King Arthur Movie Tristan

title: Bath Tangle

author: Georgette Heyer



genre: Regency Romance/Classic

pages: 362

published: 1955

source: sent for review from Sourcebooks



rated: 4 out of 5 stars











About:

The red-haired, fiery beauty Lady Serena Carlow has just lost her father to pneumonia. Her mother died when she was just twelve years old and she is an only child.

Serena's fifty-something year old father left behind a widow, the young Lady Fanny, who is twenty three years old, which makes her a few years younger than Serena. Milverly house, Serena's home, is left to her male cousin.



To Serena's horror, at the reading of her fathers will, Ivo Barrasford who is the marquis of Rotherham, is named trustee of Serena's wealth.


Rotherham, who is not even a blood relative, is also Serena's ex-beau, whom she broke it off with years ago because he was 'unendurable'. Serena's father however, trusted and liked Rotherham.




Added to all of this, Serena was once in love with a soldier named Hector Kirkby. This was six years ago and Serena's father made her break off the match since Hector was not wealthy.


Serena and the fair and dainty Fanny get along very well and they decide to temporarily move to Bath. Once at Bath, the two ladies make new acquaintances and find some entertainment with this new change of scenery. Serena even runs into her old flame, Major Hector Kirkby and sparks reignite.





My thoughts:

If I had to describe Bath Tangle with just one word, it would be charming.







Oh, what a tangled web Miss Georgette Heyer weaves in this novel.

This book had me laughing from the start with all the goings on within the storyline and sighing at the sweet romance throughout.




The reading of the will was a favorite scene and I laughed out loud at Serena's reaction to her fate. I thought she was going to claw Rotherham's eyes out since he had the nerve to laugh out loud after the Will was read.

"Fanny, don't touch me! I am not safe!"

-(Serena to Fanny)







I liked Rotherham and thought he made a good hero.
He and Serena had great chemistry, and although the two always found one reason or other to argue, I could always see that he still held feelings for her.
Some of the things he would say to Serena had me laughing. He is very much the 'no nonsense' type of guy.



Serena was likeable. She's got a mind of her own, is a self-confessed flirt and is always ready to argue with Rotherham when the opportunity arises.

She was raised as part of the upper class, used to meeting royalty, with mannerisms of someone who is used to having only the best. She also has a bit of a reputation due to her feisty temper and because she broke off her engagement with Rotherham.




Poor Fanny, she was made a widow in her early twenties, with a step-daughter near her same age to boot. She and Serena are more like sisters than anything. Fanny is happy with the simple life.




I liked when Hector Kirkby made his entrance into the story. He makes it known that he has never forgotten Serena and hates Rotherham. I did feel that Hector was too head over heels in love with Serena, and was blind to her faults. I would laugh out loud when Serena would put him in his place, as he had no control over her.
Another funny scene was when he took Serena to meet his mother. Hector is a bit of a flake.




I always enjoy visiting Regency England through Heyer's stories. She describes the time, place and customs so well that I feel as though I am really there.



This was a fun romance and I found myself being unable to put this one down. Heyer made me laugh until the very end.


The author has a knack for putting her characters into place, then letting the story take twists and turns until the final page.

This was also a story about class and social standings. Heyer weaves this aspect of class into the storyline very well.





With Georgette Heyer's signature witty dialogue, sweet romance, interesting characters and a fun storyline, I thoroughly enjoyed Bath Tangle.



This book has also been reviewed by:


Blodeuedd.







