Ultimate Prizes by Howatch Part II

Neville goes alone to the dinner, which has dull limited food and he tries not to be tempted by the alcohol on display.... He is surprised to meet a friend of the Bishop's daughter, who is a WREN at the Naval base. Dido Tallent is a society girl, who appears in the fashionable papers, being well known as the daughter of a Scottish millionaire. She is rather plain but amusing, and he finds himself talking to her and feeling flattered that he is being chosen as the conversation partner of a glamour girl. She tells him that she lost her favourite sister, Laura a few years earlier, Laura having died in childbirth, and left her lonely. She joined the Wrens but realised that life there wasn't very heroic and felt more depressed. Neville finds himself feeling interested in her and believes her when she seems to be looking for spiritual guidance. The following day, Dido turns up at his house, and asks him to write to her on religious matters. Grace can see uneasily that there is an attraction between the 2 of them..... Soon afterwards, Neville and Grace get an invitation to visit a stately home, of the Earl of Starmouth, a friend of Dido's. The Earl's wife is interested in the church and is friendly with Alex Jardine, who like Neville is from a modest middle class background. Alex identifies with Neville because of their similar lives as boys. Neville is invited to preach, and does so, but to his horrified amazement, Dido is there as well and clearly eager to flirt with him. He knows that he is getting into dangerous waters and in order to try to get his marriage back to normal, he suggests to Grace that they change their holiday arrangements and they end up going to a different place, for their summer holiday. They go to the Lake district and find that the cottage they have hired is dirty and uncared for, and one of the children becomes ill, immediately. Grace nurses him and then collapses herself with pneumonia. She gets worse quickly, and dies within a day or so..... Grace is only a young woman, of 41 and Neville is shaken to the core.

Howatch Ultimate Prizes

Im hoping to write some blogs about Susan Howatch's novels, especially her Church of England series. At the moment, I am re reading the third book, Ultimate Prizes, which is set in the second half of World War II, and focusses on Neville Aysgarth, the third clergyman of importance in the books. The first two are Charles Ashworth, an academic theologian, Jon Darrow, a mystic who spends several years as a monk, then comes out of the monastery, marries for the second time and becomes a spiritual counsellor. Neville is from a lower middle class background in Yorkshire, and as such, he knows his chances of getting on in the church are less than if he were upper middle or upper class. Neville is more relatable in many ways than the mystic Jon, or the glossily upper middle class Charles, but he has a bit of a chip on his shoulder. He is hard working, and devoted to his wife, Grace and their 5 children, but wartime life puts him under strain. He is coping with rationing, a modest salary, and the fears of wartime. Charles Ashworth had gone to war as a chaplain but Neville is persuaded by the Bishop he works for, to stay at home and he has to cope with the dull heroism of the Home Front, which has little excitement. Jon Darrow on leaving his monastery, married a rich woman... and secured a job as a teacher in a Theological college, so he is materially more comfortable. Neville has 4 sons, ranging from Christian, a very clever boy who is at public school, to Sandy who is a baby, who was a surprise baby, a year or so earlier, and he knows that Grace is finding it hard to cope with another child... with little domestic help. Grace seems to be increasingly tired and depressed, and Neville feels guiltily that he should not be getting annoyed with her, but he is. They have one daughter, Primrose. Neville is invited to dinner at the Bishops palace, and Grace refuses to go, though the guest of honour is Alex Jardine, the former Bishop of Starbridge, who was Neville's patron and appointed him to a post in his bishopric as Archdeacon.

Schindlers List

Oskar's wife Emilie worked at the Brunnlitz factory looking after people who were ill or unable to do much work, and Oskar kept control of the SS Guards. He refused to let them on the factory floor, so that his workers were not in danger of being beaten or shot, and he bribed them with food and alcohol, to keep them sweet. Oskar was arrested at one stage for kissing a young Jewish woman, in public at his birthday party, a violation of the laws that forbade sexual contact between Jews and Aryans. However he managed to bribe his way out because of his friends. He was spending more of his money, just keeping the factory open and hte Jews alive, and buying up working shells to pass off as his own. When Goth was removed from his post because of corruption charges, Schindler who often visited him, took away his two maids and gave them sanctuary in his factory. By the time the war ended, Schindler had spent nearly all his money and he and Emilie fled the factory leaving the Jews to be liberated by the Red Army. THey had a letter from the Jewish workers which they could give to the Americans to show that they were not war profiteers but had saved the lives of 1200 people. Oskar had spent everything. He and EMilie moved to South America but he had never been a very solid businessman. He liked the schmoozing side of the job, but did not succeed at any businesses he set up after the war. He left Emilie, never having been faithful to her, and returned to Germany where he went on trying to make his living, but he ended up depending on remittances form his Jews. He was traumatised by his supreme effort during the war and could not seem to have any success afterwards. He was invited to Israel as a Righteous Person and eventually he was buried there...... in gratitude for what he had done.

Oskar Schindler

Schindler was a German, born in Austria Hungary, who rescued 1200 Jewish people from the Nazis. He intially was a German nationalist and worked for the Abwehr (Intelligence services) and at various trades. He wanted to make a fortune, and set up a business making enamel ware, in Poland early in the War... He had several Jewish investors and used Jewish labour because it was cheap, slave labour. He became increasingly close to his workers and when Nazis in Krakow, destroyed the Jewish Ghetto there moved most of the Jews to camps and murdered Jews, in the streets, Schindler was horrified at what was happening and turned away from Nazism. Amon Goth was the commandant of the Plaszow concentration camp in 1943 and he was a fanatical and sadistic brute. Schindler had married young but he led a bon vivant lifestyle, enjoying socialising and drinking too much and he had many mistresses. His wife tolerated his affairs and like him was shocked at the Nazis. He decided to use his power as a well known businessman with contacts in the Abwehr and the army, to save his Jewish workers. He was making good money, and he used his contacts to develop a friendship with Goth. He persuaded him to let him build a separate camp for his factory, where he could better protect his workers. He managed to keep them safe and took in children and wives, and even disabled people whom he claimed were capable of working for the war effort. As the war began to go against Germany, the Germans moved their factories further east, and Schindler managed by dint of heavy bribing, to take his 1200 workers to Brunnlitz, which was near his home town -. He gets them there safely though some of the women were taken to Auschwitz but he got them out. In Brunnlitz, he started to produce shells for the army, but he decided that he did not want any of the munitions to be capable of being used. In the last months of the War, Schindler spent a lot of time in Krakow bribing and cajoling in order to get necessary food and supplies for his Jews. He allowed his workers to hold Jewish services.....

Sylvester part VII

Ianthe recognises that Sylvester is making a concession, and she can see that her husband does not want Edmund in their house, so she lets her son go. Sylvester still at odds with PHoebe, tries to plan their journey back to England, but he finds that he has not got much money, having rushed off, and has no servant with him and he finds that travelling as an ordinary gentleman rather than a Duke he does not have innkeepers fawning on him. Tom reminds him that he's never taken care of Edmund by himself before and that the child will act up if he is left to strange foreign servants in an inn. So he needs Phoebe to help look after him. Sylvester is still cross but he and Phoebe stiffly keep up a friendly footing. When they get back to England, she is still angry with him, to the point where Tom feels she's being unfair. Phoebe finds that her grandmother has left her inn at Dover, and she's afraid that the old lady has washed her hands of her because of her folly in going aboard the Fotherby boat. Back in London, Sylvester asks her to marry him, clumsily, without any attempt to apologise or soothe her, and she angrily refuses him. But the Duchess sends for her and they talk. She tells Phoebe that Sylvester does love her, though he is not the sort of man who loves a lot of people or feels love in general for humanity. But he is a good man who loves his family and does his duty by his tenants and people. Phoebe knows that she loves Sylvester and she can see that he loves the people that he is close to, like his mother and nephew. She feels that she was foolish to be deceived by Ianthe, and she understands that Sylvester made a clumsy proposal because he was more emotional than he usually is. She likes the Duchess and agrees to see Sylvester again...... and this time he is accepted.

Sylvester Part VI

When they reach port in Calais, Phoebe writes to her grandmother explaining what has happened, but she and Tom have very little money and reckon they will have to go to the British Embassy and they wil have to travel on. The Fotherbys lend them some clothes, and the journey starts but it is very hard on Edmund. He becomes travel sick in a coach as well as at sea, and Tom and Phoebe feel they cannot leave him. Phoebe reckons that Sylvester will soon come after the party and she wants to try and tell him that she did her best to stop the abduction of the child and looked after him. However, they have to stop because Ianthe becomes ill, she has influenza and is not able to go further. Sir Nugent wants to hire a whole inn for his party, but cannot find one with any rooms free, except a small one in a back street. The lady who runs it takes a fancy to Ianthe and is willing to look after her and fit the party into her small house. Ianthe is genuinely ill and she is not a stoic patient, and leaves Edmund to Phoebe's care. Nugent begins to get irritated with the child, who is cheeky and naughty and is not at all happy at being taken away from his home, his nurse and being made to travel which upsets him so much. Phoebe feels a bit guilty but she mildly encourages Edmund to be naughty to his stepfather hoping that it will make him less keen on the idea of the boy living with him. Within a couple of days, Sylvester arrives, and he is not in a good mood. He tells Phoebe that she has been very foolish in interfering and ending up in France, and that it was her silly novel that gave Ianthe the idea of taking her son away. He still blames her for the novel and the row they had at the ball, which caused so much talk and scandal. Phoebe is angry and tells Tom she wont go home with him but she did promise Edmund to look after him and stay with him. Sylvester tells Fotherby he is taking Edmund home, that he is the boy's guardian and in any case it is obvious that Edmund loves his uncle and would prefer to be with him. Sir Nugent is fed up with Edmund and more than willing to let him go home. Sylvester talks to Ianthe, and she says angrily that she never believed he cared for Harry, his brother all that much, and she is then scared because he is so hurt and angry. Cowed, she agrees to the child going back to him.... He tells her that he will be glad to see her at his house any time she wants to come and see Edmund, and that she can bring her husband.

