The Abbey Mystery - Julia Golding

Jane Austen in a Nancy Drewesque Avatar 

Julia Golding's new novel The Abbey Mystery features a young Jane Austen as the detective. Set in the 18th century, it accurately captures the essence of the era and Golding utilises the same razor sharp perception of Austen's novels to solve a mystery at an Abbey. 

A Former British diplomat, Golding has published 50+ books in different genres and is a self confessed Jane Austen enthusiast. Her academic interest in the literature of the period is evident in the way she recreates the setting in her novel. Besides since I love the persona of Jane Austen more than her novels, I was really keen on finding out how this detective fared in the pages of this mystery novel.    

Gist:     

A 13-year old Jane Austen ends up travelling to Southmoor Abbey as a companion to Lady Cromwell. But she finds herself in the middle of baffling events. Unable to resist a mystery, Jane and her trusty notebook together with her faithful dog Grandison, set off on a covert and dangerous journey to unravel the truth.

My thoughts:

• Jane Austen as a young detective is a great protagnist and Golding captures her voice well. The language is set in the past and yet the tone is refreshingly contemporary and this enhances the narrative. 

• It was great to view the Abbey and its residents through Jane's eyes. There are some carefully crafted scenes that showcase her fiesty self beneath that well-mannered persona.  

• The letters to Cassandra work well as a reflection of the protagnist's thoughts plus some clever wordplay ('S' and 'D' letters) that were enjoyable to read.    

• Golding pulls her characters in from different walks of life: the gentry, the immigrants enveloping them in a cloak of mystery. It makes for an interesting mix for the plot to move forward and also as an accurate reflection of the time period.   

• The India connection is also cleverly used here in the way she weaves in characters, perceptions, food as an intrinsic part of the story.

Overall a great read. There are so many elements here and they are fused well for an entertaining read. I loved reading it and definitely will be looking to see what Jane gets up to next.

The Abbey Mystery is published by Lion Hudson books.