[LMB] QOTD #7: Emotional genre, re: ACC dedication (Sat. Mar. 1st)

[sylvus tarn]

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A. Sasha Wagner-Adamo wrote:
> On 2 Mar 2008 at 11:15, Chen Yen wrote:
>> PS. Thanks to sylvus for mentioning specific titles by Sayers - I've ordered
>> them in, also 'False Colours' by Heyer that was discussed many posts
>> earlier.  Any more recommendations anyone?

Oddly enough False Colours is not one of my faves, though it ought to be
, with not one but two delish identical twin brothers---one of the stock
characters in Heyer is the helpless, fainting older female, sweet and
pretty and fragile and a complete spendthrift (who did Heyer know that
was like this?  Who was the hot-tempered patriarch?  the physically
brave boy?)...the guys' mother in this book fits this profile and
probably the reason I wasn't crazy about it.

Hm, if I had to pick just one...The Grand Sophy.  Though Sophy herself
does not appear to change so much over the course of the book, the
laugh-out-loud twists make it a perfect example of the comedy of manners
genre.  And Sophy herself is so sensible and brave---no fainting there!


> 
> My personal favorites are:
> These Old Shades

Definitely the one to read for the dark, dangerous brooding-type hero;)

> Venetia
> Devil's Cub
> 
I'm not a fan of bad-boy heroes, though I loved the sensible female
protagonist in Devil's Cub.


> also:
> The Convenient Marriage

Another female with gumption! and who's short, with a s-s-s-tammer---and
one of my faves, though it's georgian, not regency.

> A Civil Contract

Though not nearly as humourous as some of the others, I felt the
characters were very nicely developed, & whose love story, while
somewhat bittersweet, was very believable. Thus it's a favorite, plus of
course being considered to provide some inspiration for ACC's title,
which I certainly appreciated.

> A Lady of Quality
> Faro's Daughter
> Bath Tangle
> Sprig Muslin
> April Lady
> 
> As somebody else mentioned it's probably easier to name the ones I 
> don't like... :)

Hey, what about _Cotillion_?  I mean, aside from Fashionable Freddie,
who's just the sweetest (and a nice change from these too-perfect
swordsmen perfect-with-pistol types), it's got Freddie's father, who
will certainly charm all the folks that have enjoyed Aral's interactions
with his various offspring.

>From Micki:
>I like Georgette Heyer and Dorothy Sayers, but as for pleasurable
>reading and depth, I think Lois has both of them beat hands down.

I'd be willing to concede on Heyer, but always felt depth was one of
Sayers' great strengths---I mean, the scene in the common room of the
dons at Shrewesbery college about intellectual rigor versus social
duties (expected of women who are naturally nuturers, right?) just as an
example.

Both Bujold and Sayers' works turn very heavily on their world views,
and depend upon their philosophical underpinnings:  that's one of the
reasons I consider both to be amongst the best books I've ever read.
Heyer is fun and wonderful, but her characters run too much to stock;
they haven't the pain or individuality of an embittered Harriet Vane, a
shell-shocked Peter Wimsy, a Miles wrestling two out of three, a Mark
grimly determined to be congratulated on winning over Ryoval.

And for pleasure, well, that scene in the punt with the appalling
phonograph record, `Love in Bloom'...(makes me snigger every time.  Some
things never change.)

sylvus tarn
http://rejiquar.com
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