Sylvester Part V

Phoebe and Tom go to Dover with Lady Ingham to sail to France, but the weather is bad and the old lady is nervous of travelling so they wait a day or 2. While they are there, Phoebe is fighting depression and feeling that she has ruined her chances of having a social life, unless the fuss is forgotten when they come back from France. Tom is a bit lame but he goes out walking, and sees a very fancy yacht in the port with a carriage being loaded into it. Phoebe goes with him to look, and sees a child she knows, going aboard. It is Edmund. She realises that Ianthe and Fotherby are taking Edmund away, and they are probalby sailing to France to get him away from Sylvester. She is horrified because it seems likely that her novel gave Ianthe the idea of taking the child abroad and that Sylvester will be involved now in another fuss and scandal getting his ward back. Feeling guilty, she tells Tom they must go aboard and persuade Ianthe to let the child come back to London. Tom says they should not interfere, it is between Ianthe and Fotherby and Sylvester... but Phoebe has a strong conscience and she insists... Tom goes with her. When they get aboard, Ianthe tells her gleefully that she did get the idea of taking her son abroad from the book, and that she married Fotherby earlier that day and now plans to honeymoon in France. While Phoebe is trying to explain to Ianthe that she cannot do this, and that a novel is not real life, Fotherby orders the captain to sail and they realise that the ship is moving. The captain tells them that even if he wanted to, he cant put back into port, they are bound for France. Phoebe is horrified and so is Tom. They cant get a message to Lady Ingham and they have no clothes..the sea turns out to be very rough and Edmund is a bad traveller. Phoebe is very angry with Ianthe, she knows that her son is sick in boats and carriages and she has not made any provisions for his travelling. She did not take his nurse, Mrs Button and she did not even buy him clothes for the journey. . Phoebe tells Tom that even though it is causing trouble for herself, she cant but be glad that she got on the ship as Edmund needs someone to look after him and perhaps she can persaude Ianthe to give up the boy. Ianthe is ill with sea sickness and Phoebe looks after Edmund.

Sylvester IV

Lady Ingham still has hopes of making a match with Sylvester as he seems to get on well with her and she looks prettier and is livelier on this visit to London. However, she becomes freindly with Ianthe Rayne and realises that she has accidentally written in her novel a scenario that is rather close to the real life of Sylvester and his little nephew. She is wary of Ianthe whom she can see is selfish and silly, but she finds that Sylvester is Edmund's guardian and that according to Ianthe he has not much cared for the child. Phoebe finds that Ianthe has talked a lot about her grievances with Sylvester, and how he wont let her take her son away when she marries Fotherby. her own novel has a plot where Ugolino keeps control of his nephew, and her hero and heroine rescue the child and take him abroad. She then finds to her amazement that the book when it comes out, sells very well and everyone is sure that some socialite wrote it. Ianthe guesses that it is her, and of course talks about it to many people. Phoebe finds that people snub her as she has written about people in society and they feel she's made them a laughing stock. Sylvester is furious with her when he finds out, because he is a proud man and cannot bear to be talked about. Then, they have an argument on the dance floor. He walks off in a temper and Phoebe is left standing, and she is even more shunned by many society people. Lady Ingham decides that the only thing to do is to go away for a bit, for the talk to die down. She suggests going to Paris, and offers to take Phoebe and Tom, who is now mobile again. Tom finds himself being used as general factotum as the old lady is something of a hypochondriac, and he has difficulty getting her organised. Phoebe is very depressed, as she had been growing fond of Sylvester, but she agrees to go.

Sylvester Part III

Sylvester is startled to learn that Phoebe has disappeared, and Mrs Orde, Tom's mother calls to the house to say Tom has left a letter which seems to indicate that he has taken Phoebe to Scotland. She is very angry at the idea that her son has been inveigled into a runaway marriage. Lord Marlow sets out to try and find his daughter, and Sylvester, realising that his visit to Austerby has now failed, decides to leave before oncoming bad weather sets in. He has his middle aged groom with him, John Keighley, and is indiffernt to the fact that John has a cold coming on.. He wants to get away in case it snows. When he has gone part of his journey, he runs across a fallen carriage. It emerges that Tom and Phoebe's horse took fright at a donkey in his path, and they had an accident. Tom has broken his leg and the carriage is damaged. Sylvester stops to give aid and gets the young pair to a small and far from fancy inn, where they are able to find rooms. They manage to get a doctor but Tom is clearly going to have to rest for several days before he can go on travelling. The snow starts and Sylvester and John are also stuck in the Inn. He is not pleased as he is used to the best when travelling and the Scalings who run the inn are simple people who are not used to catering for the gentry. Phoebe hopes that the bad weather will keep her father and Tom's from following her, and she settles in to look after the horses and her injured friend. She also tells Sylvester off for not taking better care of his groom, who is now suffering from a cold. For a few days, however she and Tom manage to enjoy their snow bound state. They play games and read, and Tom thinks that Sylvester is not so arrogant, in private as Phoebe made him out to be. She admits to Tom that she likes him better now, he has shown a kindlier side to his nature but he has also shown a lot of arrogance. He cares for his groom but it did not occur to him that the man was not fit to go out in such bad weather. When the snow begins to lift, Squire Orde comes after them but Sylvester manages to get Phoebe off on her journey to London, sending her in his own chaise, while remaining to look after Tom. When she gets to London, her grandmother is glad to see her, and takes her in and says she will make sure that PHoebe has a better time in the social round this time. Phoebe tries to see her publisher to see if she can stop the publication of her novel, as she is worried that people will see that Ugolino is based on Sylvester but they refuse to do this or to make any changes.

Sylvester Part II

Sylvester secures an invitation to Austerby, Phoebe's home, meeting her father, who is a stupid man who is horse mad. He would like to see his daughter married to a duke, and brings him home. Lady Marlow, who does not get on with her stepdaughter, is not a very charming hostess but she too hopes for a marriage. Sylvester begins to wonder if he has made the right decision in visiting the Marlows. The house is uncomfortable, Lady Marlow is grim and charmless and he's not at all sure about Phoebe. Phoebe is very shaken when she's told that the Duke of Salford is considering marriage to her, since she hardly knows him and disliked him for his arrogant manner when she did meet him in London. She tells her governess that she is horrified by this news, since Salford is Ugolino. DUring her time in London, Phoebe has written a novel, with a lot of portraits of society people, and she has had an offer to publish it. The villain of the novel Ugolino, is an arrogant man with eyebrows like Sylvester's and Phoebe, now that the novel is going to be published is worried that such a resemblance to a real life character may cause problems. Miss Battery, Phoebe's governess is very fond of her, and the 2 of them hope that when Phoebe is 21, she could support herself writing and her governess could keep house for them. When Sylvester arrives, he is not very happy. Phoebe is dull and awkward. Lady Marlow is not an adept hostess, and he feels that he has made a mistake in considering her as a wife. However Phoebe is nervous. She knows that her stepmother wants to get her married and her father is too weak to stand up for her. She meets with Tom Orde, son of the local squire, who is her best friend. The 2 of them have always supported each other, and Tom even thinks of offering marriage, to save Phoebe from having to marry Sylvester. However she tells him if she could only get away from Austerby and go to London, her grandmother would give her a home till she's able to set up a place for herself. Tom agrees to help her by driving her to London - but leaves an ambiguous note for his mother, which sounds like he is planning to elope with Phoebe.

Sylvester By Heyer

Sylvester is not one of my favorite Heyer novels as the hero is too arrogant to be liked. But it has a complex plot and I enjoy an occasional re read. Sylvester is the Duke of Salford, the elder of twin sons, and his brother Harry has died young. His mother, the Duchess suffers from arthritis and is confined to a chair. He is devoted to his mother, and is also a hard working landlord, who does his duty to his tenants. He surprises her one day by telling her that he's decided to get married, and he thinks that he will have very little difficulty in finding a wife, because of his rank. She is startled at his arrogance, and his apparent belief that love is not all that important in a marriage. He tells her that he is now 28 and while he has an heir, his nephew Edmund, he feels that it would be better if he were to father a son while Edmund is still too young to feel as if he has been cut out. He also wishes to provide his mother with a companion, as her son's widow, Ianthe is about to remarry, after several years. She is still very young and is a flighty creature, who professes devotion to her son but is not really maternal. Sylvester dislikes her and even more dislikes her new fiance, a dandy called Nugent Fotherby. He has refused to allow Ianthe to take Edmund with her when she remarries, and this is a bone of contention between them. Elizabeth, the Duchess is dismayed by how harsh Sylvester has become, and half jokingly tells him that when he was a child she made a match for him with the daughter of her best friend, Verena, Lady Marlow. Sylvester asks about this match, claiming that surely the daughter of his mother's friend would be a suitable wife. She tells him that Verena, her friend, died soon after Phoebe's birth and Lord Marlow remarried and has more children. His second wife is rather shrewish. Sylvester decides to court Phoebe, helped by the fact that her grandmother, Lady Ingham is one of his godmothers. He visits her in London, and though she is a selfish old lady, she is fond of her grandchild and would like to see her married well. She tells him that Phoebe is 19, and not a great beauty but she is intelligent.

Whipples novels

Dorothy Whipple was born in Lancashire in 1893, to an architecht and his wife. She set most of her novels in the North, and among the professional and business classes. She was a young woman at the outbreak of the First World war and became a secretary to Henry Whipple, who was an educational administrator and many years her senior. She married him and began to write novels. She also wrote short stories and children's books. Her works are very northern in feeling, with a sympathy for the poor and servants, and the women are strong and warm hearted characters. In High Wages, she writes about a girl who starts off working in a shop, and ends having her own business, partly because of help from another older woman, whose husband had gone up in the world and made a lot of money. She shows sympathy to people who have risen out of their class and feel uncomfortable trying to mix with richer, more upper class people. Her first novel, Young Anne, is autobiographical. Anne lives with her parents and 2 older brothers in a mill town, and although she is the cleverest of the 3 children she has to wait for the War to give her a chance to get a job. Her father and mother have never been affectionate to her, and she depends on Emily, the family maid/housekeeper for help and friendship. Her father is a very strict, religous man, and Anne who is imaginative and dreamy, often gets into trouble, but when she has just left school, he becomes ill and dies suddenly, leaving his family with very little money. Anne is taken in by her great Aunt who is also religious and strict and gives her a hard time. She manages to escape to a secretarial job, when the war makes it acceptable for girls of good family to work to help the war effort.