I'll close my review with a few favorite tidbits:

"Don't shoot daggerlooks at me! I'm impervious to 'em."

p.13

He had few graces, his manners being blunt to a fault, made as many enemies as friends, and, had he not been endowed with birth, rank, and fortune, would possibly
have been ostracized from polite circles. But these magical attributes were his, and they acted like a talisman upon his world. His Belcher neckties and his unconventional manners might be deplored but must be accepted: he was Rotherham.

p.13

"It is nearly seven years since I first saw her, and from that day those feelings have remained unchanged! She appeared to me then like some heavenly creature descended to earth to make every other woman seem commonplace! Her beauty, her grace, the very music of her voice, I could never forget! They have remained with me, haunted all of my dreams..."

p.127

About the author:







Georgette Heyer (16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English historical romance and detective fiction novelist. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brother into the novel The Black Moth. In 1925 Heyer married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer. The couple spent several years living in Tanganyika and Macedonia before returning to England in 1929. After her novel These Old Shades became popular despite its release during the General Strike, Heyer determined that publicity was not necessary for good sales. For the rest of her life, she refused to grant interviews, telling a friend: "My private life concerns no one but myself and my family."


quoted from wiki

title: The Quiet Gentleman

author: Georgette Heyer

pages: 360

genre: regency mystery/romance

published: 1951

source: sent for review from Sourcebooks

first line: In the guide-books it figured as Stanyon Castle; on the tongues of the villagers, it was the Castle; the Polite World spoke of it as Stanyon, as it spoke of Woburn, and of Cheveley.

rated: 4 out of 5 stars









Before I start my review, I just wanted to mention that I believe Georgette Heyer to be the Queen Bee of Regency Mystery/Romance novels and I'm a big fan of her work. I'd also like to give many thanks to the publicists over @ Sourcebooks for providing me with several great Heyer titles over the past couple of years. They are the reason I discovered this wonderful author.





Now onto my review....I think you might already be able to tell how it will go.





About:


Gervase Frant returns home after surviving the Napoleanic Wars. Gervase is now the Earl of St. Erth and is home to claim himself as master of the estate known as Stanyon Manor. His step-mother Lady St.Erth, and step-brother Martin, are both openly unhappy about this. Also staying at Stanyon Castle are Gervase's cousin Theo and Miss Morville who is a guest.


One day while out riding, Gervase stumbles upon a maiden in distress. Miss Marianne Bolderwood has fallen off her horse.

Gervase notices right away how lovely Marianne is and begins, like so many others, to give her his attentions. This makes Martin furious, he thinks that Marianne is his personal property and plans to marry her someday, fueling his hatred of Gervase even more.





With Gervase waking in the middle of the night swearing someone was just in his room, to his being setup to purposely take a tumble off his horse, the new Earl has the distinct feeling that the jealous Martin is behind it all. Miss Morville actually tries to help Gervase figure out who is trying to do him harm and she becomes a good friend to the new Earl.









My thoughts:


Since I first read Heyer's work she has reminded me of Jane Austen.

Heyer brings Regency England to life in her stories, and as I read, I am instantly transported there. She set a Gothic mood in this novel from the start with her description of Stanyon Manor and I really enjoyed that.


Heyer had a knack for creating fun characters and storylines. There was a sweet and unexpected romance in the plot.



Gervase Frant himself is a well thought out character and he is definitely The Quiet Gentleman, never losing his composure and finding clever ways to get through difficult situations. He makes for a great hero.

There's a swordfight, people wandering the castle at night, a ball, men fighting over a female, witty dialogue and murder attempts. What more could you want in a book?




I giggled as I read, was swept into the storyline and sighed as I turned the last page. Heyer had me guessing until the end and the person behind trying to harm Gervase wasn't who I thought it would be.



I enjoyed reading The Quiet Gentleman so much that I was up past 1:00 AM to finish reading it, even though I had to be at work early the following day.


With interesting characters, a Gothic like mansion, a dash of humor and some romance, you have a fun mystery the likes of which only Georgette Heyer can weave.

"Good God! The fellow's nothing but a curst dandy!"
p.13

Check out Blodeuedd's review of The Quiet Gentleman.







