The Masqueraders: Georgette Heyer Book Club Part 7

[DilysPrice]

The middle of the 18th Century! A time of revolutions, highwaymen and hairbreadth 'scapes. When men were real men absolutely everybody except Tony is dressed in fabulous sparkly lacy numbers at all timemarshals less of their apparent gender. (is it just me who thinks the Regency is lovely but would prefer some shinier clothes - I feel GH probably felt the same).

My major argument with Powder and Patch was that it had far too little plot, which explains why The Masqueraders is one of my favourite Heyers. We have the escape from the Jacobite Rebellion, the Missing Heir (see also Black Moth, Talisman Ring), Evil Abductor, "I love him but I'm not worthy of him", and that's before we get to the cross-dressing. For my money GH pulls this haystack of plots together brilliantly, with the grosser implausibilities covered over by Tremaine's outrageous character: anything particularly mad (or, in Letty's case, cruel) is explained by the fact that he's showing off.

When it comes to the romances I have (like GH) a terrible weakness for competent men, and Tony's ability to improvise/ride/duel etc wins me over, along with a beautifully judged approach to Pru: he loves her because she's strong but he wants to protect her anyway. It hits a rather atavistic romantic streak in me that few Heyer heroes come near. Is this just me? Does anyone else see the appeal, or is he just controlling and annoyingly "masterful"? GH is obviously going to great pains to put him in the right side of the line but does she manage?

And Robin/Letty? The secondary romantic couple are normally a bit wet in GH; are these two better or worse than normal? Is it remotely plausible that Letty would forgive him for his deceit? (though at least he tells her - IIRC one of the girls in False Colours never finds out)

Errm "timemarshals less" = "time, regardless"

I am only partway through this time, but have read in full several times. My thoughts so far...

Letty is annoying.

Ha ha comedy early posting! In full:

Letty is annoying. I do not know what Robin sees in her. I wonder possibly if it is just the result of his frustrations with the Prince and that "lost cause", and reacting against being in skirts by assuming the aggressively masculine role of the Black Domino. Letty is a bit of a cardboard cut-out, with even less character than Cleone, and thrown into stark contrast by Pru.

I find their relationship unsatisfactory because they seem to like each other by comparison to other situations or people, rather than for themselves, and it is all about his power over her, and her ongoing debt to him. Feminist hackles rising...

Tony isn't much better. Why doesn't he tell Pru sooner? I am comparing his conduct to Avon's of course and Tony comes off worse despite being a better man. Tony even punishes Pru for it (his behaviour in the clubs he deliberately takes her to) which is frankly asshattery.

And she is the somethingth heroine in a row with grey eyes. Yawn. Did Heyer have grey eyes herself, or just covet them?

I agree that Heyer prefers the costumes of this period. Lace fetish!

I may be in a better mood when I've finished it. Being in the middle is quite frustrating!

Bump because I'm sure more people than this must have thoughts on this one. It's got Heyer's only man in drag - surely someone's got thoughts on that?

Although she's fond of statuesque women with grey eyes she deliberately makes Robin shorter than Prue so he can be a convincing woman. A lot of Robin's later posturing as l'Inconnu smacks of small man syndrome...

I had forgotten how involved it gets towards the end with the various letters, the elopement, the hijacking, etc. To be honest it makes me want to know more about Barham, who is a surprisingly 2d character given his importance. I also want him to marry Lady Lowestoft (is it? The one the "Merriots" stay with) and I think that's a missed loose end.

Despite my earlier post I think this is a little cracker. It's a bit highly written though - Heyer grows into her style and stops showing off is more natural in later novels.

I'm going to bed to have a quick skim re-read of this so I can put in my two pennies worth tomorrow.

Sorry I skipped the P&P thread but I just couldn't finish it.

Ooh, just found this thread.

Agree with Robin and small man syndrome but I like him anyway. I think it's that he has such fun being a woman and playing close to the edge. But I also don't understand what he sees in Letty more than any other pretty teenager (which is all Letty is).

I do like Pru but once again there is that "all women, however competent, just want someone else to take charge" message . It would be nice if she rescued him at some point as well as the other way round . And Tony is a bit full of himself - he doesn't tell Pru earlier because he likes being all-knowing and having the upper hand.

I think my favourite bits are the cross dressing jokes/scrapes - which don't appear in any other GH I think? and the father, supremely unaware of the havoc he causes.

Leonie in These Old Shades and Penelope in The Corinthian cross dress, but they're very much under the protection of Avon and the eponymous Corinthian (forget his name) respectively. What makes Pru different is that she is absolutely out on her own for most of the time (or thinks she is). She fights off ruffians, she refuses to tell Robin about the duel, she stays up drinking and gambling with random men in gentlemen's clubs.

I think that's why GH takes the questionable decision to have Tony rumble her but not let on. It makes him much less sympathetic/comprehensible, but it shows Pru off to great advantage. If he'd shown his hand earlier then we'd have had all the London business overshadowed by "Let me protect you", "No, no I must do this alone/I'm not worthy of you" and the balance if the book would be crocked.

