Vic at 22 on a sailboat, reading a Georgette Heyer novel. Look at those chubby Dutch cheeks!
I stumbled upon Georgette Heyer during a golden time of my life after college graduation when I had three precious free months before I began school again. Bursting with youthful energy, I didn’t know what to do with my time. And so I hit the books, but this time for pleasure. In those days, I could gobble up a book a day if I was so inclined, and I sped through Jane Eyre. Wuthering Heights. Tess of the d’Urbervilles. Rebecca. Father and Sons, by Ivan Turgenev, one of my favorite authors, and Pride and Prejudice (for the second time in my life). That last novel with its sparkling wit and clear view of village life seemed like a breath of fresh air after the heightened emotions of the Victorian authors.
To me, Mr. Bennet was the image of my father, whose wry statements always made me pause before I could figure out if he was making sport of me, himself, or some other unwitting target. Mrs. Bennet reminded me of my crazy Dutch grandmothers – both of whom were slightly hysterical and VERY demanding. I read Pride and Prejudice twice that summer (and began a tradition of reading it every summer for the next twenty years). Greedily I reached for more Jane Austen novels until there were none left. I railed against the illness that carried Jane off before she could produce enough novels to assuage my addiction. Where to turn?
The library, of course.
I looked up Regency novels and found … Clare Darcy. Ok, I thought. I’ll give her a try and picked up a copy of Victoire, a most logical choice given my given name, and read the book in one long sitting. How to state it nicely: Clare Darcy is to Jane Austen what a sputtering candle is to the sun at high noon.
My quest was not over.
My apartment roommie, also a Janeite, discovered the Flashman novels by George MacDonald Fraser. She LOVED them. But budding little feminist me wanted books written by humorous females, not a man with no interest in the goings on of small town families and their courtship rituals, and silly clergy, and strong heroines who were able to learn a thing or two. And so I continued my search.
One day I found a Barbara Cartland novel. Hahahahahahahaha! Tossing aside her cheesy book about a 16-year-old-heroine with a heart-shaped face, I wondered if I could charge her for wasting my precious life.
I continued my search.
And there it was. On the bottom shelf at the library. Arabella. It was a pathetic excuse of a book – dog-eared, blemished, and torn partially in the spine. I read the front cover – Arabella by Georgette Heyer – then sat on the floor and began to read. Witty words leapt from the pages. I laughed with delight. Before long I checked out the book and proceeded to read it in one long sitting. My roommie, who had started her new job two weeks after college, came home from work to find me engrossed. “I found a new author,” I said, telling her she could read the book when I was done. I gave it to her that night.
We were both instantly hooked on Georgette Heyer.
I returned to the library and checked out all the Georgette Heyers I could find. My roommie and I fell in love with Arabella, but we became die-hard fans when we encountered Venetia, The Grand Sophie, Sylvester, and Frederica. By summer’s end we had read ALL the GHs we could lay our hands on, even the mysteries and histories. (Thankfully, Georgette was prolific.)
My roommie and I were two young and hopeless romantics. We loved the glittering, detailed descriptions of the characters, the clothes they wore from expensive shops, and the houses, towns, and cities they inhabited. We learned about Regency London and the manners and mores of the Ton. Georgette Heyer characters spoke in cant, and thus we affected British accents and used cant-speech at every opportunity. Our boyfriends, while a bit mystified, played along, even debating which weapon was more effective in a fight – the epee or the sword.
Vintage GHs
But then life intruded and my intense love affair with Georgette Heyer had to take a back seat. I returned to school and began to read academic books again. I left my obsession behind, except for my yearly date with Pride and Prejudice.
Flash forward a number of decades when Sourcebooks began to republish Georgette Heyer novels. Once more I began to read them regularly, only this time I reviewed them as well. I discovered that my tastes had changed and that I was more attracted to other novels like The Reluctant Widow and The Convenient Marriage. I never reread Arabella, for I did not want to revisit my first love only to discover that she had flaws.
I savor my memory of first discovering Georgette Heyer and thank Sourcebooks for the opportunity to relive that Golden Summer. I keep about 10 GH books on my Nook and Kindle (yes, I have both) so I am not ever very far from one of my favorite authors. If you are intrigued, all of GH s novels are available at Sourcebook’s Discover a New Love Website at http://www.discoveranewlove.com.
WIN A FREE BOOK! Those who leave a comment, have an opportunity to win a Georgette Heyer novel! Just let me know why you love to read Regency romances and/or Jane Austen! Contest ends on August 16th, (Contest ended!)which is Georgette Heyer’s 110th Birthday! Happy Birthday, GH, and thanks for the memories. Congratulations winners, Jan and Ginger, chosen through Random Number Generator! Thank you all for making a comment!
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I am absolutely in love with GH!!! and an ardent fan of Jane Austen. recently finished reading Pride & Prejudice. Sylvester, Black Sheep, These Old Shades, Devil’s Cub are some of favs from her collection. somehow, I didn’t end up liking The Convinient Marriage. but, as such, I am a fan of the regency novels.
What a great recollection! My experience was very similar. I also have some of the editions that you pictured above, which I found by combing through used books stores many years ago. I’m so glad that Sourcebooks has come out with the new editions. She’s not Jane, but her characters and dialogue are worth reading and re-reading. One of my favorites is Sprig Muslin.
I have yet to read a book by Georgette Heyer, but I very much enjoy reading Jane Austen and Elizabeth Gaskell’s novels, both as a means to better understand the history of the time periods, as well as to relate to the timeless characters. :) Classics remain classics with good reason. Thank you for the opportunity to enter!
– Hannah
Thank you for sharing those memories so delightfully Vic, I must admit to never having read GH now I shall have to. Whilst reading your story I was listening to Romance from Shostakavoich’s ‘The Gadfly Suite’. It was the perfect background piece
Love, love MAJOR LOVE! I just love Georgette Heyer’s attention to detail, and her women who are strong without being Mary Sue. Had to laugh at your poor boyfriends discussing the épée and the sword. Wish I had thought of it! Love the cant terms that GH litters her books with. And you MUST revisit GH because trust me, her magic does not fade with age. It just gets better.
I love historical romances and of the more modern authors Georgette Heyer is definitely the best. This is not to say that all of her books are as good as each other. I think it’s safe to re-read Arabella though, I would say it’s one of her best (along with Frederica, The Grand Sophy, Unknown Ajax, Friday’s Child, Cotillion, The Nonesuch and Venetia too, so quite a lot!)
