Georgette Heyer Book List - FictionDB Historical Romance 1975 John, Duke of Bedford--very human, very powerful, intensely virile--he is an unforgettable figure in England's most turbulent and bawdy era. Master of court intrigue, perilously close to the awesome responsibilities of the Crown, he remained a full-b... Traditional Regency 1972 Annis Wychwood was in her late twenties, a beautiful heiress, and hopelessly single. When she sponsored young Lucilla Carleton's "coming out," the town's social elite were shocked. After all, how could Annis find Lucilla a husband when she could not ... Traditional Regency 1970 The first time the young Viscount saw the girl, he thought she was a child. A child in trouble, running away. But she was nearly seventeen and when Desford rescued her, everyone assumed that he had run off with her. Now in disgrace, Desford had to... Traditional Regency 1968 THE SECRET OF STAPLEWOOD The night was airless, with an oppressive calm that presaged a storm. It seemed to Kate she had been lying awake for hours, repeating questions that plagued her.

Faintly, she heard footsteps. Tiptoeing across the galler... Traditional Regency 1966 With her high-spirited intelligence and good looks, Abigail Wendover was a most sought-after young woman. But of all her high-placed suitors, there was none Abigail could love. Miles Calverleigh had no regard for the polite conventions of Regency ... Traditional Regency 1965 LONDON IN "THE SEASON" Frederica Merrivale has come to London for the glittering social season, in order to give her beautiful younger sister Charis a chance to make a good marriage. The Merrivales, a family of solid social standing, have fallen i... Traditional Regency 1963 A STICKY SITUATION The young Earl of Denville was missing. Handsome and eligible as the titled elder of the renowned Fancot twins was, no one would forgive him if he failed to appear before his fiancee's family. For even though they did not love e... Traditional Regency 1962 STARTLING NEWS When they learned that Sir Waldo Hawkridge was coming, the village gentry were thrown into a flurry. The famed sportsman himself!

Heir to an uncounted fortune, and a leader of London society! The local youths idolized "the Nonesuch"... Traditional Regency 1961 Although Jenny Chawleigh was bright, well-mannered, and an heiress, she was no match for Julia Oversley, the love of handsome Adam Deveril's life. But Adam desperately needed money to keep his fatherless family together, and a marriage to Jenny would... Traditional Regency 1960 THE GALLANT GAME OF LOVE The meeting of eyes at a ball--the touch of hands in an open carriage--one breathless, moonlit kiss--This is the stuff of which stories like these are made. Here is the vanished world of great country houses and London in ... Traditional Regency 1959 Making the best of a bad situation, Anthea Darricot was civil to her newly-met cousin Hugh--but barely. For Anthea, reduced to accepting the charity of irascible Lord Darricot, had been ordered to marry Hugh, recent heir to the Darricot fortune. G...

Traditional Regency 1958 SCANDAL OF THE SEASON At five-and-twenty, Venetia Lanyon despairs of ever meeting the handsome hero of her romantic dreams. Then her long-absent neighbor, Lord Damerel, returns home to Yorkshire. An infamous rake, he is the most scandalous man in ... Traditional Regency 1957 Young, beautiful, impetuous, Lady Helen Cardross had collected quite a basket of little white lies in her efforts to help those less fortunate than herself. There were, for example; her own dashing, debt-ridden brother, and her husband's love-sick, y... Traditional Regency 1957 Nothing could have induced impulsive outspoken Phoebe Marlow to marry handsome, elegant Svlvester Rayne, Duke of Salford, the one man she thoroughly detested. But Sylvester had other ideas; this beautiful young rebel had caught his fancy, and if Pet... Traditional Regency 1956 Young, beautiful and headstrong--but old enough to know her own romantic mind--Amanda ran away from her doting grandfather, who objected to her proposed marriage to a youthful, impecunious officer.

Fleeing alone across Regency England. Amanda soon... Traditional Regency 1955 PETTICOAT REBEL Lady Serena Carlow raged as she heard her father's last will and testament! How could he mortgage his only daughter to the odious Lord No Rotherham, making the very man she had recently jilted caretaker of her inheritance and her h... Traditional Regency 1954 Captain John Staple's exploits in the Peninsula and Waterloo had earned him the sobriquet Crazy Jack amongst his fellows in the Dragoon Guards. Back from the battlefront, he is planning to settle down after a brave military career, and searches for t... Traditional Regency 1953 Meet Kitty Charing: young, beautiful--and penniless... The three great nephews of Mr. Penicuik know better than to ignore his summons, especially when it concerns the bestowal of his fortune. The wily old gentleman has hatched a freakish plan for h...

