The Manor House Governess

Castle’s atmospheric if undercooked debut is a modern retelling of Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice with a sprinkle of Agatha Christie. Brontë “Bron” Ellis, 22, takes a governess job at Greenwood Manor in Cambridgeshire. An orphan, he was raised at an all-boys boarding school where his androgynous appearance made him a target for his peers’ taunts (“it was his femininity they reviled—that is, when they weren’t trying to court or coerce him into playing the girl’s part in their nighttime rendezvous, because they always called him pretty in the dark”). The Edwards family welcomes him with warmth and gives him the home he’d always longed for. Bron comes to love his pupil, Ada, as a sister and is drawn to her 29-year-old brother, Darcy, whose aloof personality is similar to his literary namesake. A fire in the family’s library, a mystery surrounding the identity of Ada’s biological parents, and an intriguing backstory involving Darcy’s romance with a university colleague make Bron feel like he’s inhabiting one of the Victorian tales he loves. Though the romance feels rushed and the discussions about gender between the protagonist and Darcy lack nuance, the prose richly conveys Bron’s obsession with the 19th century. This will appeal to dark academia fans. Agent: Caroline Eisenmann, Frances Goldin Literary Agency. (Nov.)