I love Georgette Heyer’s books and re-read them frequently. On 16th August she would have been 110! If you want to try one of her books or if (like me) you want to buy some digital versions, apparently Sourcebooks are going to celebrate her birthday with special deals between 14th-20th August. I’m hoping this will extend to the UK (last time I checked one of their GH promotions it seemed to be limited to the US). If you’re new to them, I suggest you start with The Grand Sophy or Frederica or another Regency, rather than the historicals like Infamous Army.
Lovely , Vic and not just the photograph of a young you.
I had a similar epiphany with Thomas Hardy. I used to spend holidays in Dorset when I was a young boy and then as a teenager.. I started reading Hardy and discovered that the quiet countryside around me was this great emotional landscape and that the locals and villagers I saw had dark deep secret lives full of drama.
I also fell in love with Julie Christie as Bathsheba Everdeen in Far From the Madding Crowd.
But I digress..Just looked up Georgette Heyer.. She was born in Wimbledon on the 16th August 1902. Must find the house!!!!!!!!!
I love Georgette Heyer and have a complete collection of her romances on my bookshelf, though some are falling to pieces! My favourites include Devil’s Cub, Frederica and Cotillion. I would just like to say a word in defence of Clare Darcy. Though clearly not in the same league as Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer, I have spent many happy hours reading her books (many of which also sit on my bookshelf). Victoire is not her best – Caroline and Julia is one of my favourites.
I too have most of GH’s books in my bookcase. Began reading as a teenager (These Old Shades, Devils Cub and An Infamous Army – the trilogy). Should mention am now in my late 60’s. All the books mentioned have been/are favourites of mine. One that most people would not have read is The Great Roxythe. We had a copy in our staff library at the Austin Hospital. This was an early book of Georgette’s which she tried to have squashed. Apparently some people read homosexual overtones into it. Lord John – her last book – was uncompleted but her son wrote a wonderful addendum to it.
I’m not familiar with Georgette Heyer and look forward to discovering a new author. Thanks! As to why I read (and read and read) Jane Austen…well, when I first read Pride and Prejudice, it was like discovering a beautiful flower no one had ever seen before. The fragrance was intoxicating and I found I simply could not do without.
I fell in love with GH while working at a library. My job was in the cataloging department, typing away on the computer, so I was able to listen to the audiobook versions as I worked. They made the days so much more enjoyable!
Good lord! I loved your remembrance, which is very similar to my own, and confess that I yet have all of Heyer on my bookshelves. Don’t be afraid to re-read, Vic! The quality of the writing stays intact, especially in contrast to current trash. I check in with my favorite Heyers on a regular basis, sort of like comfort food, and especially on a rainy day.
I agree – I call them my friends and read them over and over especially if I’ve had a tough day at work.
I’d never read Georgette Heyer, but on your glowing recommendation have just downloaded Venetia to my Kindle. I’m off to begin reading…
Thank you for reminding me about Georgette Heyer. I also first discovered her books at the end of high school but I haven’t read her for many years and now I am inspired to revisit her (on my Kindle).
Enjoyed your beautiful post. I love Georgette Heyer too.
I am always looking for good regency era novels, and I too wish Jane Austen had lived to write more of them. So I am glad to have a new author that comes so highly recommended. I will have to look into reading some Georgette Heyer.
And I thank you, Vic, from the bottom of my heart for introducing me to Georgette Heyer a few years ago on this excellent blog. I just love her. I still have five of her historical novels to go and I wonder what fun live will be after that, with no new Heyer to look forward to ;-)
Vic, you made me sigh with this lovely recollection. And how adorable you were at 22 (as was I, I must say!), and how I envy your being able to read on a sailboat–I cannot read in motion without dire consequences. I’ve only ever read one GH, can’t recall which, but I liked it a lot. If I had discovered her at 22 I would have had them all read by now, but I don’t read novels as constantly as I did then. Such books, along with Jane’s, transport me to not just another time and place but to a sense of lightness that I’m craving just now.
I first encountered Georgette Heyer when my husband bought me Devil’s Cub for Christmas. “I looked at the cover and thought of you”, he said. Since then, I’ve read and listened to as many as I could. The Regency Period is, like Jane said above, like comfort food. I can, after a stressful day, relax with the manners and social customs of Regency England. Even my wedding dress was a Regency era reproduction!
My mother was a Georgette Heyer fan, and she gave me a collection of six paperbacks as a gift when I was thirteen. I read The Convenient Marriage first, and I have enjoyed reading and re-reading Heyer’s novels ever since. They are like old friends. And my mother and I enjoyed discovering new ones and trading them back and forth, sometimes new releases of an old title, and sometimes dog-eared copies found on a second-hand shelf.
Recently when my mother was very ill (she passed away in the fall) and I was driving very long hours back and forth to visit with her, Georgette Heyer audiobooks were a godsend on those drives, during what was otherwise a very difficult time. (Though they are abridged – which is a scandal – Richard Armitage has read a few, and he is excellent. You forget that only one person is reading.)
She had an incredible gift as a writer. The regency romances are in a class by themselves, and the historical novels (I like An Infamous Army and The Conqueror best) are also brilliant.
I love your blog, Vic. A labor of love, and so much appreciated. Thanks.
The Regency period has always been one of my favorite historical and costume periods. I love Jane Austen’s novels and had read most or all of them by the time I picked up my first Heyer. My mother has been a die-hard Heyer fan for years and she it was who introduced me to the wonderful world of Georgette Heyer’s Regency novels. My first Heyer was Venetia. I have yet to read Arabella, but I strongly suspect I’m going to like it. (I’ve liked every Heyer I’ve read so far and I don’t expect to stop now!)
I can’t remember when I started reading Georgette Heyer. Though I do know that I was reading her when she died. I felt fortunate when her books were re-released in England in the late ’90s becasue my original ones were falling apart. Now I have them on kindle as well. She has been my standard for Regency authors, which, as you can imagine is hard to meet.
I love Georgette Heyer books! I scour used bookstores for them, hunt them down online and have even bought a second copy of my favourite, The Convenient Marriage because the I have read and re-read it so many times and I don’t want it to fall apart and be without a copy. I am an addict without any desire for a cure.
