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Regency Mage #3
Mary Bennet and the Beast of Rosings Park
There’s a monster in the woods! Or so claim the legends.
Mary Bennet hopes it’s not true. She might be a magician, rewarded by the Prince Regent himself for service to the crown, but she’s also weak, still recovering from magical injuries sustained in the Battle of the British Museum. She hasn’t performed so much as a particle of magic in months.
She has enough on her plate without having to deal with monsters, thank you very much. Staying at the Hunsford vicarage, she must deal with her exasperating cousin Mister Collins, the overbearing Lady Catherine de Bourgh, her enigmatic daughter Anne, and a disturbingly attractive young lord.
But something is killing the local livestock. Something that strikes at night, with long, sharp claws. And when the Beast turns to human prey, it’s up to Mary Bennet, apprentice magician of the Order of Saint George, to solve the riddle and find and defeat the Beast.
Mary Bennet and the Beast of Rosings Park is the third book of the Regency Mage series. If you enjoy Jane Austen and Harry Potter, you’ll love Regency Mage, because it blends Regency comedy of manners with fantasy high adventure.
Mary Bennet hopes it’s not true. She might be a magician, rewarded by the Prince Regent himself for service to the crown, but she’s also weak, still recovering from magical injuries sustained in the Battle of the British Museum. She hasn’t performed so much as a particle of magic in months.
She has enough on her plate without having to deal with monsters, thank you very much. Staying at the Hunsford vicarage, she must deal with her exasperating cousin Mister Collins, the overbearing Lady Catherine de Bourgh, her enigmatic daughter Anne, and a disturbingly attractive young lord.
But something is killing the local livestock. Something that strikes at night, with long, sharp claws. And when the Beast turns to human prey, it’s up to Mary Bennet, apprentice magician of the Order of Saint George, to solve the riddle and find and defeat the Beast.
Mary Bennet and the Beast of Rosings Park is the third book of the Regency Mage series. If you enjoy Jane Austen and Harry Potter, you’ll love Regency Mage, because it blends Regency comedy of manners with fantasy high adventure.
Kindle Edition
Published October 19, 2019
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About the author
Joyce Harmon
13 books99 followersJoyce Harmon has been from one side of the galaxy to the other (slight exaggeration) and seen a lot of strange stuff (very true). Since retiring from the Navy, she has worked as a winery tour guide, a journalist for a local newspaper, selling collectibles on eBay, and making candles - and always, always, a writer. She shares her rural Virginia home with two haughty and indolent cats and one clever, busy dog, and is haunted by a noisy crowd of characters, all clamoring to be written down and set loose into the world. She accommodates them as quickly as she can. She is the author of the Passatonnack Winery mysteries, Died On The Vine and Bidding On Death. A Feather To Fly With is her first Regency romance, and she is currently working on a sequel.
Joyce blogs occasionally at http://joyceharmon.wordpress.com/ , mostly about her dog.
Joyce blogs occasionally at http://joyceharmon.wordpress.com/ , mostly about her dog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
February 23, 2022
**** 3.5 stars ****
If you're new to the series, see my review of the first book for a quick intro to this world where the middle Bennet sister of Pride & Prejudice is inducted into a secret society of magicians. It's an outlandish premise, but I think it works surprisingly well.
In this third installment, Mary spends an extended stay with the Collinses (lucky her, right?). Which of course involves much to-ing and fro-ing to Rosings Park, home of the redoubtable Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Magic and murder and mayhem ensue, and along the way we discover that there is much more to Anne de Bourgh than meets the eye. But we always suspected that, right? Or least hoped. Nice to have it confirmed that she's not entirely under the thumb of her imperious mother.
After the previous book, I was worried the author was turning Mary into a Mary Sue. Fortunately that's not how things played out here. I like how Mary's kept grounded in the mindset of her times, even as her worldview has been blown wide open by immersion in the very different (much more open, "liberated") social norms of magic users.
The tone is overall light and fluffy — a little too fluffy for my usual tastes, but just right for my mood at the moment. Which is why I rounded my 3.5 stars up to 4, which is a bit of a stretch, but hey — right book at the right time.
The next (and final?) book is set at Pemberley, so Lizzie and Darcy will finally get page time. I'm looking forward to it!
If you're new to the series, see my review of the first book for a quick intro to this world where the middle Bennet sister of Pride & Prejudice is inducted into a secret society of magicians. It's an outlandish premise, but I think it works surprisingly well.
In this third installment, Mary spends an extended stay with the Collinses (lucky her, right?). Which of course involves much to-ing and fro-ing to Rosings Park, home of the redoubtable Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Magic and murder and mayhem ensue, and along the way we discover that there is much more to Anne de Bourgh than meets the eye. But we always suspected that, right? Or least hoped. Nice to have it confirmed that she's not entirely under the thumb of her imperious mother.
After the previous book, I was worried the author was turning Mary into a Mary Sue. Fortunately that's not how things played out here. I like how Mary's kept grounded in the mindset of her times, even as her worldview has been blown wide open by immersion in the very different (much more open, "liberated") social norms of magic users.