Inspectors Hannasyde & Hemingway - 7 THE LOVELY SUSPECT A GRISLY PIECE OF WORK Inspector Hemingway has his work cut out for him when a seemingly civilized game of Duplicate Bridge leads to a double murder. The crimes seem identical, but were they carried out by the same hand? Things be... Traditional Regency 1950 When the redoubtable Sir Horace Stanton-Lacy is ordered to South America on business, he leaves his only daughter Sophy with his sister in Berkeley Square. Newly arrived from her tour of the Continent, Miss Sophia Stanton-Lacy invites herself into th... Traditional Regency 1949 To Arabella Tallant, the eldest daughter of a penniless country clergyman, the invitation to stay with her London godmother was like the key to heaven, for in addition to living in the glamorous city, Arabella might even find a suitable husband there... Traditional Regency 1948 Enormously wealthy, scrupulously mannered and suffocatingly confined by his title the young Adolphus Gillespie Ware, the 7th Duke of Sale -- known to friends as Gilly -- longed for a spot of true excitement.

When he learns that his marriage has alrea... Traditional Regency 1946 Elinor Rochdale is rather surprised that her new employer is quite rich, and more so at tile decayed grandeur of the house to which she is transported. Elinor thought she was entering Highnoons as a governess, but the handsomely fashionable gentleman... Traditional Regency 1944 Rejected by the woman he deeply loved, the incomparable Miss Milborne, for his unsteadiness of character, wild Viscount "Sherry" Sheringham is bent on avenging fate and coming into his fortune. Young Lord Sheringham could not gain his inheritance unt... Romantic Suspense 1942 Old patriarch, Adam Penhallow, yet ruling his family and his Cornish roost with an iron hand from his sickbed. The death of menacing old man, on the eve of his birthday, seems at first to be by natural causes. But tyrannical Penhallow had ruled with ...

Traditional Regency 1941 THE HIGH STAKES OF LOVE Skilled in the art of card playing, Deborah Grantham, a gambler's daughter, uses that skill as her sole means of support as mistress of her aunt's elegant and exclusive gaming club in 18th-century London. The beautiful young ... Alastair-Audley - 3 THE HEIRESS A novel set in Regency London and Brighton. It is in regrettable circumstances that beautiful Judith Taverner and her brother Peregrine first encounter Julian St. John Audley. The man, they both agree, is an insufferably arrogant dandy. ... Romance 1934 THE KNOWING BRIDE When the most eligible Earl of Rule offers for the hand of the Beauty of the Winwood Family, he has no notion of the distress he causes his intended. Miss Lizzie Winwood is promised to the impoverished Edward Heron but the Earl of ... Romantic Suspense 1934 It should have been a lovely English country-house weekend. But the unfortunate guest-list is enough to exasperate a saint, and irascible General Sir Arthur Billington-Smith was nobody's idea of the perfect host. In fact he was absolutely frightful.

... Romantic Suspense 1933 Every family has secrets, but the Fountains' are turning deadly… On a dark night, along a lonely country road, barrister Frank Amberley stops to help a young lady in distress and discovers a sports car with a corpse behind the wheel. The girl prot... Romantic Suspense 1932 BED, BREAKFAST AND MURDER The ramshackle old house, with its rambling charm is beloved of Peter, Margaret and Celia, who have inherited it from their uncle. But local wisdom says The Priory is haunted. It wasn't the lack of modern conveniences that ... Georgette-Heyer.com - What am I doing here? Venetia Although Heyer didn't really write 'series', there are a few books that are linked by common characters. These are These Old Shades with Léonie and Justin parenting Dominic in Devil's Cub and Dominic and Mary are the grand-parents of Barbara in An Infamous Army . While the timelines of the books don't work out in terms of the generations, most of us don't let that small detail get in the way of our enjoyment of the novels.