I love to read Georgette Heyer because I loved reading stories that give you a small window of the past even if it’s fictional.You can feel your way along with the characters.Georgette was very good at drawing you into the story.
Although Jane Austen fulfills my reading requirements and I’ve found I have little desire for other novels, I am a bit intrigued about Heyer after reading your story. Thank you for sparking my interest.
I discovered Georgette Heyer when I was in high school (after I had finished rolling my eyes at Barbara Cartland). I’ve only been able to read a few of them, but enjoyed them all.
When I was thirteen my Aunt Marlene gave me about 20 Georgette Heyer books. I was totally enthralled by them. I think I had them all read in a month. I remember my friends wondering why I was never available. I plead homework. In the last few years I have gone on ebay and paid whatever I had to, to get the rest of her collection. I am pretty sure I have them all. My all time favorite is, The Unknown Ajax. I laugh gleefully every time I read it. I have read some of them while on road trips with my husband. I read aloud and he loves them. I love Heyer’s wit, her writing style, her charm. I have read them over and over and feel like they are my good friends. Thanks for your blog. I love Jane Austin too, but to find someone who loves Heyer as much as I do is fun! I love your way with words. Thanks!
Lovely post, Vic, the picture of you on the sailboat is also lovely — Don’t know that I want to go back to that age again, but I’d love to feel that strong and look that good.
I yield to no one in my love of GH and all of her books. I think her mysteries are absolutely superb. They too are filled with period references (between the wars, or just post-WW II). I am, as a matter of fact, re-reading Arabella right now, and she stands up very well with additional scrutiny. Like all of GH’s best heroines, she is true to herself; she has a nice maturity and sureness that is fun to see. As far as my favorite Heyers: whichever book I am about to re-read — or failing that, any one of the Avon trilogy.
You are GHs #1 fan. There’s no arguing that. Glad you can see that the round cheeks come honestly. Thin, medium, large – whatever size or age I am, they are here to stay.
I know what you mean about your tastes in GH books changing over time… I loved “Venetia” when I was young and love it still, but I find “A Civil Contract” to be a much more mature and well-written book… much richer, more layers and character development that relies less on the stereotypes of Regency culture and more on real people. The heroine is short, plump, plain and practical – by no means can she called beautiful or even be thought to be appealing. But I have re-read or re-listened to it a dozen times, and always get something out of it.
Super idea I love to be a part of this..have read Geogette Heyer, Jane Austen all my life now 81 years old..so carry onthe good work and read well.
I never tire of reading how others found and first loved the novels of Georgette Heyer, so thank you for your wonderful story. Like many others, I read my first Heyer at about the age of 13 (Friday’s Child, I think) and have read and re-read them all in the intervening 40 years! I have my Heyer shelf, which includes a few dog-eared copies with my name written in florid teenage script inside the front cover. In my case, I moved from Heyer to the more sophisticated language of Austen, but Heyer is the ultimate comfort reading. Curling up with Venetia or Frederica is like an evening spent with an old and beloved friend – what could be better than that?
I too, am a Jane fan, having first fallen in love with the A&E movie version of her Pride and Prejudice. It’s been a long standing favorite of mine. I was compelled to read the book because as so often is the case, the book is always better. I’ve now read everything she wrote, some a few times over and have gone in search of more. Sometimes I love what I find but most times not. I thank you for leading me to a “new” source of material! I look forward to reading Georgette’s work,
What an absolutely lovely post! And you chose just the right pic of yourself – dreamy with Regency writing! I really enjoyed reading this and will have to find time to get to the rest of the Heyers on my shelf. (I’ve read Charity Girl adn The Reluctant Widow – courtesy of Sourcebooks for reviews, actually). There’s something about Regency; writers have made it frothy despite all the drawbacks to the time period. And, I think that Jane Austen demonstrated well the bind that women were in at the time of marry or perish. Thanks!
Thanks for the dreamy comment! I had to find a way to remove my then boyfriend, who became my husband, who became my ex-husband, and so I blurred the background and edges! Would GH and JA have approved of such an excision?
I think she would have enjoyed it. ;-)
I fell in love with Jane Austen’s books in high school. Like you, my search for more of the same lead me to the local library. Now I own about 20 of her books on my Kindle, as well as a pile of well read paperbacks. I can go back and re-read GH and still always be delighted.
Thanks for sharing this flashback with us, Vic. As lovely as you were in your 20’s, I find myself a little surprised that you had any free time to read. What was wrong with the young men of your acquaintance? Just one boyfriend?
I, too, had a brief affair with Georgette Heyer when I was younger. I have downloaded several of her books to my Kindle and plan to read them again — in the land of “I will make time for that tomorrow.”
I also LOVE Georgette Heyer, although I prefer her Regency romances the mysteries and histories are well written as well. I think I learned more about the Napoleonic wars from her than any history class I ever took!
Thank you for your summer of drudgery as well as finally stumbling across GH! I’m sure many of us, myself included, have reaped the glorious benefits of your experiences. I first heard of her here, after finding myself devastated having finished everything JA I could find, including all the letters and juvenalia. I was hesitant, but was hooked after the first, which was coincidentally also Arabella. I’m trying to spread them out so as to keep the joy coming!
My favorite JA is P&P, and my favorite GH (so far) is probably Venetia, although The Reluctant Widow was fantastic (and The Grand Sophy, Lady of Quality, I could go on and on!). I’d actually have to rate her in terms of which ones I liked ‘less’ b/c I love so many of them!
PS You are such a cutie in that pic!
I just discovered GH books this summer. I don’t know how I missed them or kept putting them off for other reading. I think I have read about 8 of them now. My favorites have been Black Sheep and The Grand Sophy.
I was feeling a bit stressed this morning until I opened your blog. Arabella! And the very cover I bought her in, in the early 1970’s! Please don’t be afraid she will disappoint you on a fresh reading. She absolutely will not! I have bought nearly all the new reprints to be sure I always have GH, in case my 40 year old paperbacks fall apart.
I was, I think, thirteen when I bought Arabella and innocently brought it home, leaving it on the kitchen table. When I re-entered the kitchen my dad was looking through it and began to question me about where it had come from and what it contained. I thought his questions were odd, but answered and then forgot about it. Later Mom told me that, in Dad’s day, paperbacks were generally “naughty” men’s reading and he saw pretty Arabella with that low-cut Regency dress on the cover and jumped to some hilarious conclusions! Bless him for trying to protect his little girl, but believe me, I would have walked right back to that drug store and bought another copy!
