It was hard work reading this book to the finish. It was trainwreck syndrom that kept me going. Once I realized that, I stopped.

Eliza Darcy is going to a family reunion in England and she’s bringing her cat. Despite this, she goes through customs hassle free and is soon on her way to meet her family, all descendants from Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. It seems to be a rather incestuous family: six generations latter the last names of the family members are still all Darcy, Wickham, Bingley.

Eliza laments several times she did not get a chance to crack open her book of British colloquialisms. But the author sure did have chance to open her copy. I read a lot of contemporary British authors, but I have never seen this much British slang in one novel.

Well before the murder happens Eliza shows she is of the nosey sort. Her favourite pastime seems to be eavesdropping on other people. She is an avid reader of murder mysteries, and when Pemberley has its very own murder, Eliza offers the DCI in charge her help. Which he politely declines. Or actually, he declines through a simile that offends Eliza. As an avid reader of amateur sleuths she ought to know that help of the amateur is rarely encourage by the local constabulary.

Marvellous, the overuse of British colloquialisms has affected me too.

Determined to solve the mystery - one of many at Pemberley - Eliza presses on, with the aid of her cousin Joy and love-interest Heath.

Neither the mystery nor the romance could hold my interest. The romance is of the sort that is only attractive if you’re one of the participants. The mystery is too much hiding in shrubbery and turning around corners and seeing/overhearing things.

I much prefer a mystery where the sleuth has a vested interest because they actually know the person that was killed and do their sleuthing while talking to people. Rather than eavesdropping a lot and making assumptions.

It’s not a British colloquialism about when you assume… Eliza should know it.

I read an ARC through NetGalley.