In addition, the characters from Regency Buck are also featured in An Infamous Army . It is probably also of interest to newcomers to Heyer's world that her first novel, The Black Moth was revisited in These Old Shades . As Hodge says in the bio , "Devil Andover from The Black Moth has suffered a sea change into the wicked Duke of Avon (known as Satanas to his friends)." For published date order, please use the bibliography on A Book For All Reasons . This site is designed by Dr Pigtails and Associates and somehow maintained by Sally Houghton AbeBooks: Georgette Who? Meet the Author Who Outsells Rowling, Dickens & Patterson Home > Georgette Who? Meet the Author Who Outsells Rowling, Dickens & Patterson Georgette Heyer's Romance, Historical Fiction, and Thrillers Georgette Heyer Georgette Heyer is one of AbeBooks’ top 10 bestselling authors, over the entire history of this company. Last time we looked, Heyer was behind Shakespeare , C.S. Lewis , Agatha Christie and Stephen King but ahead of J.K. Rowling , Charles Dickens and James Patterson .

We sell huge numbers of this English novelist’s books for two main reasons: 1. Because she is loved by people who love love stories; and 2. Many of her books are out-of-print, so used bookshops are best able to fill the demand from her legion of fans. Heyer (1902-1974) also wrote detective fiction but her real legacy is historical romance, especially Regency romance. She conducted meticulous research to ensure an accurate portrayal of whatever period she was tackling. Using her own substantial library of reference books, Heyer took great care to provide correct descriptions of clothing, customs and historical events. Even if you do not know Heyer, it's likely you are familiar with her book covers, featuring the dashing hero and beautiful heroine, often poised to embrace. Heyer’s debut novel The Black Moth was published in 1921, when she was still a teenager. Her first commercial success was These Old Shades - released during Britain’s General Strike of 1926 - which received no promotion of any kind, yet still sold like hotcakes. The success of These Old Shades without any publicity convinced Heyer that she did not need to court reviewers or journalists and she never did.

Heyer’s first foray into the Regency period, 1811-1820, was with Regency Buck in 1935. She is often credited with creating the Regency romance sub-genre, sparking comparisons to Jane Austen's novels, which explored similar themes during the same period, and spawning countless imitators. The Conqueror , as in William, is one her best known works of historical fiction, published in 1931. A year later her first thriller, Footsteps in the Dark , was published. During the 1930s, she produced a thriller and a romance each year, with the love stories paying her bills. Bear in mind, her mysteries were competing against the likes of Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers . Heyer's romance novels sold well during the Great Depression and World War II, offering pure escapism to millions of readers. Her later years were clouded by money and tax troubles. To make ends meet she switched publishers, wrote book reviews and short stories for magazines, and sold the rights to some of her best books for a pittance.

Asking prices for first editions of Heyer’s thrillers, which always had smaller print runs, can reach four figures. The most expensive Heyer book ever sold on AbeBooks was a first edition of Death in the Stocks, which sold for $2,400. There are a several biographies about Heyer, including Georgette Heyer’s Regency England by Chris Teresa and The Private World of Georgette Heyer by Jane Aiken Hodge. Georgette Heyer | Sourcebooks.com Georgette Heyer New York Times Bestselling Author Triumphantly good… Heyer is unbeatable.” —Sunday Telegraph Book Club Questions Georgette Heyer’s historical novels and Regency romances have charmed and delighted millions of readers for decades. But Miss Heyer remained a very private woman. Her identity was a mystery to most of her fans during her lifetime and she refused all requests for interviews or comments. “I am to be found in my work,” Miss Heyer wrote when asked to divulge details of her childhood or personal life. Georgette Heyer's Books Presenting a Brand New Look for Miss Heyer's Regency Romances!

We have been Georgette Heyer’s US publisher since 2007, when we discovered that her books were entirely out of print here. Over a few years, we brought out beautiful trade paper editions of every single title—including the histories and mysteries. But our work isn’t done. Georgette Heyer is a treasure and we want to introduce her to a new generation of readers. To that end, beginning this summer we’re releasing new editions of the romances with fresh, new covers, designed to grow a new readership. We want the covers to convey how devotees usually describe her—the words “sparkling” and “iridescent” come up a lot. What we’re doing is somewhat terrifying, though – we know that people will have strong opinions about the new cover direction (and we know you will not be afraid to tell us about it). But this speaks to one of the reasons that we want to build the broadest possible audience for Georgette Heyer. She touches readers in such a way that they are extremely protective over how covers depict her stories. It’s rare to find an author with that much impact.

