good tongue-in-cheek gift for the loose Jane Austen fan. But nothing about it held my interest.

Thanks to NetGalley for the gift of an e-copy in exchange for a review.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crime and prejudice provided a delightful extension of Jane Austen's characters in ways both playful and naughty. Miller's stories competently use an accessible yet Austenesque style of writing combined with kernels of original character traits. The result is a series of stories which show the likes of the Darcys, the Bingleys and other loved characters in their most human form - at times giving into temptations, truth-stretching and socially 'engineering' situations for the betterment of humanity.

Besides the book's sheer cleverness, the naughty humour comes out in the most unexpected of places. D___ Julia L Miller, you are a saucy minx!

[hus · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re a Jane Austen fan, this book is an absolute treat! Presented as a series of confession letters, it perfectly captures the wit, charm, and eccentricities of Austen’s characters. The humor is both clever and uproarious, with the characters’ scandals and misunderstandings making for plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. Miller does an excellent job of staying true to Austen’s world while adding a fresh, comedic twist. I found myself hooked from start to finish, and by the end, I was hoping for more. A delightful read that will leave you smiling!

[Sam-TRN · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so apprehensive about reading this because Pride And Prejudice variations are a hit or miss for me. And I honestly did not enjoy the first chapter. But as I kept on reading, and started to appreciate how clever and hilarious these stories are; they took the subtly described characteristics of Jane Austen’s timeless characters and spins criminally delightful, and often shocking tales around them… I mean Mary Bennett; I was clutching the pearls! And Mr. Collins’ chapter had me in stitches.
I highly recommend this book and would read what Julia L. Miller puts out in the future.

[salome · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGallery and the publisher of this book.
Very nice book, I recommend it to all fans of the characters created by Jane Austen. I really loved the idea of ​​the author to continue the stories of some of the characters of "Pride and Prejudice", giving us a glimpse of their future.

4 stars, very reccomended

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a delightful look at what could have befallen the various characters from Pride and Prejudice after that final chapter. Funny and wickedly clever.

4.5 Stars

[Arlene Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

12 short stories