The Grand Sophy

it's fun to finally have a regency romance where the female protagonist is rambunctious and wild but also how about that good ol' cousin-lovin'

if you're not familiar with the term, regency era writing refers to authors like jane austen, maria edgeworth, and sir walter scott. however, this is a regency romance, which was written about a century and a half later about life during the regency era, and is thus much easier to read rimshot

it has the same societal issues that jane austen loves to poke fun at, but it inserts a kind of protagonist that i had not yet encountered in a regency novel. while this was really entertaining, the romance and the rest of the plot fell short, which was quite disappointing as i was hoping i'd enjoy it.

ehh, was not really feeling this one. Sophy is supposed to be “spirited” in an Emma-type way. But she's actually a huge boundary violator, who unlike Emma, never realizes it's wrong. The way she manipulates other people is kinda gross, and I think if Sophy had been a man, we'd think he was dangerously controlling.

A fun regency romance featuring bickering cousins, that falls apart for me, when the 20 year old heroine turns too superior and adventurous in her masterminding of everyone's romantic and business affairs. Sophy is a wanna-be Emma that lacks Austen's sharp side commentary that would take her down a notch. Also, the ending seems very rushed.

2.5 rounded up because the first half was fun.

I had high expectations for this book and, I have to say, it didn't quite rise up to them. I enjoyed the characters and I thought it was plotted well but I didn't fall for all the couples that were matched in the end. Much as I tried, I couldn't root for Sophy and Charles with much energy. Charles was always throwing temper tantrums and insulting her, while she seemed impervious to him. That, and I couldn't get past the fact that they were first cousins. Maybe if this book were not written in 1950 I could have chalked that up to the time period, but it seems late to be writing a romance about first cousins getting married. I have read another book by Georgette Hayer that I enjoyed more, The Masqueraders, which I also don't remember having so much racial stereotyping, but this is her most popular. I was left feeling middle of the road in the end.

Sophy bursts into her cousins' lives, all 5'9” of her, with a pet monkey, a parrot and a dog. Unlike the women in an Austen novel, she can handle horses, her father's finances, and even owns a pistol. Schemes and matchmaking attempts ensue.

This is a Regency-era novel, both in the time period and the style of writing. Since it was written in the 50s the author had a bit more imagination as to the level of independence a woman could achieve, so it reads like a more fast-paced Austen novel.

I would've liked to see a better romance for Sophy, though. After writing such an impressive character, I'm surprised anyone could tie her down that easily.

“[b:The Grand Sophy 261689 The Grand Sophy Georgette Heyer https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414731822l/261689.SY75.jpg 3234291]” by [a:Georgette Heyer 18067 Georgette Heyer https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1336748892p2/18067.jpg] delivered exactly what I expected: a sparkling, if somewhat dated, Regency romance. At times, it felt stuffy and blustery, especially in the dialogue, where I found myself struggling with the verbosity of certain characters.»Really, Horace, I must say that I think that most unjust of you, for how could he help it? It is so mortifying for him! And, what is more, excessively unfortunate, because I don't doubt that had he been able to attach Cecilia... But no one can deny that nothing could be more ill-timed than Charlbury's mumps!« This type of rambling speech made the beginning of the book feel quite slow for me. The social dynamics and constant talk of marriages seemed quaint and twee—typical of early 20th-century historical fiction, yet it grated on me initially. However, as the story progressed and Sophy's vivacious nature took centre stage, the novel became utterly irresistible. From orchestrating romantic entanglements to causing delightful mayhem, Sophy is a force of nature.Though it's tempting to dismiss such stories as too formulaic or predictable, Heyer demonstrates masterful pacing. Her truly witty writing, far better than many imitators in the Regency romance genre, propelled the latter half of the book to become a page-turner of the highest degree. While old-fashioned in certain areas, “Sophy” holds up far better than many of her contemporaries.Four out of five stars.Blog Facebook Twitter Mastodon Instagram Pinterest Medium Matrix TumblrCeterum censeo Putin esse delendam