After her brilliant detective debut in Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor , there can be no doubt that Jane Austen would have made a remarkable sleuth. And so, with great aplomb, Stephanie Barron reveals the next superb Jane Austen Mystery... Jane Austen and her family are looking forward to a peaceful late-summer holiday in the seaside village of Lyme Regis. But on the road thither, a fearful storm and an overturned carriage lead the shaken travelers to seek refuge at High Down Grange. And there, in a dismal manor house wrapt in an air of malevolent neglect, Jane meets the darkly forbidding yet strangely attractive master of High Down Grange, Mr. Geoffrey Sidmouth. What murky secrets does the brooding Mr. Sidmouth hope to preserve behind his fierce glower? And who is the exceedingly lovely young woman dressed in peasant garb who shares his home? Once settled in town, Jane seeks to learn the answers. Yet common gossip is soon forgotten when a man is found hanged from a makeshift gibbet by the sea. Only the day before, Jane had observed this same man in a heated exchange with Mr. Sidmouth. Still, the worthies of Lyme are certain the labourer's death is the work of "the Reverend," the notorious ringleader of the midnight smuggling trade. The Reverend's identity is the paramount mystery of Lyme Regis.  And Jane, who can never resist a puzzle, is determined to solve this one. But to her dismay, she must soon admit that she harbours a strange sensibility for a man who could very well be a murderer. And then a second mysterious death draws her into a perilous scheme to entrap and expose Geoffrey Sidmouth. From the drawing- rooms of the cultured and the devious to secret caverns and coarse haunts, her mission will take her far from a lady's proper venue...until even so canny a student of character and valiant adventurer must ask herself: "Is the prize worth the risk--to my heart as well as my person?" Stylish, suspenseful, and wickedly diverting, Jane and the Man of the Cloth delves deep into the foibles, passions, and ruthless machinations that lurk within the most polite society. One of the sweetest surprises of the recent Jane Austen revival has been the exquisite Jane Austen mystery series begun by Stephanie Barron's Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor . Fans of Jane Austen will appreciate the detailed and stylistic sensitivity of Barron's sequel. When a storm forces Jane to take shelter at the home of Geoffrey Sidmouth, she uncovers a mystery surrounding her host's character and a powerful romantic attraction as well. But this is Austen on the case, and you can count on propriety at every turn. Jane's ear for gossip and her careful manners make her a super sleuth in this romantic mystery full of Victoriana and literary charm. YA. Following Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor (Bantam, 1996), this book again places Jane Austen in the role of detective. As the Austen family travels to the town of Lyme Regis for a seaside holiday in the summer of 1804, their carriage overturns in a wild storm and Jane's sister Cassandra is injured. They are forced to seek shelter in nearby High Down Grange, the home of the mysterious and sensuous Geoffrey Sidmouth. A few days later, after the Austens are settled in their cottage, Jane witnesses menacing events and hears local gossip that rouses her curiosity. The remote village has become a destination for smugglers and Sidmouth is implicated as the notorious leader, the "Reverend." When his accuser, Captain Fielding, is found murdered, Jane uses her sleuthing abilities to unravel the puzzles of human relationships and ominous events. Like Jane Austen, Barron fuses drama and ironic wit to enable her heroine to maneuver effectively through society's restrictions. Jane is troubled by her conflicting feelings for Sidmouth and her need to get to the bottom of the mystery. Her wry observations, intelligence, and self-awareness will please Jane Austen fans as well as readers who enjoy intrigue blended with social commentary and history.?Susanne Bardelson, Wheat Ridge Public Library, Jefferson County, CO Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. In this second entry in a series featuring Jane Austen as a detective, following Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor , Barron has delivered another rousing adventure, this time set in one of Austen's favorite locations, the seacoast town of Lyme. After the Austen family's carriage is overturned in foul weather, they're forced to rely on the hospitality of the mysterious Mr. Sidmouth. When settled at last in their vacation cottage, Jane is quickly drawn into the strange affairs of the town's citizens. Because its secluded location, Lyme has become a hotbed for smugglers, particularly a notorious robber dubbed the Man of the Cloth for his propensity for smuggling high-quality silk. Jane sets out to determine the smuggler's identity, and high on her list of suspects is the attractive