"A Civil Contract" and "False Colors" book reviews

These are two books I recently finished, by one of my favorite authors: Georgette Heyer


A Civil Contract is rare for a romance, because the hero and heroine get married at nearly the beginning of the book. Like most of Heyer's books, it is set in the Regency time period, the time dominated by Jane Austen. Unlike Jane Austen, though, where the heroines marry for love, A Civil Contract tells the tale of a marriage of convenience.


In a time period where money was a huge issue, Regency marriages were supposed to be advantageous, and love was rarely considered. Of course, novels like to focus on love matches, so it is a breath of fresh air to read one that considers the outcome of an "advantageous match".


The book starts off with Captain Adam Deveril returning home after he gets the news of his father's death. When he arrives, he discovers the family estate in an awful state, highly mortgaged, and he has to face the fact that he has inherited a title (he is now Viscount Lynton), but no fortune. In fact, he is in desparate need of money. He has two younger sisters who have no dowries, a mother to take care of, and an estate in dreadful need of attention. The proper path is to marry an heiress, but he is in love with Julia, who would not suit. A family friend puts him in touch with Mr. Chawleigh.


Mr. Chawleigh is no gentleman, but a man who has made a vast fortune through trade (something looked down on by the gentility). He has a daughter whom he would like to see raised in status, and thinks Viscount Lynton will do. He recognizes Adam's financial state, but is very generous with his money, and promises to aid him, as long as he will take good care of his daughter. Jenny Chawleigh is a serious, practical girl, but she has a good heart and is willing to enter the marriage even knowing that Adam loves another. So they are married. And thus the story starts.


Georgette Heyer has a good sense of humor, and an even better sense of the ridiculous, but this novel of hers has no characters whom she does not make understandable in their ridiculousness. Even the gaudy and officious Mr. Chawleigh has moments of true affection for his daughter. There are several humorous parts also, though fewer than her other book, and the book is quite gentle in tone. It is one of the few books that ends how and when it should. I finished the book and gave a happy and contented sigh.


I'd give it a 7 out of 10.






False Colors is very similar to The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope, but with the Heyer flair. But while Hope's book was more adventure, Heyer's is, of course, a romance/comedy. (The Prisoner of Zenda is also a better book.) The plotline is: Evelyn and Christoper "Kit" are identical twins. Evelyn is living like a lord in London, while Kit has been making a diplomatic career in Vienna. Evelyn is on the wild side, but he has finally decided to settle down and marry Cressida. Kit, the steady one, returns home unexpectedly, and finds Evelyn gone missing, and their mother very worried about him. He has quite vanished, and worse, he is supposed to attend a party the next night to meet all his future in-laws, who will all be offended if he does not show up.


In a moment of levity, Kit hints that since he and Evelyn are identical twins, Kit could always take his brother's place should Evelyn not be back by then. His mother takes him seriously, and Kit finds himself, the next day, posing as his wild brother. And so the adventure starts.


False Colors is not one of Heyer's better ones. It is entertaining, but not much more. The characters are not well drawn, and the plot is thin and stiff at parts.


I'd give it a 4 out of 10.