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Regency Buck
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Regency Buck Chapters 1-12
I can't say how many times I have read Regency Buck :-). But this time I have read it in English on my kindle. The German translation was a good one.
Carol, this is also a return after many, many years and I'm loving it.Knowing it's GH's first Regency, it's fascinating to watch her create the genre before our eyes. She doesn't just mention "Gentleman" Jackson, she brings him on stage and introduces us to him. The atmosphere of the inn and the "mill," the gentlemen's clothes and carriages are all described in loving detail. And I haven't even gotten to Judith's wardrobe and society debut yet!
I'm starting this one tonight :)
I don't know how often I have read it -- but it has been a while, probably over 20 years ... It might almost seem like a new book!
I haven't read this in years and years, but I'm loving the descriptions of the mill and Gentlemen Jackson, too. I'm not sure why this hasn't been on my re-reads list, and I'll be interested in seeing how much I enjoy it this time!
This will be my first time reading Regency Buck. I have the Arrow copy as shown above from the library. I haven't had time to start reading it yet, and I already renewed it before someone puts a hold on it. I don't want another "These Old Shades" incident!
My copy is a 1971 Bantam, held together by Scotch tape and prayers. And, I'm with you, Linda, I don't want a repeat, either. It turned out that my elderly copy of Devil's Cub was missing the last couple of pages!
Today or tomorrow start for me!
Karlyne wrote: "My copy is a 1971 Bantam, held together by Scotch tape and prayers. And, I'm with you, Linda, I don't want a repeat, either. It turned out that my elderly copy of Devil's Cub was missing the last ..."Ha ha, that's right Karlyne! I suggest you reinforce that Scotch tape before embarking on your read. :)
Linda wrote: "Karlyne wrote: "My copy is a 1971 Bantam, held together by Scotch tape and prayers. And, I'm with you, Linda, I don't want a repeat, either. It turned out that my elderly copy of Devil's Cub was m..."Although the back cover is pretty tattered, I think I do have the last page. When I get there, you can check for me, Linda!
I admire the way that Heyer uses her characters' situation as newcomers to Society to get in so much information without boring exposition or (worse, IMO) clunky expository dialogue. Because Judith and Peregrine are new to London and its social scene, we learn along with them about how ladies and gentlemen should go on, what kind of cravat one should wear, the rules of Almacks, etc. We see the Regency world through their eyes and learn, as they do, from those around them.
I'm up to Chapter 7 & like EMR, I'm so far loving this reread. I think the very assertive Judith is more a heroine for our times!
I've read it many times and I've got to the point where, when in paperback, I skip some of the description... especially the fights which have never interested me.I'm going to listen to the audiobook this time though so I will be paying more attention to those scenes.
When I discovered GH (summer 1963), I simply read her books in the order in which I could get them. So when I got to Regency Buck after reading quite a few others of her Regency romances, I wondered why she had given that one such a generic title. Now I understand!
This was the first ever Georgette Heyer that I read. I grabbed it off a bookshelf at my grandmother's house when staying over with her - probably about 30 years ago.Since I subsequently inherited my grandmother's GH books, I'll be reading the exact same copy for the group read. It's a 1972 PAN paperback edition as far as I can see. Pages are yellow, but at least it's all in one piece which is more than could be said for my copies of These Old Shades and Devil's Cub.
I've read it at least twice, but not in years, so looking forward to it.
I just started reading last night and I'm struck with how much history and detail on social customs GH works in. All the towns on Peregrine and Judith's trip on the Great North Road from Yorkshire to London seem to be historically accurate. Here's a picture of the Grantham Inn, built in 1780. I wonder which room Judith slept in :)
Hana wrote: "I just started reading last night and I'm struck with how much history and detail on social customs GH works in. All the towns on Peregrine and Judith's trip on the Great North Road from Yorkshire ..."Hana, awesome! Thank you for posting this picture!
