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Books

Full length novels

The Making of Lady Catherine de Bourgh (2025)
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Lady Catherine's swoon-worthy villain origin story

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Rigid to a fault, Lady Catherine Fitzwilliam has her future all planned and is eager to begin her new life as a married woman. One short week changes everything, including the betrayal of one close to her. Being sensible, expertly behaved, and managing her exacting expectations has gotten her nowhere. She is ready to determine her own future—perhaps even acting against the caution that has guided her throughout life.

A match borne from ignorance threatens to bring scandal upon Catherine, and one reckless act binds her to a prospect she could never have predicted. Will Catherine save her reputation and still find herself a husband?

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Half villain-origin story, half coming-of-age, this tale transports readers to a consequential precipice in Catherine’s life. One where she discovers her voice and begins to understand the needs of her own heart—and how fragile that heart may be—transforming her into the antagonist readers know and loathe in Jane Austen’s cherished Pride and Prejudice.

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Looking for an HEA-only ending? We've got you. Check out our reading directions for a happily ever after.

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If you would like to read a list of content warnings and notes for The Making of Lady Catherine de Bourgh (warning for spoilers), please click here.

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"Exquisitely crafted and skillfully composed – brava, Paige Badgett – you are revolutionizing our understanding of a difficult and hard-to-love character."

- Austenesque Reviews

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Against Every Expectation (2022)
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"Amid the groves of Rosings Park, with Elizabeth by his side, Darcy had begun to hope for something different for his future than he had previously allowed himself to believe was possible—a partnership, a love match…."
 

Elizabeth Bennet travels to Kent to escape her mother’s histrionics, hopeful to find respite in visiting her oldest friend, Charlotte Collins. Instead of the reprieve she desired, she finds herself trapped and miserable—a direct reflection of Mr. Collins’ peculiar sense of hospitality, justice, and duty. The tension in the parsonage is significant, and her friend is much changed. 

 

Elizabeth’s only relief is derived from her morning rambles, where she finds great solace in the strangest of places—walking with Mr. Darcy. His steadiness, kindness, and dependability greatly oppose her previous perceptions of the man, and yet she cannot help but continue to compare his character in Kent with the man she had supposed him to be during their previous acquaintance in Hertfordshire. Could it be that he was now showing his truest self to her?


Just when it seems felicity is near, however, insidious jealousy arises and the betrayal of one close to the two couples threatens their nascent happiness. Elizabeth is pulled away too soon, and Darcy is left to wonder if she ever had feelings for him at all. Can the truth be untangled in time for their course of love to reach its completion?

If you would like to read a list of content warnings and notes for Against Every Expectation (warning for spoilers), please click here.

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"With her debut novel, Paige Badgett tells a turbulent tale of difficult realities, damaged relationships, and love still finding a way. Against Every Expectation is an excellent choice for readers who love Elizabeth and Darcy centric novels and who want to see new avenues explored with Mr. and Mrs. Collins." 

- Austenesque Reviews

Published Short Story

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The Heart's Consent (2025)
originally published as part of the anthology:
An Inducement into Matrimony (2022)
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"Her fantastical imagination had led her to believe a tether existed between herself and Mr Darcy. But it had not been real. The gentleman had made that abundantly clear."​

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Both Miss Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy must overcome regrets and recrimination if he is to win her back from another seemingly ardent suitor. Which man will Elizabeth open her heart to?​

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If you would like to read a list of content warnings and notes for The Heart's Consent (warning for spoilers), please click here.

© 2025 Paige Badgett

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