09.01.26
Heyer is a dependable comfort read when I'm under the weather (I've been winged but not by a pistol) and this, as usual, featured vivid characters and gentle humour, but it's also a little dull (despite the smuggling subplot). Much of it hasn't aged well since the 1950s - marrying one's cousin and bullying a queer relation lands rather differently these days.
17.06.25
The only memorable thing about this middling Heyer was its excellent use of The Tiffany Effect (even if it is a nickname for Theophania).
18.03.25
Some reviewers enjoy the more serious approach to relationships (and class and politics) that make this a rather untypical Heyer but it bored me and lacked the light touch of the better Heyers. The male lead was totally unsympathetic, and the female lead remained as dull as she first appeared. The class clashes were handled awkwardly - although the vulgar new-money father was one of the few vivid (if overdone) characterisations.
06.01.25
New year, old favourites. This was a middling-to-good Heyer. The dialogue in particular was a masterclass - every character had a distinct way of speaking that reflected their personality and the effect was reliably entertaining. Yet the novel was overlong and portrayed gender-based behaviours that are discomforting to a modern reader (the hero occasionally resorts to what we'd regard as domestic violence) - although, as usual, the hints at gay characters were sympathetic.
52%
21.12.24A glance through my reviews shows how much I love many of Heyer's books but this wasn't one of her best. Unfocused and lacking the usual vivid characterisation and witty dialogue, it's clear that Heyer's heart and mind weren't really in the right place for this late-in-life offering.
05.11.24
I maintain that Heyer was one of the best authors of the 20th century and isn't taken seriously because she wrote romances. This is a particularly delightful example, with sparkling dialogue and the usual strongly drawn characters (except, oddly, for the love interest, who was a bit of a bore).
26.08.24
The problem with a book emulating Georgette Heyer is that it's not Georgette Heyer. Even if you try not to compare, you can't help thinking that Heyer wouldn't explain every thought and action, wouldn't focus so much on exposition, that her heroine wouldn't need rescuing quite so much, that her characters would sparkle and the grasp of social etiquette would be stronger. (Also it would be properly edited and proofread - this had several iffy editorial moments.) I mean, this is fun and has a strong historical basis that didn't shy away from the gritty lives of the poor but it needed a stronger basis and more differentiation from Heyer to really break free. (Note that I've also given a couple of Heyer's books 51/52%.)
This was only really notable for its sympathetic characterisation of two plainly gay male characters. Otherwise, the plot was based on a stupid misunderstanding that could have been easily resolved in the first few chapters. And the 'hero' was too full of toxic masculinity for my taste. Not one of Heyer's best.
As usual, I found myself reading Heyer as a relief from a couple of rather more hardgoing novels. This had its moments of brilliance, especially in its characterisation and dialogue, and it even had rather higher stakes than usual - but overall I don't think it will stick out among the many other Heyers. (Not really a spoiler: Despite the title, she doesn't marry her cousin, which is a relief.)
I normally avoid Heyer knock-offs, but this author had written an academic thesis on her so I decided she'd know how to approach it. The clincher was some reviewers' horror at the (actually rather sweet) lesbian subplot - what fun, I thought, and it was. It was no Heyer, of course - the characters lacked her vividness, and the immersion was spoilt by too much 'telling', too much modern-tinged dialogue, and several glaring errors that should have been picked up by an editor. But, yes, it was fun - and, yes, I have rated it higher than a few of Heyer's novels.
Objectively, this novel could have been better. The author admits in her acknowledgements that it wasn't planned out, and that much is clear - it ambles along with little conflict, pacing or plot and is about 100 pages too long. Such books are usually character driven but all the characters are blandly, uncomplicatedly nice except for the two pantomime villains. Modern concerns are awkwardly shoved in - everyone, with their early 19th-century sensibilities, immediately accepting and understanding neurodiversity, climate change, sexual freedom, and queer and trans characters. Yes, we get it, they're born in the 'wrong time'. But, somehow, for all these flaws, it was still an evocative and engaging read.
More Heyer, more fun, more predictable romance with a less predictable mystery which, nevertheless, was resolved with panache by the engaging and resourceful characters.