Because of the Lockwoods FInal Part

The Lockwoods have been away in Switzerland for over a month and enjoyed it, but he knows that they must go home. He thinks that he can sort out his various machinations, bit by bit so that he's no longer in danger of being caught out, and getting into trouble with the law or being forced to find large sums of money to repay people. However, Oliver's few words start off gossip in the town, and many of the solicitor's clients have been uneasy already. The fact that the family have been away for several weeks starts off rumours that he has run out of town and disappeared with his ill gotten gains. Many clients start to visit the office and tell his chief clerk that they want to see him. His clerk is feeling uneasy himself, but has been told by Mr Lockwood that he will be home in a day or so.. However, so many people are suspicious and want to see him, that the clerk has to make appointments for them all the day he returns from his holiday. When Mr Lockwood returns home, he finds that the clients are queueing up to see him, and there is gossip going around the town. He goes to his office and realises that his frauds are about to be found out and he is ruined. Thea goes to his house and meets Claire who is not aware that her father is in trouble nor that Martin has gone to London to work. She feels sorry for the girl and tells her to phone up Martin and talk to him. She is unsure now how she feels. She wanted to see Lockwood ruined, since now it has emerged that its not just one relatively small fraud that he's committed.. but she still feels a little sorry for him and his family. She goes to his office, and manages to get in. He is there alone and she realises that he has a gun and is trying to get up the nerve to kill himself. He is angry with her, since he says he is finding it hard to die, but its the only way out. She says that she didnt mean things to get this far. He says that it is the only way out. If he goes on, he will be imprisoned for embezzlement, struck off the Rolls and no longer able to work as a lawyer, and he will find it hard to get a job when he comes out. He will have to sell everything to try to pay up what he has stolen. Thea says that if he dies, he will leave his wife and children broke and facing the scandal alone, and that he is a clever man who will find some way of making a living when he gets out of jail.. and that the girls and Mrs Lockwood are good managers and will be able to help themselves. She says that people will say he's a coward who got out and left his family to face everything alone. After a time, he gives in and says that he will go home to his wife and face things out. Thea is releived, and happy that she and Oliver have each other. Mrs Lockwood calls him, and he tells her he will be home soon......

Because of the Lockwoods IV

Oliver says that he would bet that Lockwood has done other dishonest things; he did not hestitate to steal a paddock from a recently widowed lady with children, whom he was supposed to be helping.. so he is sure that the man is dishonest through and through, and has committed other frauds. Thea is angry and excited. She has always disliked the family and felt the humiliations that they placed on the Hunters more than her mother, sister and brother - so she wants to make a public fuss about it. She remembers the difficult months she had spent working in France with the Lockwoods queening it over her, and then gossipping nastily about her. She realises that the receipt for the money given to her father, was in a small bag which had been in the attic for years, and that she had had it with her as she used it to carry some of her things when going to France.. Molly comes in, and when Thea explains, she says that she would just point out the fraud and ask for the money in compensation. Thea angrily accuses her of being dull and not able to stand up for herself. Mrs Hunter also is reluctant to make a fuss. She finds it hard to believe that her friend's husband, who had been asked to help her, should instead defraud her, and take the paddock, but she reluctnatly admits that he never did very much to help her, and was always rude and impatient with her. Thea is angry with her mother, as well for being so slow to become resentful and righteously angry and she tells Oliver she has to go for a walk to calm down. He can understand her feelings about the Lockwoods, how they hurt her when she was a child.. and even now, Martin has left the town because of his feelings for Clare, who has not got the strength of mind to fight her father. It turns out that while the Lockwoods have been away for several weeks some of his clients have been getting uneasy about him, and wondering if their money is safe with him. Oliver tells Thea that all he has to do is to make a remark or 2 in a first class train carriage and it will set off gossip and when the Lockwoods come back, they will have to face the Hunters. He and Thea by now have grown closer and he realises she is no longer in love with the French boy.. but has turned to him. They have grown to know each other well and to work together and are happy finally to have fallen in love. Thea says that she knows only too well how rumours can damage a person's reputation but that Lockwood deserves criticism.

Lockwoods III

Oliver is visiting the Hunters, when he gets a headache and Mrs Hunter, who is a doctors' daughter, offers him a headache powder to cure it. He tells her that he was surprised to find it was very good and really worked. He suggests that he could market it, and he's sure it would sell well and as the owner of the recipe, she would get a small percentage of the takings. Mrs Hunter is taken aback, but agrees to the idea. Oliver starts off having it made up and packaged and offers Thea a job as his secretary, helping to write the letters and do the paperwork. Thea is pleased to have work to do, even if its not as well paid as teaching. It is interesting and she and Oliver work well together and she is growing to like him more. Martin continues to go about with the Lockwood girls which feels like a betrayal to Thea, when the Lockwoods have never been very nice and Mrs Lockwood has snubbed his mother. Molly is happy with her shop, and is making good money and the Hunters begin to think that they might be able to move into a better house soon. Martin tells Clare that he can't bear to go on hiding his feelings for her, and he's going to ask her father for permission to marry her. Mr Lockwood however reacts angrily, at the idea that a young man who is not earning much, should want to marry his darling youngest daughter and should ask him for help in getting a better job so that he could support her. Lockwood is a rather heavy overweight man, and lives a high stress life, so when he falls down after this angry outburst he decides to make use of this to make Clare feel guilty. He gets his doctor to suggest that he has almost had a heart attack and that on doctor's orders, he should take a break and go abroad for a holiday with his family. Martin is very upset when Clare tells him she has promised her father she wont get in touch with him while they are away on holiday, and he is sunk in gloom when the Lockwoods go away. Mr Lockwood has been hard working all his life, trying to make as much money as possible for himself and his family. He has acted dishonestly quite often and at times he worries about what would happen if his behaviour came out. He has mortgaged property, borrowed funds from his clients and taken the paddock from Mrs Hunter. He and his wife and daughters decide to go to Switzerland and find it a very pleasant place and enjoy simple pleasures like walking and seeing spring flowers. Mr Lockwood toys with the idea that when he comes back he will sort out his business and clear up all the dishonesty. While they are away, Oliver persuades Martin to give up his job at the bank andto get away from the North before Clare comes back. He offers him a job in his organisation and Martin decides to take up the chance to escape and get on with his life while she is away. Edith Reade gets married and Oliver after the wedding offers to look at the Hunters' legal papers. When he does so, he and Thea find that there is a receipt for the money that Mr Hunter borrowed and repaid, so the fraud of stealing the paddock comes out. She had found a receipt for repayment in a bag she had been using a year earlier.. They are confused but it becomes clear that Mr Hunter did borrow the money and paid it back soon afterwards.

Because of the Lockwoods by Dorothy Whipple II

Thea is not sure if she's glad to be home, having a cloud of gossip around her. She is also dismayed to find that her family have become quite friendly with Oliver, during her months of absense. He is friendly with Martin and he has persauded Molly to give up her governessing which she hates and to take a course in cooking, which is her particular talent. Having improved her cooking skills Molly is helped by Oliver to take over a cake shop and she is running it with Edith, Oliver's sister. She loves the work and wants to buy the shop and manage it herself, in due course. Thea can see that Oliver is good hearted and intelligent but she does find him rather vulgar and pushing at times. He has become conscious of his flaws, since getting to know the HUnters and has gone to evening classes to learn a bit about literature and science and to learn how to behave genteelly. Thea remains cool with him, but Oliver persists in trying to win her attention. THen she tells him abruptly that she had to leave France because she had fallen in love with a young Frenchman and it was considered scandalous, there that she should go out with him. Oliver is taken aback but he believes that if he is patient she will come to care for him. Thea feels a bit better when she tells him the truth, rather harshly. Then Mrs Lockwood comes around to tell her off about the incident in France, and Thea loses her temper and tells the lady that she has never been polite or courteous to Mrs Hunter because she was poor, and that she herself has done nothing wrong. Mrs Lockwood in a fury walks out and breaks off the friendship with poor Mrs Hunter and sends back the family's legal papers. Mrs Hunter is very upset - and she begins to turn to Oliver more for advice and help. Thea speaks to her own old headmistress who still hopes that her pupil will go to University and become a teacher but now she says that she has had enough of schools and does not want to explain herself to people, so she will find her own job. However, she is hurt that Martin is cool to her and disapproves of her brief romance in France. It upsets him to think of his little sister growing up and getting into a mess with a boyfriend. When the Lockwood girls come back from school a few months later, Martin hurts Thea still more by becoming friends with the 3 girls. He does not like the twins, but he has always been in love with Clare, and he is willing to sacrifice his pride to go to dances and parties with the 3 Lockwoods, as a tame escort. The Lockwood parents are pleased to see their daughters going out and about on the social scene, but there are less young men of a certain social standing, in the town these days because the sons of mill owners have given up being in business and gone up a notch in the social scale by going into the army or other professions. So it is a relief that the Lockwoods have Martin to take the girls out, as their attitude is that he is too poor and modest to ever think of their daughters as marriage material and he is safe. He is rather ashamed of himself but persists because of Claire. It leads to an increased coolness between him and Thea.