We want you to know we worked on this new cover direction for a very long time, had a few moments of panic and questioned everything. We are ready to show you the first cover, The Grand Sophy, which will be releasing in August in a new mass market format. We’re excited about the possibilities, and we hope you are too. Look forward to hearing from you. PRAISE FOR GEORGETTE HEYER: “[Georgette Heyer is] an outstanding storyteller.” —The Times Literary Supplement “Wonderful characters, elegant, witty writing, perfect period detail, and rapturously romantic. Georgette Heyer achieves what the rest of us only aspire to.” —Katie Fforde "{Georgette Heyer is] my favourite historical novelist--stylish, romantic, sharp, and witty. Her sense of period is superb, her heroines are enterprising, and her heroes dashing. I owe her many happy hours." —Margaret Drabble “Georgette Heyer has no equal when it comes to that wonderful brand of Regency fun and laughter.

Her research is so true to that age I feel as though I am riding in Hyde Park with the characters, or on the battlefield at Waterloo, Regency Buck lead me to read An Infamous Army and many of her other wonderful books.” “[Georgette Heyer is] a writer of great wit and style… I’ve read her books to ragged shreds.” —Kate Fenton, Daily Telegraph “Georgette Heyer is a popular author with many historical novels and mysteries to her credit. All of her recent books have been set in the Regency Period in England, an era in which Miss Heyer feels comfortable and at home. Her novels are minutely detailed and reveal thorough and painstaking research, but how she is able to come up with a fresh plot and story-line in each novel is amazing.” —Elizabeth O’Rourke, Best Sellers “Miss Heyer has the ability to transport the reader back to the early 19th Century and actually sense the elegant mode of living during that time. Her novels abound with great houses staffed by servants and lackeys, with a society moving about by season from city to the country, to Bath or Brighton, to the races. The houses sparkle with the gentry of their guests.

There is continuous dining and visiting. There are balls. There are beautiful and modish clothes and décor.” —Elizabeth O’Rourke, Best Sellers “It is obvious in reading this novel that Georgette Heyer, who has previously published over 30 of the historical romances, is indeed a mistress of her craft.” —Genevieve M. Casey, Best Sellers “Miss Heyer can spin a romance out of ordinary circumstances, detailed items of daily occurrences. It is all fascinating because it is made to seem ordinary, yet it is far away from society, prices, customs, every detail of life as we here and now in America know it.” —Sr. M. Marguerite, Best Sellers “The reason that Georgette Heyer’s novels sell so superlatively well is not simply their elegant escapism, but the fact that they always touch upon a very human situation.” —Barbara Bannon, Publishers Weekly “Miss Heyer is a most versatile writer whose works come under three very distinct headings.

She is the author, first, of excellent detective stories which are justly popular for their amusing sketches of character; secondly, of seriously conceived historical novels; and third, of cheerful romances against a period setting, which make no pretensions towards “importance” in any way.” —The Times Literary Supplement “Miss Heyer’s regency romances are delightful; like sherbet on a hot day, they melt on contact with the mind and leave a refreshing aftertaste.” —Leonore Fleischer, Publishers Weekly “Miss Heyer is adept at giving full-bodied reality to such a story. Casual readers who know her only in another role and who remember her only by such detective tales as They Found Him Dead will be prepared for the ease with which she develops her narrative, but they will be amazed at the learning which she displays so dexterously and so generously.” —Charles David Abbott “Miss Heyer’s creative power has ample scope. Her people are fully rounded; completely alive.

She has caught to perfection the trick of involving you in her plot, and the knowledge that it is a true plot only adds to your entanglement.” —Jane Spence Southron Georgette Heyer (Author of The Grand Sophy) edit data Georgette Heyer was a prolific 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 she married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer, and he often provided basic plot outlines for her thrillers. Beginning in 1932, Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year. Heyer was an intensely private person who remained a best selling author all her life without the aid of publicity. She made no appearances, never gave an interview and only answered fan letters herself if they made an interesting historical point. She sometimes wrote under the pseudonym Stella Martin. Her Regencies were inspired by Jane Austen , but u Georgette Heyer was a prolific 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 she married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer, and he often provided basic plot outlines for her thrillers. Beginning in 1932, Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year. Heyer was an intensely private person who remained a best selling author all her life without the aid of publicity. She made no appearances, never gave an interview and only answered fan letters herself if they made an interesting historical point. She sometimes wrote under the pseudonym Stella Martin. Her Regencies were inspired by Jane Austen , but unlike Austen, who wrote about and for the times in which she lived, Heyer was forced to include copious information about the period so that her readers would understand the setting. While some critics thought her novels were too detailed, others considered the level of detail to be Heyer's greatest asset. Heyer remains a popular and much-loved author, known for essentially establishing the historical romance genre and its subgenre Regency romance.

