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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read this book. Or The Grand Sophy. Or These Old Shades. Or The Corinthian. Or just about any Georgette Heyer historical romance really. She's the next best thing to Jane Austen for wit and romance. I always close a Heyer with a smile and a sigh.
-Rebekka
-Rebekka
I think that I might just be a curmudgeon, or perhaps simply out of charity with the world because I have not found this delightful. Indeed the naivety of the female lead and the mercenary nature of almost everyone else is a singularly frustrating combination.
Amusing, well plotted, doesn't go where you expect it to go. Great, satisfying ending.
A promising setup - orphaned girl must marry one of her guardian's nephews in order to inherit his fortune - but very slow starting. Heroine Kitty was a little foolish at times (hardly surprising given her sheltered country upbringing) but spirited and not an idiot. Hero Freddy showed far more grit and good sense than one would have expected from a Pink of the Ton. Between them they ensure that all comes right in the end for two other cousins while falling in love themselves.
Worth the slow start for the fun that ensues at the end.
Worth the slow start for the fun that ensues at the end.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A friend of mine recommended Cotillion because several people in my book clubs label me as a romantic; not quite sure what that means, but if liking this book makes me one, I guess I am one.
I have read other books and book series set in this era, but none of them used the language of the day. I found it difficult to wade through, especially in the more prosy parts of the book as Freddy calls them. While reading the first seventy or eighty pages, I had the feeling Ms. Heyer was writing a farce. She had three potential suitors for Kitty's hand in a room debating about who should make her an offer. The discussions were so inane I just had the feeling it was a joke, but I guess that is how the gentry were to some extent.
The last hundred pages or so become very compelling with Kitty and Freddy scurrying about getting.
Despite my difficulty with the language, it is a very good book. It does have lots of laughs making it very enjoyable, which is, the best reason for reading.
I have read other books and book series set in this era, but none of them used the language of the day. I found it difficult to wade through, especially in the more prosy parts of the book as Freddy calls them. While reading the first seventy or eighty pages, I had the feeling Ms. Heyer was writing a farce. She had three potential suitors for Kitty's hand in a room debating about who should make her an offer. The discussions were so inane I just had the feeling it was a joke, but I guess that is how the gentry were to some extent.
The last hundred pages or so become very compelling with Kitty and Freddy scurrying about getting
Spoiler
two other couples spirited away to be marriedDespite my difficulty with the language, it is a very good book. It does have lots of laughs making it very enjoyable, which is, the best reason for reading.
As usual I enjoyed this breezy read from Heyer. It took a familiar trope of "let's pretend we're going to get married to make someone else jealous" and executed just like you'd expect, and who doesn't have fun reading that once in a while??
Pros: I laughed a lot. Freddy's great.
Cons: Heyer could have settled on the character of Jack, the person intended to feel jealous, a bit more. It never came across clearly if he was completely horrible or just utterly selfish and I never had a clear idea of what the main character ever saw in him. There was a lot of explanation of how everyone loved him and how charming he was but I never saw any reason to like him and it might have made the read a bit more interesting.
Pros: I laughed a lot. Freddy's great.
Cons: Heyer could have settled on the character of Jack, the person intended to feel jealous, a bit more. It never came across clearly if he was completely horrible or just utterly selfish and I never had a clear idea of what the main character ever saw in him. There was a lot of explanation of how everyone loved him and how charming he was but I never saw any reason to like him and it might have made the read a bit more interesting.