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kathydavie's review against another edition
4.0
It’s a pirate’s li…er, privateer’s life for me! A second son, Nicholas Beauvallet has acquired quite a reputation on the Spanish Main and Phillip II has put a high price on his head. Which explains why Don Juan puts his ship at risk even though he’s carrying the ex-governor of Santiago and his daughter.
Nick’s promise to set the governor and his daughter, Doña Dominica, onto Spanish soil simply confirms his bravado. Doña Dominica hopes this is enough to sustain her while she awaits Beauvallet’s arrival in Spain to carry her off to England.
After making the royal and family rounds, Nick heads back to Spain undercover for Walsingham as he seeks his bride. Grand adventures are afoot as Nick meets the Spanish king and parties around Madrid searching for Dominica looking to steal her out from under her greedy family’s nose.
Grand, exaggerated characters with realistic dialog makes for an exciting read; this follows Simon the Coldheart as part of a family series. While the cover seems absolutely perfect with its burning ship forming a background for an arrogant, well-dressed English pirate protecting his bejeweled Spanish lady; I'm incredibly unimpressed with the current version.
Nick’s promise to set the governor and his daughter, Doña Dominica, onto Spanish soil simply confirms his bravado. Doña Dominica hopes this is enough to sustain her while she awaits Beauvallet’s arrival in Spain to carry her off to England.
After making the royal and family rounds, Nick heads back to Spain undercover for Walsingham as he seeks his bride. Grand adventures are afoot as Nick meets the Spanish king and parties around Madrid searching for Dominica looking to steal her out from under her greedy family’s nose.
Grand, exaggerated characters with realistic dialog makes for an exciting read; this follows Simon the Coldheart as part of a family series. While the cover seems absolutely perfect with its burning ship forming a background for an arrogant, well-dressed English pirate protecting his bejeweled Spanish lady; I'm incredibly unimpressed with the current version.
papidoc's review
4.0
Light gothic romance fiction, among my Mom's favorites. Considerably better than the average gothic romance. Some of them are more like historical fiction, such as Simon the Coldheart. I read them from time to time when I was growing up.
debralewi's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
andreana_k's review against another edition
4.0
Possibly my new favourite after Arabella. I hadn't read this one before and as part of a reading challenge for my works bookclub we had to read a large print book (I work in a library, the point was to get cosy with our collections and try areas we normally wouldn't) and noticed this winking at me from the stacks. Large print takes a little getting used to but once the story got going it was rip roaring fun! Pirates, swashbuckling, Heyer's wonderful way that she enlists with her escapist regency romance turned to a 16th century Spanish/English sea going romp, well it was just fun escapism.
ellingtonfeint's review against another edition
5.0
A swashbuckling merry hero and a heroine of stature and gentle defiance. A tale of escape with an interesting historical background, set in the time of the Spanish inquisition. The clothing is beautiful and a hero who never fails is a captivating read. The language of the time is beautiful too. Especially that of Joshua Dimmock, Beauvallet's manservant, when he gets started on a tall tale! The scenes set on the ship out to sea are very enjoyable to read. The type of mapcap adventure that is needed in any library. Beauvallet laughs they say and his lady, Dominica, too.
corvinaq's review against another edition
5.0
Extremely old-school melodrama, with all the proper trimmings: piracy on the high seas, impersonation of French spies, abduction of Spanish heiresses for sinister purposes, and sword fights.
aubreystapp's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty silly, but a nice, adventurous read. Definitely not my favorite.
gabymck's review against another edition
Instalove, don’t care very much about secondary characters.
maplessence's review against another edition
4.0
I had a bit of trouble persuading the Georgette Heyer Fans Group to read this title - I must be losing my touch! :D
Although this book was always a 3.5-4★ read for me, I can understand why that wouldn't be the case for all readers.
GH wrote [bc:Simon the Coldheart|3535744|Simon the Coldheart|Georgette Heyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1214325575s/3535744.jpg|3083876] earlier about one of buccaneer "Mad" Nick Beavallet's ancestors. GH took her world building very seriously - my 1937 copy of Beauvallet even has a family tree at the back. It is too hard to reproduce the whole thing (its very wide) but here is a snippet;
Quite charming. I'll admit I used to create fictional family trees as a child! & GH is known to have had a well developed fantasy life as a teen writing & acting in her own dramas with friends.
The thing is, the strong minded GH decided Simon the Coldheart wasn't up to her usual standards & had it suppressed (her son thought his mother had been too hard on it & agreed to "Simon" being republished after her death.)
This left Beauvallet to be read as a standalone for generations & I don't think that really worked.
For Beauvallet is a very short book & quite a bit of it covers family history. I always knew about "Simon", as it was my father's favourite book as a teen & he spent a lot of time trying to find a copy. Even so, my eyes used to skim over the back history. Other readers could find this confusing.
I may be unromantic but I do find the main plot pointinsane quixotic for me!
The first half of the book, the writing is very Ye Olde Englishe! But when Nick & his servant, Joshua the pace picks up & it becomes a much better book. The second half is right up with GH's best work & Dona Beatrice is one of her best (& most understated) villains.
I think this story could film very well. Is there a modern Errol Flynn around?
Although this book was always a 3.5-4★ read for me, I can understand why that wouldn't be the case for all readers.
GH wrote [bc:Simon the Coldheart|3535744|Simon the Coldheart|Georgette Heyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1214325575s/3535744.jpg|3083876] earlier about one of buccaneer "Mad" Nick Beavallet's ancestors. GH took her world building very seriously - my 1937 copy of Beauvallet even has a family tree at the back. It is too hard to reproduce the whole thing (its very wide) but here is a snippet;
Quite charming. I'll admit I used to create fictional family trees as a child! & GH is known to have had a well developed fantasy life as a teen writing & acting in her own dramas with friends.
The thing is, the strong minded GH decided Simon the Coldheart wasn't up to her usual standards & had it suppressed (her son thought his mother had been too hard on it & agreed to "Simon" being republished after her death.)
This left Beauvallet to be read as a standalone for generations & I don't think that really worked.
For Beauvallet is a very short book & quite a bit of it covers family history. I always knew about "Simon", as it was my father's favourite book as a teen & he spent a lot of time trying to find a copy. Even so, my eyes used to skim over the back history. Other readers could find this confusing.
I may be unromantic but I do find the main plot point
Spoiler
Nick captures Dominica & her ailing father on the high seas & risks their lives, his ship's company & the ship itself to return Dominica & her father to Spain. TooThe first half of the book, the writing is very Ye Olde Englishe! But when Nick & his servant, Joshua
Spoiler
arrive in SpainI think this story could film very well. Is there a modern Errol Flynn around?
majkia's review against another edition
4.0
Not my favorite Heyer, but amusing nonetheless. Pirates!