The tone is overall light and fluffy — a little too fluffy for my usual tastes, but just right for my mood at the moment. Which is why I rounded my 3.5 stars up to 4, which is a bit of a stretch, but hey — right book at the right time.
The next (and final?) book is set at Pemberley, so Lizzie and Darcy will finally get page time. I'm looking forward to it!
February 4, 2020
This series continues to captivate me with its mixture of magic, mystery, and Pride and Prejudice characters. Chief among them, of course, is Mary herself, who is learning more about the magical world and how to use her abilities. Like the Harry Potter series, the events in these books happen in sequence, so it's best for readers to start at the beginning and read the first two volumes (Mary Bennet and the Bingley Codex and Mary Bennet and the Wickham Artifact) before diving in here.
She goes to visit her friend Charlotte Collins at Hunsford in the aftermath of her adventures in London, along with Mrs. Courtland, an Order of Saint George member whose specialty is healing. Mary's recent exertions drained her both physically and magically. The story they've concocted is that she's recovering from "Amazonian Fever" she contracted when unpacking a box of South American artifacts at the British Museum where she's known to be studying. It IS true, however, that Mary has come into a sizable amount of money (though the money's real source, the Prince Regent, is a secret), which makes her uncomfortably popular with her Meryton neighbors and especially with Mrs. Bennet. Hence, the trip to Kent, where Mary anticipates a quiet, uneventful visit with her friend. Unfortunately, she's wrong.
The first surprise is that Anne de Bourgh is not as all like Mary had expected from Elizabeth's description. Instead of being a mousy, sickly girl, Anne is, in fact, quite robust and lively, deceiving her mother and taking an active role in managing the estate and the tenants. Lady Catherine will be in for a shock when her "delicate" daughter reaches her majority and officially takes Rosings' reins. With Darcy now married to Elizabeth Bennet, Lady C. is actively seeking another suitable match for Anne. The Earl and Countess of Welford come for a house party at Rosings accompanied by their very eligible son St. Ives, who, as it happens, had been teaching Mary battle magic back in London only weeks before.
Another surprise is that some kind of wild animal is attacking and killing sheep, and tenants are becoming increasingly concerned. The attacks revive the local legend of the fearsome Rosings Beast, which purportedly has lived for many generations in the heavily wooded area of the estate property called Rosingswood.
Meanwhile, Mary is getting to know various inhabitants of the area. Among them are the Waithwaites, Dawsons, and Constables. One of the young Constable boys, Matthew, is a budding magician, and Mr. Tolliver tutors his brother and him, secretly guiding Matthew in the proper use of his powers. Mary continues to receive instruction of her own in the Mysterium, the book of magic which she reads daily, and she also uses her notebook to communicate with Order members for guidance when the beastly attacks escalate and someone is killed. Once again, Mary's in the thick of things!
The plot is as compelling as the previous books in the series. I love watching Mary's character grow, and the mystery is fun to try to solve. The clues are actually there for the reader to piece together, but I'll admit that I guessed wrong here. Highly recommend! Content is clean.
She goes to visit her friend Charlotte Collins at Hunsford in the aftermath of her adventures in London, along with Mrs. Courtland, an Order of Saint George member whose specialty is healing. Mary's recent exertions drained her both physically and magically. The story they've concocted is that she's recovering from "Amazonian Fever" she contracted when unpacking a box of South American artifacts at the British Museum where she's known to be studying. It IS true, however, that Mary has come into a sizable amount of money (though the money's real source, the Prince Regent, is a secret), which makes her uncomfortably popular with her Meryton neighbors and especially with Mrs. Bennet. Hence, the trip to Kent, where Mary anticipates a quiet, uneventful visit with her friend. Unfortunately, she's wrong.
The first surprise is that Anne de Bourgh is not as all like Mary had expected from Elizabeth's description. Instead of being a mousy, sickly girl, Anne is, in fact, quite robust and lively, deceiving her mother and taking an active role in managing the estate and the tenants. Lady Catherine will be in for a shock when her "delicate" daughter reaches her majority and officially takes Rosings' reins. With Darcy now married to Elizabeth Bennet, Lady C. is actively seeking another suitable match for Anne. The Earl and Countess of Welford come for a house party at Rosings accompanied by their very eligible son St. Ives, who, as it happens, had been teaching Mary battle magic back in London only weeks before.
Another surprise is that some kind of wild animal is attacking and killing sheep, and tenants are becoming increasingly concerned. The attacks revive the local legend of the fearsome Rosings Beast, which purportedly has lived for many generations in the heavily wooded area of the estate property called Rosingswood.
Meanwhile, Mary is getting to know various inhabitants of the area. Among them are the Waithwaites, Dawsons, and Constables. One of the young Constable boys, Matthew, is a budding magician, and Mr. Tolliver tutors his brother and him, secretly guiding Matthew in the proper use of his powers. Mary continues to receive instruction of her own in the Mysterium, the book of magic which she reads daily, and she also uses her notebook to communicate with Order members for guidance when the beastly attacks escalate and someone is killed. Once again, Mary's in the thick of things!
