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Sylvester Georgette Heyer 9780373836086 Books

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Sylvester Georgette Heyer 9780373836086 Books

Of all the Georgette Heyer stories I've read this one is probably my favorite. At first one wants to throttle Sylvester when one read how proud and vain he is.His only redeeming quality at this point is his love for his ill mother. However, when he's thrown into a situation where the tables are turned on him Sylvester is humbled by Phoebe, who only striking feature are her laughing eyes.
This is a story of how two people who don't want to have anything to do with each other are placed in a situation where they get to know the other beyond their looks. The incidences with the nephew are very entertaining. Won't want to spoil the fun but if you want a light hearted read- Sylvester is for you.


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Sylvester Georgette Heyer 9780373836086 Books Reviews

THE STORY Sylvester, the Duke of Salford is looking for a wife. When he meets Phoebe Marlow, he can't believe that she is not interested in being his wife and will go to extremes to avoid him. Phoebe doesn't want to marry, especially, not the arrogant Duke. She intends on becoming a writer. As she gets to know Sylvester, however, she realizes that he is different than she thought. The only problem is that she has already cast him as the villain in her upcoming book that will be published soon.

OPINION I liked so much of this book. It was funny and I liked how Sylvester changes throughout the book. Both Sylvester and Phoebe are stubborn, difficult characters. I liked Phoebe's efforts to avoid marriage and the entirety of their interactions. Ultimately, however, the story left me unhappy because while I saw Sylvester change and recognize his faults, I didn't see the same growth in Phoebe. The truth is that she is just as arrogant as Sylvester in her own manner. She judges harshly and unfairly and really doesn't acknowledge her own character flaws. The happily ever after comes too quickly only based on Sylvester's changes. I wanted more.

WORTH MENTIONING I laughed out loud at how the heroine's fictional book is supposed to be fact and guides the choices of several of the characters.

FINAL DECISION I liked so much of the story that it feels bad to give this one only three stars. Unfortunately, however, I never liked the heroine who I found annoying and arrogant in a way that she accuses the hero.

CONNECTED BOOKS This book is a standalone.

STAR RATING I give this book 3 stars.
I find Heyer entertaining more as a humorist than as a romantic. This leaves me in the weird position of having enjoyed the book even though the romance utterly failed me. I think this is the first time I've gotten to the end of a romance and found myself wanting a fix-it fic where the main couple stays apart. The female protagonist, Phoebe, had a plan to write novels and live with her former governess as her companion, and I really feel like this would have been a much happier ending. The titular Sylvester isn't ... awful? Like, he takes his responsibilities seriously, and he has a sense of humor, and he can be agreeable when he wants to be. But he is arrogant, callous, manipulative, and temperamental. While he improves over the course of the book, he doesn't rise to the standard of "someone I would want to be around", much less "someone I would trust with my heart". Especially since he is STILL MANIPULATING Phoebe at the end of the book.

Phoebe deserves better, is what I'm saying. Granted, she's kind of silly and impulsive, but she's nineteen and she's a woman in this crapsack world that offers so few good options.

*pats poor Phoebe gently*

Anyway, I generally enjoyed the book up until the last 30% or so, when I found one of the plot twists kind of tedious and it had also become pretty clear to me that I was unlikely to warm up to the male protag. (Frustratingly, there were a couple of points where I thought the ending might do something to endear him to me, but nope.)
Imagine my dismay when I discovered there were abridged versions (apparently) of Georgette Heyer's books. Every few minutes a chamber orchestra butts into the narrative and you know they've lopped another 10-20 pages of delightful GH story-flesh off the story. Dang! I know I have only myself to blame--missed the fine print--but it never occurred to me anyone would commit such a travesty. So... wasted time and money. Now I have to go buy the audio book again. Richard Armitage is a really wonderful reader though.
I've come to love books on CDs especially when "read" by such a versatile actor as Richard Armitage. This is yet another charming story by Georgette Heyer made all the more delightful because of Armitage's gifted voice characterizations...rather like radio drama, [if you can remember that far back].... theater for the mind. I'm afraid listening to Armitage has spoiled me for books on CDs where the reader merely reads! If you aren't familiar with Heyer, she was a 20th century writer who wrote many romance novels of the Regency period in England (Regency refers to the time when King George was put on "medical leave" and his son ruled for about 20 years). While fairly predictable (always a happy ending) they are character driven with colorful, historically accurate details of the society & customs of the times. What keeps them from being formulaic are the variations on the romance theme which appear in the sparkling, unique and artfully defined personalities and situations of the heroines and the twists and turns they endure before arriving in the arms of the always noble heroes. The folks at Naxos also intersperse the text with music of the period...adding to the unity, pacing and luster of the performance. and, at least with Armitage at the mic, it truly is a performance! I appreciate the quality of the recordings as well, so all in all an exceptional experience that seems to grow with every replaying.
Of all the Georgette Heyer stories I've read this one is probably my favorite. At first one wants to throttle Sylvester when one read how proud and vain he is.His only redeeming quality at this point is his love for his ill mother. However, when he's thrown into a situation where the tables are turned on him Sylvester is humbled by Phoebe, who only striking feature are her laughing eyes.
This is a story of how two people who don't want to have anything to do with each other are placed in a situation where they get to know the other beyond their looks. The incidences with the nephew are very entertaining. Won't want to spoil the fun but if you want a light hearted read- Sylvester is for you.