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A review by tani
April Lady by Georgette Heyer
4.0
Eons ago, I heard somewhere that Lois McMaster Bujold was influenced by Georgette Heyer's writing. Being a huge fan of Bujold, I instantly decided that I needed to read some Georgette Heyer. When I saw this book at a library booksale, I snatched it up. And then it sat on my bookshelf for a good 10 years, unread. Because that's just the kind of person I am.
Anyway. I liked this book a good deal more than I thought I would, especially given the truly terrible cover. (I took care to choose the one that I actually own, and it is awful.) I expected the book to be some overblown romance, despite the Bujold comparison. It was not quite that. I would call it more of a historical slice of life with a romantic subplot. The story, like many romances, does center on a series of misunderstandings and a lack of communication, but it didn't feel very much like a romance in any other sense. Although love is a big issue throughout the book, there isn't a lot of interaction between the main character and her husband/love interest. The book just doesn't spend enough time with the husband to really make me root for the romance between them. I was just rooting for the main character instead.
Actually, this reminded me a lot of the P. G. Wodehouse book that I read just before it, not merely because they were both very British books, but because a single misunderstanding is built on and creates a series of hijinks that in the end, come to a riotous conclusion. Only this book felt more innocent - in the Wodehouse, the characters were all too eager to throw each other under the bus. In April Lady, the characters are all trying to do the best thing for themselves in the same way, only without as much of the patent disregard for others that the Wodehouse characters seemed to have. In that respect, I'd say that Heyer wins out over Wodehouse for me.
On the other hand, there was a good portion in the middle of April Lady that was pretty dull. For the most part, the book centers on a single problem and the main character's attempts to solve that. It's only at the very end that things get convoluted and exciting. The middle was pretty boring, as Nell thinks of a solution, only to reject it, lament her quandary, and then think of another solution that she will soon reject. It got a little repetitive.
However, the payoff at the end was stellar! The last 20-30 pages of the book were what convinced me to upgrade this from 3 to 4 stars. Everything comes together in a truly wonderful manner, and I found myself completely drawn into the story. It really paid me off for my bit of boredom in the middle of the book, and I was very happy with it as an ending indeed.
It may not be soon, but I will definitely keep Georgette Heyer on my list of authors to read more from. She writes fun characters and a mostly engaging story, and she has a great ability to weave events together to create a truly satisfying conclusion.
Anyway. I liked this book a good deal more than I thought I would, especially given the truly terrible cover. (I took care to choose the one that I actually own, and it is awful.) I expected the book to be some overblown romance, despite the Bujold comparison. It was not quite that. I would call it more of a historical slice of life with a romantic subplot. The story, like many romances, does center on a series of misunderstandings and a lack of communication, but it didn't feel very much like a romance in any other sense. Although love is a big issue throughout the book, there isn't a lot of interaction between the main character and her husband/love interest. The book just doesn't spend enough time with the husband to really make me root for the romance between them. I was just rooting for the main character instead.
Actually, this reminded me a lot of the P. G. Wodehouse book that I read just before it, not merely because they were both very British books, but because a single misunderstanding is built on and creates a series of hijinks that in the end, come to a riotous conclusion. Only this book felt more innocent - in the Wodehouse, the characters were all too eager to throw each other under the bus. In April Lady, the characters are all trying to do the best thing for themselves in the same way, only without as much of the patent disregard for others that the Wodehouse characters seemed to have. In that respect, I'd say that Heyer wins out over Wodehouse for me.
On the other hand, there was a good portion in the middle of April Lady that was pretty dull. For the most part, the book centers on a single problem and the main character's attempts to solve that. It's only at the very end that things get convoluted and exciting. The middle was pretty boring, as Nell thinks of a solution, only to reject it, lament her quandary, and then think of another solution that she will soon reject. It got a little repetitive.
However, the payoff at the end was stellar! The last 20-30 pages of the book were what convinced me to upgrade this from 3 to 4 stars. Everything comes together in a truly wonderful manner, and I found myself completely drawn into the story. It really paid me off for my bit of boredom in the middle of the book, and I was very happy with it as an ending indeed.
It may not be soon, but I will definitely keep Georgette Heyer on my list of authors to read more from. She writes fun characters and a mostly engaging story, and she has a great ability to weave events together to create a truly satisfying conclusion.