...more Georgette Heyer, Regency romances Georgette Heyer : biography 16 August 1902 - 4 July 1974 In 1961, another reader wrote of similarities found in the works of Kathleen Lindsay, particularly the novel Winsome Lass.Kloester (2012), pp. 335-336 The novels borrowed plot points, characters, surnames, and plentiful Regency slang. After fans accused Heyer of "publishing shoddy stuff under a pseudonym", Heyer wrote to the other publisher to complain.Hodge (1984), pp. 140&ndash;141. When the author took exception the accusations, Heyer made a thorough list of the borrowings and historical mistakes in the books. Among these were repeated use of the phrase "to make a cake of oneself", which Heyer had discovered in a privately printed memoir unavailable to the public. In another case, the author referenced a historical incident that Heyer had invented in an earlier novel. Heyer's lawyers recommended an injunction, but she ultimately decided not to sue.

Regency romances Heyer's earliest works were romance novels, most set before 1800. In 1935, she released Regency Buck, her first novel set in the Regency period. This bestselling novel essentially established the genre of Regency romance. Unlike other romance novels of the period, Heyer's novels used the setting as a plot device. Many of her characters exhibited modern-day sensibilities; more conventional characters in the novels would point out the heroine's eccentricities, such as wanting to marry for love.Regis (2003), p. 127. The books were set almost entirely in the world of the wealthy upper classLaski (1970), p. 283. and only occasionally mention poverty, religion, or politics (another way in which her novels reflect those of Jane Austen).Laski (1970), p. 285. The Duke of Wellington in her novel An Infamous Army was spoken or written by him in real life.]] Although the British Regency lasted only from 1811 to 1820, Heyer's romances were set between 1752 and 1825.

As noted by literary critic Kay Mussell, the books revolved around a "structured social ritual — the marriage market represented by the London season" where "all are in danger of ostracism for inappropriate behavior".Mussell (1984), p. 413. Her Regency romances were inspired by the writings of Jane Austen, whose novels were set in the same era. Austen's works, however, were contemporary novels, describing the times in which she lived. According to Pamela Regis in her work A Natural History of the Romance Novel, because Heyer's stories took place amidst events that had occurred over 100&nbsp;years earlier, she had to include more detail on the period in order for her readers to understand it.Regis (2003), pp. 125–126. While Austen could ignore the "minutiae of dress and decor", Heyer included those details "to invest the novels&nbsp;... with 'the tone of the time'".Robinson (1978), p. 323.

Later reviewers, such as Lillian Robinson, criticized Heyer's "passion for the specific fact without concern for its significance",Robinson (1978), p. 326. and Marghanita Laski pointed out that "these aspects on which Heyer is so dependent for her creation of atmosphere are just those which Jane Austen&nbsp;... referred to only when she wanted to show that a character was vulgar or ridiculous".Laski (1970), p. 284. Others, including A. S. Byatt, believe that Heyer's "awareness of this atmosphere — both of the minute details of the social pursuits of her leisured classes and of the emotional structure behind the fiction it produced — is her greatest asset".Byatt (1969), p. 275. Determined to make her novels as accurate as possible, Heyer collected reference works and research materials to use while writing. At the time of her death she owned over 1,000 historical reference books, including Debrett's and an 1808 dictionary of the House of Lords.