This is the famous Cribb vs. Molineaux fight, held on September 28, 1811 near Thistleton, halfway between Grantham and Stanford off today's A1, which roughly follows the old North Road. Prizefighting was illegal, but an estimated 15,000 people crowded into a field strategically located at the boundary of three counties (to make it easier to evade law enforcement).
http://www.meltontimes.co.uk/idyllic_...
Emr wrote: "I admire the way that Heyer uses her characters' situation as newcomers to Society to get in so much information without boring exposition or (worse, IMO) clunky expository dialogue..."I'm loving that, too! The scene of Judith's first evening at Almack's was wonderful, especially her encounter with Beau Brummell.
This is an article on The Patronesses of Almack--they were all real. http://www.janeausten.co.uk/the-patro...
Thank you, Hana, for all the background bits! And Carolien, that 1972 Pan edition was my first copy of Regency Buck, too; sadly, I've long since worn it out and moved on.
Sabine wrote: "Hana wrote: "I just started reading last night and I'm struck with how much history and detail on social customs GH works in. All the towns on Peregrine and Judith's trip on the Great North Road fr..."Wow! Thanks for posing the image of the prize fight.
Really cool.
Adding my thanks for Hana for the pictures -- they are great -- and the article on the patronesses of Almack's. How interesting that they were mostly young women in their 20s. I'd always pictured them as middle-aged.
Abigail wrote: "Thank you, Hana, for all the background bits! And Carolien, that 1972 Pan edition was my first copy of Regency Buck, too; sadly, I've long since worn it out and moved on."I had that Pan too! Anyone that has the old Pans is lucky. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the Arrow is full of typos!
& thanks for posting those images, Hana! I'm just about to read the Almacks article now. :)
I just looked and most of my Heyer novels are Pan editions!
Jacquie wrote: "I just looked and most of my Heyer novels are Pan editions!"I wish I had looked after mine better! I've changed my mind about putting the remaining ones up on TradeMe!
& thanks Hana for that article on the patronessses. I had always pictured Lady Jersey & Lady Cowper as young & the others as older.
If those pictures are true to life, Emily Cowper & Countess Lieven were beauties!
They really were lovely! What do you think of Judith Taverner so far? She and her brother certainly seem to have, shall we say, a strong sense of entitlement and she does have quite a quick temper. But I can't help liking her spirit and daring.
I haven't developed a fondness for Judith yet. I'm waiting for her to show me a sense of humor.I just finished the cock-fighting scene. I'm thinking that it probably made me wrinkle up my nose while the boxing scene didn't bother me a bit because there's something about a man making a decision to have his brains beat out that's all right with me. But to play off an animal's natural aggressiveness is... distasteful. And, not having the gambling gene myself, I find all the gamesters a bit incomprehensible. Kind of like people who watch Nascar on tv. (I was searching for something I just don't get, and that popped right up!)
I hated the cock fight, I'm completely against any sort of animal cruelty and though I know you could say that today's standards are different, I can't imagine feeling any different about it, and things of that nature still go on today so I don't think people have changed that much.
Louise Sparrow wrote: "I hated the cock fight, I'm completely against any sort of animal cruelty and though I know you could say that today's standards are different, I can't imagine feeling any different about it, and t..."You're right-people haven't changed much (at all?). Although animal fighting is against the law now, it still goes on. I didn't read the passage closely enough to see if it was illegal then, too, but it wouldn't have mattered, I'm sure!
The mill was illegal although I'm guessing it was more like a street fight (and down to the honour of the individuals0 than a regulated boxing match, but it didn't seem as if the cock fight was, it might have been.
On the other current royal topic, the baby princess Charlotte is named after Queen Charlotte who was George III's wife and thus the reigning consort at the time of this book. Prinny's daughter was also called Charlotte. I've always found the mention of the Regent's various brothers quite confusing, but it turns out they were 15 children, so there are quite a few of them that can appear as side characters in the books.