About the author:





Georgette Heyer (16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English historical romance and detective fiction novelist. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brother into the novel The Black Moth. In 1925 Heyer married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer. The couple spent several years living in Tanganyika and Macedonia before returning to England in 1929. After her novel These Old Shades became popular despite its release during the General Strike, Heyer determined that publicity was not necessary for good sales. For the rest of her life, she refused to grant interviews, telling a friend: "My private life concerns no one but myself and my family."

quoted from wiki

title: Devil's Cub

author: Georgette Heyer

published: 1932

genre: regency romance

pages: 310

first line: There was only once occupant of the coach, a gentleman who sprawled very much at his ease, with his legs stretched out before him, and his hands dug deep in the capacious pockets of his greycoat.

rated: 4 out of 5





The young, wealthy and handsome Marquis of Vidal is known as the Devil's Cub. He enjoys gambling, drinking, driving his carriage too fast and women, he is your textbook 'bad boy'. The Marquis, a.k.a. Dominic, also enjoys dueling and after another deadly shooting over a game of cards, he is banished by his father to France. His father insists that he leave right away for his own safety.
Dominic decides to have some fun and take a mistress with him. The Marquis invites the silly Sophia Challoner, who is only too happy to go along with him hoping that he will eventually marry her. Sophia's sister, Mary, sees that the Marquis only wants one thing from her sister, and decides to stop his plan. On the day that the Marquis is to set sail to France, he sends a letter to Sophia telling her where to meet him.

'Love'-the Marquis began-'It is for to-night. My coach will be at the bottom of your street at eleven. Join me there and bring nothing that you cannot hide beneath your cloak. Vidal.'

Mary however, intercepts the letter and decides to go instead to meet the Marquis. She disguises herself with a mask and heads off to meet him, hoping to trick him and tell him that Sophia doesn't want to leave with him after all. He doesn't realize that it's not Sophia until Mary unmasks herself after they've driven all night. Mary tells him that Sophia doesn't want to leave with him and she insists on going back home herself. Once he realizes he has the wrong sister with him, The Marquis figures he'll take her along with him anyway. So Mary unwillingly winds up on a boat to France.



After some research, I learned that Devil's Cub is a sequel to Heyer's 'These Old Shades'. I wish I had known that and read that book first, since I like to read books in order and might have learned a bit more about the characters that were in this story, like Dominic's parents. I felt like in the beginning there were too many characters being introduced at once and it got confusing. Though this book started off slowly for me, it started to take off during chapter four and I enjoyed reading the Devil's Cub.

I thought Dominic's character was alright, except for the fact that he enjoyed drunk driving and shooting people. Doesn't that sound crazy? lol I found myself laughing out loud at some of the things he would say.

"Ask the judges," shrugged the Marquis. "I warned you that I drive best when I am drunk."

or to Mary when he finds out she tricked him into taking her to Paris:

"You elected to come with me," the Marquis said, "and by God you'll obey me, if I have to lay my whip about your sides!"

I thought Mary was a likeable character and was entertained by how the two interacted once they began to like each other. This was classic Heyer, the hero, the heroine, meddling family members, some romance and a twist to the plot. I enjoyed it! Frederica still remains my favorite Heyer though.








About the author:


http://georgetteheyer.com/

Author of over fifty books, Georgette Heyer is the best-known and best-loved of all historical novelists, who made the Regency period her own. Her first novel, The Black Moth, published in 1921, was written at the age of fifteen to amuse her convalescent brother; her last was My Lord John. Although most famous for her historical novels, she also wrote eleven detective stories. Georgette Heyer died in 1974 at the age of seventy-one.

Special thanks to Danielle over at Sourcebooks for sending me this book to read and review.

title: Arabella

author: Georgette Heyer

published: 1949

pages: 312

genre: historical fiction/regency romance

first line: The schoolroom in the Parsonage at Heythram was not a large apartment, but on a bleak January day, in a household where the consumption of coals was a consideration, this was not felt by its occupants to be a disadvantage.

rated: 4 out of 5





Arabella Tallant is the eldest daughter of a humble vicar and his wife, and she is expected to marry well. She is sent to London to stay with her godmother in hopes of finding a suitable husband.
On her way to London, Arabella's carriage breaks down and she and her companion end up staying at the nearest home. It is the home of rich, eligible bachelor, Robert Beaumaris. Beaumaris is used to females trying to catch his attention, so he thinks that Arabella faked her carriage trouble in order to stay at his home and catch his eye. Arabella dislikes Beaumaris from the start, thinking he is conceited and arrogant. At dinner, while drinking wine and feeling a bit 'toasty', she decides to lie to him. She tells Beaumaris that she herself is rich and heir to the Tallant fortune and is going to London to escape all her would be suitors. Beaumaris believes her story and soon enough the whole town is buzzing with rumors about the new heiress.