My tastes have changed over time, too. I found that some of the books I disliked as a young girl I now like a lot. I wanted high romance, and didn’t have the sophistication in my early teens to appreciate, say, Sylvester, Or the Wicked Uncle. Arabella will always be my GH favorite, but Theses Old Shades, Devil’s Cub, April Lady, Cotillion, Venetia and Regency Buck are still high up there, too!
Thanks so much for this thread. My love for Georgette will never die.
I love Jane Austen mostly for Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey. I was introduced to Georgette Heyer by an friend of mine; of which I have two regency novels by Georgette Heyer, one The Reluctant Widow (which is my favorite book) and the other is Venetia. But I also have two mysteries by the same author, one called The Unfinished Clue and the other Behold, here’s poision. My mom likes the mysteries and I like regency both are by Georgette Heyer. :)
I have been reading Georgette Heyer since I discovered Pistols for Two as a budding teenager. As a girl who mostly read boy books (eg, sci-fi, sword and sorcery and adventure novels- yea for Flashman by the way!), her books opened the way to Jane Austen, the Brontes and many more.
By the way, I was once at a launch party for a sci-fi novel and somehow the discussion turned to Georgette Heyer; it turned out that all these serious sci-fi writers, artists and fans read and loved her romances! Just like me. I keep all her books by my bedside and have read Venetia, The Grand Sophy and The Unknown Ajax a dozen times and These Old Shades/Devil’s Cub yet more.
It’s amazing how well they have stood up over time. My first GH was also Arabella, in fact it was the very edition you show, only it was new then! After that I read them all. I revisit them every few years and am surprised that all the scenes are still so familiar. Unfortunately, they ruined one thing for me–I have never found a romance novel that could compare favorably to them so I haven’t tried to in years. The thing that GH does so well, that others don’t seem to be able to (or are not allowed to by their publishers) is to capture the culture of the time and how the characters “think.” It is jarring to read a so-called “Regency” novel where the characters act like 20th/21st century people. It’s quite possible that GH’s characters were only acting like 1930s people and that is a far enough remove that it seems historically accurate, but I doubt it–I’ll give her all the credit for recreating an 18th/19th century mindset among her characters. (And a special nod to her research on historical clothing which was remarkable given the time she was writing. There were far fewer opportunities to find extant gowns or copies of fashion plates during her lifetime than there are now.)
For me it was Frederica that made me enamored of the Regency era in print (and it was Laurence Oliver and Greer Garson’s P&P on the screen!) I was a student (before becoming a teacher) of Regency Dance, and my good friend told me I had to read Heyer. The place to start for me (A man) being Frederica.
The first GH book I read was The Corinthian which I loved so I then proceeded to read all the others. These Old Shades has to be one of my favourites but really I love them all and every so often I read them all again. I recently introduced a colleague to them and she loves them too. I managed to get hold of the Great Roxhythe and I can see why she didn’t want it reprinted. I don’t think it is as good as the rest but I was glad to complete my library. Now I am contemplating investing in the kindle versions. (I can make the print bigger so don’t have to wear my glasses!)
I was lucky enought to get Pride and Prejudice for English O Level. What a treat! At that time ( late sixties) the BBC had a serial on a Sunday evening 5.30 and Lewis Fianders played Darcy. He has to be my all time favourite in that role. Sadly you can’t get a copy of that version.
I have never read Georgette Heyer, but it sounds like I will love her books! I adore Jane Austen for her intelligence and insightfulness, and have read all of her works. Thank you for your blog!
GH was to me my replacement to fill in the void left by Jane Austen’s early death. I needed more regency reading. I gobbled up every one of her books on history and the romances. I have not gone over to the mysteries as I read that they weren’t her genre like the romances were. I’ve read her biography. Her books are just so fun.
There’s nobody in the world like Jane Austen. The world will always mourn her early death and her consequently small output of books. Fortunately for us, there’s Georgette Heyer, who portrays the Regency world fully and accurately. The great thing about GH is her readability– and her re-readability! Her legion of fans read her books not only once, but repeatedly.
I love to read Jane Austen because her books are so dense that I find new things to appreciate about them, especially since I am not very good at literature analysis. I started reading regency romances because I was wanting to read something similar to Jane Austen, but yet a little easier to read, or at least written in a more modern style, and Georgette Heyer and Lauren Willig were both the gateway drugs for me. Now, I think it is about comfort, its like slipping into a familiar and comfortable world, I know most of the rules, and I know how it is likely to turn out, so what will happen before the ending?
I work long hours in a dentist’s office with a lot of understandably cranky patients. Sometimes I just want to leave this world and go to a place where someone else draws my bath, helps me dress in my beautiful, long gown, and all I have to decide is which of the three balls I am going to attend on Saturday next….Once, after a particularly nasty phone call at work, I took what I call a “ten second vacation” in my mind, across the Atlantic and acroos 200 years to Regency England….ahhh, so refreshing. Thank you Jane Austin and Georgette Heyer. I think I feel another “vacation” coming on!
Regency (and ESPECIALLY Jane Austen, I must say!) romances appeal to me because they’re far away from our modern world: charming, witty, just enough non-dangerous, non-political intrigue, concern with propriety and manners and kindness to others…They really are an escape to another time and place! Also, some of the writers are simply so superbly talented, giving us delightful characters who really develop throughout the novels.
Interesting post—I have had a friend recommend Heyer to me a few times, so perhaps this is another neon sign suggesting I grab a novel of hers—and thank you for the opportunity!
Jane Austen is definitely one of a kind. I started reading her books when i was young, and grew up with all of her movies. I just recently watched the new version of S&S- Scents and Sensibility. It was quite enjoyable!
I just love Georgette Heyer and she is one
of only 3 authors I read and retread countless
times – Jane Austen, Elizabeth Gaskell and GH! I have given away a lot of her books to introduce her to friends and now I really
need new copies…
I love Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer! I only recently discovered GH when Austenprose had a year long celebration of her and her novels. I am reading through her books now and loving them! They are so much fun!!:)
That was a wonderful celebration in 2010, in which I took part. Here are my reviews, starting with a modest post in 2006, and beginning in earnest in 2008. https://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/tag/georgette-heyer/page/2/
Thanks for the link! I can’t wait to take a look at all your reviews. Maybe they will help me choose which GH book to read next!!=)
I thought I was the biggest GH fan, I have been collecting her books over the last 12 years and only have about 1 or 2 to go before I have a complete collection. It Takes me away to a different time and place that I would have liked to experience, but with today’s luxuries like proper indoor plumbing lol.