Carolien wrote: "On the other current royal topic, the baby princess Charlotte is named after Queen Charlotte who was George III's wife and thus the reigning consort at the time of this book. Prinny's daughter was ..."I knew there were a lot of them, but 15?!? That's impressive! Didn't Helen Mirren play Charlotte in a movie a few years ago? The Madness of King George, maybe?
It was released in 1994, which is, gulp, 21 years ago. My, how times flies...
That long ago!!! I remember watching it. Only two died in childhood which is an amazing survival rate for those times.
Hana wrote: "What do you think of Judith Taverner so far? She and her brother certainly seem to have, shall we say, a strong sense of entitlement and she does have quite a quick tempe..."
I like them! Perry is very spoilt of course, but he has a Rupert like charm.
& it was extremely selfish of Worth not to arrange for Judith (at 20) to come to London. It was a plot device of course to have her out of mourning & not needing his guardianship for long, but in reality you would think that every fortune hunter in Yorkshire would have been at her door step!
Carolien wrote: "On the other current royal topic, the baby princess Charlotte is named after Queen Charlotte who was George III's wife and thus the reigning consort at the time of this book. Prinny's daughter was ..."In a sense, Prinny's Charlotte played a significant role in the history of the monarchy! She's the "heiress to the throne" mentioned in passing in one of GH's novels (someone here can probably say which one immediately), for whom a character remarks that a Saxe-Coberg is hardly a worthy match--a sly bit of irony on GH's part, since we know whom another Saxe-Coberg married. Charlotte, as the only legitimate child of the Prince of Wales, would have become Queen in her own right in the normal order of things, but she died in childbirth and the baby also died. Since she was also evidently George III's only legitimate grandchild, it suddenly became incumbent on George's other sons to marry and beget some heirs, and the second-eldest fathered a little girl. We know who THAT was! I think about it whenever I read Shelley's sonnet "England in 1819," which begins, "An old, mad, blind, despised and dying King . . . ." Little did he seem to know what had recently happened or was about to happen in Kensington Palace!
But I read earlier today that Charlotte is also the middle name of both Mrs. Middleton and Pippa, and of course it's also the feminine version of Charles. Good choice, Will and Kate!
This is my first read; I got the Sourcebooks edition from the library just in time!I'm really enjoying the sense of immersion in that time period. Her recreation is so amazingly complete! I did have to skip the cockfighting. Violence involving animals is something I just can't handle.
Judith definitely has a temper, but I really like her determination to be a success on her own terms and not just follow the herd. I get the feeling that between her father being difficult and Peregrine being so young she probably had to be the sensible one and make a lot of decisions for the household. It would make sense that she doesn't take well to being told she has to behave more conventionally.
I can't make up my mind whether Worth is more amusing or exasperating. A lot of Heyer heroes just can't seem to resist being Machiavellian whether they have a good reason to or not. I would call it a byproduct of being cleverer than most of the people around them and having too little to apply their brains to.
The smooth-talking cousin is too good to be true. He's after the money.
I can't remember how often I've read Regency Buck, although it's not one of my favourite Heyers. I find it difficult to like Worth for the first half of the book; he seems determined to rile Judith most of the time. (I can't say more here without spoilers so will save my comments for the spoiler thread in due course!) I think he handled Peregrine quite well, in making him truly understand that he must live within his allowance and not make bets which he cannot honour. As Emr says, the book is cleverly plotted so that Heyer creates what was her new Regency world before our eyes yet without too many long descriptive passages. Although the fascination of gentlemen with fist-fighting is accurate, and I'm sure Heyer used contemporary accounts to make the description of the fight completely accurate, I still can't bear it and always skip it when I'm reading. This time I am listening to the audiobook so skipped ahead to the end of the fight. As for the cock-fighting, I really don't think she needed to include all the gory details and I skipped them too.
It's interesting to re-read it knowing the plot and the ending, because one sees how cleverly Heyer slips in the clues and information.
***Carol*** wrote: "...it was extremely selfish of Worth not to arrange for Judith (at 20) to come to London. It was a plot device of course to have her out of mourning & not needing his guardianship for long, but in reality you would think that every fortune hunter in Yorkshire would have been at her door step! ..."Good points! She also had to be a bit older so that her strong-mindedness and decided opinions appear slightly more reasonable.