When her godmother throws a ball, and Beaumaris shows up, the party is considered an instant success. Beaumaris is known for being a confirmed bachelor and a flirt, and he does gives Arabella his attention at the ball. Soon enough, she has many would be suitors after her as well as a few marriage proposals. These men think that if Beaumaris is after Arabella, she must be quite the catch. Beaumaris figures he'll just flirt with her, but Arabella is already onto him, she knows what he is up to and she decides to use his attentions to her advantage. She wants to stay one step ahead of him, and refuses to take him seriously or fall in love with him. When Beaumaris realizes that Arabella is smarter than he first took her for, he decides to really charm her and make her fall for him. Before they know it, what started out as just a game, turns into something more serious for these two.









I'm a fan of Georgette Heyer and found Arabella to be sweet, funny and entertaining.
The characters were great and the storyline was fun. I liked Arabella and Beaumaris's characters. It was cute how they flirted with each other, yet each played hard to get.




As always, I liked Heyer's style of writing, here's a few of my favorite passages.

They presented a charming picture, as they sat poring over thier book, thier dark ringlets intermingled, and thier arms around each other's waists. They were very plainly dressed, in gowns of blue kersemere, made high to the throat, and with long tight sleeves; and they wore no other ornaments than a knot or two of ribbons; but the Vicar's numerous offspring were all remarkable for thier good looks and had very little need of embellishment.

She now perceived that she had much mistaken the matter. No one she had ever seen approached the elegance of Mr. Beaumaris.

Lord Fleetwood, or any of his cronies, could have recognized the tailoring of that coat of olive-green superfine at a glance; Arabella, to whom the magic name of Weston was unknown, was merely aware of a garment so exquisitely cut that it presented all the appearance of having been moulded to its wearer's form. A very good form too, she noted, with approval. No need of buckram wadding, such as that Knaresborough tailor had inserted into Bertram's new coat, to fill out those shoulders! And how envious Bertram would have been of Mr. Beaumaris's fine legs, sheathed in tight pantaloons, with gleaming Hessian boots pulled over them!

It was impossible to fathom the intricacies of his mind, but one thing was certain; the great Mr. Beaumaris and the Vicar of Heythram's daughter could have nothing to do with one another, so that the less the Vicar's daughter thought about him the better it would be for her. One could not deny his adress, or his handsome face, but one could-and one did-dwell on the many imperfections of his character. He was demonstrably indolent, a spoilt darling of society, with no thought for anything but his fleeting pleasure: a heartless, heedless leader of fashion, given over to selfishness, and every other vice which Papa's daughter had been thought to think reprehensible.

Nothing he wore was designed to attract attention, but he made every other man in the room look either a trifle overdressed or a trifle shabby.

About the author:


http://www.georgette-heyer.com/

Author of over fifty books, Georgette Heyer is the best-known and best-loved of all historical novelists, who made the Regency period her own. Her first novel, The Black Moth, published in 1921, was written at the age of fifteen to amuse her convalescent brother; her last was My Lord John. Although most famous for her historical novels, she also wrote eleven detective stories. Georgette Heyer died in 1974 at the age of seventy-one.

