Venetia: Gossip, scandal and an unforgettable Regency romance

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my case is clearly past remedy, and I've nothing to do but decide whether to be an aunt to Conway's children, or a mother to Edward's - and I have a lowering presentiment that Edward's children will be dreadfully dull, poor little things!" Reread 1/6/19 I don't know if I have much to add to my previous comments, upon this reread, other than how well GH pulls all the strands together so well for a wonderful ending. )Oh and that I would pay good money to see Conway get rid of Mrs Scorrier! What I regret I can never undo, for the gods don’t annihilate space, or time, or transform such a man as I am into one worthy to be your husband. Perhaps you have friends already who laugh when you do,” she said diffidently. “I haven’t, and it’s important, I think—more important than sympathy in affliction, which you might easily find in someone you positively disliked.” When Venetia and Lord Damerel fall in love, however, Damerel is convinced that marriage with him would cause Venetia's social ruin and insists that it would be wrong to inflict this upon her.

He is not, however, the only one causing trouble for Venetia and Damarel. Damarel's morally chequered past certainly doesn't help matters, and to replace the upsets and excitements of the city, this novel is so full of meddlers! So many people are utterly convinced they know what is best for Venetia, and have little intention of consulting her before deciding what to do with her life. It is these people that cause the most trouble for the couple. The one glorious exception is Venetia’s younger brother. But her arrival is also a catalyst that strikes up a series of unforeseen twists and turns, and the second half of the book is definitely more fast-paced and surprising than the first. He hunched an impatient shoulder, and replied contemptuously: ‘You don’t understand, and it’s a waste of time to try to make you.’ Because my name is Venetia and I'm one of the most wonderful heroines in all literature. I have lived one of the dreamiest romances possible, and have remained perfectly poised and ladylike through the whole thing, without seeming aloof or uninterested. I am simply awesome, that is all. I am sorry that no one else is ever going to have a romance as breathtakingly beautiful as mine. ;)Edward, on the other hand, I just want to strangle. He’s the sort of man that is not necessarily stupid or mean or selfish... but with every word that comes out of his mouth you become more and more desperate for a convenient wall to bang your head against to alleviate the boredom and frustration. Or a convenient swing on which to swing around and around in circles... either one will do. He is unbelievably stuffy and patronising, and his arrogance is the more irritating because he isn’t really aware of how arrogant he is. His impertinence extends so far as to try and joke with Venetia and pretend he’s “gone a trifle deaf” when she tells him in no uncertain terms that she will not marry him. (Cue glaring, clenching of fists and stifled screams of frustration - Edward Yardley is honestly so annoying!!) Single women—Fiction. 2. Country life—Fiction. 3. Family secrets—Fiction. 4. England—Fiction. I. Title. Mr. Hendred: Geeee...I don't understand anything! Venetia, you seem to be living in a - in a, a.... Before Damarel even enters the story, however, we meet his rivals – Oswald, the nineteen year old neighbour to Venetia, and Edward, the man who has for several years considered himself as good as engaged to Venetia, despite having been refused by Venetia and despite the fact that he is not particularly in love with her. To give you an idea of the relative personalities of these contenders for Venetia’s hand, I’ve attempted to represent my reaction to them:

The only fault Mrs. Hendred had to find in the news was that the Queen should have chosen to die on the 17th instead of the 18th November, for the 17th was the day fixed for the ball she was giving in Venetia's honour. Few things could have been more provoking.Oh, oh—! My reputation, Iago, my reputation!” he exclaimed, laughing again. “Fair Fatality, you are the most unusual female I have encountered in all my thirty-eight years!” Damerel: Alright, so, I have an idea, since you refuse to leave, I'LL leave and go to the inn, that way proprieties will be respected, and isn't that nice? I love proprieties :) And I love how you do your hair now! Very pretty! A boyhood of enforced physical inertia had strengthened a natural turn for scholarship. By the time he was fourteen if he had not outstripped his tutor in learning he had done so in understanding; and it was recognised by that worthy man that more advanced coaching than he felt himself able to supply was needed. Fortunately, the means of obtaining it were at hand. The incumbent of the parish was a notable scholar, and had for long observed with a sort of wistful delight Aubrey Lanyon’s progress. He offered to prepare the boy for Cambridge; Sir Francis Lanyon, relieved to be spared the necessity of admitting a new tutor into his household, acquiesced in the arrangement; and Aubrey, by that time able to bestride a horse, thereafter spent the better part of his days at the Parsonage, poring over texts in the Reverend Julius Appersett’s dim bookroom, eagerly absorbing his gentle preceptor’s wide lore, and filling him with an ever-increasing belief in his ability to excel. He was entered already at Trinity College, where he would be admitted at Michaelmas in the following year; and Mr Appersett had little doubt that young though he would still be he would very soon be elected a scholar. I think what I love about these two characters is that Venetia and Damarel are on very even terms with each other, more so than in any other Heyer novel I’ve ever read. There is no feeling that one, by virtue of experience or age or intelligence, is superior to the other. Of course Lord Damarel has seen a great deal more of the world than Venetia, but as their intellects are equally sharp, this circumstance gives rise to more amusement between them than trouble. Their relationship is certainly one of my favourite romances. With every passing moment that they talk and laugh and discuss things together, you feel more and more certain that these two people were simply made for each other. It’s a lovely thing to behold. I realized this afternoon, as I listened, that I always feel tears come to my eyes at exactly the same place in the narrative. Feeling weepy is not my usual reaction to reading Heyer. Indeed, off the top of my head, I think that the only other one of her books to have that effect on me is Sylvester, in which a scene towards the end of the book never fails to bring a lump to my throat. Venetia may not be great literature, but in my view it has quiet emotional power, great sweetness and an engaging narrative. It is a book that I have probably read upwards of a dozen times over the years. I am sure that I will read it (or listen to it) many more times in years to come. Venetia is one of Heyer's most likeable heroines and Damerel is one of her most attractive heroes. The minor characters are interesting and even Flurry the dog is beautifully realized! Venetia is definitely on my Top Five Heyer list. Today it's my absolute favourite, but I suspect that's only because it's the one that's engaging me right now!