Ifurita wrote: "Judith definitely has a temper, but I really like her determination to be a success on her own terms and not just follow the herd. I get the feeling that between her father being difficult and Peregrine being so young she probably had to be the sensible one and make a lot of decisions for the household. It would make sense that she doesn't take well to being told she has to behave more conventionally....."Yes, she had to grow up quickly with her father being so cantankerous. Given the size of their fortunes, the estate in Yorkshire must be significant. I wonder who is managing it while they are in London? One would have thought that should also be within the purview of Worth's guardianship, and that he should have gone up to Yorkshire soon after their father's death to look into matters, but that would have been an entirely different novel!
HJ wrote: "I find it difficult to like Worth for the first half of the book; he seems determined to rile Judith...I think he handled Peregrine quite well" Very true! The contrast between his treatment of Judith and Peregrine is interesting. He has an intuitive sense of what Peregrine needs to grow up a little....but Judith has him unsettled.I got the sense that Worth, like his tiger Henry, takes a dim view of most females. Being a much-coveted matrimonial prize has probably made him extra-suspicious and with his wealth he can surely find satisfaction without commitment. For the most part he seems quite content to enjoy his mostly-male world of sports and gaming in a thoroughly self-absorbed fashion.
But Judith proved Henry wrong with her driving skills and I think the fact that Judith was raised in an all-male household has given her skills and a certain masculine boldness that both irritates and attracts Worth. It's an interesting dynamic.
I'm loving all the comments on the Royal family. I found this excellent web page about Queen Charlotte and her many children and I think I've finally got the lines of succession down in my mind. http://www.regencyhistory.net/2011/10...I really like the Duke of Clarence and his sailors lingo and that scene in church when the Duke of Cambridge commented aloud on the sermon was very funny.
It's funny, too, that Peregrine, although only a year younger than Judith, seems so much younger. The way that he goes on and on about the mill and how he always talks about his interests before he listens to anyone else is just what a self-centered but nice kid often does! There's no malice involved; he'd be very surprised to find out that not everyone shares his passions. I think it makes him rather lovable!I agree, Hana! I think Heyer makes the royal family come alive. She's poking fun at them, but not maliciously, and they're downright funny!
I'm still waiting for Judith to show some humor. She's feisty and independent, but she takes herself awfully seriously.
The Duke of Clarence is the future William IV who succeeded Prinny. It makes sense that he knew Admiral Nelson and could have a conversation with Judith about the Admiral since he actually served in the Navy.He had 8 children, but since they were all illegitimate, none could succeed him.
The Duke of Clarence's marriage proposal to Judith was priceless, especially when he assures her that she'll like all of his children and that they don't bind him to their mother whatsoever. And living by the river is boring, you know.
And wasn't his nickname, Tarry Breeks (breeches), given to him because he actually was a tar?
Karlyne wrote: "The Duke of Clarence's marriage proposal to Judith was priceless, especially when he assures her that she'll like all of his children and that they don't bind him to their mother whatsoever. And living by the river is boring, you know..."“There it goes, flow, flow, flow, always the same." He actually said that in real life, and Heyer was able to work it into the book!
Karlyne wrote: "And wasn't his nickname, Tarry Breeks (breeches), given to him because he actually was a tar?"It was a reference to his having been in the Navy. He was a genuine career sailor, and was in the Navy for years.
HJ wrote: "“There it goes, flow, flow, flow, always the same." He actually said that in real life" I loved that line--I'm so delighted it was the real Duke of Clarence. Thanks, HJ :) And Karlyne, yes, the funniest proposal ever!
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Will this be anyone's first read?
How many times have you read it?
What format are you reading it in this time?
I've read this countless times, but the last time would be at least 25 years ago!
I'm reading the Arrow that's pictured. I do feel confident that GH would have hated this cover. Is that meant to be Worth holding the fan???