The plot is as compelling as the previous books in the series. I love watching Mary's character grow, and the mystery is fun to try to solve. The clues are actually there for the reader to piece together, but I'll admit that I guessed wrong here. Highly recommend! Content is clean.
August 21, 2023
In this Pride & Prejudice sequel Mary Bennet's story continues as she goes and stays at the Hunsford Parsonage to recover from her recent experiences. But what is it about the old woodland on Rosings Park and who is killing the animals. During Mary's stay she unites with old friends and makes new ones as she unravels the mystery.
Another enjoyable and well-written story featuring my favourite character. Another re-read, again.
Another enjoyable and well-written story featuring my favourite character. Another re-read, again.
September 22, 2023
So enjoyable!
So far, this is a great series. The writing is engaging and entertaining and makes the magic really believable. A thoroughly worthy read!
So far, this is a great series. The writing is engaging and entertaining and makes the magic really believable. A thoroughly worthy read!
March 11, 2022
This is the third installment of the series, and I think I actually enjoyed it a bit more than the previous one. There's less worldbuilding on the magic side of things but the plot felt a bit stronger and does a good job of integrating the magical and non-magical sides of things.
Having expended almost all of her magic at the end of the previous book, Mary is weakened and sent to stay with her cousin Mister Collins - just the vacation every twenty year old apprentice mage wants. So of course this time the Pride and Prejudice characters the story focuses on are the Collinses and the De Bourghs. Mister Collins is a little less insufferable when he's not attempting to propose marriage to you, and in keeping with the theme of looking past first appearances that the novel establishes early on, there's a lot more to Anne de Bourgh than meets the eye. Far from the weak sickly girl shown in Pride and Prejudice, she's actually a smart young woman devoted to learning and able to manipulate her mother. I haven't read other Pride and Prejudice variants that make use of Anne, but I enjoyed her here, and in fact I wish the story continued past the actual ending point so I could see first hand what happens when she reaches 21.
Of course, as with the previous books, it's not all Austen style dances and visits and romance. This time the magical element is centered around the legends of the Beast of Rosings Park - legends that seem to be truth when sheep are found slashed apart by terrible claws. Mary works together with the member of the Order of Saint George sent to watch over her, along with a few local magicians and the reappearing St. Ives to try to find the cause of the attacks. This time the magical world was integrated much better with the mundane one because St. Ives has been dragged along by his parents in hopes of matching him with Anne and the other magicians are the second son of one of the notable families and his tutor. Mary came into her magic late in life, so it's fun to see a character who discovered magic early, and as many young boys with an annoying older brother would, he uses it to play pranks and cause messes.
As with the previous two books, this was generally a fun story and I enjoyed reading it. Mary continues to be well written and I like seeing her point of view. I also like that the romances happen around but not to Mary, though I'm starting to wonder whether a certain recurring character might not be interested in her. But for that, I guess I'll have to read the fourth and final book and see what happens next. And then bemoan the fact that I'll have finished off the entire of what's been a surprisingly enjoyable series.
Having expended almost all of her magic at the end of the previous book, Mary is weakened and sent to stay with her cousin Mister Collins - just the vacation every twenty year old apprentice mage wants. So of course this time the Pride and Prejudice characters the story focuses on are the Collinses and the De Bourghs. Mister Collins is a little less insufferable when he's not attempting to propose marriage to you, and in keeping with the theme of looking past first appearances that the novel establishes early on, there's a lot more to Anne de Bourgh than meets the eye. Far from the weak sickly girl shown in Pride and Prejudice, she's actually a smart young woman devoted to learning and able to manipulate her mother. I haven't read other Pride and Prejudice variants that make use of Anne, but I enjoyed her here, and in fact I wish the story continued past the actual ending point so I could see first hand what happens when she reaches 21.
Of course, as with the previous books, it's not all Austen style dances and visits and romance. This time the magical element is centered around the legends of the Beast of Rosings Park - legends that seem to be truth when sheep are found slashed apart by terrible claws. Mary works together with the member of the Order of Saint George sent to watch over her, along with a few local magicians and the reappearing St. Ives to try to find the cause of the attacks. This time the magical world was integrated much better with the mundane one because St. Ives has been dragged along by his parents in hopes of matching him with Anne and the other magicians are the second son of one of the notable families and his tutor. Mary came into her magic late in life, so it's fun to see a character who discovered magic early, and as many young boys with an annoying older brother would, he uses it to play pranks and cause messes.
As with the previous two books, this was generally a fun story and I enjoyed reading it. Mary continues to be well written and I like seeing her point of view. I also like that the romances happen around but not to Mary, though I'm starting to wonder whether a certain recurring character might not be interested in her. But for that, I guess I'll have to read the fourth and final book and see what happens next. And then bemoan the fact that I'll have finished off the entire of what's been a surprisingly enjoyable series.
August 11, 2021
It is taking Miss Bennett a while to recover from her major feat of magic at the end of the previous book in the series - but she going to spend a little time accompanying Maria Clucas as she goes to visit Mr & Mrs Collins. This brings her into contact, again, with the redoubtable Lady Catherine de Bourgh - and her daughter Anne.
