Frederica by Georgette Heyer - and the Gunning Sisters

The Gunning sisters, Maria and Elizabeth, are mentioned prominently in Frederica, and their brilliant marriages from an impoverished background were an inspiration to various heroines and their mothers – and certainly to many Regency authors.   Frederica tells Lord Alverstoke:

“You see, at Graynard she had as well be buried alive! There isn’t even a watering-place within our reach, so how can she form an eligible connection?  She – she is quite wasted, Lord Alverstoke!  You will understand when you see her, why I felt it to be my duty to bring her out in London!  She is the loveliest girl! She has the sweetest disposition imaginable, too, never cross or crochety, and she deserves to make a splendid marriage!”  

“I have it on the authority of my secretary that she is a diamond of the first water,” said his lordship dryly. “But splendid marriages, Miss Merriville, in general depend on splendid dowries.”  

“Not always,” she countered swiftly.   “Only think of the Gunning sisters!  Why, one of them married two Dukes, and I know she wasn’t a great heiress because Papa told me about them, saying Charis beat them both to flinders!” 

Frederica by Georgette Heyer, Chapters 3 and 4

(continuing the book discussion for the Heyer listserv) 

I agree that the situations of the four women in Alverstoke’s life are different:  Lady Buxted, a widow, definitely wants Alverstoke to pay for Jane’s ball but she probably does want a nicer event than she can afford (even if her son would prefer they pay for it themselves; Lady Jevington would not ask Alverstoke to pay for her daughter’s debut but it is clear she and her husband are very comfortably off; Mrs. Dauntry, another widow (his heir's mother and distant cousin by marriage), is not well off and does need Alverstoke’s help for even a moderate come out (but it is clear Chloe is young to make her curtsey to society and her mother is nearly as spiteful as Lady Buxted (just prettier and more subtle)) – and Frederica wants nothing for herself, just for her sister to make a comfortable match.  Can I just say that we eldest sisters are misunderstood?  All we want is what is best for everyone: is it our fault if we sometimes seem managing?

My back-up copy

Chapter 3 

Although Charles Trevor (who, it is agreed, we all like very much, even if we disagree on other characters) does not dare remind Alverstoke of his pending invitation, Alverstoke decides to visit Upper Wimpole Street.  He notices the house is shabby (can you imagine what it would cost to rent an entire house in London these days?) and is curling his lip when he meets Frederica.   She is about 24, with light brown hair and gray eyes (heroine alert!), and is attractively dressed but not “dashing or expensive.”  She has friendly manners, which Alverstoke, used to toadeaters, finds surprising.   She explains that she had been looking forward introducing her sister to society but discovered her aunt’s family is not sufficiently well connected (in fact, they are in trade).  Instead, she applied to Alverstoke for assistance.

“I am seven-and-thirty, ma’am, said Alverstoke, somewhat acidly, “and I should perhaps inform you that I am never of use to anyone!”

Rallying from this negativity, Frederica asks if he could introduce her to Lady Alverstoke, and eventually learns he is unmarried.  Not to worry, she says, we can contrive.  “We?” he asks ironically, but he is amused by her and his mouth twitches.   Frederica explains to him that her father died a year before and she knows they are distantly related, so would like him to introduce her sister Charis (and Frederica herself) to the ton.  She realizes that it is more customary for a suitable matron to provide such entrée but most creatively suggests they pretend Alverstoke is their guardian.   While Alverstoke recovers his breath, she tells him her family was happy although not affluent, and consists of her, Harry, Charis, Jessamy, and Felix, as well as their maternal aunt Seraphina, who is their chaperone.  She explains that she and Charis will have a dowry of £5000 and she wants Charis to make a good match like the Gunning sisters. She rented the family estate in Herefordshire and moved everyone but her brother Harry (at Oxford) to London.  Alverstoke politely tells her she is being too ambitious and might have better luck at in Bath or Tunbridge Wells where she and Charis could aspire to a lesser tier of society.

Chapter 4

Fortunately for the Merrivilles, Frederica and Alverstoke are interrupted by her younger siblings, the rambunctious Felix, serious Jessamy, and their irrepressible dog Lufra.   Felix immediately describes their unsuccessful outing to see a locomotive and, emboldened by Alverstoke’s response, goes into great detail about his mechanical interests and then Jessamy, who prefers horses, asks many questions about the Marquis’ stable.   Alverstoke participates in the conversation, to his own amazement, but is about to make his escape when Charis and her aunt arrive.  She is even more beautiful than he had expected and he is impressed.
  

[Her] words were spoken in a soft, placid voice; and the Marquis, under whose critical eyes the beauties of many season had passed, noted with approval that this one, the most stunning he had yet beheld, used no arts to attract, but, on the contrary seemed to be unconscious of her chares.  As one who had figured for years as the most brilliant catch on the Matrimonial Market, he was accustomed to meet with every artifice designed to ensnare him; and it was with approbation that he recognized the younger Miss Merriville’s unconcern.