Because of the Lockwoods Redux

Some time ago I began a blog on this Novel by Dorothy Whipple. It is set in the 1920s in a northern mill town in England. Whipple wrote about the middle classes in Northern England, but she had a sharp wit like Jane Austen. This was one of her later works, about 2 families the Lockwoods, a well to do solicitor and his wife and 3 daughters and Mrs Hunter, a widow from a middle class background who also has 3 children. However her husband died during the war, and left her with very little money. Mr Lockwood offered to help her out with managing her husband's small fortune but did very little for her, and cheated her out of a paddock which Mr Hunter had bought with a loan from him. Mrs Hunter is not very clever and she has never managed money before, leaving it all to her husband, so she did not realise that the loan had been repaid and Mr Lockwood was cheating her. Lockwood was always impatient with Mrs Hunter and when Molly, the eldest child was 15, he got her a job as a governess, with a difficult family. Martin, the only son was put into a bank where he did not have the drive to do more than progress slowly up the ladder. Thea, the youngest child was clever and bitterly resented the patronage of the family. She managed to stay at school till she was 18, but then the Lockwood girls were being sent to France to learn French, and she resented them even more for having opportunities to study that they did not care about, and felt that she must find a way of going as well. She managed to get a place at the school au pair.. that she would teach English in exchange for learning French. The Hunters had to move from their comfortable home, soon after RIchard Hunter's death, to rent a small home in the town, and they have been living on a small annuity arranged by Mr Lockwood, which just about keeps them, but they never become friends with the local people. Mrs Hunter is shy rather than snobbish but it makes the children isolated. A new family move in just before Thea goes to France, the Reades. Oliver Reade is a young man who has come up from poverty and looked after his widowed mother and his sister Edith, getting a job in the local Market and setting up his own business. He is an energetic hard working young man who excels at selling. He is happy to have brought his family to a better house, but when he sees the Hunters, he tries to make friends with them. Martin is willing to be friendly, but Thea thinks that Oliver is vulgar and noisy and snubs him. He is embarrassed but still finds himself attracted to her and wants to get to know her. When Thea and several girls from the town arrive in France, they find that the school is not what they expected. It is a small provincial school, with few amenities, and the Lockwood girls want to go home immediately. However, Angela Harvey, the most socially grand of the group, decides to stay, as she wants a career and wants to learn French, so they stay as well, though they dont bother with lessons. Thea also feels cheated as the French headmistress does not proffer French lessons; she expects Thea to teach but says that she will learn French from hearing it all round her. She struggles with teaching difficult classes but manages to do the job, and it does have the effect of lessening her anger with the Lockwoods because she is so busy surviving. She becomes friendly with Jeanne who is studying to be a teacher as well, and who tells her that in France, a girl is not likely to get married unless she has some kind of dowry. Thea finds this shocking. After a few months, she is told by the headmistress that she will now be sent out to teach Jacques Farnet English. He is the brother of a pupil and his mother wants him to learn to read and write English, for his business. Thea is angry at being sent out like this but is a little pleased to be able to get out of the school a bit more. She finds herself becoming attracted to Jacques, who is a handsome young man a few years her senior. He clearly likes her too and invites her to go with him for a picnic in a small wood belonging to his family, just outside the town. Thea wants to go but does not agree for a few weeks, since she knows the conventions in small towns in France are very strict. Girls of the middle class dont go out with young men. After a time, she does agree to go, and unfortunately, she and he are found. THey were in a little hut on the property. Thea's going out by herself has been noticed and Jacques' mother and the headmistress followed them. Thea is sent home. Jacques tries to see her but is not allowed to. She arrives back in England and tells her mother that she didnt do anything wrong by English standards but in French towns the rules are strict. Mrs Hunter is willing to understand and beleive her daughter but she is worried. She had hopes that because Thea was both clever and pretty, she would go to college and become succesful, but now Thea is back at home with a lot of gossip about her, since the Lockwoods wrote to their mother about the scandal.

Bath Tangle Part VII

Serena and Goring catch up with Emily and Gerard and a scene ensues. Gerard knows that Emily is not in love with him and is eloping with him largely to avoid marrying Rotherham. She is nervous and weepy, and not sure what to do. When they meet at the Inn, Goring tries to reassure her, and tells her that if she does not want to marry her fiance she need not do so but she must not elope with someone. Emily dreads her mother.. but she dreads Rotherham. Goring tells her that Mrs Floore wont let her be forced into a bad marriage.. and in the end Emily agrees to go home to face her fiance and Mrs Floore. Serena is rather cool to her, (another reason I dont much like the hero and heroine of the book) but she does feel a little sorry for the girl. When they get back to Bath, Ivo and Lady Laleham are there to receive Emily. Lady Laleham tries to persuade him that Emily was just being silly and that she has now gotten over her fright. Ivo by now does not want to marry her but it is almost impossible for a man to reject an engagement. HOwever Mrs Floore comes in, dressed in lavishly adorned clothes, and makes it clear that she does not intend her grand daughter to be forced into a distasteful marriage. Ivo tells Emily that he will expect her to learn to ride and to become hostess of his house. Emily loses her nerve and says she can't do it, and breaks off the engagement. Mrs Floore asks her if she would like to live wiht her in Bath, reminding her that she would not be in high society there because she herself is middle class and not a grand lady, and life in Bath is quieter than London. Emily says she doesn't care, she loves her grandmother and would be glad to stay with her. Lady Laleham says that she washes her hands of Emily, if she chooses to live with Mrs Floore, but Goring assures her that she will have other offers of marriage when she is a little older and more mature. It is clear that he is a little in love with her and will probably offer for her in a year or 2. Emily hands back her ring to Ivo but he returns it to her, and tells Goring that he hopes they will meet again later. He leaves the house and goes to Serena and Fanny's home, where Hector is trying to keep Fanny from worrying. Serena goes upstairs but Ivo tells her that he was trying to break off the engagement, by pushing Emily towards Gerard. He did not think she would go so far as eloping, but he realised that he had made a bad mistake in marrying her yet also knew that Lady Laleham would not want her daughter to break off the engagement. Serena is furious at Ivo's chopping and changing and how it nearly caused a scandal which would have damaged Emily's reputation. Ivo tells her, however that as soon as he met Kirkby, he could see that he was not a suitable husband for Serena and that they would break up, as their engagement was private. He knew that Hector was fascinated by Serena, and trying to live up to her expectations but he wasn't really in love wth her and they would not be happy as she would never be happy in a small country manor with a quiet gentle man for a husband. Serena is outraged but Ivo adds that Hector has not been in love with her now for ages, he has been in love with Fanny. She realises that he is speaking the truth and that she had grown irritated with Hector's gentler nature, and longed for Ivo. She asks Fanny why she had not said anything sooner and she and Hector break off their engagement. Ivo tells Serena that he knew he had made a bad mistake, but it was very difficult for him to get out of it. He had dashed into an engagement with Emily because she seemed malleable and infatuated with him and he felt that if he could not marry Serena he didnt much care whom he married. But when he realised that Serena was not likely to marry Hector, he had to try and cut himself out of the tangle. He tells Serena he will not defer to her as Hector has done and will enjoy their battles. Fanny and Hector are relieved that they are now free to marry in due course, and Serena and Ivo plan to marry in private and go abroad, for the rest of the year of mourning....

Bath Tangle Part VI

A few days later, Serena is waiting for Emily to come to her house to go riding when she gets a message from Mrs Floore. She goes to her house and finds the older lady is quite ill. She is very fat and has had a shock which brought on a heart spasm. Mr Goring, her godson who is part owner of one of the businesses owned by Mrs Floore, is there and they manage to calm the poor lady and find out what has happened. She is wildly upset because Emily has run away with Gerard, and Rotherham is coming to Bath. Mrs Floore says that she wont let Emily marry him if she doesn't care for him, and is so afraid of him, but that if Emily elopes with a young man like Gerard, running away from her engagement with a high ranking noble like Rotherham, it will not do her reputation any good. Mr Goring is very fond of Emily and more tolerant of her immaturity than Serena has been but he agrees that the first thing to be done is to find Emily and stop her from eloping. Serena is a good rider, and she and Mr Goring decide to set out and ride after them... Gerard has hired a post chaise but he is not well off and probalby wont be able to go to Scotland very fast. Hector has just come back to Bath, and when he visits Fanny, he tells her that he feels that Serena is still attached to Rotherham, because she seems annoyed that Emily has made him look foolish by jilting him and says that it isnt fair that Ivo should be jilted a second time. Fanny says that Serena did break off her engagement to Ivo, and he has never been lover like in his manner towards her, treating her just as a friend and often being rough and rude with her. Fanny begs Hector to stay with her, as she's afraid of facing ROtherham, if he comes to the house to seek for Emily...

Bath Tangle Part V

Major Kirkby has been in Bath for some weeks, now, with Serena, when he visits the house one day and finds that Fanny is in an embarrassing situation. She has a young admirer, Mr Ryde, who has paid a call. He is infatuated with her and tries to kiss her.. and as Fanny is shy with men she does not know how to handle the situation. Hector throws him out and comforts Fanny and they both suddenly realise that they care for each other. He tells her that he was smitten by Serena's beauty and the memory of their past romance, and did not realise that she is not the angelic goddess he thought her.. and that while he is fond of her, he finds her too bossy and he does not want the sort of life that she would problaby enjoy most, with a political salon and life in London. Fanny tells Hector that she knew she cared about him, but was happy just to have his company after her marriage where she was not all that close to her husband. They decide that they can't tell Serena.. that she loves Hector and is looking forward to marrying him. Fanny tells Hector that he will get over her, that Serena is a good person and he will grow to love her in a different way and will get used to married life with her... but they decide that they must separate for a few weeks. Hector decides that he will make an excuse to go home to his manor in Kent and spend a little time there. Gerard turns up in Bath, and Emily tells her grandmother that he is the cousin and ward of Rotherham, so she sees no harm in his going out with Emily. However, after a couple of weeks, Rotherham announces that he is coming to Bath, and she takes fright. She did like the idea of being a marchioness, and was happy to marry Rotherham at first but his domineerng ways scared her and his telling her that she will have to take on a role of society hostess that is quite beyond her. She tells Gerard how scared she is and he tries to make a plan to rescue her.

Bath Tangle Part IV

Serena writes to Ivo to let him know she is privately engaged to Hector and they will marry when she's out of mourning. He pays a visit and seems to get on well with the Major, and is more pleasant than Fanny has ever seen him being. Soon afterwards, the ladies see in the paper that Ivo has become engaged to Emily Laleham. Fanny is schocked and upset. She is fond of Emily and beleives that such a young shy girl can never cope with a marriage to an older man like Rotherham, who has a harsh temper and is very domineering. Serena says that Emily is a pretty but silly girl, but Rotherham must love her as she has very little to recommend her other than good looks and a pleasant nature. She advises Fanny not to get emotional about the marriage. Meanwhile, Rotherham's cousin and ward, Gerard Monksleigh finds that Emily is engaged. He does not get on with his severe cousin, and is afraid of him.. but he himself had been infatuated with Emily when he knew her during one of his vacations from Oxford. He is furious and upset to learn that Emily is now engaged to his guardian but his tendency to bluster and try to show off how brave he is irritates the unsympathetic Rotherham. Rotherham lends him some money but lets him go off in an upset stormy state, and this behaviour makes me dislike this particular hero. Emily's grandmother, Mrs Floore tells the Carlow ladies that she is going to have Emily to stay with her soon because the family has had a bout of influenza and she is tired out and unwell. She is looking forward to seeing the girl because she thinks when Emily marries into the nobility, she wont have much time for her grandmother. Emily arrives in Bath and does look tired out. Mrs Floore is delighted to have her staying and takes her out to mild social events, in the town. Serena takes her riding and tries to instruct her as to her role as the wife of Lord Rotherham, though it seems unlikely that Emily will be all that successful as a political hostess.