Mary discovers Anne is not the sickly but haughty young lady she had expected - and a friendship develops as, along with a few of Mary's fellow magicians who are in the area, they try to resolve the problem of what is attacking and killing both sheep and people...
Mary discovers Anne is not the sickly but haughty young lady she had expected - and a friendship develops as, along with a few of Mary's fellow magicians who are in the area, they try to resolve the problem of what is attacking and killing both sheep and people...
June 3, 2021
2021 bk 128. While visiting friends/family and recovering from the effects of her new skills in #2 - Mary, Mrs. C., St. Ives, and two members of the order who are new to her (Tolliver and his young charge) learn of a mysterious monster in the neighborhood and the murders of sheep and human alike. The five prevail after much adventure - and a twist that I did not see coming.
August 27, 2021
I got this book for free off of Bookbub, so I did not know there was books before it.
If was fine as a stand alone read though.
Mary is very endearing.
This is not an exciting story. It does have a mystery involved. I would call it, a light read.
If was fine as a stand alone read though.
Mary is very endearing.
This is not an exciting story. It does have a mystery involved. I would call it, a light read.
October 26, 2019
3.25 stars.
I found this one quite enjoyable. Miss Marry Bennet is turning out to be such a dear, and I found myself liking quite a few if not all of the secondary characters. Yes, I even found myself understanding Catherine de Bourgh, the pompous wannabe nemesis of Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. I really appreciate the way Joyce Harmon writes to develop previously marginal characters into fully realized ones- Anne de Bourgh, Charlotte Lucas, and even Mister Collins receive a new rendering.
The first person narrative isn't my favourite, but I've found it not so annoying in this edition. The mystery was quite fun in this story, and I'm really hoping that Mary gets a romantic interest, not because she needs one, mind you, but because I want someone to really appreciate her, foibles and all.
I found this one quite enjoyable. Miss Marry Bennet is turning out to be such a dear, and I found myself liking quite a few if not all of the secondary characters. Yes, I even found myself understanding Catherine de Bourgh, the pompous wannabe nemesis of Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. I really appreciate the way Joyce Harmon writes to develop previously marginal characters into fully realized ones- Anne de Bourgh, Charlotte Lucas, and even Mister Collins receive a new rendering.
The first person narrative isn't my favourite, but I've found it not so annoying in this edition. The mystery was quite fun in this story, and I'm really hoping that Mary gets a romantic interest, not because she needs one, mind you, but because I want someone to really appreciate her, foibles and all.
March 12, 2020
I love this series so, so much! After the Bingley Codex and the Wickham Artifact, now we have the Beast of Rosings Park, and although it doesn’t quite have the punch-the-air awesomeness of the previous book, it’s still a terrific outing for our Pride and Prejudice bluestocking with surprising hidden talents. The premise is that bookish Mary Bennet has discovered that she has magical abilities, and has been whisked off to London and the basement of the British Museum to be trained to use her new abilities. Anyone who always suspected there was more to Mary than met the eye or who likes a little magic in their Regency, this is the series you’ve been waiting for.
After her efforts at the end of book 2 (Jupiter Bennet!!! That made me laugh so hard), Mary is recovering at home from her overdose-of-magic induced infirmity, because magic always has a cost. The story is that she caught Amazonian Fever from an artifact at the British Museum, and there’s a delightful moment when the local doctor is fascinated by her previously unknown illness and wants to research her and write the details up for his fellow medics. It’s a challenge for Mary and her magician minder, Mrs Courtland, to put him off. I love these little touches of realism.
After a stay with the Bingleys in book 1, and then with the Gardiners and Wickhams in book 2, here we are at Hunsford parsonage with Mr and Mrs Collins, and the irrepressible Lady Catherine de Burgh. The author keeps these characters fairly close to their P&P characters, but, as with Mary herself, there are some characters that are not quite as per the book, including Anne de Burgh and her governess/chaperon, Mrs Jenkins. I loved the way they were developed, but I won’t spoil the surprise by giving anything away. There’s an array of minor characters, too, and now that Mary has a sizable dowry (courtesy of the Prince Regent after the book 2 incident), she’s surprisingly popular. Her illness prevents her from dancing, but luckily her health improves enough to see her scampering about the countryside well before the end of the book, so that she can participate in monster-hunting expeditions. I’m also not going to say anything about the monster. This unravels in a slightly more predictable way than in previous books, but it was still fun, and gave Mary the opportunity for some creative magic.
In the last book, there were teeny tiny hints of a romantic future for Mary with a certain handsome young lord, and I was thrilled to see him turn up again here, even though the romance really isn’t progressing very fast. No, let’s be honest, it’s not progressing at all. Sigh. Still, I’m optimistic. Book 4, the Shades of Pemberley, may possibly be the final book of the series, so fingers crossed for a happy ending for Mary. I can’t wait.
For anyone expecting Austen-esque writing or a strict adherence to canon, this book probably isn’t for you, but for anyone else, it’s delightful and I highly recommend the whole series (which should probably be read in order). Five stars.