March 1818 Ball Dresses, Ladies' Monthly Museum

When Alverstoke and Frederica are left alone, he contemplates an idea before making up his mind.   Then he tells her he plans to host a ball for one of his nieces and will include her and Charis, and that they will be presented by his sister.  Frederica, delighted, laughingly says how fortunate that Charis came home just in time to change his mind, and he agrees.   Astutely, Frederica points out that his sister may not like it if Charis’ beauty casts the niece into the shade (it is obvious no one would) but he just smiles.  He does not tell her the real reason for his change of heart but makes it clear he has not fallen in love with Charis.  Then they try to come up with a an ostensible reason why he would assist barely-known relations, and Frederica suggests he imply he was under an obligation to her father.

Curious about the household, Alverstoke asks her why her brothers aren’t at boarding school and she explains they have had tutors but the tutors eventually fall in love with Charis and have to be dismissed.  She says jokingly he could find a tutor if he is taking on family responsibility but he declines.   Still, Alverstoke is waylaid by Felix on his way out and finds himself agreeing to take Felix to visit a foundry in Soho.

Thus, by the end of Chapter 4, Alverstoke has agreed to sponsor the Merrivilles basically to punish Lady Buxted for her demands on him (be careful what you wish for, Louisa!).  Can you blame him?

Although Frederica and Alverstoke have easy and very candid conversation, she finds him too haughty, and “his eyes were cold, and unpleasantly cynical.”  Yet he is about to do her an enormous favor.   Is she too critical? 

As I said before, the Merrivilles are one of Heyer’s happy families.  Yes, Frederica is masterful but she lost her mother at a young age and had to assume control of the family finances to prevent her father from reducing the family to penury.  Even the trip to London was financed by cleverly renting out Graynard.   Can’t you give her credit for managing the family so advantageously?   She gets little help from her brother or aunt.

So, who wants to attend the ball at Alverstoke House?

The Exact Opposite of Okay by Laura Steven - and Giveaway

Title: The Exact Opposite of Okay (Izzy O’Neill #1) 
Author:  Laura Steven

Publication: Harper Collins, hardcover, June 2019

Genre: Young Adult

Plot: Eighteen year old Izzy O’Neill knows exactly who she is — a loyal friend, an

aspiring comedian, and a person who believes that milk shakes and Reese’s peanut butter cups are major food groups. But after she’s caught in a compromising position with the son of a politician, it seems like everyone around her is eager to give her a new label: slut.

Frederica by Georgette Heyer, Chapters 1 and 2

Welcome to the June discussion of Frederica for the Almacks listserv (which anyone can join via Yahoo Groups), which I will also share on this blog.  Published in 1965, Frederica has been one of my favorite Heyers since I first read it at age 14 or so.   Somehow I even own one of the library copies that visited my mother and me frequently – it is a Dutton hardcover with the classic Barbosa cover that shows Felix’s famous balloon expedition.   But I get ahead of myself!

What makes Frederica so appealing?   I think it is a combination of several things: first of all, while it has a fairly large cast of characters, they are extremely well developed and it is easy to become fond of them (the Merrivilles are one of Heyer’s happy families, despite having lost their parents); second, most regency readers by the time they get to Frederica are familiar with and entertained by the theme of young women coming to London to seek a husband; third, as we will soon see, when Alverstoke decides to sponsor these respectable but obscure cousins he thinks he is playing a joke on his sisters and the ton but surprises himself by becoming emotionally involved with this family, so the joke is on him; and fourth, it is very funny.

Devices and Desires: Bess of Hardwick and the Building of Elizabethan England by Kate Hubbard

Title: Devices and Desires: Bess of Hardwick and the Building of Elizabethan England
Author: Kate Hubbard
Publication: Harper Collins, hardcover, 2019
Genre: Biography, English History

The review below is a cameo appearance (her second) by my mother, Stephanie Martin, as I knew she would enjoy the book.

When books are written about 16th-century women, the subject is usually royalty. Besides their glamor, they are the ones for whom we have the most information. Elizabeth Hardwick is a remarkable exception. Not only did she have a long, eventful and well-documented life, she also was responsible for several splendid buildings.

Bess was born about 1521, lived to be 87, and outlived four husbands, the last marriage making her the Countess of Shrewsbury. She inherited property, married money, but increased and managed her holdings with great skill and became a very wealthy woman in her own right. She was friendly with all the major players of her time, including Queen Elizabeth I, who chose the Shrewsburys to be the jailors of Mary Queen of Scots when she sought refuge in England.

