Synopsis
When
the redoubtable Sir Horace Stanton-Lacy is ordered to South America on
business, he leaves his only daughter Sophy with his sister in Berkeley Square.
Newly arrived from her tour of the Continent, Miss Sophia Stanton-Lacy invites
herself into the circle of her relatives, the Ombersleys, and Charles
Rivenhall, the Ombersley heir, vows to rid his family of her by marrying her
off. But vibrant and irrepressible Sophy was no stranger to managing delicate
situations. After all, she'd been keeping opportunistic females away from her
widowed father for years. But staying with her relatives could be her biggest
challenge yet.
When
Lady Ombersley agrees to take in her young niece, no one expects Sophy, who
sweeps in and immediately takes the ton by storm. Beautiful, gay, impulsive,
shockingly direct, Sophy swept into elegant London society and scattered
conventions and traditions before her like wisps in a windstorm. But Sophy
discovers that her aunt's family is in desperate need of her talent for setting
everything right: her uncle is of no use at all, the ruthlessly handsome cousin
Charles has tyrannical tendencies that are being aggravated by his grim
fiancee; lovely cousin Cecelia was smitten with an utterly unsuitable suitor, a
poet; cousin Herbert was in dire financial straits; and the younger children
are in desperate need of some fun and freedom, and she's arrived just in time
to save them all.
She
became the mainstay of her hilariously bedeviled family, as a horsewoman,
social leader and above all, as an ingenious match-maker. Using her signature
unorthodox methods, Sophy set out to solve all of their problems. By the time
she's done, Sophy has commandeered Charles's horses, his household, and
finally, his heart. Could it be that the Grand Sophy had finally met her
match...?
Review
First
a word about the author. If you've never
read a Georgette Heyer Regency she is the gold standard against which other
Regency Romance authors are compared.
Her work is beautifully researched but still delightfully readable:
filled with fascinating characters, complex plots and beautiful settings.
Sophy
is the daughter of a diplomat who is sent to stay with English relatives who do
not know her. They are expecting a shy
and timid mouse - are they in for a BIG surprise!
Sophy
arrives complete with a monkey and a parrot [which was not raised in a
vicarage] for the children, an Italian greyhound at her feet and her personal
groom and maid in attendance. She is
tall and although not classically beautiful, her vivacious charm wins over all
the family members in the first meeting except Charles, the dour eldest
son.
Charles
is pained by his cousin's behavior. She
is forward, bold, out-spoken and a bad influence on his family. Already she is encouraging sister Cecilia's
unfortunate infatuation with a poet, encouraging brother Hubert to confide in
her rather than himself, fascinating the children and befriending his
mother. Everyone loves her except
Charles' fiancée...
Sophy
is never bored, there is always something, or someone, to put to rights and she
finds ample situations in her newly acquired family. There's Cecilia who is weeping over her poet
and the 'older man' they want her to marry, there's Hubert who is obviously
laboring under a heavy burden of worry, and Charles who has become a domestic
tyrant and is engaged to a truly tedious girl which he intends to inflict on
the family by moving her into the house after the wedding. But she's set worse situations to rights,
it's only a matter of planning and initiative...
The
book abounds with wits, rakes, snobs and eccentrics, all fashionably dressed
and involved in a whirlwind of social activities. It sparkles with intelligent, witty and
charming conversation. The plot has a
satisfying number of twists without anyone stumbling over a dead body or
kidnapping the king or even losing a diamond necklace. The romance is warm and believable. Like most of Georgette Heyer's work, this is
a stand alone novel.
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