I was introduced to Georgette Heyer when I was 18 – and now I have two grown daughters who adore her too. She’s accurate to the Regency and, especially her later novels are hilarious! I just enjoy her wit and charm.
GH has saved me from deep depression many times. A very kind friend introduced me to her books some 30 years ago, and I do not know how many times I have read them all. My favourite: The Grand Sophy’ followed by Venetia, Frederica (restorative jelly!) and ‘Sylvester.’ You ‘could have knocked me down with a feather’ when I read this blog; I did not realise my passion was shared by so many others. Thank you for this treat.
My mother introduced me to Georgette Heyer when I was about 13 about fifty years ago, The first one I read was Fridays Child followed by all the rest and I have read them time and again over the years. They have always been a constant and a comfort in stressful times. I have just started to re-read them for the umteenth time , I have just finished These old Shades and am about to start Devils Cub, I will have to find a new copy of Infamous Army as mine has at last fallen apart. The first aduly novel I read was Frenchmans Creek by Daphne Du Maurier,
Oh, Georgette Heyer is an all time favourite with me! I stumbled across her at our school library many years ago. My first book was her collection of Regency short stories under the all encompassing title of Pistols for Two. I loved it so much I went hunting for more. Later my aunt left her collection of Heyers with us and I read almost all of her romances. After getting married too I’ve taken to building my own Heyer collection with the Arrow Books. As has been stated before by others there is something to find here if you are an Austen fan. :D
Thank you so much for this opportunity to win a Heyer for my e-reader. It would indeed be a pleasure to own a book or two of hers electronically as well. :)
I first found Georgette Heyer last year through this blog. I have been Jane Austen fan since I was a teenager. when I read a review of a Georgette Heyer novel on this blog I immeadiately became interested and went to library. Sadly my library only has 3 of her books and I would love to read more of them.
I was introduced to Georgette Heyer when I was around 13. I have been a fan since. I think I’ve read them all but love, just love to re read them all the time.
Oh my goodness I haven’t read Georgette Heyer since my last baby was born Don’t ask just a very long time ago!!) They were the only books I could read when I was pregnant and I had after all married a GH hero!
I will have to go and reread them all now!! Thank you for reminding me.
I am yet to read heyer….i think i shall start with arabella like you.
I LOVE her books! I was just browsing through the library one day, and I ran across one, picked it up and read it. Ran back to the library the next day and got ALL of them. lol My absolute favorite is “The Grand Sophy”. SO FUNNY, and so fantastically brilliant! I so wish they would make it into a movie! I’d love to added to your drawing! :)
I just wrote a post last night about how I just discovered Georgette Heyer this past June and how I happy I am to have found her and yet how cheated I feel that I did not know her before. This post just seem so serendipitous!
I love Austen, Heyer and author Regency-style authors because of the quality of the writing. It’s very refined, with interesting humor and wit, with romance that doesn’t cross over into trashy material. Reading these books is a comfort and a joy!
Laura
CalicoCritic at gmail dot com
I think the reason that modern women love Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, and the Regency period in general is because it seems so romantic to us. There was this structure of rules of civility where women were treated as ladies and gentlemen were honorable (and if they were not there was pistols at dawn).
I discovered Jane Austen in my early twenties, I was going through a difficult time and in the works of Austen I became transfixed into another era where despite being written nearly two hundred years ago the heroines where still grappling with some of the issues that I was facing. That gave me a tremoundous amount of comfort. The amazing thig about Austen is that every time I read one of her novels I find something new and I find a way to relate to her heroines in a way I had not before. There are few authors (modern or classic) that have that power in there creations. That is why I love Jane Austen.
Found one of her books at Borders going out of business sale and the price was right. Enjoyed it along with language usage. Quaint! Will plan on reading all the others along with GH’s world which by itself is fascinating.
I have just recently discovered Georgette Heyer and her work, and am enthralled so far! I feel so lucky to have found her stories and am looking forward to reading them all!
Georgette Hayer is my go-to author when I need a mental vacation. My personal favorite is The Grand Sophy but I love them ALL!
Like you, Vic, I “found” Georgette Heyer after rereading all of Jane’s works and exhausting our little local library’s shelf of Love Inspired-type romances – I wasn’t interested in bodice rippers. For me, there has always been something special about the customs and horses and carriages and fashions and…EVERYTHING from the lat 18th and early 19th centuries. Georgette Heyer provides all of that along with witty, interesting, loveable characters. She makes me laugh, which I’m certain will make me live longer. And three of her novels (Venetia, Sylvester, The Convenient Marriage) are available as audiobooks read by Richard Armitage. What could be better?
like so many of your commentators I discovered GH at school – a friend lent me Devil’s Cub – and quickly moved on to These Old Shades, An Infamous Army and Regency Buck. It was such fun to find that one could read about the same people grown older in subsequent stories, but my real addiction to GH came when I was in my 30s and had read every single Jane Austen several times over, as well as Mrs Gaskill and other regency writers, and craved more. (I adored Persuasion which has the sexiest ending, drawing out the suspense for the reader to the utmost!) I longed for more escape into the slower pace of Regency times, the comedy of manners and the delicate descriptions of feelings and relationships. I now have 34 GH on my shelves, some in a terribly dog-eared state, and re-read them in turn for comfort and to restore my faith in the decency of human beings! Thank you for writing about her so delightfully.
I used to be a young hopeless romantic; in some ways I still am. I love Jane Austen so I’m sure I’d love Heyer too (yep, I haven’t read one of hers yet but I’d like to!)
My first G. Heyer book was ‘The Corinthian.’ A Sunday School teacher of mine recommended her to me when she learned of my love for Jane Austen. How grateful I am to her for introducing me!
Here’s a link to an excerpt to The Corinthian (one of GH’s most amusing Regency romances):
http://www.georgette-heyer.com/books/corinth.html
I have actually never read a Georgette Heyer book, but I’ve been meaning to for some time! I love reading Jane Austen because her characters remind me of people I know in real life. =)
My first GH book was “These Old Shades” only last year — I could not believe how funny it was! Since then, I’ve gone through nearly all of her books, purchasing these new and lovely editions. I have a small list left to go! Her books never fail to make me laugh, teach me something, and make my heart melt. They are absolute page-turners. I relate the plots to my dad, whose eyes light up every time I mention highwaymen, duels, and chases! Gotta love GH.
