Crossword Genius

Very good Austen novel when keeping quiet in the afternoon (3,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pip emma

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'in the afternoon' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'very good austen novel when keeping quiet' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'good' could be 'pi' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'pi' is located in the answer.
'novel' could be 'emma' (I've seen this before) and 'emma' is present in the answer.
'quiet' could be 'p' (music symbol for 'piano', ie soft or quiet) and 'p' is found in the answer.
This accounts for all the letters.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for pip emma that I've seen before include "after midday" , "Afternoon on the radio" , "Dated term for p.m." , "Afternoon for the military" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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