Regency Buck

Judith Taverner and her brother Peregrine seem impossibly blessed. They have good looks, an immense fortune and forthright manners to recommend them to Polite Society. Headstrong and heedless, they would have been able to enjoy their London debuts thoroughly if they hadnt been forced by their father's will under the guardianship of the Earl of Worth. Worth, handsome, sardonic, cynical and mysterious has given the duo sufficient reasons to dislike him intensely, but he is a conscientious guardian. Or is he?? As the Season progresses and the hapless Perry falls into one dangerous situation after another, an unwelcome suspicion starts to enter and very soon takes strong possession of Judith's mind. When Perry disappears, Judith friendless, alone and desperate, has to make up her mind whether the Earl is all who he seems to be.

Regency Buck, while not my favorite, is another of Heyer's captivating romances. Heyer who established almost all the historical romance formulas that are hashed and re-hashed these days uses the mysterious guardian ploy, here much in the fashion of the celebrated Gothic romances of the time. While the tone of the novel is definitely not Gothic, a few references indicate that Heyer knows what form she was playing with and has a blast gently mocking these very popular novels.

Coming to the novel itself, it's written with Heyer's characteristic wit, has an interesting storyline, brilliant dialogues and endearing secondary characters to while away the time with. Some contemporary Regency characters and refereneces make their appearance here from Beau Brummell and Lord Byron to Jane Austen, always with Heyer's intention of setting the historical period and context for the reader.

As for the principals, Worth is the original alpha male, dominating, powerful and confident. He would have been extremely unpleasant to read about, but Heyer balances this out with a heroine almost as masterful as Worth is himself. Judith is fearless and frequently shocks Society with her unconventional behaviour. Perry is the quintessential younger brother, charming and endearingly youthful. A scene where he wearies Judith out with nautical descriptions had me laughing out loud, so true did it ring.

Heyer's historicals take a little reading to get accustomed to. She uses a lot of contemporary (for the Regency) slang and references and frequently switches POV's between characters all in the same scene and this might take some getting used to for the reader of modern romances. However, she is the unparalleled Queen of the historical romance. Watch the Regency period come to life under Heyer's vivid pen and watch the two principals match wits with each other. I guarantee you a great read!!