I have yet to read Georgette Heyer, but I read Austen for her wonderful characters. Even the minor characters are so well drawn you can spot them among your friends and neighbours. I’m sure Jane based Mrs. Elton on my cousin….they are exactly alike.
My first GH book was Beauvallet and I read it when I was probably about 12 years old. I’m not sure I understood everything in the book. Reading it as an adult was much more enjoyable. I’ve read just about all of her regency novels and several of her mysteries. My favorites are The Grand Sophy, Venetia, and These Old Shades.
I just discovered Georgette Heyer, and I am so thrilled that I did! I recently finished These Old Shades and have now moved on to Devil’s Cub. I see many more Heyer books in my future!
I first started reading Georgette Heyer books thirty-five years ago. I’m reasonably sure it was Devil’s Cub. I have re-read them over the years but now mostly read biographies, history and re-read the classics (Dickens, Jane Austen and the Brontes). I also love literary criticism. Now and again when I’m at the library I will borrow a Heyer book and still thoroughly enjoy it.
I have the pleasure of reading 2 Georgette Heyer novels which are Friday’s Child and Lady of Quality which I love. I enjoy reading the historical context in which they were set in the same era as Jane Austen’s books and old-fashioned romance novels without references to sex scenes.
I love Miss Austen and also Miss Heyer! They are the great escape for me. Did you know that E.M. Forster was a tremendous fan of Jane Austen? I laughed when I found out, because he’s the “other” fiction author I love! Both are so good at detail, without making the reader want to skip over the descriptions and explanations.
If you like Miss Heyer’s Regencies, I also recommend Carola Dunn’s Regencies. Many are out of print, but have been released on Kindle. Carola Dunn writes the Daisy Dalrymple mysteries (set in the 1920s) and also a mystery series set in Cornwall, with a feel of the 60s.
I discovered GH’s Regency novels a couple of years ago via my library’s Jane Austen book group. The library didn’t have enough copies of any single GH book, so everyone read a different book and did a little description of it. I read The Grand Sophy and loved it! It was so fun and witty so I hope to read all of them eventually. I’d love to be entered into the contest!
Great post! I think I love reading regency novels because they are so unlike the world we live in today, without being fantasy. In addition, there are not that many authors today whom I find as talented as Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer!
melodiousrevelry (at) gmail (dot) com
I only just discovered Ms. Heyer’s wit and wonder this summer, at our local public library after another book on my “wishlist” wasn’t available. I have now read four of her darling novels and and am currently working on “Black Sheep”. Delightful!
:) Shauna
Vic, I couldn’t believe you were 22 years old in that photo (I thought at first it was 12, not 22)!…
Anyway, I first noticed GH’s Regency novels from the elegant dustjackets of the original hardback editions by Heinemann & Bodley Head, accurately illustrated by GH’s own favourite, Arthur Barbosa (examples as shown on your ‘Vintage GHs’ above) … And then I fell in love with her novels… and with her heroes and heroines. There were times when I felt Freddy Standen, Gilly Ware, Robert Beaumaris, Hugo Darracott, and Charles Audley within hugging distance from me. Except for Cousin Kate (too dark & Gothic for my taste), I love all of GH’s Regency novels; and the 1st half-dozen on my list are: Cotillion, Frederica, Arabella, The Foundling, The Unknown Ajax, and Friday’s Child. Of these 6 novels, however, only the Frederica and The Unknown Ajax dustjackets were done by Barbosa. The dustjacket of GH’s last Regency, Lady of Quality, was beautifully illustrated by Edward Mortelmans.
The An Infamous Army (the 1937 1st edition, with endpaper & foldout maps, plus an extensive bibliography on the Battle of Waterloo) was recommended reading at Sandhurst; and The Spanish Bride (based on Lieutenant-General Sir Harry Smith’s Peninsular War diary) featured real-life hero & heroine Harry & Juana Smith.
Among GH’s pre-Regency, I love heroine Leonie de Saint-Vire and supporting hero Lord Rupert Alastair in These Old Shades.
To appreciate GH’s remarkable life, her Regency novels, and her many other works even better, I urge her other fans to buy (if they don’t win the prize) and read the amazing ‘GEORGETTE HEYER: BIOGRAPHY OF A BESTSELLER’ by Jennifer Kloester.
Wonderful post! I discovered Georgette Heyer last year after a librarian friend suggested that since I liked Jane Austen I should give Heyer a try. How right she was! I love Georgette Heyer’s Regency Romances because she defined the genre, I admire how meticulously researched her novels are and their level of detail, which is very different from Austen’s style. The Grand Sophy was the first one I read, and it remains my favorite. If you want to know more about Heyer, I highly recommend Jennifer Kloester’s biography. Thanks for the giveaway opportunity!
I love Georgette Heyer. She has such great characters dialogue. I discovered her a couple years ago through some Austen blogs and then when I borrowed one of her books form the library. I haven’t read them all but I love the ones I have.
I have two GH novels on my shelf and STILL haven’t read them, even though I specifically picked them up for the Regency setting. I assume you’ve read April Lady? What did you think? (If you have a Goodreads account I’d love to connect!).
What a great response you have had to this post Vic, and no wonder it’s perfect, I’ve read every comment and I’m sure you must be very happy with the effect it has had on everybody
Indeed! GH inspires as many followers as JA! Thank you for following along! There are a few days to go yet. I wonder who the two winners will be!
Winners of what Vic, I hope this is not a competition, I abhor competitions just as Mr Darcy seems to abhor so many things;o)
I discovered Georgette Heyer’s Regency novels as a teenager (newly promoted to the Adult library) about fortyfive years ago and actually before I discovered Jane Austen. I’m not sure whether I read her detective stories first but anyway I was hooked and my mother approved of them so I was off. They are now back in print thank goodness and I have introduced my daughter to them.
Now as a genealogist researching a client’s ancestor in the Regency and George IV period in the world of spa towns, provincial life and the Army and Militia I thank my lucky stars that both Jane and Georgette have given me a good grounding and saved me a world of research.