Bath Tangle III

Serena is sorry for her stepmother, as she thinks it was a difficult marriage for Fanny, though she was fond of her husband and he looked after her. She was not really good at the political and social hostessing she was expected to do. She and Serena begin to meet a few people at Bath, at the Spa but a lot of the population are elderly or invalids. Serena begins to get a little restless. She is used to an active social life, with a lot of riding and hunting and Bath is not a city to ride about in. However, she meets a lady who turns out to be the grandmother of Emily Laleham. Mrs Floore is a widow, jolly and rather vulgar but shrewd and kindly. She is the daughter of a rich businessman, who married Mr Sebden, a gentleman and had one child, Emily's mother. She remarried to another rich businessman, and her daughter is snobbish and tries to avoid her. Serena and Fanny enjoy her company, but both of them are finding Bath a little dull, though its better than being at the Dower House. Then to her amazement, she is visiting the library and runs into the man she had loved years ago, Major Hector Kirkby. He is still very handsome, and charming, and has now sold out of the army and has inherited his father's estate, his older brother having died. He has a small estate in Kent, and is visiting his mother who is now living in Bath. Serena hurries home to tell Fanny, and feels a rush of the emotion she had for him as a girl of 19. Fanny meets him and thinks he is a very nice man and clearly is still in love with Serena. In a short time, he asks her if she thinks it would be all right to propose. Fanny tells him that Ivo Rotherham is now Serena's trustee, but she cant imagine that he would object to the marriage. Hector is a litlte wary, since Serena was engaged for a time to Ivo... but he soon proposes. Serena is delighted, though she does feel a little uneasy that Hector admires her so much and attributes virtues to her that she does not have. She goes to see Hector's mother, who is a hyponchondriac and who is a little embarrassed that her son has become engaged to a young woman from the higher ranks of Society. She feels that Serena will not fin into a small Kent Manor.

Bath Tangle Part II

Serena realises that Ivo was right, and that living so close to her old house is hard for her, as it means that she is bound to clash with Hartley and Jane. She and Fanny befriend a young girl called Emily Laleham, whose father has a small estate narby. She is only 17 and due to come out in Society soon. Her mother is ambitious and hard, and wants her pretty daughter to marry well. Ivo spends part of Christmas at one of his houses nearby and he flirts a little with Emily, when they go to a local Assembly, but he leaves soon as he is not really interested in young women at a small town gathering. Serena tells him off when she finds out, as she thinks it is not gentlemanly to pay attention to a pretty girl, raise her hopes and then leave, and to ignore the other girls at the Assembly. Furious, Ivo retreats but they later learn that he went back to the party and took another girl out to dance, because while he is arrogant, he is not incapable of improvement. Jane has another son, Francis but she and the Carlow ladies are still not on good terms. Fanny is happy enough in the Dower house but she is a sensitive young woman and is upset by the arguments. By February, they get so unhappy that Serena suggests they go away. Although they are in mourning, they could go to Bath and drink the waters for health reasons and they could go out a little, and meet people. Fanny feels happier at the prospect. She worries that Serena who is much cleverer than her, finds her boring, but they are genuinely fond of each other. They hire a house in Bath and travel there, to settle in for a few months. At first, it all seems well and they enjoy the Spa, the libraries and so on. Serena tells Fanny that when she was 19, she fell in love with a young officer, and wanted to marry him. He went off to war, and she then had a romance with Ivo, and they got engaged. Fanny was never in love with Lord Spenborough, he was kind to her but she was pushed into the marriage by her mother.

Bath Tangle by Georgette Heyer

Bath Tangle is one of Heyer's novels with a complicated plot... The Heroine Serena Carlow has some similarities to Sophy, but shes not as likable. She is managing and intelligent,and devoted to her father, but she is not as humourous as Sophy nor as kindly. The novel opens with Serena, who is 25 and her younger stepmother, Fanny, waiting for the men to come back from the funeral of Serena's father, the Earl of Spenborough. Fanny has not had children, so the heir is a cousin, Hartley. He is a country squire, and not used to a big estate like Milverley, which he has now inherited. Serena, being bossy by nature, feels that she ought to advise him on how to manage things, as Earl. However, she is disconcerted when her former fiance, the domineering Lord Rotherham arrives with her father's lawyer. Ivo Lord Rotherham is older than Serena, but they were engaged a few years ago. She broke off the betrothal because they were always quarrelling... but they got on well enough as friends. However, when the Will is read, it emerges that lord Spenborough has made Rotherham the trustee for his daughter's fortune and she has to manage on a smaller income, and pin money, till she marries. Rotherham tells her that Lord Spenborough wanted them to get married and hopes that by setting them up like this it will push them to wed. She says angrily that it is enough to make her marry the first man who offers for her. Lord Rotherman tells her to calm down, and then Serena tells him that she and Fanny will move into the Dower house nearby, and she wants to help her cousin Hartley. Ivo says that it wont work out, as Hartley should be left to learn his job himself. However they make the move and Hartley's wife Jane comes to live at the main house. She is pregnant and she is also something of a domineering woman. She takes over things and soon ther is tension between the 2 houses.

Grand Sophy Part VI

Sophy and Charlbury start off their trip to Lacy Manor, which is outside London. She tells him that the house is rather shabby and there are just a few servants care taking it, as Sir Horace has mostly lived abroad since his wife's death and his own diplomatic career meant that he was posted to the continent. When they arrive, she tells him that she has written to Sancia, and asked her to come and chaperone them. If she doesn't turn up Charlbury can stay at a local inn but the main thing is to make Cecy think that she is going to lose him and that he will be marrying Sophy. She shows her friend round the house and then abrupty shoots him in the shoulder. Horrified, he asks her what she's doing. Sophy binds up the wound but tells him that she had to give him a small injury to make sure that Charles did not punch him when he found that Charlbury had apparently deserted Cecy and run off with her cousin. He sees her point and the injury is relatively slight so he puts up with it. Charles gets a message from his friend Cyprian that he saw Sophy driving off in a chaise with Charlbury and furiously he returns home to see what is happening. He does not beleive that his cousin is eloping or trying to get Charlbury to compromise her. He is fairly sure that she would have brought in a chaperone. However he is angry... when he also gets a letter from Eugenia to say that she is going to bring Sophy home. However back at his house, he finds Sir Horace has just come back from Brazil. Sir Horace is unruffled by the news that his daughter has gone away, but tells Charles that he is not sure he wants to marry Sancia, now, and that if she's flirting with Sir VIncent, he would be happy to let her go. He was infatuated with her but he's not sure he wants to be tied down. Charles sets off himself for Lacy Manor and when he gets there finds that there are many other people who have arrived before him. Sancia is there, with her new husband, SIr VIncent, and Augustus who was visiting them, has come also. Sophy is dismayed to find that Sancia has married Vincent, but she hopes that her father wont be too unhappy. However, she did not anticipate the arrival of Eugenia, Bromford or Augustus. When Cecy meets Charlbury and sees that he is wounded, she immediately rushes into his arms, and they reconcile. SHe tells Augustus that she cannot marry him, and he is quite calm about it, as his love was always vague and poetical. Charles finds that Eugenia is nursing Lord Bromford, who caught a cold on the ride to Lacy Manor, and is now sneezing. She and he have an argument, he tells her that she should have been a litlte less nosy and interfering and that he would never beleive anything bad of Sophy, so he is angry at her spite. She breaks off the engagement, and he leaves her, feelng that at least she has found a husband in Bromford who will suit her prudish nature much better... This scene is one of Heyer's classic sorting out scenes, where she assembles many characters usually in a country house and sorts out their romantic problems in a fun way. Sophy tells Charlbury to take Cecilia back to London, and they can get formally engaged... while she plays hostess to the Talgarths, Augustus, Lord Bromford and Miss Wraxton. Charles seeks out his cousin and tells her that she can leave her guests, they have a chaperone and he is not going to hang around and get involved in any more dramas. He tells her that Sir Horace is back in London, and that he is going to marry her. She exclaims that he can't be in love with her and he replies, kissing her, that he dislikes her extremely.

Grand Sophy V

Amabel is recovering from her illness, and Lady Ombersley decides to keep her in London near her doctor..so the Rivenhalls and Sophy dont go to the family estate. Charles also remains in London, and his fiancee has now finished her mourning for one of her aunts, so she is still at her London home and planning to marry Charles as soon as possible. Sophy tells Cyprian Wychbold, Charles' best friend that she feels sure Eugenia wont make Charles happy and she will make the rest of the family miserable with her prudery and tale telling. Wychbold says that he agrees but the engagement is public knowledge and there's no way of stopping the marriage. Sophy can see that Eugenia does not love Charles at all, and that she just wants to get married, but she would surely be happier with someone else and Charles would certainly not suit her. She begins to plan a way out of the tangled love affairs of Charles and Cecy. Lady Ombersley is busy with taking care of the convalescent Amabel, and Sophy meantime consults with Charlbury. She asks Cyprian if he could tell Charles that he saw her, Sophy, driving off with Charlbury one day. He agrees warily and Sophy starts to put her plan into action. She takes out Charles' horses without his permission, provoking a quarrel with him... After this, she and Charlbury leave Berkely Square, havig left a letter for Cecilia. Cecy gets the letter and learns that her cousin has had a row with Charles, and has felt that she has to leave the house and go to Lacy Manor. She says that she has asked Charlbury to go with her, and that if she is compromised, he will have to marry her and that will open the way for Cecy to be able to marry Augustus. Cecy no longer wants to marry Augustus so she is horrified and decides she must go to Lacy Manor to rescue him and SOphy, but unluckily Eugenia is with her when she gets the letter and she is determined to interere. She insists on going out of London with Cecy and taking Lord Bromford as escort.