After her efforts at the end of book 2 (Jupiter Bennet!!! That made me laugh so hard), Mary is recovering at home from her overdose-of-magic induced infirmity, because magic always has a cost. The story is that she caught Amazonian Fever from an artifact at the British Museum, and there’s a delightful moment when the local doctor is fascinated by her previously unknown illness and wants to research her and write the details up for his fellow medics. It’s a challenge for Mary and her magician minder, Mrs Courtland, to put him off. I love these little touches of realism.
After a stay with the Bingleys in book 1, and then with the Gardiners and Wickhams in book 2, here we are at Hunsford parsonage with Mr and Mrs Collins, and the irrepressible Lady Catherine de Burgh. The author keeps these characters fairly close to their P&P characters, but, as with Mary herself, there are some characters that are not quite as per the book, including Anne de Burgh and her governess/chaperon, Mrs Jenkins. I loved the way they were developed, but I won’t spoil the surprise by giving anything away. There’s an array of minor characters, too, and now that Mary has a sizable dowry (courtesy of the Prince Regent after the book 2 incident), she’s surprisingly popular. Her illness prevents her from dancing, but luckily her health improves enough to see her scampering about the countryside well before the end of the book, so that she can participate in monster-hunting expeditions. I’m also not going to say anything about the monster. This unravels in a slightly more predictable way than in previous books, but it was still fun, and gave Mary the opportunity for some creative magic.
In the last book, there were teeny tiny hints of a romantic future for Mary with a certain handsome young lord, and I was thrilled to see him turn up again here, even though the romance really isn’t progressing very fast. No, let’s be honest, it’s not progressing at all. Sigh. Still, I’m optimistic. Book 4, the Shades of Pemberley, may possibly be the final book of the series, so fingers crossed for a happy ending for Mary. I can’t wait.
For anyone expecting Austen-esque writing or a strict adherence to canon, this book probably isn’t for you, but for anyone else, it’s delightful and I highly recommend the whole series (which should probably be read in order). Five stars.
November 4, 2019
I hugely enjoyed the first two novels in this series, so when this was released I read it within 24 hours of getting it! And I was not disappointed. Again, we get to watch Mary learning things, using her brain. She meets people in a better way than when she had to deal with her whole family, making friends and having interesting conversations.
As with its predecessors, this one includes Mary using tremendous ingenuity in solving magical problems, saving lives and defeating the bad guys with clever ideas!
Also, kudos to the author for keeping me guessing with the mystery. In the middle I thought I had a good idea of what was going on. Instead, a completely new angle was added to the story!
Oh, another excellent thing about this series is that some of the Austen characters are reinterpreted just enough. The second one gives us a slightly different angle on Lydia, without taking away her Lydia-ness; I wouldn't mind seeing more of that Lydia.
This one gives us a deeper look at Anne de Bourgh, one which I really enjoyed as I always feel sorry for her in Jane Austen's original novel.
I can hardly wait for the Shades of Pemberley! And I hope this series has many more installments.
As with its predecessors, this one includes Mary using tremendous ingenuity in solving magical problems, saving lives and defeating the bad guys with clever ideas!
Also, kudos to the author for keeping me guessing with the mystery. In the middle I thought I had a good idea of what was going on. Instead, a completely new angle was added to the story!
Oh, another excellent thing about this series is that some of the Austen characters are reinterpreted just enough. The second one gives us a slightly different angle on Lydia, without taking away her Lydia-ness; I wouldn't mind seeing more of that Lydia.
This one gives us a deeper look at Anne de Bourgh, one which I really enjoyed as I always feel sorry for her in Jane Austen's original novel.
I can hardly wait for the Shades of Pemberley! And I hope this series has many more installments.
June 15, 2022
I read this one out of series order, having picked it up on a BookBub sale after reading the first. I've been waiting to get the second book on sale, but, in the middle of a book drought, finally decided to just go ahead and read it. It sounds like the second book is quite an adventure, and I still do plan to get it at some point.
Here we see Mary Bennet (the middle sister from Pride and Prejudice) staying with her cousin Mr. Collins at his vicarage beside the great estate of Rosings, as she recuperates from magical exhaustion occasioned by the plot of the second book. This third one is a mystery, with sheep (and eventually a person) being killed and mutilated in the area, seemingly by something that may or may not be the legendary beast that inhabits the woods of Rosings Park. Mary uses her magical skills and, even more so, her intelligence and courage to eventually solve the mystery, and along the way we get quite a different perspective on young Anne de Bourgh, and even on prosy Mr Collins and his patroness, Anne's mother Lady Catherine. It's not a wild thrill ride of a plot; there's still a lot of Regency visiting and conversation and marital maneuvering, aimed presumably at the fans of the source material, and there's seldom any sense of urgency, but there are a couple of relatively tense scenes, especially the climax.
The copy editing issues are individually minor, but there are a lot of them (more than 50): mispunctuated dialog, missing quotation marks or (occasionally) periods, missing commas, misplaced apostrophes, small words accidentally substituted for other similar words, errors of tense and number, and a couple of homonyms. This is one reason I'm not prepared to pay $5.99 USD for these, the other reason being that, while they're enjoyable, they're not anything like twice as good as plenty of other books that cost half that much.
Overall, it earns four stars as a pleasant read, but doesn't make it onto my Best of the Year.
