The Regency romances are set in England during the time that King George III's son reigned as Prince Regent (1811-1820). The title character is the eldest in a family of five children. Both parents are dead, and Frederica brings her three youngest siblings to London to secure a husband for her sister, who is young, shy, beautiful, not very bright but a talented dressmaker. Frederica seeks out their distant cousin Vernon Dauntry, the Marquis of Alverstoke to help introduce them into society.Frederica is close to 25 years old and considers herself to be past marriageable age. She has a younger brother who sees himself as the head of the family but is really much less responsible than Frederica (and off at school). It is important to Frederika that Charis marries well, and her intention is to ask Alverstoke to introduce her sister to high society. The extended conversation between Frederica and Lord Alverstoke when they first meet to discuss that possibility is very entertaining.
Alverstoke is a genial man when he wants to be and quite impressed with Frederica and her younger sister, Charis, but he is well-known for being self-centered and not interested in doing favors for others. He has already refused to help his sister's daughter who will be coming out at the same time. So people are very surprised when he begins spending a good bit of time with various members of the Merrivale family.
This book is full of likable characters. Frederica is of course a wonderful heroine, but she is so focused on doing anything she can to improve the situation of her family that she seemed to miss a lot of what was going on around her. So, she is a realistic character, not idealized. Felix Merrivale, at 12, is very interested in new technology and mechanical inventions. Jessamy, 16, is very serious about his studies but loves horses. They also have a wonderful dog. There are also some unsympathetic characters, such as Alverstoke's sister who doesn't approve of his behavior but is willing to use him and his money for her own purposes. But even those characters are fun.
This was not the type of romance I was expecting, but then I have little experience with romance novels so have nothing to compare against. For me, this book was about Alverstoke's growth as a person. He is in his late thirties and not at all looking for any serious relationship or anything to tie him down. He starts out as a selfish, thoughtless cad, very sought after because of his wealth, and ends up helping out the family in many ways. I was disappointed that Charis's talent at dressmaking was not more a part of the story. It does turn out that, shy as she is, she has a mind of her own.
In summary, Frederica was an engaging book, and I learned a lot about Regency England. I plan to read more of Heyer's Regency romances over time, starting with recommendations at Yvette's In My Own Words. I already have a copy of The Grand Sophy (which includes a glossary of Regency slang).
See reviews at Pining for the West and Tor.com.
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Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca, 2009 (orig. publ. 1965)
Length: 437 pages
Format: Trade paperback
Setting: London
Genre: Regency Romance
Source: Purchased at the Planned Parenthood book sale, 2019.
16 comments:
You have some delightful reading ahead of you. The Grand Sophy is excellent, likewise The Black Sheep, The Corinthian, Sylvester (I reread that every few years), Arabella, Bath Tangle and many more. Such gorgeous writing and so full of wit. Frederica is among my favourites I have to say and I might now have to have a reread this year.
I think you are right, Cath. I enjoyed the writing very much. Based on this book, I can see that Heyer's books would be very re-readable. It doesn't matter if you know how it ends, it is just fun to read. I will keep your suggestions in mind. I hope to pick up more at the book sale so as not to spend too much money, but I haven't seen many of her books there.
I am rereading Frederica right now. I highly suggest "Friday's Child" for delightful laugh out loud humor. I have read them all and love her writing. It makes me happy.
Nancy, thanks for the suggestion. I am looking forward to reading more by Heyer. I cannot believe I waited this long to try the romances.
Like you, I've read only her mysteries -- and indeed only a couple of them, neither of which blew me away. I've been told I should persevere, though. That said, I'm not sure my perseverance could extend to the romances. :)
My favorite mystery by Heyer is Envious Casca (now also published as A Christmas Party). The only other one I have read in recent years is Death in the Stocks, which I also enjoyed. They do have a lot of humor in them. I resisted reading the romances for years but was pleasantly surprised when I did try one.
Yes, Envious Casca is the one people have told me is Really Good.
Like you I read all of her mysteries before trying out her romances, to begin with I didn't realise that her romances were so well researched historically. I've enjoyed quite a few of them now.
It's funny, Tracy. I'm not usually one for reading romances. But I do like Heyer's writing style and wit, and she did develop some interesting characters. Thanks for the reminder of her romances. Maybe I'll give one of them a try.
Katrina, the two mysteries by Heyer that I read recently were clever, witty, and had romance, so I thought maybe her romances would along the same lines. And they are but in more depth and with a different historical setting. So I think I will like reading more of them.
Margot, I think you would like the Heyer romances, and I think I have heard that some of them have a mystery element also.
Probably not an author that I will be reading myself.
Col, I don't think that there is anything I can say to convince you to read this author.
I read all the Georgette Heyer romantic history books when I was a teenager, and I still like to re-read occasionally - I like The Corinthian, Unknown Ajax and Black Sheep. They are very satisfying and funny I find.
Moira, I have a friend who has read all the Heyer romances, and probably reread them more than once. But I have never been interested. She also recommended a newer author for Regency romances she had found recently, but I think I will stick with Heyer. I am very glad I tried one. Thanks for the suggestions. I will add them to my list.
Tracy, Georgette Heyer does not appear to be forgotten in my part of the world. Her paperbacks with some lovely covers are often available at book sales, though I can't say if anyone buys and reads them. I, for one, am still guilty of never having read Heyer who, I'm told, was humorous too.
I would be very happy if more Georgette Heyer showed up at my book sale, Prashant. Oh well. Yes, her writing is humorous and although the book was longish (450 pages), it kept me entertained.
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