Helen

Second Contemporary Novel, Eighth Published Novel

             HELEN --  published in 1928

I bought my copy of HELEN several months ago, but only recently sat down to read it.  I found it extremely charming from page one.

This is supposedly the most popular of the four contemporary novels, and the one that was the most autobiographical. 

Helen's father, faced with raising his daughter alone after his wife dies in childbirth, takes on the job with joy and much appreciation for his reserved, stoic, little girl.  Helen, extremely close to her father, becomes his beloved companion.  The book takes place before, during, and after World War I, and the great changes taking place in the world at that time form a background for the changes in the life of the main character, Helen.  Since Heyer had lived this time period herself she is able to paint a very real, poignant picture of the aftermath of the great war on England.

The love story in Helen is one of the most beautiful ones that Heyer ever wrote in my opinion.  In Helen, when her father dies suddenly, she turns to her childhood friend, Richard, for comfort and realizes that she has previously undervalued his many good qualities.  Richard is portrayed as an intelligent, athletic man who knows and understands Helen's natural reserve.

Helen mirrors Georgette in many ways.  She likes and understands men better than women.  She is reserved, intelligent, self-controlled, and believes in the social classes.  But Helen was very athletic, and Georgette wasn't.

Georgette wrote Helen two years after her father died.  There is a touching part in the book where Helen, also a writer, picks up her unfinished book for the first time since her father's death and sees some pencilled corrections he had made.  But she goes on about her business, "dry-eyed and smiling", with Richard understanding and respecting her reserve. 

It is indeed a very beautiful, brilliant book, and if I had not already been a fan of Heyer this book would send me looking for her other novels.  There is a happy ending, but there is much drama on the way there.

 

My copy is a hardcover published by Buccaneer Books in the 1980s and is in perfect condition.

Heyer dedicated HELEN to Leonard P. Moore, a friend of her father's and her agent with Christy & Moore.

I have never seen HELEN in any library, but it is worth a look.  It isn't too difficult to find a copy for sale, but you will not find a paperback, so expect to pay at least $20 or more on Amazon.  I have once or twice seen a first edition on Ebay where the bidding went up very high.

Tags: Georgette Heyer, Helen

The "Old Gentleman" Orders All

The Masqueraders

Heyer's seventh novel, The Masqueraders, was published in 1928.  I absolutely love this one!

Set in England it tells the story of Prudence and Robin Merriott, brother and sister, who arrive in England from France on the orders of their father, whom they call The Old Gentleman.

The two have grown up following their father across Europe, often taking assumed names and even switching genders with one another -- which is how they arrive in England.  Prudence, tall and built on queenly lines, dresses and acts the part of Mr. Peter Merriott, while Robin, small and compact, dresses and acts the part of Peter's sister, Kate.  Since Robin, along with their father, has recently taken part in the late Jacobite Rebellion, they feel it is a matter of life or death to maintain such a desguise.

They are guests of an old friend, Lady Lowestoft, who knows their true identities, and are supposed to wait quitely until their father arrives.  But they are inadvertantly drawn into society in their disguises by chancing upon and twarting the abduction of a young innocent.  Robin (Kate), of course, falls for the girl, Letty, while Prudence (Peter), befriended by Sir Anthony Fanshawe, a close friend of Letty's father, finds herself drawn to him.

With the help of their faithful retainer, John, the two maintain their disguises through many close calls until the very end of the book, when The Old Gentleman sets all to rights with a surprise that rocks the ton  and restores the family's fortune and rightful place in society.

The Masqueraders has romance, adventure, intrigue, and one of the most annoyingly egotistical characters ever encountered -- The Old Gentleman.   There is a dastardly villain, swordfights, tipping wine down sleeves (you have to read it to see what that means!), and a wonderful love story!  All ends well, of course, but the journey to that delightful end makes this one that you MUST try to find in your local library. 

Heyer was only 25 when she wrote this book and was living in Africa with her husband at the time.  This is one of my favorites, in my top 10.  It is light, has a fast plot, and adorable main characters.