Researching this ancestor feels like I am living in a Jane Austen novel as I probe the realities of being imprisoned for debt in London, the life of balls and entertainments as Master of Ceremonies at the fashionable Leamington Spa Assembly Rooms and of a military career in the Napoleonic wars. But that of course is why I love my job!
I love Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer’s writings because of their intelligent language, memorable characters and their proper behavior. The men are gentlemen and the women act like ladies. There are serious characters as well as, comedic. One also gets a real glimpse into what life was actually like for the gentry in that time period; at least in Austen’s novels. One doesn’t get that reality in 21st century novels.
My first Jane Austen book to read was Pride and Prejudice. I was in my college library one weekend looking for something to read and the BBC 1995 cover of the novel P&P caught my attention. I knew I had heard of JA all my life, but thought I would give her a try. I was hooked! As for Georgette Heyer, my sister had several of her books and recommended her favorite, Devil’s Cub, since I liked Jane Austen. I read it and went on to read several more. Although I haven’t read all of them that exist.
I have not yet encountered Georgette Heyer books but love Jane Austen and have always had a fondness for all things British. There is simply a charm and air about them that can’t be found in novels set in the Americas. History would have a lot to do with it. I also likeT.S. Eliot’s books.
I discovered Heyer through you and the birthday celebration blogs in her honor a while back. The attention to detail and colorful characters as well as so many amusing, absurd yet totally believable situations unfolding before your eyes – such entertaining reading. Thank you!
Besides the ones I mentioned above, another Regency romance favourite of mine is: The Grand Sophy. GH brilliantly put together all the conflicting but admirable and adorable qualities in one of her most spunky heroines, Sophy Stanton-Lacy.
http://www.georgette-heyer.com/books/sophy.html
Jane Austen, GH, and the best Regency Romances are, like screwball romance movies, the best Farrelly Brother comedies, the really joyous sounding Mozart stuff, and the lunacy of Karl Pilkington, high-wire acts of joy triumphing over reality. They’re a stick in the eye to all the ways in which the world and life break our hearts, and it’s why we keep coming back to them.
It was a comment of Margaret Sullivan’s, of Austenblog, that prompted me to read my first Georgette Heyer novel. I had been a devoted reader of Jane Austen’s novels for decades, but had never heard of GH. Mags wrote that GH’s “Cotillion … makes us laugh until we cry”. A year or so later, I was ill and had to miss many days of work. I sought out Cotillion, loved it, and in the next six months, read about 25 of Heyer’s Regency and Georgian novels. Cotillion’s Freddy Standen, besides being terribly funny, was, in my experience, a completely new type of hero. Reading these novels was absolutely what got me through a very difficult year. I loved her humor, her vivid characters and her skill in writing dialogue.
GH is able to create secondary characters that make one long for an entire chapter, or even a full novel, about them. A few that spring to mind are Freddy Standen’s father, Lord Legerwood, and Lady Elizabeth Kent, Alverstoke’s elder sister in Frederica. One can’t help wondering about the future lives of some of Heyer’s characters — picturing the brilliant career that Felix, Frederica’s youngest brother, will have as an engineer/inventor, for example.
One of the few GH novels I dislike is Cousin Kate, and yet it includes one of the funniest marriage proposal scenes I’ve ever come across, so I can’t regret reading it.
I would urge Vic not to avoid re-reading Arabella. It is one of my favorites, and I noticed that it is one of the few of GH’s novels that comments on social problems of the time, such as poverty and child labor. And thank-you for initiating this topic, in honor of Georgette Heyer’s birthday!
I’ve been wanting to read a Georgette Heyer book for ages, because she’s always recommended to me by various bloggers and smart algorithms (“people who like X also like GH”). But living in the Netherlands, it’s hard to come by any of her books and I generally dislike paying full price and having a book shipped from overseas if I don’t know the author yet. But last Sunday, I was at the largest book fair in Europe, and I came across a all-books-for-1-euro stand that had not one but two Georgette Heyer books. I immediately bought them and have just finished reading the first (‘a civil contract’). I loved the depth of her characters and the 19th century setting. I think I’ve found a new favorite author and would love to receive another book by her!
Have you though about purchasing the books via Amazon.UK? Also, Alibris books ships for a very reasonable price. Try them – they are second hand, but I think you won’t mind. Ebooks are less costly, as they don’t incur shipping and handling costs. Good luck!
I use Amazon.co.uk a lot as it has free shipping on new books for orders over 25 gbp, but I don’t want to pay full price for an author I haven’t read before. I also own a Kindle, for which I can only buy ebooks on Amazon.com, but the prices there are a lot higher for non-US citizens. Silly isn’t it? I refuse to pay 20 USD for a digital version which I’m not convinced I’ll be able to re-read 20 years from now anyway when I can have a dead-tree version for the equivalent of 5 USD from Amazon.co.uk… So I’m always on the lookout for second-hand English books and was lucky enough that there were several sellers at the Deventer book market the other day.
Oh, and I’ve got chubby Dutch cheeks too :-)))
I love reading Regency books because they really engross you and take you away from it all. I like reading about a different era, with different ways of speech and dress and everything else that goes with it. I also found Georgette Heyer at the library, after reading all Jane Austen had to offer. I instantly fell in love! The only problem is, my library only has about 10 of her books, and I am one of those strange people that doesn’t own a Nook yet. One day I hope to read them all!
I didn’t discover G.H. until in my 50’s. I love her wit and style, the characters are so special. I needed a break from my usual Austen, Gaskell, Bronte reading so I read a review somewhere and went to the library. They only had Sprig Muslin at the moment so I checked it out. I loved it so much I started getting any I could lay my hands on. So far I’ve read about 25 of her novels. I wish I could think of things to say like in these novels. I’m a tongue-tied sort of person. My favorites so far are “The Grand Sophy”, “These Old Shades”, “Arabella”, “The Corinthian”, “The Nonesuch”, and “The Quiet Gentleman”. I’ve read a few of her historical fiction and mysteries but I prefer the romance/mystery novels.
I love reading romances (especially Jane Austen’s and Georgette Heyer’s) because they make me smile and feel hopeful! ♥
Love this, Vic! Thanks! I’m a recent reader of GH– great fun– great escapism! And I must say…..I can’t put them down– bad when you have three kids– good when it’s just one day that everything goes haywire while mama reads! :~)
I came to know Georgette Heyer through a friend when I was in graduate school. She gave me The Grand Sophy as a birthday gift. I’ve read several of her books including Frederica, Arabella, and The Reluctant Widow which is a favorite. Thanks for the great post!
