Author: Georgette Heyer
ISBN-13: 978-0373834440
Publication Date: March, 2000 (Originally 1962)
Acquired by Me: Bookstore Purchase
Description Courtesy of Goodreads:
“’On the shelf’ at 28, Ancilla Trent considers her opportunity for romance and adventure to be behind her. She strives to be a calming influence on her tempestuous charge, but Tiffany Wield's bad behavior culminates in an impetuous flight to London without a chaperone. It falls to Ancilla and Sir Waldo Hawkridge, one of the wealthiest bachelors in London, to join forces and stop Tiffany's flight before she does irreparable damage to her reputation. Together, they of course discover that neither is too old for love.”
My Thoughts:
In my quest to complete all of Georgette Heyer’s regency romance books, I picked The Nonesuch up without hesitation when I saw it lying forlornly on a clearance shelf in a used bookstore. I’ve had a spell of not being terribly enchanted with her stories for the past couple of books…but I’ve hung in there and come out a winner with this one.
Set in a small village setting, The Nonesuch brings more to the table than just a love story. It brings the whole community into play. It feels a lot like “Cranford” in some respect. Sour matrons, daffy dandies, headstrong misses, etc. – they can all be found inside these pages!
Sir Waldo Hawkridge is The Nonesuch—as in the male version of an Incomparable. He’s what every female swoons for and what every male wants to emulate. He’s naturally gifted and personable, but cannot seem to shake the notoriety of his youth. When he arrives in Oversett—the whole village is up in arms over him. Much gawking is made toward this celebrity!
Next up is Miss Ancilla Trent, the somewhat impoverished, yet genteel, daughter of a soldier. She’s determined not to be a burden on her family and seeks employment as a governess to make ends meet. Her charge, Miss Tiffany Wield, is a brat. Too beautiful for her own good and quite vain about it…she’s obstinate and willful—not to mention petulant when she doesn’t get her own way.
Lord Julian Lindeth, who accompanies Sir Waldo to Oversett is immediately smitten with Miss Tiffany. Through a series of parties and balls, their budding romance is carefully observed and weighed in on by Sir Waldo, Miss Ancilla, until at last a series of events lead them into their own romantic exchange.
This has to rank as one of my favorite Heyer novels to date. I love the maturity Ancilla and Sir Waldo bring to the story, but also how it is complemented by the youthfulness of the younger set. In typical Heyer fashion, there is a bit of silliness and brashness, yet propriety is almost always observed. Some daring maneuvers and reckless behavior on the part of the supporting characters—but nothing that turned me off of the hero and heroine. They were upstanding individuals right up to the end!
Also noteworthy to me was the dynamic between several of the matronly figures in the books. Mrs. Underhill, Micklesby & Chartley were all too much to ask for. A constant game of one-upmanship went on between them as they vied for The Nonesuch’s attention. I suppose it’s not everyday that a rock star comes to town…
The thoughts expressed in this post are solely based on my personal opinion and have not been influenced by any other entity or being. Use of my statements may not be reproduced without permission from me, the author of Fall In Love With Books.
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ReplyDeleteThat's so kind of you! Thank you very much. :-)
ReplyDeleteIt is so wonderful to see someone appreciate and review Georgette Heyer. A couple of years ago, our city library was discarding her books, and I was lucky enough to acquire a whole shelf of them. My personal favorites include These Old Shades, the sequel The Devil's Cub and Frederica. Oh, and Sylvester Or the Wicked Uncle, and Black Sheep, Venetia, and The Corinthian, ...well, I could go on, but I won't. I don't like all of her books, but I really loved those, and have read them time and time again. - Pam
ReplyDeleteI plan on slowly working my way through them-- with the exception of the mysteries (which I don't care for). Some I like better than others too. Lucky you to score such a find!
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