My only copy is a hardcover, Heinemann edition, a fourth printing of the first editon, and even though it is in poor physical shape, I am very proud to have it.  The image at the top is of a newer softcover copy.

Tags: Georgette Heyer, The Masqueraders, Jacobites

Who's Who In British History

         The History Today Who's Who In British History

                         Edited by Juliet Gardiner

A few months ago I came across a reference to this book.  I can't remember where or what the subject under discussion was, but I thought it might be a handy reference book to have around.  A couple of weeks ago I found a copy on Ebay with a starting bid at $5.00.  I was the only bidder and got it for that plus shipping.

It's a very handsome book, about three inches thick, with 40,000 entries covering over 2,000 years of British history.  (I could do without Cromwell's picture on the front, but I can live with it.)  The book was published in 2000 by Collins & Brown, Limited.

The book is edited by Juliet Gardiner, who also wrote the preface, but the entries are authored by six historians distinguished in their fields, with specialist contributions from eight period historians.  The entries are concise, but very descriptive.  The contributors chose for inclusion who they thought defined the historical period of their own expertise.  It is quite a comprehensive list, but by no means is it complete.  A complete "who's who" would undoubtedly fill a dozen more such volumes.   The book is easy to navigate, and I have been having a lot of fun with it.

My copy is in pristine condition with no tears in the dust jacket and no writing or stamping on the book at all; and I consider it a good bargain for the price I paid.  The original price inside the book jacket is £25.

I am proud to have it on my reference shelves.

Tags: Reference books, Who's Who in British History, Juliet Gardiner

New Journal

I have now started a journal exclusively about Georgette Heyer.  I will be mirroring entries about her books written in this journal, and also will be writing more about her and her life in general.  Here is the link (it's also now in my sidebar):

Getting To Know Georgette

"What was her mysterious parentage?"

       From My Heyer Shelves . . .

    Published in 1926

THESE OLD SHADES by Georgette Heyer

These Old Shades was Heyer's sixth published novel, and was set in Georgian times.  It tells the story of Leonie, a girl brought up in a humble home in Paris, but whose origins are anything but humble.

Through a series of interesting events, (and after first masquerading as his page "Leon") Leonie becomes the ward of the Duke of Avon.  The mystery of her real parentage lies in the hands of the Duke of Avon's enemy, the deadly Compte de Sainte-Vire, a man Leonie greatly fears. 

Published in 1926, the book is very much "of it's time", with a rather melodramatic tone.  It seems to be a favorite with members of the Heyer Listserv (book discussion group), and Avon is definitely a favorite hero with the ladies on the list.  Justin, Duke of Avon, is amusing, arrogant, self-centered, with a sometimes destructive wit at the beginning of the book.  About halfway through we see him maturing a bit; he is kinder, his good characteristics have strengthened, and he actually puts someone else's interests above his own. 

Leonie, I have to admit, annoys me at times; she worships Avon with slavish adoration and defends him to all.  The man's nickname is "Satanas", for goodness sake!  But I still have a kindness for her, and, as I said, he does grow up.  This is a Heyer that I do like to re-read once in a while. The characters of Justin's family are so very funny.  There is a lot of wit and charm in the book (which one expects of Heyer, after all).  I think my favorite character in the whole book is Rupert, the Duke's brother.  Rupert makes the book worth reading all on his own. 

It is a fast-paced, tension-filled book, which will keep you laughing throughout -- from the moment Avon first meets Leonie, dressed in boy's clothes and going by the name of "Leon", to the excellent chase and rescue at the end.  It is a feel-good read with hilarious dialogue throughout and characters that you can't help but love.  And although it is not in my personal top 10, I know some who put it in the #1 spot on their Heyer list.  So look for it in your library or buy an inexpensive paperback on Ebay or Amazon.  It's worth the read.

My copy of TOS is a Bantam Books paperback, published in 1970.  It is one of only a few that I do not yet have in hard cover.