Grand Sophy Part IV

Charles has begun to like Sophy more, because she is open and frank and her interference is usually for the good of the family and he has become a little irritated with his fiancee. They had planned to marry earlier, but a bereavement in her family delayed matters. Then another crisis appears. Charles had taken his younger siblings to Astleys, to see the circus, and Amabel the youngest child became ill, soon afterwards. It seems that it is typhoid, and she is very ill within a short time. Lady Ombersley sends the younger children out of town, but she is so upset she cannot be much help. Sophy and her own maid Jane know about nursing and take over the care of the little girl and Cecilia devotes herself to looking after her mother. It is now high summer and many of the Upper classes have gone out of London, but Cecilia's suitors are still there and pay visits to the house. Lord Bromford, a stuffy young man who has been trying to court Sophy, does not as he's afraid of fever. Charles had left town to visit his estate in the country, but he comes back and is amused by Lord Bromford's fears, but when Eugenia tells him that her mother has forbidden her to go to the Ombersley house, he is less amused. Lord Bromford has been something of a figure of fun to the young Rivenhalls, but Charles is rather annoyed and upset that his fiancee does not wish to visit the house or see his mother. Lord Ombersley who is a careless husband and father is so upset that he drinks more than usual but Amabel is very ill. However her fever breaks and she is finally on the road to recovery. Charles is feeling increasingly ambivalent about his engagement, but he is tied to Eugenia. One night he visits Amabel's sickroom and finds Sophy looking after the child. He is shaken by his feelings for her, and leaves abruptly. Cecilia is also feeling unhappy. She had been in love with Augustus but while he is charming and fond of her and a decent enough young man, she can see that he is hopelessly impractical, and that Charlbury is much his superior.. but Charlbury seems to have moved on and to be fond of SOphy. As Amabel recovers, Charles is greatly relieved, and he tries to help his sister. He tells her that he can see that she's unhappy and he is willing to agree to her marriage to Augustus if the poet will take up a job and is able to support her to some extent. This rather throws out Sophy's plans, so she goes to Lord Ombersley and advises him to put his foot down... and forbid the marriage. As he is Cecilia's father and she is under age, he can refuse to let her marry, so Charles's kindly plan is stymied. She decides that since her 2 cousins are so conventional, neither will try to escape from their intended marriages, so she will have to make an intervention.

Grand Sophy Part III

Sophy is not as pretty as her cousin, but she is more sophisticated and has a circle of friends in London, who were in the army when they were stationed in Spain and Portugal, and she is popular with men. One suitor in particular is the rakish Sir Vincent Talgarth, who keeps proposing to her, but she keeps refusing him... She feels sure if she ever did take him up on his offer of marriage, he would be dismayed, but notices that he is rather flirtatious with Sancia though he knows she's engaged to SIr Horace. She gets on well with her cousins, becoming close friends with Cecilia and amusing the children...However, she and Charles dont hit it off. Miss Wraxton dislikes her and tends to emphasise her faults to her fiance, and Charles thinks that she has caused uproar in the family. Sophy organises a ball to launch herself fully on Society, and Charles is furious as he wanted the family to lead a quiet social life. However it goes ahead, and most unfortunately, Augustus Fawnhope is there, when Cecy's suitor Lord Charlbury turns up having recovered from his illness. Cecilia panics and announces to Charles and Charlbury that she and Augustus are engaged. Sophy can see that Charlbury is a good man and would probalby make a better husband than Augustus and she can also see that Augustus was not expecting the engagement thing, and is taken aback by it.. but she feels sorry for Cecy, feeling that Charles's nagging drove her into a corner. However, she talks to Charlbury and tells him that he still has a chance with Cecilia, if he plays his cards right. She suggests that after a week or 2, he should start to flirt with her, and she's sure that that will spark off jealousy in Cecilia, as she does admire Charlbury and likes him. Charlbury is not sure he is much good at these sort of plans but he likes Sophy and is willing to give it a go. Meanwhile, Sophy finds out what is bothering Hubert. He got into debt and pledged a ring to a moneylender.. Sophy visits the money lender and threatens him with a pistol so that he gives back the ring....in return for her giving him back the money Hubert borrowed. When Hubert hears of this, he is ashamed and goes to his brother and tells him of his folly, and he and Charles acheive a better understanding. Eugenia, however disapproves of Sophy's conduct. She thinks that her fiance's cousin is brash and unfeminine.

Grand Sophy Part II

There is a lot of tension in the family, while they are awaiting Sophy's arrival. Cecilia is upset that her brother is pressuring her to marry Charlbury, who is at present ill with mumps.. and she is still in love with Augustus. Sophy arrives in London, and she is popular with her cousins in a short time. She tells her aunt that her father is engaged to a SPanish lady and has brought her to England to live, and hopes to marry her later on. Sancia is beautiful and rich but very ildle. Sophy however is lively, intelligent and energetic, and she can see the problems in the family. She meets Eugenia, and can see that she is a cold prim and proper girl who will make the younger children unhappy. She knows Augustus Fawnhope and she can see that while he is a nice young man, he's not reliable or well off enough to support a wife. Sophy thinks it would be better to let Cecy spend time with Augustus and she may get tired of him. If she continues to love him, then Charles should let her marry him. Sophy also notices that Hubert, the second son who is only 20, is rather gloomy and she wonders if he is in trouble. Sophy takes her cousins and aunt to meet Sancia who is living at a villa outside London, and the lady is quite charming but literally half asleep, like Austen's Lady Bertram. Hubert plays a prank on Eugenia, during the visit, locking her in a wood in the gardens with Augustus Fawnhope, because he finds her irritating.

Grand Sophy

The Grand Sophy is one of Heyer's best books albeit there are a few things in it which date it. It is a family based story set soon after the Napoleonic wars had ended. Sophy Stanton Lacy is the daughter of a widowed diplomat, and has grown up living mostly in Portugal. Her father Sir Horace, comes to London to visit his sister, and to ask her to take Sophy in for a while, as he has to go on a mission to Brazil and cant take her. Elizabeth, his sister, is married with a large family, and she is willing to take in Sophy, but she tells Horace that she is not entertaining very much so she's not sure if she can bring her out in Society. Horace learns that his eldest nephew Charles is engaged to a young woman from a very prudish family, Eugenia Wraxton, and his nieice Cecilia is in love with a young man who has no money, so the family are trying to keep social activities to a minimum. Cecilia, who is a beauty, has had a proposal from a well to do young man, Lord Charlbury, but she is infatuated with the young Augustus Fawnhope, who is very handsome and a would be poet. Horace hasn't been all that close to his sister in years, and he only learns now that Lord Ombersley, her husband, has been in serious financial straits for years, and that Charles inherited a fortune from an uncle.. so he paid off the worst debts and pressed his father into letting him run the estates. However, he persuades Lady Ombersley to take Sophy into her care and to take her into Society. She is 20 and has been out for some time but on the Continent.

Nonesuch Part VI

Waldo determinedly proposes to Ancilla, and she refuses him. Unable to bring herself to talk about his supposed children, she refuses because she says she does not want to give up her teaching work. He tells her that if she likes teaching so much, he can offer her work managing a school at his home, Manifold. Shocked she finally manages to bring up the issue of his having children, seemingly quite a number, outside wedlock. He tells her that he has about 20 children that will be coming to Broom Hall..and then reveals that they are orphans, and that his favourite charity is trying to help them. Ancilla feels very foolish at her misundertanding, and accepts his offer. Then they learn of Tiffany's disappearance. Her maid says that she has left with a bag of clothes, so she is obviously trying to get away from Staples her home. Courtenay who has never liked his cousin, is furious that she is trying to cause such a scandal, rejecting all the care that his mother has shown her. Ancilla asks Waldo, who is a skilled driver, to help her chase after Tiffany and they head for York.. where they find that she and Laurie had hired a room in a hotel, but that a big row has been heard going on. Waldo amused, talks to his cousin who says that he sent a message, because he was trying to stop Tiffany from the folly of running away. Waldo is a little amused at Laurie's desperate attempts to show himself being helpful. He learns that his cousin told Tiffany that he would pawn her necklace to get money for the coach to London, and when she found out he was not doing that, she threw a vase at him and hit him with it. Laurie protests that he was trying to help Waldo, Ancilla and Tiffany herself, and that he wishes he had never gotten into a flirtation with such an awful bratty young girl but he did it out of good reasons. Ancilla and Waldo go to speak to Tiffany, and Ancilla finds that the awkward situation may resolve itself. She tells her charge that Tiffany has caused such a fuss by running away and staying at an inn where the Underhills are well known, that it seems best for her to leave Yorkshire and start afresh in London. Tiffany is not abashed at all. She is very pleased that she can go to London and get out of the provincial village, and she believes that her London base aunt will bring her out because she is obviously too old to be kept in the schoolroom and she's sure to find a rich husband. Ancilla tells Waldo she will have to take Tiffany to London and hand her over to her mother's family but it is probalby best if she is out of Staples, and if poor Mrs Underhill no longer has to try and handle her. She tells him that she wants to marry him and have him meet her family but she will not leave Mrs Underhill till she has found a replacement to be Charlotte's governess. He agrees as he has grown to like and respect Mrs Underhill.. and he finally tells Laurie that he will lend him the money to set up selling horses.

Nonesuch Part V

Ancilla helps Mrs Underhill get ready to go to Bridlington with Charlotte, but Tiffany is in a sulk. She learns that thet the local young crowd have cooled on the Beauty a little, because of her bad temper and malicious remarks about anyone who crosses her. She had attacked Arthur Mickleby, the squires son when he criticised her mildly, and when she goes to a party she finds that many of her admirers are not clustering round her. Julian tells Ancilla that Waldo is doing up Broom Hall for his brats, meaning orphans but she gets it wrong and thinks that he is planning to instal his own illegitimate children there.. She is very shocked and feels that she must snub him if he continues to pay court to her. This is in my opinion one of the weaker points in Nonesuch. Usually, Heyer's heroines, even if they are very proper and virginal, are tolerant of men having mistresses and accept it as part of Regency life which it was. However, Ancilla is from a more stringent family and feels that a libertine is as offensive as a courtesan, and is even more shocked when its insinuated that there will be several children coming to Broom Hall... Another weak point is Tiffany. While her rages and tantrums are amusing, they are a bit over the top. Tiffany then finds out, after her aunt has left the house, that Julian is engaged to Patience. She called at the vicarage and found them in the garden with the vicar and it was obvious that they had become engaged. This gives the spoiled girl the first really bad shock she has ever had. Her admirer, a lord, has left her and is going to marry a girl who is only the vicar's daugher and reasonably pretty. She has her pride and is determined to not show her chagrin, so she makes a plan to escape. Laurie comes to take her driving and she tells him that she is going to go to London, where her bachelor uncle - on her mother's side, lives. She has 2 uncles in London who are bankers, and have a certain entree to society. Her uncle Mr Burford has always been fond of her and will take her in and bring her out into society properly. Laurie is shocked at her determination to run away, which will cause a scandal but he can see that arguing with her will do no good. He thinks its unlikely that a bachelor uncle will want to launch a girl of barely 17 on society and Tiffany's other uncle and aunt had refused to do so a little earlier.