In addition to the standard historical works about the medieval and eighteenth-century periods, her library included histories of snuff boxes, sign posts, and costumes.Byatt (1975), p. 300. She often clipped illustrations from magazine articles and jotted down interesting vocabulary or facts onto note cards, but rarely recorded where she found the information.Hodge (1984), pp. 43, 46. Her notes were sorted into categories, such as Beauty, Colours, Dress, Hats, Household, Prices, and Shops; and even included details such as the cost of candles in a particular year.Byatt (1975), p. 301. Other notebooks contained lists of phrases, covering such topics as "Food and Crockery", "Endearments", and "Forms of Address." One of her publishers, Max Reinhardt, once attempted to offer editorial suggestions about the language in one of her books but was promptly informed by a member of his staff that no one in England knew more about Regency language than Heyer.Byatt (1975), p. 298.

Georgette-Heyer.com - Georgette Heyer's Regency England Georgette Heyer's Regency England by Theresa Chris Review This a really interesting book for any Heyer devotees. Chris takes the reader on a couple of walking tours of London and Bath, as well as talking about Brighton. During the tours, the emphasis is on circumstances involving characters from the novels. If you can ignore the few mistakes in names - for example, Augustus Fawnhope from The Grand Sophy is alternatively Endymion Fawnhope (a mix with Endymion Dauntry from Frederica ), August Farnhope and then finally himself - then the book is a sheer pleasure. In addition, the lure of wonderful illustrations by Arthur Barbosa is almost impossible to resist. Overall, I would recommend the book, although I believe it can only be found second-hand and was not re-printed.

Georgette Heyer, queen of Regency romance, honoured with blue plaque | Books | The Guardian Georgette Heyer Georgette Heyer, queen of Regency romance, honoured with blue plaque Star fans and family gather at author’s birthplace in Wimbledon to see her remembered for witty, escapist fiction that sold in millions Georgette Heyer with her Irish wolfhound, Misty Dawn, in 1939. Photograph: Georgette Heyer Estate Close This article is 1 year old Georgette Heyer may have been notoriously self-deprecating about her own work – she once said she “ought to be shot for writing such nonsense” – but the queen of Regency romances has been honoured with an English Heritage blue plaque at her birthplace. Famous fans including Stephen Fry, as well as Heyer’s nephew and daughter-in-law, turned up for the unveiling of the plaque in south-west London , with Fry revealing that he had been “completely hooked” on her romances since his school days. “She is a fabulous, witty writer who captured the life and language of Regency England superbly,” said the actor, writer and broadcaster.

“I am delighted to see her honoured with an English Heritage blue plaque.” Pinterest Georgette Heyer: ‘continues to be read today because she was such a perceptive and witty writer’. Photograph: Courtesy of the Georgette Heyer Estate The plaque is at 103 Woodside in Wimbledon, the semi-detached house where Heyer lived for the first four years of her life. Heyer’s biographer Jennifer Kloester, who proposed the blue plaque, said that the author “created a genre” with her Regency novels, and “continues to be read today because she was such a perceptive and witty writer”. “Though often self-deprecating, Georgette Heyer actually loved writing and would have been thrilled at being accorded the honour of a blue plaque,” said Kloester. Publishing her first novel, historical romance The Black Moth, at the age of 17, Heyer would go on to release 55 more, the majority set in the Regency period and featuring feisty, beautiful heroines on a bumpy path to true love.

Devil’s Cub, published in 1932, was one of her bestselling titles, featuring Mary Challoner, who sets out to impersonate her sister when she discovers the Marquis of Vidal’s fiendish plan to abduct her. Other hits include Friday’s Child (1944), The Grand Sophy (1950) and Frederica (1965). The novelist was selling a million copies of her books a year in Britain by the time of her death in 1974; 59 editions of her books are currently in print, according to her publishers Arrow, and in the last five years over 500,000 copies of her books have been sold. But Heyer herself would put her work down, writing to her publishers in 1943 of Friday’s Child that “judging from the letters I’ve received from obviously feeble-minded persons who do so wish I would write another These Old Shades, it ought to sell like hot cakes”.

“I think myself I ought to be shot for writing such nonsense,” she continued, “but it’s unquestionably good escapist literature and I think I should rather like it if I were sitting in an air-raid shelter, or recovering from the flu.” Historical detail that is illuminating, storylines genuinely heart-stopping and gorgeous … told with a cynical eye Harriet Evans She is thought more highly of by others; her fans today range from AS Byatt and Germaine Greer to the Queen, said English Heritage. “I think what makes her so unique is the rare combination of totally gripping stories, historical detail that is spot-on yet illuminating, characters that are so enjoyable, romantic storylines that are, genuinely, heart-stopping and gorgeous and finally and most importantly all wrapped up and told by someone with a cynical eye. She is not fluffy, or prone to flummery (an excellent Heyer word),” said the novelist Harriet Evans . Evans believes Heyer’s male equivalent is Patrick O’Brian – “and he is lauded to the skies, receptions held for him in Greenwich naval college with MPs and important men in attendance.