Here we see Mary Bennet (the middle sister from Pride and Prejudice) staying with her cousin Mr. Collins at his vicarage beside the great estate of Rosings, as she recuperates from magical exhaustion occasioned by the plot of the second book. This third one is a mystery, with sheep (and eventually a person) being killed and mutilated in the area, seemingly by something that may or may not be the legendary beast that inhabits the woods of Rosings Park. Mary uses her magical skills and, even more so, her intelligence and courage to eventually solve the mystery, and along the way we get quite a different perspective on young Anne de Bourgh, and even on prosy Mr Collins and his patroness, Anne's mother Lady Catherine. It's not a wild thrill ride of a plot; there's still a lot of Regency visiting and conversation and marital maneuvering, aimed presumably at the fans of the source material, and there's seldom any sense of urgency, but there are a couple of relatively tense scenes, especially the climax.
The copy editing issues are individually minor, but there are a lot of them (more than 50): mispunctuated dialog, missing quotation marks or (occasionally) periods, missing commas, misplaced apostrophes, small words accidentally substituted for other similar words, errors of tense and number, and a couple of homonyms. This is one reason I'm not prepared to pay $5.99 USD for these, the other reason being that, while they're enjoyable, they're not anything like twice as good as plenty of other books that cost half that much.
Overall, it earns four stars as a pleasant read, but doesn't make it onto my Best of the Year.
October 15, 2021
I am a sucker for Regency romance, and while I might not like the recently popular ones, I can and have read Austen's works again and again.
After searching the Zon for something that would catch my fancy and be appropriate for the group, I found this one, and for those who want some assurance, there wasn't a lick of overt romance in it.
I like the writing style of most HR, and this one was a pleasant read. It is a cute little Historical fantasy with a mystery woven in. I have read quite a few reimagining with Mary Bennett being more than a bookish girl on the path to a convent. Mix some magic in, and it becomes delightful.
Now onto the bigger discussion- I admit the magic system would have been easier to understand (it isn't really that difficult) if I had started on the first book, but I got this one some offer a while back and didn't realize it was book 3. I know, I know.
Though the overall arc of the series is reliant upon the initial few books, this is a standalone, as most mysteries are and has made me get a few more of the author's books.
After searching the Zon for something that would catch my fancy and be appropriate for the group, I found this one, and for those who want some assurance, there wasn't a lick of overt romance in it.
I like the writing style of most HR, and this one was a pleasant read. It is a cute little Historical fantasy with a mystery woven in. I have read quite a few reimagining with Mary Bennett being more than a bookish girl on the path to a convent. Mix some magic in, and it becomes delightful.
Now onto the bigger discussion- I admit the magic system would have been easier to understand (it isn't really that difficult) if I had started on the first book, but I got this one some offer a while back and didn't realize it was book 3. I know, I know.
Though the overall arc of the series is reliant upon the initial few books, this is a standalone, as most mysteries are and has made me get a few more of the author's books.
March 8, 2022
I absolutely love this Mary Bennet. She is everything she is not in canon and add magical abilities and she blossoms into a wonderful young lady. I would suggest you start with the first book, this will give you more insight into her character development, its not necessary but I found it very helpful to see into her inner musings and reasons for her actions.
In this book, Mary is recovering from a magical illness and leaves Longbourn to get away from mother and her attempts to keep her there permanently via marriage. While there in Hunsford several sheep are found dead with unique claw marks. The rumors begin about a beast killing them until a woman is found dead with the same markings. Mary with some help from other magicians try to discover the culprit. I won’t say more as it would ruin the story for you. I will add that Mary has a way with people, not using her magic but a unique way of understanding them and using that to help them.
In this book, Mary is recovering from a magical illness and leaves Longbourn to get away from mother and her attempts to keep her there permanently via marriage. While there in Hunsford several sheep are found dead with unique claw marks. The rumors begin about a beast killing them until a woman is found dead with the same markings. Mary with some help from other magicians try to discover the culprit. I won’t say more as it would ruin the story for you. I will add that Mary has a way with people, not using her magic but a unique way of understanding them and using that to help them.
October 9, 2021
Oh how lovely, aside from the gruesome murders
When I just absolutely had to put this down (cats don't feed themselves, opposable thumbs?), my mind was constantly reviewing the book up to the point I'd left it. I'm not ashamed to admit I didn't have a clue what was coming! Great ending too, like a sigh of relief - whew all's right with the world.
I don't know if the author reads her reviews, but I want her to know I love her writing. Having said that, another pass to a proofreader could make this perfect. There were a few places I had to re-read a sentence to get the meaning of it because of a misspelled word, an extra word, or just taking the sentence and figuring out what the word should be. Of course it's slipped my mind, but an example would be: she hit her journal/ obviously should be 'she hid her...'
When I just absolutely had to put this down (cats don't feed themselves, opposable thumbs?), my mind was constantly reviewing the book up to the point I'd left it. I'm not ashamed to admit I didn't have a clue what was coming! Great ending too, like a sigh of relief - whew all's right with the world.
