The Late Mrs. Willoughby

 And yet another delight of a novel in this series! The mystery is a little less structured now because it's happening within the context of a small town instead of just one manor house, but it just opens up more opportunities for twists, and this book DEFINITELY takes advantage of that. The way rumors were used, in particular, was interesting: they opened up alternate ways of viewing the suspects, but also breathed life into the town, showed its dynamics: who was loyal to whom, and who was connected to whom. It also made the true culprit a bit less obvious, which is always fun. 

While the mystery at the heart of the plot is pretty fun, I was a lot more focused on the character dynamics this go-round. Marianne and Brandon were a delight to read about, especially after what happened in the previous novel, and it was just as lovely to see Elinor (Ferrars now, given that she's married), and to see the rest of the Dashwood clan. It was nice to read how Elinor and Marianne get on after their respective marriages, as well as to see how well Elinor and Edward have settled into married life. 

And of course, there's Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney. As a second murder brings them together again, it becomes immensely clear to the reader that these two have Feelings for each other - but keep on being unable to express it. This can get a bit frustrating in a good way, especially because Jonathan and Juliet keep on making entirely mistaken assumptions about what the other is thinking or feeling. It's true they can read each other very well, often able to discern each other's intent from just a glance, but they are most definitely NOT mind-readers. Please note that all of this is a GOOD thing: I like me a slow-burn romance, and the kind of misunderstandings these two have about each other are pretty much par for the course of a Regency novel - and, given that Jonathan is neurodivergent, make sense.
Given how this book ended, of course, I'm fairly sure that there's going to be at least one more in the series, because the protagonists need to get together - and this time, hopefully, in matrimony.