And she is as good if not better, but because she’s writing about marriage, romance, love, the perilous situation for women in Regency times if they weren’t married off, and all of that, it’s seen as less important.” She can turn a scene from farce to tragedy – and the reverse – in a single word Jenny Haddon The author Jenny Haddon called Heyer’s writing “utter bliss”. “She can turn a scene from farce to tragedy – and the reverse – in a single word. One of the greatest delights, of course, is that she doesn’t expect you to know the conventions of her Regency or Georgian drawings rooms – unlike Jane Austen who was writing contemporary stories – so she draws it in for you, but so lightly that it is as if she’s reminding you,” said Haddon. Heyer did approve of one of her works, Kloester said; in 1935, after writing her first Regency novel Regency Buck, she said “in a rare moment of self-praise: ‘I am inclined to think it is a classic! I don’t really know how I came to write anything so good.

I do remember putting in a lot of work on it – And how I loved writing it!’” Kloester added that Heyer “wrote with extraordinary facility”, telling her publishers on 16 July 1941 that she had had an idea for a new novel, sending them the text of Faro’s Daughter, stretching to 88,000 words, less than a month later. “I hope you are impressed,” she wrote. “Just under a month note! I never thought I should be able to type straight away, but it was a howling success, and I went on and on and on, with only one hitch, lasting for an hour, when I sat back, and wondered what was going to happen to the various persons assembled in the book!” Georgette Heyer decries plagiarism with her rapier wit Read more John Sutherland writes in his Lives of the Novelists that over her 50-year career, Heyer gave not a single interview, and that she had a “visceral distaste for the ‘nauseating’ falsities of book promotion”. “Oh Christ, why did I have to be born into this filthy age!” she wrote in one letter.

She researched her works widely, writes Sutherland, and would write with an 18th-century quill pen to “authenticate the self-immersion in ‘her’ period”; she also “royally despised” Barbara Cartland , who she called her “principal ‘plagiarist’”. Venetia Audiobook | Georgette Heyer | Audible.com "Heaven for Heyer Fans" Hard on the heels of Naxos releasing "The Grand Sophy" and "Sylvester," two of Georgette Heyer's greatest, comes the equally wonderful "Venetia." All three books were written at the peak of Heyer's career. "Venetia" has a bit more melodrama than "Sophy" or "Sylvester," partly because of the reformed rake with a painful past that is the the hero, Lord Damerel.

All her life Venetia has heard oblique references to her "delicate position," along with veiled warnings that she must be especially protective of her reputation, "so as not to be thought to be...." At which point her well wishers generally trail off and say something like "....but I must say no more on that head," leaving Venetia puzzled, to say the least. The arrival of the charming but brooding Damerel increases these warnings to a fever pitch, for reasons that the reader will probably guess before Venetia solves the mystery. During her lifetime Georgette Heyer was said to resent the fact that her Regency romances were so much more popular than her mysteries or her historical fiction. I agree her mysteries are underrated (particularly "Envious Casca," which I think is a minor masterpiece that Masterpiece Mystery should dramatize immediately), but, whether she agreed with the assessment or not, her Regencies are in a class by themselves. The best of them -- including Venetia -- stand head and shoulders above the pack. Enjoy! "No Guilt Here!" I gave up calling Georgette Heyer a "guilty" pleasure a long time ago.

A literature major, I was taught that certain genres of writing are just inherently inferior - and one of them, of course, is Romance. Now I know that good writing is good writing, whatever the genre, and writing doesn't get any better than in "Venetia"! The story is a fairly common one in historical romance: "good" girl heroine attracted to "bad" boy hero. But Heyer does it so well here. The characters (major and minor) sparkle with humor, wit and personality. There are even valuable lessons in tolerance and reserving judgment. Venetia is an exceptional leading lady, full of life and heart, and I predict that anyone (even those who aren't big Romance fans) will fall in love with her, with her flawed love, with her brother, and even with those minor characters who so perfectly reflect the oddities in our fellow humans. And no small credit goes to the wonderful Phyllida Nash, who narrates this with great energy and skill. "Venetia" has long been a favorite read; now it's also a favorite listen!