I don't know if the author reads her reviews, but I want her to know I love her writing. Having said that, another pass to a proofreader could make this perfect. There were a few places I had to re-read a sentence to get the meaning of it because of a misspelled word, an extra word, or just taking the sentence and figuring out what the word should be. Of course it's slipped my mind, but an example would be: she hit her journal/ obviously should be 'she hid her...'
March 19, 2022
An enjoyable P&P variation but...
This is the first book I'm reading by this author and in this series, so I didn't have the advantage of the world building. I love all things P&P, and the overall story concept is a good creation, but it is marred by extremely awkward sentence structures, dozens of proofreading errors, changes of tense within the same sentence, and unfortunate phrasing that cannot be found in any of Austen's works, and, quite frankly made the read a bumpy road indeed.
I like that Mary is a strong woman and Mr. Collins is being portrayed in a better and kinder light. The inclusion of magic in this story is a welcomed addition. I was curious to see how that would play into this new variation, and I wasn't disappointed. The many other original characters were spot on.
I shall read more by this author.
June 28, 2020
This book was not as exciting as I thought it would be. The theme was good, the characters were good but for some reason I can not put my finger on,I found it dull. Lady Catherine De Burgh is as pompous and overbearing as always. Ann De Burgh was a welcome surprise. Mrs. Jennings was a welcome surprise and good for her! Mister Collins was as we remember and poor Charlotte seems content with her lot in life.
There were surprises, the appearance of Mary's favorite count and his family as they endeavor to secure the hand of Ann for him. He is so happy to see Mary you can tell from the beginning she is a favorite.
This book has murders, magic, mystery, magical creature and oh yeah a one sided love interest. I will give Mary a break until she can peak interest again.
There were surprises, the appearance of Mary's favorite count and his family as they endeavor to secure the hand of Ann for him. He is so happy to see Mary you can tell from the beginning she is a favorite.
This book has murders, magic, mystery, magical creature and oh yeah a one sided love interest. I will give Mary a break until she can peak interest again.
Read
August 14, 2021This third book in the series progresses along similar lines to the first two. The focus is on social interactions with a relatively mild (if gruesome) mystery to clear up at the end. The prose felt less old-fashioned here (certainly not modern, however), although perhaps I'm just used to it by now. The pace of the story is leisurely, and the tension level low. I had a bit of a sense of characters spelling things out to each other that surely were known to them both, and Mary's "life lessons" (both given and received) felt like trite homilies. But I guess that fits since she's visiting Mr Collins :P
Overall, a pleasant, low-tension read with further homages to Pride & Prejudice.
Overall, a pleasant, low-tension read with further homages to Pride & Prejudice.
July 24, 2022
I enjoyed this, however, there was one glaring word that kept popping up time and again, an american word that drives me daft! I'm taking about 'gotten' whilst the US seems to have a love affair with this dreadful word, we, here in the UK do not, we do not use it. And even if we did, it certainly wouldn't have been in use in the time period the book is set in and certainly not used by the genteel and upper class persons. If you want to write historical novels, please get things right. That totally spoiled the book for me, hence the lack of stars.
The author I note, is from the USA, enough said!
The author I note, is from the USA, enough said!
December 9, 2023
I had enough fun with books 1 and 2 that I bought the third one. They make pretty good airplane/airport books—I needn't pay too much attention, I won't miss anything in the book if I'm tired. However, by about a quarter of the way through book 3 I realized I was done. The plots are still kind of fun and it is fun to see the characters and how they change. But I got tired of the dialog, which often is repeating something you just read—i.e. a character experiences something, then tells another character about it, in what is really unnecessary dialog (and not all that great dialog either). So...I won't read book 4. I'm good.
June 11, 2025
This was a very enjoyable adventure. The characters are fleshed out even more and very human like with magical abilities. The plot is easily followed, and the premise is finding out what is killing the livestock of the village they stopped to visit and why. There is also a fascinating myth about a beast living in the natural woodland and it was being blamed for the killings. Turns out there really is a beast, but not one that was doing the killing, especially the two human kills. You need to read the book to see what I mean as I am certain you will enjoy the story. I highly recommend this book.
October 13, 2020
Another fun book in this series featuring Mary Bennet (Pride & Prejudice) as an apprentice magician. There are several good twists and the villain was a real surprise. I really enjoyed seeing Lady Catherine DeBourgh again (still the same), but daughter Anne is the real surprise.
Of course, we see Charlotte and Mr Collins again. He is still unsufferably obsequious as always, but it appears Charlotte has learned to deal with him. Charlotte has settled into her role as a clergyman's wife working with the people of the parish and her friends in the neighborhood.
Of course, we see Charlotte and Mr Collins again. He is still unsufferably obsequious as always, but it appears Charlotte has learned to deal with him. Charlotte has settled into her role as a clergyman's wife working with the people of the parish and her friends in the neighborhood.
September 4, 2021
Thoroughly enjoyable riffing on the characters and setting of Pride and Prejudice. I'm enjoying watching Mary grow into a formidable and confident person, as well as the author's takes on characters who, let's be honest, don't come off well in the original. Even Mr Collins, here, is acknowledged to have his good qualities. As in the first book the mystery takes a back seat to the more social conundrums, but again, it makes for just the sort of light and fluffy entertainment one needs to clear one's head of weightier and less pleasant matters.
