Good Minds Suggest—Deborah Harkness's Favorite Books with Brainy Heroines
Posted by Goodreads on July 8, 2014
The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King (Goodreads Author)
"When 15-year-old Mary Russell stumbles across a man brooding over his beehives, she has no idea that he is Sherlock Holmes—or that he will soon take on the smart-as-a-whip young woman as his apprentice. We follow as Russell develops her talents and intellect over the first four years of her acquaintance with Holmes, goes on to read theology and chemistry at Oxford University, and solves a convoluted mystery. A blend of mystery, period piece, and page-turner with lots of unexpected twists and turns, this is the first in a delightful series."

Possession by A.S. Byatt
"While Byatt is known for her brainy heroines and heroes (see also Angels and Insects), this is my favorite of her novels. It moves from modern times to the Victorian era as scholar Maud Bailey and her rival, Roland Michell, try to piece together the relationship between two 19th-century poets. Byatt seamlessly weaves together literary evidence and intellectual detective work in this compelling tale."

Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl (Goodreads Author)
"For her final year of high school, Blue van Meer's father enrolls her in a private school ruled by a clique called the Bluebloods and a popular film studies teacher. When the teacher's corpse is discovered, Blue's efforts to determine whether her death was a suicide—or a murder—embroil her in town-and-gown political intrigue. Stuffed with literary allusions and organized around the conceit of a class syllabus, this debut novel was praised by critics and readers alike for its style and cleverness."

On Borrowed Wings by Chandra Prasad (Goodreads Author)
"Adele Pietra is the daughter of a Connecticut quarryman who is being groomed for marriage while her brother, Charlie, is the family's pride and joy because he is headed to Yale. When her brother and father die in an accident, Adele decides to take her brother's place at the fabled university. It's the 1930s, and women aren't allowed in the all-male Ivy League, so Adele must dress like—and pass as—a boy. A wonderful story that deals with issues of gender, ethnicity, social class, and race."

Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
"Though this is officially categorized as a Lord Peter Wimsey novel, the real hero of the piece is Harriet Vane, the brilliant graduate of an Oxford woman's college who is called in by the dons to help avert a potential scandal. Those who aren't familiar with Sayers's deft handling of both plot points and the psychological aspects of a mystery are in for a treat. Even devoted fans of Sayers will find the evocative Oxford settings, handling of 1930s social attitudes toward women and education, and dry wit as fresh on a tenth read as it was on the first."

Vote for your own favorites on Listopia: Books with Nerdy, Geeky, or Genius Heroes and Heroines
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Caroline
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Jul 10, 2014 10:31AM

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Agree Rosie, I love all the Harriet Vane/Peter Wimsey stories


In my book O Love How Deep Somerville becomes St. Mary's, a reference to the great pioneering lady Mary Somerville who was the Foundress.
It has been plausibly suggested that not Harriet Vane but Wimsey is the author herself: masculine, untrammelled by her sex, leisured, cultured and wealthy. Sadly D.S.L. did not enjoy an equal marriage in real life. C.S. Lewis her personal friend somewhere speaks of her "personal tragedy", something that she felt bound to conceal from her parents as long as they lived. The Letters of Dorothy L. Sayers. Vol. 1, 1899-1936: The Making of a Detective Novelist is the first of five volumes of her letters. You can get to all five volumes by searching for Sayers Letters.
It was a tragic aspect of her academic life that before meritocracy and the British post-War grant system came in, enabling such women both to get to and stay in Oxbridge, as my generation did, so many were inevitably "mute inglorious Milton(s)" and flowers "born to blush unseen / And waste their sweetness on the desert air".


The BBC did an excellent adaptation of this as part of the BBC Radio Collection. It's not easy to find but worth tracking down!


The BBC also made a wonderful TV version of 'Gaudy Night' in the 1980's with Edward Petherbridge in the Peter Wimsey role. It is unfortunately v. hard to find a DVD version of this.


oh, lucky you, enjoy!