Special thanks to Danielle over at Sourcebooks for sending me this book to read and review.

title: The Convenient Marriage

author: Georgette Heyer

genre: regency romance

pages: 307

published:1934

first line: Lady Winwood, being denied, the morning caller inquired with some anxiety for Miss Winwood, or, in fact, for any of the young ladies.


rated: 4 out of 5









When the Earl of Rule proposes marriage to her sister Lizzie, Horatia offers herself instead. Her sister is already in love with someone else, and Horatia is willing to sacrifice herself for her family's happiness. Everyone knows she's no beauty, but she'll do her best to keep out of the Earl's way and make him a good wife. And then the Earl's archenemy, Sir Robert, sets out to ruin her reputation...Unbeknownst to Horatia, the Earl is enchanted by her. There's simply no way he's going to let her get into trouble…





Horatia (Horry) Winwood is the youngest of three sisters. At age seventeen, she's not what society views as a beauty, and she herself has pretty much accepted that she will not marry. Horry is short, has severe eyebrows and a studder when she speaks.

Miss Horatia, the youngest of the three, had nothing that declared her lineage except her nose. Her hair was dark, her eyes an profound grey, and her brows, nearly black and rather thick, were quite straight, and gave her a serious, almost frowning, expression. No amount of careful training would induce an arch in them.
She was quite half a head shorter than her sisters, and, at the age of seventeen, was obliged regretfully to admit that she was not likely to grow any taller.

Horry's eldest and beautiful sister, Lizzie, is promised to marry the Earl of Rule.
She needs to marry the Earl to save her family from the gambling debt that her brother has put them in. Lizzie, however is madly in love with Edward Heron. But Edward is is not wealthy and would not be able to take Lizzie's family out of debt.
Horry decides to take it upon herself and visit the Earl and convince him to marry her instead. Being that her other sister, Charlotte, flat out refuses to marry him herself. The Earl is amused by Horry, and he decides to take her up on her proposal, he agrees to marry her.






This book had me laughing out loud. Especially when Horry arrives back home after proposing to the Earl, in his carriage, to the shock of her family. She then announces that he has agreed to marry her instead and that she's convinced him to be a Patron to Edward. Her family can hardly believe it, they have to whip out the smelling salts so the mom won't faint. But true to his word, the Earl arrives that afternoon to officially ask for Horry's hand in marriage.

'And I explained how n-nothing would induce Charlotte to m-marry him, and he did not seem to m-mind that.'

'I shall die,' said Charlottle with resolution, 'of Mortification!'

'Oh Horry dear!' sighed Elizabeth, between tears and laughter.

'And I asked him,' concluded Horatia triumphantly, 'if he would m-marry me instead.' And he is g-going to!'

Her relatives were bereft of speech. Even Lady Winwood apparently considered that the situation had gone beyond the powers of her vinagrette to mend, for she allowed it to slip from her hand to the floor while she stared in a bemused way at her youngest-born.


It was Charlotte who found her voice first. 'Horatia, do you say that you had the Indelicacy, the Impropriety, the-the Forwardness, to ask Lord Rule to marry you?'

'Yes,' said Horatia stuanchly. 'I had to.'

'He cannot,' said Charlotte, 'have noticed the Stammer.'

Horatia put up her chin. 'I s-spoke to him about the S-stammer, and he said he l-liked it!'

As the story goes on, Horry does Marry Lord Rule and she begins to live a life of luxury. Soon enough, she begins to gamble and winds up getting herself a bit of a reputation. She meets a man named Robert Lethbridge, with a reputation himself of being a ladies man. Before she knows it, Horry starts a friendship with Lethbridge, against her husbands wishes. But Horry wants to make Rule jealous, she knows he keeps a mistress himself, the Lady Massey.






I really enjoyed The Convenient Marriage. What a fun, light, and sweet read this was. There's plenty of interesting characters and the plot has good twists and turns. I liked Horry's character, although she annoyed me a little at times with her foolishness. I did like Rule's character, lucky for Horry, he was older and wiser than she was. Horry's brother Pel, who enjoys gambling and drinking was another memorable character. He gets himself into plenty of trouble including a duel over Horry's honor.


Georgette Heyer is one of my favorite authors, I will have to read more of her work. This is my third novel by her and will not be my last. Ms. Heyer had a way of creating a story and just running with it, you never really know what is coming next. She added plenty of plot twists and charm to her books.