Hardwick Hall (Derbyshire)

Devices and Desires is not the first biography of Bess, but it has particular appeal because it highlights Bess’s achievements as a builder. An amazing number of records have survived from Chatsworth, Hardwick Hall, and other great houses for which she was responsible -- letters and contracts (called “bargains”) and account books. We learn from them how deeply involved Bess was with every decision and how closely she monitored each step. She bought land for its income, but also for its resources, so that if she needed, say, marble or timber, she already owned a source. She also micromanaged her large family, marrying two of her children to two of her stepchildren. Then there was her granddaughter Arbella Stuart, the focus of various political plots, whom Bess kept very close at home into her twenties.

The Green Velvet Bedroom at Hardwick Hall

Not all of Bess’s mansions have survived, but her masterpiece, Hardwick Hall, is still there, with its unusual floor plan, four great turrets and elegant mantels. By the time you finish this book, you will want to head for England on the next flight to visit it.

Bess of Hardwick, Countess of Shrewsbury (1521-1608)

Source: A copy of this book was provided by Harper Collins for review purposes.

Hungry Hill by Daphne du Maurier

Title: Hungry Hill
Author: Daphne du Maurier
Publication: Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1943, hardcover
Genre: Historical Fiction
Setting: Ireland, 1820-1920

Plot: This is a multi-generational saga following the fortunes of an Irish mine-owning family, who are cursed by the peasants who once owned their land.  The book consists of five sections, each focused on a different generation as the feud continues.   

The Daughter's Tale by Armando Lucas Correa - and Giveaway

Title: The Daughter’s Tale
Author: Armando Lucas Correa
Publication: Atria, hardcover, May 2019 (translated from Spanish)
Genre: Historical Fiction

Plot: Berlin, 1939. Amanda Sternberg and her husband, Julius, dreamed of blissful summers spent by the lake at Wannsee and unlimited opportunities for their children. But that all falls apart when the family bookshop is destroyed and Julius is sent to a concentration camp. Now, desperate to flee Nazi Germany and preserve what’s left of her family, Amanda heads toward the south of France with her two young daughters—only to arrive with one. In Haute-Vienne, their freedom is short-lived, and soon she and her eldest daughter are forced into a labor camp, where Amanda must once again make an impossible sacrifice.

Pretty Face by Lucy Parker

Title: Pretty Face (London Celebrities series) 
Author: Lucy Parker

Publication: Carina Press, 2017, paperback

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Plot: Lily Lamprey is a pretty blonde starring in a very popular English television show when director Luc Savage starts casting his new 16^th century historical drama.  He makes fun of her as a “breathy Marilyn Monroe impersonator” but is persuaded to audition her for the part of Elizabeth I in a period drama.  They clash immediately but she gets the job.  Once hired, Lily needs to work hard to acquire the skills Luc requires and show the cast and critics that she was hired because she is more than a pretty face, not due to connections or because she’s having an affair with her sexy director.  Even if the temptation is irresistible!

You could get away with dating a co-star - if they were single and born in the same decade.  That was good promo for the show.  The bosses loved it.  Until the inevitable breakup, when fans went into meltdown on social media and the backlash hit.  Lily had seen it happen enough at CTV that she'd never wanted to go anywhere near another actor romantically. 

Nobody was high-fived for having a fling with management . . . it was all her lifelong deal-breakers in one man.

Audience: Fans of character-driven contemporary romance

My Impressions: This is the second book in an entertaining and fast-paced new series set in the celebrity world and on the London stage, always a fascinating venue.    Lily is not interested in a relationship while she tries to establish a serious career; she has a complicated family history: her father is a business magnate who had an out of wedlock relationship with her mother, and his mortified wife has always despised her.   Luc is just coming out of a long relationship with an actress who precipitously married someone else and just wants to focus on his new production.

Naturally, they can’t think about anyone but each other and the tension practically sizzles on the page – I love how the author manages to make their story sexy and funny at the same time.   Lily’s internal monologues are especially amusing because they ring true.  The minor characters are also well depicted.  I like Lily's roommate Trix and Luc's ex Margo is more complicated than predictable other woman cliches.   If there is a flaw, it is that humans probably can't sustain this degree of intensity nonstop (and I think Parker could have reduced the cursing).  And it is hard to believe that two mature adults - who acknowledge a romantic relationship would be unprofessional and potentially disastrous to at least one of their careers and who are committed to those careers -can’t withstand temptation for a few weeks, but the result is good storytelling.

New Zealand author Lucy Parker

Source: Library – but I ordered the next two books in the series to keep.  I suggest you begin with the first in the series, Act Like It, because characters from that book appear in this one.  Thanks to Stephanie Burgis for the recommendation.

Off the Blog: Thinking of F. Washington Jarvis, a dear family friend whose memorial service I just attended.