On a more trivial note, how tall do you think they are? I'm going for Tony 6'2", Pri 5'9" and Robin 5'6".

yes how could I forget that Leonie cross dresses. But yes she doesn't have fun with it or get into trouble with it in the same way Robin and Pru do.

your height estimates sound about right although in that era everyone was shorter so could be 6', 5'7 and 5'5 without Robin being too midgety. If Letty was 5'1 or so (quite normal for the time) that would still let him be suitably masterful quite a bit taller than her.

Sir Richard - swoon. Actually, he is swept along pissed as a fart, then dying of a hangover for a good while.

Tony needs to be even taller, I think, to make "Mountain" obviously funny. I think he is also broader than some of GH's heroes; he can't be a lanky string bean. Then maybe we can promote Robin to 5'7" ish and keep Pru at 5'9" ish.

It is remarkable how much Pru does get up to, to keep up the facade, given her natural prudence (or perhaps prudery?) and feminine-inclination-to-feebleness. Is it the filial duty thing? There aren't many living, present parents in most literature, in fairness Heyer: are there other examples of such obedience and loyalty?

I love this one, once I got past the first chapter. It's very funny, more so than some of the regency ones- thinking black sheep or April lady. I totally agree Letty is a rather blank character, but it's tony and robins interactions that I enjoy, and pru's dutiful, rather than gleeful, approach to cross dressing. Tony's sister is a bit of an add on, and I find barham very annoying.

I was sure I had a copy of The Masqueraders but am damned if I can find it now. Like Dilys I had a soft spot for Tony, but my abiding recollection is of Prue's habit of secretly chucking wine down the inside of her sleeve when she'd drunk enough. Surely it would have seeped through and she would have been left with a horrid cold dripping arm to explain away?

I struggled to get going with this one and found her writing style quite artificial, as she's copying someone else's style of writing 18th century fiction instead of developing her own natural style that makes the Regency novels so appealing.

I agree with whoever said how interesting it is to read them in order of publication because it is so obvious how much her writing, character development and plots improve as she matures herself and hones her style.

Once I got over the odd, over-the-top style I actually really enjoyed it. I loved Prue and Tony (am a total sucker for a big, strong romantic hero - my feminist leanings up and leave the minute I lay eyes on one ) but wasn't as keen on Robin or Letty. The whole L'Inconnu subplot was slightly ridiculous and I felt GH could have made more of Tremaine's character. Considering he was the whole lynch-pin of the plot and the final denouement was all about him, he seemed very two dimensional to me.

My impression of Tony and his motivation for not telling Prue that he knew she was a woman was so he could keep a protective eye on her without either of them betraying themselves.

And the wine down the sleeve trick bemused me because surely the Mechlin lace cuffs would have been a complete give away? Tipping port or red wine down one's sleeve when the said sleeves start with six inches of lace is going to leave its mark, isn't it?

Yes I can't quite work out the wine/sleeve logistics but I'm sure it comes up in other books (mind blank - Captain Jack and Stogumber?).

Thinking logically, though, the coat sleeves of the period are wide, stiff, and 3/4 length. The shirt sleeves are longer and fluffier. They drank a lot and maybe spilled a reasonable amount to stain their cuffs. The wine glasses are small. I think you tip the wine above your arm, that is between your hand and your mouth. Most of it pools round your elbow somewhere and soaks into the hidden sleeve.

Aren't the lace cuffs separate from the sleeves though? I have a vague recollection of Deborah removing the burned ones from Max Ravenscar and replacing them when he was in her cellar but it's been a long time since I read Faro's Daughter.

The sleeve opening would need to be wide to be able to do it without drawing attention. ::suppresses memories of attempting a similar feat in the back of a taxi to avoid a £50 fine ::

The lady on the Olympic closing ceremony (green dress, sitting on a stool, no idea who she is though) has most helpfully solved the question of the lace cuffs. When one lifts one's arm in a drinking motion the ruffles fall back over the hands leaving the sleeve opening perfectly accessible for the tipping of wine without staining the lace.

She's still have a soggy elbow though...

Some impressive sleeve analysis here! Yes, I think cuffs were separate in those days, and collars too. And until quite recently - I remember in one of the Chalet School novels the heroine has a special drawer of collars and cuffs to attach to her blouse. I think the point was to save on laundry, collars and cuffs being the most likely areas to get soiled.

Some tantalising mentions of Faro's Daughter and The Tollgate above; am looking forward to discussing both. I think The Convenient Marriage (also set in the late 18th century) is next on our list?

Half way through this and enjoying it more than I expected to, having hated it when I first read it years ago. Tony reminds me a bit of Hugo (unknown Ajax), but I don't know if it's just because they're both big, or if it's in the characterisation as well.

Can I ask what comes next??

The Convenient Marriage is next, iirc talkingnonsense, on Monday 20th.

Mine are on the shelf in publication order and TCM is next as we've done whatever comes in between.

I keep meaning to say how much I loved the Venetia Murray book too. It was absolutely fascinating to have so much insight into that era and also to see how many of the RL persons of the time were incorporated by GH. The Almacks patronesses are the obvious ones but several of the males (it's late, I can't think of them off the top of my head) feature as minor characters in their own right.