About the author:


http://www.georgette-heyer.com/

Author of over fifty books, Georgette Heyer is the best-known and best-loved of all historical novelists, who made the Regency period her own. Her first novel, The Black Moth, published in 1921, was written at the age of fifteen to amuse her convalescent brother; her last was My Lord John. Although most famous for her historical novels, she also wrote eleven detective stories. Georgette Heyer died in 1974 at the age of seventy-one.

Special thanks to Danielle Jackson over @ http://www.sourcebooks.com/ for sending me this book to read and review.

title: Frederica



author: Georgette Heyer

genre: regency romance

published:1965

pages: 437

rated: 5 out of 5







When Frederica brings her younger siblings to London determined to secure a brilliant marriage for her beautiful sister, she seeks out their distant cousin the Marquis of Alverstoke. Frederica makes such a strong impression that to his own amazement, the Marquis agrees to help launch them all into society. With his enterprising - and altogether entertaining - country cousins getting into one scrape after another right on his doorstep, before he knows it the Marquis finds himself dangerously embroiled...






Frederica Merrivale is guardian to her siblings since her parents have passed away. She travels to London to find her younger sister, Charis, a suitable husband. Frederica looks to her distant cousin, the Marquis of Alverstoke for help. The Marquis is rich and arrogant and tends to give a hard time to anyone who crosses his way. Frederica however, is not easily intimidated. She lets the Marquis know what she wants and he is amused by her straightforwardness. The Marquis agrees to host a coming out party for the beautiful Charis.
The Marquis has a reputation for being a ladies man, he loves them and leaves them, getting easily bored. Before you know, the Merrivale sisters are the subject of everyones conversations.



Frederica thinks of herself as an old maid, being that she is 24 years old, and this annoys the Marquis very much. He lets her know that she is not past her prime like she thinks she is.
Soon enough Frederica herself has a few admirers in London.



I really liked this one scene, I won't give it away and say who it is that grabs her hand and kisses it:

She would have drawn her hand away as he spoke, but he prevented her, lifting it from the banister, and lightly kissing it. She had the oddest sensation of having suffered an electric shock; she even felt a trifle dizzy; and it was several moments after he had left her before she went back into the drawing room. It was no longer customary for gentlemen to kiss hands; and although oldfashioned persons frequently kissed the hands of married ladies, his lordship was not oldfashioned, and she was not married.

I liked Frederica, she is smart and sassy and does not let others intimidate her. The Marquis is another great character, I like how he doesn't care what others think and actually enjoys getting his uppity family members in a huff.
Even Frederica's dog, Lufra, is a fun character and had me laughing out loud.



I had previously posted on my blog that I was looking for that next favorite book, and I found it here with Frederica. This book is funny, charming and full of interesting characters. The story just keeps going and going, and has plenty of plot twists. Georgette Heyer has a way of taking you into the story and keeping you there. I lived inside this book for a while, I hated to put it down. Heyer's writing style reminds me a bit of Jane Austen.

Then came Frederica, upsetting his cool calculations, thrusting responsibilities upon him, intruding more and more into the ordered pattern of his life, and casting him into a state of unwelcome doubt. And, try as he would, he could discover no reason for this uncomfortable change in himself. She had more countenance than beauty; she employed no arts to attract him; she was heedless of convention; she was matter-of-fact, and managing, and not at all the sort of female whom he had ever wished to encourage.

About the author:

http://www.georgette-heyer.com/

Author of over fifty books, Georgette Heyer is the best-known and best-loved of all historical novelists, who made the Regency period her own. Her first novel, The Black Moth, published in 1921, was written at the age of fifteen to amuse her convalescent brother; her last was My Lord John. Although most famous for her historical novels, she also wrote eleven detective stories. Georgette Heyer died in 1974 at the age of seventy-one.