Nonesuch, Part IV

Sir Waldo does not tell Ancilla what he wants the house for, but continues with his plans to re organise the estate and to repair the house so that it can be used. He does try to get to know Ancilla better, though and tells her that his kind of sportsman is not like her cousin. His kind enjoy the driving, riding etc for their own sake and keep fit, because they need to be fit to engage in their sports. She has softened towards him, and is relieved that Julian seems to have gotten over the worst of his infatuation for TIffany, but she worries what will happen to Tiffany if she loses a suitor to a girl like Patience whom she sees as too ordinary to be a rival. Laurie can see that Waldo is interested in Ancilla, and he is not sure if he should try and stymie a possible marriage or encourage it. He is trying to win his cousin's favour, because he is left so badly off. He has suggested to Waldo that he could lend him money to set up a horse dealing business but Waldo says no, Laurie knows nothing about horses and its not exactly genteel. He has suggested varous gentlemanly professions to his cousin in the past but Laurie has rejected them all. Laurie tries to befriend Ancilla and continues to flirt a little with Tiffany and take her driving. Then Charlotte, Mrs Underhills young daughter, is taken ill. She has to have a tooth drawn and gets an infection which leaves her very poorly. Sir Waldo visits the house frequently, and tries to cheer her up, and he gets to like Mrs Underhill more and more. He had told Ancilla that she was a nice woman but not at all genteel- however he can see that she is a good mother and a kindly woman and has been a good friend to Ancilla. When Charlotte recovers a bit, her mother decides to take her on a visit to the seaside, to get her health back, and this means cancelling a party that Tiffany wanted to hold in the gardens, a moonlit picnic. Tiffany flies into a tantrum since she knows that the local gentry rather disappove of the picnic and now it looks like it will not take place. She is furious when Ancilla and Mrs Underhill both tell her that there is no way Ancilla could host the party,and that it has to be cancelled while Charlotte and her mother go away.

Nonesuch Part III

Ancilla can see that Waldo is very charming but she disapproves of his sporting lifestyle. She has a cousin, Bernard Trent, the son of her uncle who is a General... and he got into debt pursuing that sort of life.. and while she cant help liking Waldo, she feels she must disapprove of him. She doesnt know about his philanthrophy. She is a litlte embarrassed by Tiffany's behaviour. Waldo is drawn to her. She is the only unmarried lady in the area who is close to him in age, and sense. She has had a London season but she is a serious minded lady and refused to marry anyone whom she didnt love, or respect as a decent man. Laurie Calver turns up, and attracts the local girls quite a bit, including Tiffany, as he is well dressed and a good dancer. He is not nearly as good at sport as he thinks he is but he undertakes to show Tiffany how to drive. Julian has been getting a bit disillusioned with her, over the weeks, as she shows herself up as silly, rude and bad tempered, quite often. She complains bitterly when Patience, the Vicar's daughter, saves a child from being run down by a horse, and accuses her of showing off. She is also annoyed when the young people go on a riding trip, and Elizabeth, who seems likely to become Courtenay Underhill's ladyfriend in due course, is taken ill. Elizabeth wilts in hot sun and faints, and Tiffany is furious at the idea that their trip should be cut short because of that. She throws tantrums in such a way that even Julian, who has tried to see her best side, finds himself getting fed up, and he begins to turn his affections to Patience, who is a pretty and sweet natured girl.

Nonesuch II

Mrs Underhill tells Ancilla that she's worried about Sir Waldo's arrival, as he has brought Julian Lindeth, who is a Lord with him.. He is apparently very charming and she's afraid that Tiffany will want to marry him. She herself hopes that TIffany will fall in love with her own son, Courtenay, when they are older, but she also worries about Tiffany's wild behaviour. Tiffany is so beautiful and very selfish, and nearly always manages to get her own way. Ancilla jokes and says that since Tiffany wants to marry a marquis, she will not setle for a mere baron like Lindeth. She is 26 and has been quite happy in her job at the Underhills. Mrs Underhill is rather silly but good hearted and she likes Charlotte, her daughter whom she teaches. She tends to manage Tiffany by appealing to her self interest, rather than moralising... telling her that she looks less pretty when she boasts of her own looks. Mrs Underhill invites Sir Waldo and Lindeth to come and dine whenever they like, as they are getting builders into the house and Waldo takes part in the social activities of the neighbourhood. Julian falls madly in love with Tiffany, and she flirts with him, but he does not see her more selfish side. However Waldo tries to draw her away by being flirtatious with her himself, hoping that she will lose interest in Lindeth or he will come to realise that she's very far from angelic.

Nonesuch By Georgette Heyer

This is another of Heyer's novels that I took some time to get to like. I still feel that one of the characters is a little over the top but I enjoy it more the more often I read it. It is set in Yorkshire, and the hero is known as the Nonesuch because of his sporting prowess. He is one of Heyer's older heroes, a charming bachelor who is always careful when flirting with women to make it clear that the flirting is understood by both parties as fun. The novel starts with the death of Joseph Calver, who is related to Sir Waldo Hawkridge, the Nonesuch. He was miserly and unpleasant and neglected his estate. He disliked his family, and decided to leave his property to Waldo because unlike other relatives, Waldo never bothered him or seemed interested in getting anything from him. This causes some bad feeling, since Laurence Calver, one of his younger relatives is not well off - and could use the money. Waldo can see that Laurence is angry, he is a touchy young man, but he himself is pleased to get the estate, Broom Hall, because of his interest in philanthrophy. Waldo does not talk about this much but like some Regency aristocrats, he is keen on helping the poor, and has 2 homes which are orphanages, and tries to get children into good apprenticeships, rather than ones where they are harshly treated. He decides to use Broom Hall as another orphanage, and to use the proceeds of the estate to fund it. He plans to go to Yorkshire with his young cousin, the gentle Lord Lindeth, who has been like a son or nephew to him. When he arrives, he finds to his surprise that he is much better known than he had expected. The young upper class circle of the neighbourhood have all heard of his being a sportsman and fashionable figure and so have the young ladies. He finds that the Hall is in bad shape and that old Joseph Calver had neglected it terribly. Ancilla Trent, a governess who is living and working nearby, disapproves of sporty fashionable men, and tries to discourage her charges from being fascinated by him. She is a well born governess, from a genteel family, but her father was killed in the war and she has no money. She worked as a teacher in her own old school and then got a better job as governess to Miss Tiffany Wield, whose aunt owns a small estate in Yorkshire. Mrs Underhill is widowed, she has 2 children and her husband had retired from his business and settled into a life as a country gentleman. However Tiffany's father left his daughter to her care, and Tiffany is heiress to a very large fortune. Mrs Underhill is a good natured, rather vulgar woman, and she knows that she cannot manage Tiffany, who is 17, spoiled and headstrong. So she finds Miss Trent a great help.

Venetia Part VII

Venetia persuades her mother that she could help her to get Damerel to marry her and Lady Steeple reluctantly agrees. She tells her daughter that it is not easy to be a social exile. Venetia sets off back home, wiht her stepfather insisting on escorting her. He buys her a present and they meet Edward on the way. Edward is shocked to find her walking with a middle aged dandyfied rake, and they have an argument which ends in Edward deciding that he cant marry her. She is releived as she has never cared much for him, and has found his calm insistence that he knows everyting and that he and she were engaged though she never agreed to the marriage very annoying. She hopes that he will find another girl in Yorkshire, since he has shown an interest in Clara Denny. When she gets back to her aunts house, she tells her that she's leaving to go home and hastens off to get a coach to Yorkshire. Mrs Hendred is horrifed but cannot stop her. Venetia feels that she has to get back soon because the odds are that Damerel will leave England and go abroad, if Aubrey terminates his visit to him. She arrives in Yorkshire after a tiring journey and is running short of ready money. She travels by chaise to Elliston Priory and finds that Aubrey is out and Damerel is alone and rather drunk. He is shocked that she has left her aunt and turned up at his home. Fearing for her reputation he tries to think of a way of letting her stay the night safely. He sobers up and tells her that he will tell his servants that she had to come to see Aubrey on an urgent business matter and he will stay a night at the local inn. Venetia tells him she was unhappy in London, and tries to hit on a way of persuading him that their marriage would not cause disaster for her. She tells him that her mother has invited her to go and stay with her and Steeple, abroad, and she is tempted to go. He has told her that no man would be put off from marrying her, because of her mother's divorce, but it would not be a good idea for her to join a menage like the Steeples. Then Mr Hendred turns up, having chased after her when she left Mrs Hendred. He tries to calm matters down, telling Venetia that it would be quite scandalous to live with the Steeples but an occasional private visit would be all right. He can see that Venetia and Damerel are in love but he has a bad reputation and is not well off having neglected his estates and been extravagant. However, he tells Mr Hendred that he would be happy to sell up some property and make a settlement on Venetia, like most husbands. Mr Hendred thinks that it would be better for them to marry, even if there is some gossip. Aubrey comes back from visiting the local clergyman, who was his tutor, and he tells his uncle that Venetia should marry Damerel. He tells her that he knew about his mother, since Conway told him, in case he was killed in the war.. but it means very little to him as he is not an emotional person and he never knew his mother. Meanwhile, Venetia and Damerel become engaged and plan an early wedding.