Note:  Heyer did not do sequels, but it is generally accepted by "Heyerites" (and stated by Heyer biographer Jane Aiken Hodge) that she did take the main characters in The Black Moth and use them again, under different names, in These Old Shades.  She titled the book so as a hint to her readers; the characters in TOS were "shades" of those in TBM.

Since TOS was published in 1926, she was probably writing it at the time of her marriage to Ronald Rougier in 1925.  It was published during what is known as The General Strike in England when there were not only no trains or newspapers, but no advertising or reviews, either.  Yet the book was an instant success.  Hodge suggests Heyer may have been encouraged to believe that she didn't need publicity to have a successful novel, after TOS sold 190,000 copies on publication.

My list, so far:

1.  Simon The Coldheart

2.  These Old Shades

3.  The Great Roxhythe

4.  Powder and Patch

5.  The Black Moth

6.  Instead of the Thorn

Tags: Georgette Heyer, These Old Shades, Jane Aiken Hodge, The Private World of Georgette Heyer

Someday I'll Laugh About This

From My "Young Adult" Shelves

 

SOMEDAY I'LL LAUGH ABOUT THIS  by Linda Crew

I bought this book at a library sale.  I don't believe I've ever read anything else by this author, but the blurb on the book jacket got my attention, and I'm glad it did.

This is the story of a 12-year old girl who can't wait to get to the family's cottage on the Oregon coast for the yearly vacation with her cousins.  This is a very sweet, coming-of-age book, that describes the simple pains and pleasures of being on the cusp of adulthood.

Her favorite cousin, one year older than herself, has changed out of recognition, mooning over a boyfriend and making friends with the daughter of the despised developer who threatens to change the coastal scenery the family has enjoyed for more than two generations.  Her favorite uncle is coming to visit and bringing someone "special" with him, whom Shelby does not want to meet at all.

The book is fast-paced, with a family of funny characters, and all of the angst of growing up and having to face those inevitable changes.  Linda Crew writes about her inspiration for the book here.  I really enjoyed it, and look forward to my daughter reading it.

Someday I'll Laugh About This was published in 1990 by Delacorte Press, part of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.

Tags: Linda Crew, Someday I'll Laugh About This, Young Adult books

From The "Not My Favorite Book" Book Shelf

Fool Me Once by Fern Michaels

I'm never happy when I read I book that doesn't quite "do it" for me.

Eler Beth and I attended a library sale recently, and I found a nice, big, hard copy with dust jacket of Fool Me Once by Fern Michaels. I, of course, recognized the name, Fern Michaels, although I couldn't immediately think of what I had read by her. I knew she was a fairly prolific writer, and had a vague feeling that she mostly wrote romance novels. The blurb on the jacket sounded good, and it didn't cost much, and the money went to charity, so I thought, why not?

On a scale of "Yuck" to "Super!" I would have to give it an "Eh!", nothing more.

The plot is decent; I like the way she uses the dogs in the story -- I can tell she loves dogs, especially Yorkies! But there are things about the way she develops her characters that seems very contrived to me. I found myself, about halfway through, doing some skimming before I finally started reading each word again. There were some twists that I didn't like -- not plot twists, but character twists. Some of the characters suddenly acted in a way that was totally unexpected, and there really didn't seem to be any need for it. How they acted didn't really affect the plot of the book, they would just suddenly say or do something that seemed to have been written in just for the heck of it. I almost got the feeling that the author was rather bored with the book herself.

I persevered and made sure I read the whole thing, though. It did have a fairly satisfactory conclusion, except for the behavior of one minor character at the very end. It is a long book, so if you like to listen to audio books on a long trip or at work, I would recommend getting this one. Another thing I did like about it was that there were no graphic sex scenes; well, no sex scenes at all, really. I don't like sex scenes. I'd rather have that left to my imagination.

I'm not sure how long this one will stay on my shelves. I doubt I'll ever read it again, so it may get freecycled soon. I will, however, make a point to check out some other Fern Michaels books to see if like any of them. Maybe I'll find one that I've read before (because I'm pretty sure I have read something by her before!).

Tags: Fool Me Once, Fern Michaels