Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price

Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price ISBN-13: 9780062889805 Hardcover: 368 pages Publisher: HarperTeen Released: March 9th 2021

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Inspired by Pride and Prejudice, this story reimagines the iconic settings, characters, and romances in a thrilling and high-stakes whodunit.

When a scandalous murder shocks London high society, seventeen-year-old aspiring lawyer Lizzie Bennet seizes the opportunity to prove herself, despite the interference of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the stern young heir to the prestigious firm Pemberley Associates. Convinced the authorities have imprisoned the wrong person, Lizzie vows to solve the murder on her own. But as the case—and her feelings for Darcy—become more complicated, Lizzie discovers that her dream job could make her happy, but it might also get her killed.


My Review:
Pride and Premeditation is a mystery theoretically set in the Regency period in England. When the story started, I thought it was set in modern times due to the way the characters were speaking and interacting. Then we learned that there were no women lawyers yet, so I thought maybe it was late 1800s or very early 1900s. But then Wickham appeared as a Bow Street Runner, and it became clear that it was supposed to be the Regency period. Many of the legal and setting details were correct for that time. The characters shared one or two characteristics of their namesake, like Jane was sweet and beautiful, but they acted much more modern and often very different than the Jane Austen characters would have. A reader would not know that this was meant to be Pride and Prejudice except for the use of the names and a few near quotes from the book. Some characters were very different, like Charlotte was a biracial orphan working as a legal secretary.

That said, this was still a very enjoyable story. Lizzie started out very confident in her abilities only to realize how many mistake she had made along the way. Still, she was clever enough to figure out what was going on and, with the help of Darcy and her father, was able to make the case that not only was Bingley innocent but that whodunit was the true murderer and why. The main characters were engaging, and I cared about what happened to them. The mystery was a clue-based puzzle mystery, and you could guess the murderer. It wasn't difficult for a reader to figure out who the bad guys were, but it was a process to figure out who did what and why. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable romp of a mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.