Venetia Part VI

Venetia learns that her father forbade the servants to tell the children anything about the divorce and to keep to the story that Lady Lanyon had died and was not to be mentioned... He led a reclusive life and she did not mix with the local gentry except for the Dennys and Edward Yardley and his mother. Over time the scandal was largely forgotten and not talked about. Venetia is horrified by her father's selfishness pointing out that he should have made sure that she was known by the world, so that people could see she was not like her mother. Hiding her away was selfish. Mrs Hendred agrees, saying that Sir Francis was very cold hearted and he was angry at his wife's desertion. Edward tells her that he loves her and wants to marry her, though his mother has disapproved of the idea of his marrying a girl whose mother was divorced. Venetia is half amused at his prudery, as while divorces are rare, they do happen at times. She learns that Conway had to know of the family scandal because he went to school. Mrs Hendred feels that its all the more reason for Venetia not to marry a rake like Damerel, since her mother had a bad reputation. She disagrees and the following day, decides to make her way to the big hotels to find her mother. Her mother and stepfather live in Paris, but he has an estate in England and was part of the Prince Regents set, so he sometimes comes home. When she gets to the hotel, she finds her mother living in luxury, and she can see that she does look very like her mother. Sir Lambert, her husband, is a middle aged dandy, who seems very rakish but not bad natured. She finds her mother is obsessed with her own beauty, and brash about the scandals she's caused. She tells Venetia that she never really wanted children but of course she could not see them once she was divorced. She knew of Conways marriage to Charlotte but she did not meet him socially in France. Venetia tells her of her own relationship with Damerel and how he beleives he should not marry her because of the scandals in his life.

Venetia Part V

Venetia feels very confused and depressed as she sets off for London. She has never travelled so far, and finds the journey exhausting. When she gets to the city, she meets her aunt, whom she does not know well, who is a silly, but good natured woman. Mrs Hendred takes her in and takes her out to buy clothes and Venetia begins to socialise. Mrs Hendred has a large family but she is not always fussing over her children. She can see that Venetia is so beautiful she will surely find a husband soon. But Venetia though she tries to enjoy her new life, is depressed and missing Damerel. She has a few admirers, but she finds herself unable to settle and starts to look for a house for herself, hoping that if she is busy with keeping house, she may get over her love affair. After a few weeks, Edward comes to town. He has been ill and says that he decided to consult a London doctor and have a little holiday.. but Venetia feels sure that he has mainly come to see her, and find out if she has any new suitors. She still finds him boring and irritating, but he invites her and her aunt to the theatre. Mrs Hendred tells her that she should marry Edward- he is a good man and she lets slip that she knew that Damerel was paying attention to Venetia and that was why Mr Hendred went to Yorkshire to bring her to London. Venetia hopes that this means Damerel is in love with her and she has some hope of getting him back. They attend the theatre.. and Mrs Hendred is rather bored but puts up with it, and then Venetia sees a woman at a box opposite her, a beautiful middle aged woman, who seems to be smiling at her. She tells her aunt that she has an odd feeling that the woman is her mother.. but that cant be when she died years ago. Mrs Hendred horrified looks and instantly claims to be ill so they have to leave the theatre. When they get home, Edward and Mrs Hendred tell Venetia that it was her mother - that she was not dead, but her father had divorced her 15 years earlier. Venetia is shocked, and learns that her mother had more than 1 affair, and in the end, Sir Francis got a divorce and she married her lover, Sir Lambert Steeple and they went abroad to live.

Venetia Part IV

Venetia still turns to Damerel for friendship, but life at Undershaw becomes more difficult. Mrs Scorrier suggests that Aubrey should go away for a bit while Charlotte is pregnant. She upsets the servants, particularly the family nurse. Venetia tells Damerel that she had intended to move out of Undershaw when Conway got married, and set up house in London to be near Aubrey when he went to college. Damerel tells her that shes foolish to be talking of giving up her life to keeping house for Aubrey, that she is a beautiful young woman who should be thinking of having a social season and getting married. The servants ask her if she is thinking of having her own home as they want to leave Conway's service. She tells them that she's sure Conway wont put up with Mrs Scorrier's dominating ways for long and he will send her packing once he comes home. It is now well into autumn and Damerel is still staying at his home Elliston Priory. He had come home to escape his aunts In London who were trying to marry him off to a rather dull woman who might be willing to marry a reformed rake. He has told Venetia half jokingly that he wanted to look at his estate which he had been neglecting, and that he also wanted to pursue his romance with her. Then to Venetia's surprise another visitor turns up at Undershaw. Her aunt, Mrs Hendred lives in London, and has sent her husband, Philip, up to Yorkshire to invite her to come and stay. Philip Hendred is an intelligent but stuffy man, who says that he and his wife know about the bad marriage that Conway has made and that he has dumped his responsibilities on Venetia for a long time.. and that she should leave the house and make a new home in London. He tells her that if she leaves the house, and settles nearby, it will make the whole family look bad and that Charlotte needs to learn to manage her own household. Venetia is unhappy and wants to go away but she goes to see Damerel and he tells her that it is for the best that Mr Hendred has come, as she and he have had a charming flirtation, but it would not work out as a serious relationship. He tells her that if AUbrey does not want to go to London he can have him to stay. She is upset that he is essentially telling her to go away and that he does not intend to pursue their relationship, and feels that she has no real choice but to go to London and try and build a new life, as he suggests. She does not believe that she will find a new man whom she could love or be fond of, but she agrees to go, hoping to find some solace in visiting London and planning to set up a home for Aubrey later on. She feels sure he will go on with academic life, and wont marry.

Venetia Part III

Venetia knows she is growing too fond of Damerel but she cant help herself. She is annoyed when Oswald Denny tries to kiss her, and when Edward Yardley expresses disapproval of her friendship. She and Aubrey return home from their visit to Damerel's house, and shortly afterwards, Oswald goes away to stay with relatives. Danerel tells her about his first mistress, a society beauty called Sophia, who had run away with him. Her husband would not divorce her, and she grew bored with Damerel... and ran away with another man, an Italian nobleman. Venetia feels that her betrayal caused Damerel to become cynical. He tells her that Sophia's husband died and she was able to marry her noble lover. Then to Venetia's horrified surprise, a middle aged lady turns up, with her daughter, to stay at Undershaw, the Lanyon home, and she finds that Conway has gotten married during his time in Paris. Conway is a lazy man and she's not entirely surprised that he did not want to write to his family to let them know he was getting married. It turns out that Charlotte, his bride, is from a military family but she is not well off or high born. And her mother, Mrs Scorrier, is a dreadful vulgar termagent. She is the cause of Charlotte coming to Yorkshire, before Conway was able to leave and come home, since she started quarrelling with one of the army generals, and creating a fuss in Paris. Conway sent her home, with Charlotte, hoping that the family would be so pleased that he would soon be home that they would accept his secret marriage. Venetia can see that Mrs Scorrier is going to be very difficult and will upset the servants, but she feels it would be unfair to Charlotte who is harmless if silly, to walk out of the house as soon as she arrives. So she makes up her mind to make the best of things for a bit. Aubrey dislikes Mrs Scorrier immediately, and she takes a dislike to him and notices his disability, which he hates. They learn that Charlotte is pregnant. Venetia is worried that there will be trouble at the Denny household, since Conway was involved in a romance with Clara, and she hoped that he would marry her. Now he has married a silly and not very grand young woman.

Venetia Part II

Venetia does not know much about rakes or life in general other than what she has read, since she has not been out in Society. She is surprised that Damerel is not young or handsome, but he has this reputation as a womaniser. Lady Denny visits her and tells her she is shocked that her own husband, Sir John brought Damerel home to tea, when he met him, and she does not want her own daughters who are very young, to meet someone with his reputation. Venetia has been thinking, in recent months what she will do when her brother sell out of the army, which he will probalby do soon. He is pleasant but selfish, and he has been flirting with Clara, the oldest Denny daughter. Venetia feels that she and Aubrey would be happier if they moved out of the house when he gets married, and she thinks that the only way she can do that is by getting married herself. She has 2 suitors, Oswald Denny, Clara's brother who is rather too young for her, and Edward her father's godson, who is a good man but very stuffy and dull. Soon after the kissing incident, Aubrey goes out riding and has a fall. In spite of his bad hip and limp, he likes fishing and riding, but he hurts his hip and cant get up. Damerel finds him on his land and takes him home to nurse him. His nurse, Mrs Priddy goes to His house to help with the nursing and Venetia visits regularly, and she and Damerel become close to each other. She and Aubrey both find him congenial, he likes reading and has been to Greece and Italy.. and seen the places that Aubrey longs to see. Damerel is very attracted to Venetia.. which is unusual for him as he does not usually try to seduce well born single women......

Venetia Part I

Venetia is one of Heyer's later novels and not one of my favourites but it is likable enough for me to re read it at times. It is set in Yorkshire, a couple of years after Waterloo and is a very romantic tale. However the hero is not that likable to me. Venetia Lanyon is the daughter of a baronet, and the family are one of the richest in their area but her father who had died a while earlier was something of a recluse. Venetia has 2 brothers, Conway who is in the Army, and stationed in France and Aubrey who has a damaged hip and is very delicate. Venetia is now 25 and has never been away from her home, she has kept house for her father and looked after Aubrey who is a very clever boy of 17, a classical scholar who dislikes company. Venetia keeps busy with her house and keeping an eye on the estate for Conway, but she does at times regret being cloistered at home. Sir Francis, her father, refused to let her go to London or have any visitors except her older friend Lady Denny and his own godson, Edward Yardley, a local squire. Since his death, she is a bit more free, but she has felt obliged to take care of Aubrey and manage the estate till Conway leaves the army. Venetia is a dazzling beauty, and she has found that when she occasionally went to Assemblies in York, she had admirers but Sir Francis' reclusive tendencies meant that none of them could pursue her. Her mother died when she was a child and that seemed to be what set off her father's oddities, but Venetia can remember her mother being very beautiful but that both her parents seemed unhappy. She is out walking alone one day, and goes walking on the neighbouring estate of Lord Damerel. Damerel inherited his estate many years earlier but rarely visited, and is a scandalous rake, who eloped with a married lady some years earlier and is said to have driven his father to an early grave. He did not marry the lady, and has hardly ever visited his home, except with some very unrespectable companions and some ladies of easy virtue. He is beleived to live abroad much of the time. To Venetia's amazement, he suddenly appears in her path and kisses her, thinking her to be a village girl. She tells herself she should be very shocked at such brazen behavour, but in fact she is intrigued by it.