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From work.

I stopped in Barnes & Noble the other day and out of sheer habit checked the romance shelves under "H" with the faint hope that perhaps I might find a Georgette Heyer I didn't already own. To my absolute astonishment and wild delight, I found a brand new edition of The Grand Sophy, which heretofore I had only owned as a dog-earred Xeroxed copy. Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen are just about the only romance novelists I buy. Austen is always in print, but Heyers are difficult to find—but Harlequin is re-releasing six of them this year: The Grand Sophy (in the stores now), followed at monthly intervals by The Foundling, Arabella, The Black Moth, These Old Shades and Devil’s Cub. Here’s a delightful excerpt from The Grand Sophy, between the hero, Charles Rivenhall, and the heroine, Sophia Stanton-Lacy:
He said through shut teeth: ‘I think I told you once before, cousin, that we did very well here before you came to upset all our comfort!’

‘Yes, you did, and what you meant, Charles, was that until I came no one dared to flout you. You should be grateful to me—or at any rate, Miss Wraxton
[Charles’ insufferable prig of a fiancée] should be. I am sure you would have made an odious husband before I came to stay with your Mama.'

This put him in mind of a complaint he could with justice make. He said stiffly, ‘Since you have brought up Miss Wraxton’s name, I shall be much obliged to you, cousin, if you will refrain from telling my sisters that she has a face like a horse!’

‘But Charles, no blame attaches to Miss Wraxton! She cannot help it, and that, I assure you, I have always pointed out to your sisters!’

‘I consider Miss Wraxton’s countenance particularly well-bred!’

‘Yes, indeed, but you have quite misunderstood the matter! I meant a particularly well-bred horse!’

‘You meant, as I am perfectly aware, to belittle Miss Wraxton!’

‘No, no! I am very fond of horses!’ Sophy said earnestly.

Before he could stop himself he found he was replying to this. ‘Selina, who repeated the remark to me, is not fond of horses, however, and she—’ He broke off, seeing how absurd it was to argue on such a head.

‘I expect she will be, when she has lived in the same house with Miss Wraxton for a month or two,’ said Sophy encouragingly.


Peg

(no subject)

Date: 2003-02-24 09:27 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] blackholly.livejournal.com
I only read anything by Georgette Heyer in the last year and suddenly I could see her influence everywhere. It was most enlightening. There is nothing like going back an re-reading certain books (College of Magics comes to mind) AFTER Heyer.

(no subject)

Date: 2003-02-24 09:41 am (UTC)
lcohen: (Default)
From: [personal profile] lcohen
all right, maybe i'll give it another try! maybe i stopped at just the wrong moment.

Influence of Heyer

Date: 2003-02-24 09:43 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pegkerr.livejournal.com
Yes, Caroline Stevermer and Pat Wrede are both big Heyer fans. Have you read Sorcery and Cecelia? They are presently working on the sequel, The Grand Tour. I heard them read from a portion of it at World Fantasy. It was delightful. Lois McMaster Bujold is a big fan, too (see her dedication to A Civil Contract.

I have [livejournal.com profile] kijjohnson to thank for introducing me to Heyer.

Cheers,
Peg

Re: Influence of Heyer

Date: 2003-02-24 10:30 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] blackholly.livejournal.com
Sadly, I haven't had a chance to read Sorcery and Cecelia, although I almost snatched the ARC of the reissue off the shelf at ALA in January. As soon as I can get my grubby hands on it, I shall.

I got a chance to meet Caroline this past World Fantasy and I'm eager for her College of Magics sequel. I didn't realize that there would be a Sorcery and Cecelia sequel as well. Woo-hoo!

Sorcery and Cecelia

Date: 2003-02-24 01:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pegkerr.livejournal.com
is going to be re-released within the year, but I can't remember which house. Keep an eye out for it! It's well worth reading.

(no subject)

Date: 2003-02-24 04:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] daedala.livejournal.com
Read Venetia and Shards of Honor together. It's very interesting.

Interesting comparison!

Date: 2003-02-25 07:54 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pegkerr.livejournal.com
And one that hadn't occurred to me, but once you point it out, yes, the structural similarities are very obvious. I think, for example, of how in each book the heroine has deliberately burned the bridges to her old world and then comes to find the hero--and in each case he's gone on a wild drunken bender over grief of having lost her.

Fascinating.

Re: Interesting comparison!

Date: 2003-02-25 09:20 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] daedala.livejournal.com
Exactly. I read them fairly close together, and it was neat how they resonated. Of course, Venetia is my absolute favorite Heyer.

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