Another excellent post, thank you Vic. The only GH book I have read is ‘April Lady’, Which was heaps of fun. Thank you for the display of vintage covers – I would buy ‘Frederic’ for the picture of the hot air balloon alone. I recommend Jennifer Kloester’s book ‘Georgette Heyer’s Regency World’ which has a lot of interesting background detail about the period as well as a very good glossary of Regency cant and common phrases. Your story of your and your roommie’s boyfriends playing along with your GH activities reminds me of Garth Nix’s comment that she is often overlooked by male readers because they assume that her books are only romance novels, ‘… but the best are enormously entertaining, historically accurate, and very funny adventure stories . . . If you want a teenage boy to read one, find an old hardcover and take the dustjacket off. Tell him it’s an historical adventure kind of like The Three Musketeers.’
For teenage boys, I would highly recommend these adventure/romance novels: The Foundling, The Toll-Gate, The Quiet Gentleman, and The Unknown Ajax.
GH’s mystery novels would also give the Y-generation of boys a thrill; among others, They Found Him Dead, and Duplicate Death (both featuring the adventurous hero Timothy Harte, as a teenager & as a dashing young man).
My first Heyer was “Friday’s Child”. I stumbled upon it at Barnes & Noble when it was re-released. I had never heard of Georgette Heyer before and I was instantly in love. “Friday’s Child” is such fun! The first book of Heyer I read was enough to make me a fan for life.
I started with Georgette Heyer last year, and so far I have only read “The Grand Sophy”. I love to know that the unread Heyer books are still waiting for me! I’m also “saving” Northanger Abbey, as I can’t bear to know that there is no more new-to-me Austen! :)
I read them for the history and characters.
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I love Georgette Heyer! I just discovered her books a few years ago (don’t know what took me so long) I’ve read every one I can get my hands on. I love the way she makes the time period come alive with the details she includes.
Love GH for all of the information about riding and driving from that era. Every time I get behind my driving ponies I feel transported to the Regency period (even if I don’t look like that period with my high tech marathon vehicle). :-)
I am ashamed to report I haven’t read them yet. I have been meaning to for so long and am determined to start. It’s exciting to know there are so many of them that I could probably make the reading of Georgette take a year if I manage it right. That would be delightful!
Had to write to add my voice to those who value Georgette Heyer and her Regencies! She is not without her faults, but her Regency stories are so amusing and her dialogue is so witty that I find myself enjoying them again and again. Like so many others here, I have a bookshelf that is home to a nearly complete set but I do loan them out frequently as I feel she is underappreciated in the US where I live. For those who are new to Heyer or want to appreciate their favorites in a new way, I especially recommend listening to her books in audio version. I was originally introduced to them through my local public libraries but have amassed my own collection through ebay and other sources and I adore the radio play quality of the vocal performances. The audio versions that I am talking about are not abridged and were not recently done either. I am not sure the vintage but sometime in the last 15-20 years I would think. They really are first rate and have given me many, many hours of enjoyment as well as beaten back boredom and/or black moods amazingly effectively! I have even gotten my husband and one of my sons to appreciate Heyer! My favorites: The Foundling, Cotillion, Black Sheep, Sprig Muslin, Arabella, The Reluctant WIdow, Venetia, Devil’s Cub, The Nonesuch, The Quiet Gentleman and The Toll Gate. Happy Birthday, Georgette Heyer! And, thank you, Vic, for helping to make new generations aware of her work and sharing new information and photos about her!
I completely agree with you, Anne HH, about the audiobooks; I listen to them in my car, and they are wonderful. Currently, it’s The Unknown Ajax, and, as always, I find myself laughing out loud frequently as I commute! I discovered audiobooks because of my love for Jane Austen, and those are quite wonderful, too . All of the brilliant words, none of the movie director’s nonsense; I can imagine them any way I want! Jane Austen’s novels were WRITTEN to be read aloud to her family — no such thing as any kind of recording in those days. Georgette Heyer’s work the same way, even written more than 100 years later, in the age of recorded sound.
I discovered Georgette Heyer because of either this site, Vic, or because of Laurel Ann’s AustenProse, and I’m VERY glad I did! Miss Heyer has provided me with many, many happy hours.
To answer your questions, Vic, I read Regency romances purely to escape. I read Georgette Heyer because she writes so very well, and she makes me laugh. I read Jane Austen for the same two reasons, she writes so very well, she never fails to make me laugh, and for the fact that she’s writing about her contemporary life. It’s not writing about something in the past, it’s plain historical fact, and I love history.
Thanks for the opportunity, Vic!
Wonderful post! If you love Austin you will want to read Georgette Heyer. My first Heyer book was Sprig Muslin when I was a teenager (1 or 2 years ago LOL) My favorites are The Reluctant Widow and The Unknown Ajax. My books are absolutely falling apart and held together with string1 :-) Heyer is my comfort read when life is just too much to deal with.
Amazon has G Heyer Kindle books on sale for $2.99 each for another day!!
I fell in love Georgette Heyer when I read The Tailisman Ring. I loved the style and the beautiful way it was written. The characters were so rich and inviting! My daughter reccomended it to me, and I can’t wait to read more of Heyer’s books courtesy of my daughter!
I love Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen. The humor in thier stores are great! I would love to read some of Heyers “modern romances” like Helen and Pastel, but I can’t find them.
I am not familiar with Georgette Heyer but have quickly added her to my list to search for at the library!
I was introduced to Georgette Heyer’s books by another ardent Austen fan, and I have been delighted by them! I love the richness and the detail that she brings to the eras she writes about. I love the dialogue she writes – it’s so clever, light, and witty. I am fast approaching the day when I will have read all of her books; I am not looking forward to it. I wish I could always have more brand new Georgette Heyer’s to read.
I fell in love with Heyer’s books as a teenager and I am now 58. Her work stands up to others that we consider classics. I believe she is getting more attention in the academic world, too. That sounds good to me.
I haven’t had the pleasure to read her as of yet. However, I welcome the beautiful escape that I am certain she gives the reader. Thank you for the introduction and opportunity to win a few books.
Thank you ALL for leaving a comment! Tonight, two of you won a book – Jan and Ginger. Congratulations! Vic
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