I’ve been thinking the last few years every time I return to Pride and Prejudice that maybe (just maybe!) Mary Bennet gets a raw deal.

Yes, she is a little insufferable, particularly when she is moralising about the virtue of a woman just as Lydia runs off with Wickham, which is both unhelpful and unnecessary at that moment in time, sealing the deal of her being the middle child who doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the Bennet family. Lizzy and Jane have each other, Kitty has (for better or for worse) Lydia, Mr Bennet favours Lizzy and Mrs Bennet Lydia. Nobody seems to have time for Mary… even Mr Collins.

So it gives me great joy to see Mary taking centre stage in newer Pride and Prejudice reimaginings and sequels, and I am really excited to share this one with you today and participate in the blog tour by sharing my review!

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In Katherine Cowley‘s new book, The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception, Mary Bennet is a spy, working for the government during the era of Napoleon: when he escapes the island of Elba, Mary and her fellow spies must go to Brussels to gather intelligence. Soon after their arrival, however, a soldier is killed, which starts off a string of murders that Mary becomes embroiled in solving.

The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception is actually the third book in Cowley’s series The Secret Life of Mary Bennet, in which the middle Bennet sister is given an exciting life of espionage working alongside a fascinating company of characters.

In this novel, Mary is partnered up with Mr Henry Winthrop, who, more than ever, she feels something for that she can’t quite work out.

It doesn’t help that during spy training, he and Mary pair up to practice getting secrets out of people by kissing.

I really enjoyed this novel, and particularly liked that Cowley really allows Mary to embody all the qualities Austen gives her in Pride and Prejudice. Mary can still be a little insufferable and a know-it-all, but she’s aware of it, because Cowley has allowed her to grow up and, through her work as a spy, become more attuned to those around her.

It’s exciting to see Mary become a heroine, and I like the originality of her becoming a spy to do so. It’s fun and unexpected and, in The Lady’s Guide, allows her to travel to the continent, attend balls and even a waltzing lesson, becoming embroiled in international politics and the Napoleonic Wars.

That in particular is interesting: Austen’s novels are all set against the background of the Napoleonic Wars, with frequent references to the militia and the navy, but without combat in site.

War, in Austen’s novels, is a fact of life, that materialises in the day-to-day of a militia being present in the local area for training, with the main awareness of the young women present being that they want to dance with them at balls. We all know how that turned out for a certain Mr Wickham and Lydia Bennet, but here, Mary is at the front of international events, mingling with people such as the Duke of Wellington and Prince of Orange. Cowley does a great job of weaving together fact and fiction, which I think bears testament to the level of research done into the period to make it a seamless inclusion.

Without spoiling anything, one of the things that really kept me gripped in this novel is Cowley’s exploration of Mary and Lydia’s relationship: yes, there is a starring appearance from the youngest Bennet daughter and her supposedly dashing husband. It made me appreciate both of them in a new light, which I always enjoy when reading a reimagining or a sequel to any of Austen’s novels.

Also, of course, as a romance lover, I very much enjoyed the brewing romantic tension between Mr Winthrop and Mary, and the way they work together as equals throughout the novel.

I think it’s so fun seeing creative takes on the period and characters, the storylines and the themes, and, for anyone who loves a good mystery, The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception, and the Secret Life of Mary Bennet series as a whole, is a wonderful take on the much-ignored middle Bennet sister.

And, even better news, the novel is out today! And make sure to check out the previous two books in the series as well.

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Thank you so much to Austenprose and Tule Publishing for gifting me a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.