Read
September 5, 2021Unusual
Vastly different from the usual rewritten Pride and Prejudice copycat novels - strangely there were none when I was reading the book at school - this centres on the middle, bookish, sister Mary and covers an adventure she has while visiting the family friend Mrs. Charlotte Collins at Rosewood. Dealing with innocent, if scary, magical creatures is the easy part. It is mans insanity that can prove to be the real problem. An excellent and unusual novel dealing with the middle sister's in families which is well worth reading.
Vastly different from the usual rewritten Pride and Prejudice copycat novels - strangely there were none when I was reading the book at school - this centres on the middle, bookish, sister Mary and covers an adventure she has while visiting the family friend Mrs. Charlotte Collins at Rosewood. Dealing with innocent, if scary, magical creatures is the easy part. It is mans insanity that can prove to be the real problem. An excellent and unusual novel dealing with the middle sister's in families which is well worth reading.
October 10, 2021
I loved this book (in fact I'm loving the series, reading each book back to back!)
I love Mary's character development. She's still fairly true to the original character but her growth and shine is amazing. I also really loved how Anne de Bourgh has been reimagined as a stronger and more independent character.
I have to say, the culprit of the killings did keep me wondering, I wasn't able to guess it correctly, even up to the last minute I thought possibly Miss Filmore was colluding with Waithwraite.
Looking forward to the next read!
I love Mary's character development. She's still fairly true to the original character but her growth and shine is amazing. I also really loved how Anne de Bourgh has been reimagined as a stronger and more independent character.
I have to say, the culprit of the killings did keep me wondering, I wasn't able to guess it correctly, even up to the last minute I thought possibly Miss Filmore was colluding with Waithwraite.
Looking forward to the next read!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 29, 2025
Very enjoyable, the only thing that I didn't like was the misuse of some words, "that" was used where "than" should have been, and once, ONLY once I read something like she and me instead of she and I so to find it look for "and me".
These were silly issues with the proof reader and didn't detract from the story enough to make me stop reading. I have deleted books that were written by an author who didn't know how to use She/her/I, he/him/I. I found it easier to ignore while reading but I had to return the Audio books because I simply could not stand the misuse as easily.
These were silly issues with the proof reader and didn't detract from the story enough to make me stop reading. I have deleted books that were written by an author who didn't know how to use She/her/I, he/him/I. I found it easier to ignore while reading but I had to return the Audio books because I simply could not stand the misuse as easily.
February 7, 2020
I read the 4 books in a row and will copy and paste this review since my opinion was the same for all four.
A magical sequel to Pride & Prejudice; delicious & cleverly done; choosing the ‘nerdy’ Mary Bennett as the MC was a great idea. Only drawbacks to be a 5-star book: too many secondary characters seen Incidentally and each mystery too quickly (magically?!) solved at the very end of the book. Still a very enjoyable read.
A magical sequel to Pride & Prejudice; delicious & cleverly done; choosing the ‘nerdy’ Mary Bennett as the MC was a great idea. Only drawbacks to be a 5-star book: too many secondary characters seen Incidentally and each mystery too quickly (magically?!) solved at the very end of the book. Still a very enjoyable read.
June 23, 2021
Immensely enjoyable, some editing misses
This book is a continuation of Mary Bennnet‘s adventures as a magic user. As with the previous two, it was completely charming and felt very much in-place with the Pride and Prejudice universe.
My only complaint was some typos the editor missed. There are enough ancient phrases and vocabulary included in the book that the typos completely threw me off and made me stop to wonder if it was a typo at all.
This book is a continuation of Mary Bennnet‘s adventures as a magic user. As with the previous two, it was completely charming and felt very much in-place with the Pride and Prejudice universe.
My only complaint was some typos the editor missed. There are enough ancient phrases and vocabulary included in the book that the typos completely threw me off and made me stop to wonder if it was a typo at all.
October 16, 2021
Oh I’m loving this magical mix of pride & Prejudice with Mary Bennett. A quick fun read & now for the last book…
“Do not allow yourself to become too attached to that initial impression. Because people reveal themselves slowly over time, and if you maintain an open mind, you will find that people you disparage are perhaps better than you first thought, and those that you found most amiable might be worse or weaker than you realize.”
“Do not allow yourself to become too attached to that initial impression. Because people reveal themselves slowly over time, and if you maintain an open mind, you will find that people you disparage are perhaps better than you first thought, and those that you found most amiable might be worse or weaker than you realize.”
February 28, 2021
A brilliant series.
I have enjoyed reading this series. I don't usually read historical novels but this series is a brilliant blend of history and fantasy. Plenty of action and very engaging characters. The only criticism I have, is sometimes the amount of characters can make it difficult to work out who is who. I'm looking forward to the next book.
I have enjoyed reading this series. I don't usually read historical novels but this series is a brilliant blend of history and fantasy. Plenty of action and very engaging characters. The only criticism I have, is sometimes the amount of characters can make it difficult to work out who is who. I'm looking forward to the next book.
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