Along with Audible's versions of "Sylvester" and "Sprig Muslin", this will certainly appeal to Heyer fans and would be an excellent introduction to her really superior books. "Romantic Regency" Georgette Heyer is considered the inventor of the Regency Romance, and although she wrote a wide variety of different types of novels, her comedies of manners set during the Regency period in England are among her best and the best in the field. This book has long been at or near the top of my list, the hero and heroine are both well read and intelligent and share a sense of humor, and I find their dialog to be a delight to read. And this book has more "face time" between the hero and heroine than many Heyer novels. Be prepared, Heyer wrote between 1921 and the early 1970's, and some of her assumptions seem strange to modern readers. But no modern author has been able to match her wit and insight. This book was first published in 1958 and written when she was in her prime. Phyllida Nash does a good job of giving the listener the proper feel for the story. Well worth my credit to get at once.

I am very glad that Naxos is releasing more unabridged Heyer stories. Their earlier abridged versions were not bad, but to get the most from Heyer one needs all the words, and I personally will never purchase an abridged title. "One of Heyer's unusual heroines" Any additional comments? I enjoy Venetia Lanyon as one of Heyer's more unusual heroines. I can overlook the dated implication that she somehow inherited her relatively "loose morals" from her mother (and if you can't overlook dated ideas, you probably shouldn't bother with Georgette Heyer's novels), and just enjoy the character. She's more implicitly sexual than many of Heyer's leading ladies, and it really is fun to follow the progress of a young woman who doesn't care about the social restraints of the Regency era AND who isn't schooled into submission for it. All that said, it's not my favorite Heyer novel. The characters, with a couple of exceptions, don't leap to life the way her best ones do, and there are long stretches between plot points.

It's an enjoyable listen, and of course Phyllida Nash does a wonderful job here as in all her Heyer readings, but unlike greater favorites (Cotillion, Frederica, Lady of Quality, The Grand Sophy...), this one isn't bearing up to multiple listenings. "One of Heyer's best" Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why? I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romance along the lines of a comedy of manners set in the Regency period. I don't think there is any author who writes in that genre who is better the La Georgette, and this is one of her best. Who was your favorite character and why? Venetia was my favorite character of course. Most of the men around her think she's a helpless female. She's anything but that.Unlike the heroines in most Regency romances, she doesn't care a bit about cutting a dash in London or going to ton parties. Which character – as performed by Phyllida Nash – was your favorite? Also, there have been some comments that Phyllida Nash sounds "too old" to be Venetia.

But I found Nash's cultured voice to be exactly perfect for listening to a Regency romance. I wouldn't have changed her performance at all.Her reading helped bring to life the atmosphere and characters as I am certain Heyer intended. Any additional comments? I'm a big fan of Heyer's. When I tell people about her books, many aren't interested -- they sound too starchy. But everyone I know that has actually READ one of her romances goes on to the read the rest. They are so good that I've barely finished one and I'm starting another. "ANOTHER GREAT WORK FROM HEYER!" Before stumbling upon my first Georgette Heyer novel a few years ago, I was not into romance stories. But I found "Frederica" to be be a great story with well-defined intelligent characters. I then listened to every book available in audio format - at that time about 25 titles. The beauty of Heyer's books is that it matters not who narrates them as long as he or she is reasonably competent. Because each novel stands on its own, the listener doesn't become overly comfortable with one narrator, causing a disruption if there is a change.

It had been a while since a new audiobook had been released so I was pleased to be able to enjoy this one. Lead character Venetia is the usual strong female who can live unmarried but doesn't mind when "Lord Right" comes along. Queen Elizabeth I could have learned a thing or two here - the whole "Virgin Queen" thing was a bit much! Heyer's books are very relevant for our time even though written long before feminism, birth control, and couples being sexually nasty for no reason. I'm no prude but it is nice to read a book where love is supreme, respect is obvious, and sex is hinted at without being graphic.

Question: Most of Georgette Heyer's romance novels were set in which period?
Answer: Regency