I found this older cover at the authors website:







Special thanks to Danielle Jackson over @ http://www.sourcebooks.com/ for sending me this book to read and review.

title: The Reluctant Widow

author: Georgette Heyer


genre: historical fiction

pages: 316

first line: It was dusk when the London to Little Hampton stage-coach lurched into the village of Billingshurst, and a cold mist was beginning to creep knee-high over the dimly seen countryside.

published: 1946

rated: 4 out of 5






A sparkling Regency romance with intrigue and excitement, from the queen of the genre. Elinor Rochdale finds herself married and widowed within 24 hours, and embroiled in an international spy ring, housebreakers, and murder.




Elinor Rochdale accidentally finds herself at the home of Eustace Cheviot. She was hired to be governess for woman's children, instead her coach dropped her off at the wrong house. There Elinor meets Ned Carlyon, Eustace's cousin and heir.
Carlyon was actually waiting for a woman to answer his ad in the paper, for a woman willing to marry his sick cousin.

She found herself in a library. It was quite as untidy as the hall, but a variety of candles in tarnished wall-brackets threw a warm light over it, and a log fire burned in the grate at the far end of it. Before this fire, one hand resting on the mantlepiece, one booted foot on the fender, stood a gentleman in buckskin breeches and a mulberry coat, staring down at the leaping flames. As the door closed behind Miss Rochdale, he looked up, and across at her, in a measuring way that might have disconcerted one less accustomed to being weighed up like so much merchandize offered for sale.

By the time Elinor realizes she is at the wrong house, she is mortified and inisists on being taken to the right house. Carlyon explains to her that his cousin is very sick, he has a drinking problem and is near death. He doesn't want to inherit his estate when he dies, he has his own estate and wants nothing more to do with Eustace, so he makes Elinor an offer. That she marry Eustace. She is tempted to, since she is twenty six and unwed and has a scandal in her family, this is a good opportunity for her. Carlyon promises her that Eustace will not touch her once they are married. Eustace is actually an evil man, and hates Carlyon and does not want to leave him his estate when he dies.


Soon enough, Eustace is accidentally stabbed. Elinor marries him on his deathbed and she becomes his widow shortly after.


She goes to live in her new home, and before she knows it, in the middle of the night there is an intruder in her house. With the help of Nicky, Carlyon's younger brother, Elinor tries to figure out the indentity of the intruder and the reason for the break-ins. There's twists and turns to the plot. This book takes off and keeps on going.

He was gone, and she was left in some lowness of spirits, wondering how she should contrive, and what would be the end of this strange adventure. A period of quite reflection helped to calm the natural agitation of her mind; since she had consented to take up residence in this mouldering house she must do as best she might.

This was a fun read. I didn't expect a mystery in the plot. It's my first time reading Georgette Heyer, and I did enjoy it. The characters are likeable, the plot well written and interesting. The main characters were good as were the supporting characters. I liked Elinor and Nicky the most. You can't help liking Nicky, he's kind of this goofy guy who just wants to help out. He made me laugh at times. Elinor was smart and a sweet character, who is kind of thrust into this mess and you hope everything works out for her in the end.

'I'm in the hall', his voice answered her, a trifle faintly, but reassuringly cheerful. 'The devil's in it that I missed the fellow!'

She hurried down the stairs, holding the lamp up, and saw him rather unsteadily picking himself up. 'Nicky! Good God, do not tell me indeed he did come back?'

'Come back? Of course he did!' Nicky said, cautiously feeling his shoulder. 'Whats more, I should have had him if you would not keep a damned suit of armour in the stupidest place anyone ever thought of! Oh I beg pardon! But indeed it is enough to try the patience of a saint!'

If you are looking for good historical fiction with mystery and a dash of romance, pick up a copy of The Reluctant Widow .







About the author:

Author of over fifty books, Georgette Heyer is the best-known and best-loved of all historical novelists, who made the Regency period her own. Her first novel, The Black Moth, published in 1921, was written at the age of fifteen to amuse her convalescent brother; her last was My Lord John. Although most famous for her historical novels, she also wrote eleven detective stories. Georgette Heyer died in 1974 at the age of seventy-one.

related links: http://www.georgette-heyer.com/



this book has also been reviewed by:

becky

joanne



Special thanks to Danielle from Source Books for sending me this book.