Böcker av Christina Brett

The Norland Inheritance picks up five years after the conclusion of Sense and Sensibility, as Margaret, the youngest sister, reaches the age of eighteen. Following the tragic death of their only son in a riding accident, John and Fanny, Margaret's half-brother and sister-in-law, invite her to stay with them in London. John hopes to fulfil his father's neglected wishes by launching Margaret into society at his own expense. Fanny, however, secretly resents this invitation, particularly as her relationship with John has deteriorated since the loss of their son. Despite this, she chooses to bide her time and comply with his wishes for the moment. With John's passing, the heir to Norland is now Charles Dashwood, a cousin, and a doctor by profession. Shortly after Margaret's arrival, Fanny discovers John's secret desire for Charles to marry Margaret, thus redressing the imbalance of the entail and ensuring that Margaret will be the future mistress of Norland. Fanny's jealousy-fuelled dislike of all of John's sisters, especially Margaret, is so incensed by this potential match that she resolves to stop it by any means within her power. She schemes to marry Margaret off to the first suitor who shows any interest. To this end, she introduces Margaret to a fortune hunter, the dashing Captain Dunning, who pays court to Margaret after Fanny hints that she is to inherit Norland.

The Bradleys moved to the suburbs because with a new baby in the household it was time to leave the Big Bad City and settle in the suburbs just like any other red-blooded American tired of the hassle. What they didn't count on was the fact that suburbia isn't always the nice and quiet place they had envisioned. Instead they found murder and mayhem in the midst of coffee clubs, lawns to be mowed and the squeezing of cantaloupes on shopping day. Melisa Bradley, new mother extraordinaire, feels trapped in their gorgeous new abode and when one of their neighbors is murdered she feels that her calling as sleuth-du-jour is screaming to get out. The nice and quiet place is not as nice and quiet as they thought it would be. Everybody seems to have something to keep mum, and Melissa knows that she is finding too many flaws in regular people that she encounters every day while walking baby Gemma or sitting under her apple tree. She starts to ask questions and to put two and two together until she comes up with the answer. She and her friend Liza find ways to talk the handsome Lieutenant in charge of the case into following their clues until the killer is finally caught and brought to justice. "A Nice and Quiet Place" is a fast-paced story set in Long Island, filled with one-liners and two lovable friends who feel they were cheated when they were moved from the city to Jay Gatsby's playground. A clever satire of suburbia neatly wrapped around a mystery, it is very entertaining and will keep you chuckling until the last page.