A Civil Contract Georgette Heyer Pdf Files

Adam Deveril, a hero of Salamanca, returns from the Peninsula War to find his family on the brink of ruin and his ancestral home mortgaged to the hilt. He is now Viscount Lynton, with the responsibility of saving the estate, and the only way to do so is to marry an heiress. He is introduced to Mr. Jonathan Chawleigh, a City man of apparently unlimited wealth and no social Adam Deveril, a hero of Salamanca, returns from the Peninsula War to find his family on the brink of ruin and his ancestral home mortgaged to the hilt.

A Civil Contract is a Regency romance novel by Georgette Heyer, first published in 1961. Set in 1814-1815, it is also a historical novel and follows the general pattern of storytelling of Heyer's other novels. The romantic plot centers on a viscount who reluctantly enters a marriage of convenience with a wealthy commoner's. Absolutely appeal to my love of Character and Story. Anne McCaffrey once compared Bujold to Georgette Heyer, and Bujold herself references this influence in the afterword of A Civil. Campaign, stating that it was named in honor of Heyer's A Civil Contract. Those who read for setting but aren't strictly bound to the Regency.

He is now Viscount Lynton, with the responsibility of saving the estate, and the only way to do so is to marry an heiress. He is introduced to Mr. Jonathan Chawleigh, a City man of apparently unlimited wealth and no social ambitions for himself -- but with his eyes firmly fixed on a suitable match for his only daughter, the quiet and decidedly plain Jenny Chawleigh. This review contains some spoilers I know from reading Jennifer Kloester’s excellent biography of Georgette Heyer* that A Civil Contract was not an easy novel for Heyer to write. Before starting work on it, Heyer wrote to a friend that she wanted to write a new kind of novel that would be “neither farcical nor adventurous”. Heyer wrote that the novel would depend for its success on whether she could make the hero as charming as she believed him to be and also on whether she “could make a quiet st This review contains some spoilers I know from reading Jennifer Kloester’s excellent biography of Georgette Heyer* that A Civil Contract was not an easy novel for Heyer to write. Before starting work on it, Heyer wrote to a friend that she wanted to write a new kind of novel that would be “neither farcical nor adventurous”.

Heyer wrote that the novel would depend for its success on whether she could make the hero as charming as she believed him to be and also on whether she “could make a quiet story interesting”. (Kloester p 330). However, completion of the novel was delayed because Heyer’s mother became ill and required care.

When she went back to writing it, she wrote to her friend that the manuscript remained much where it was – & where it ought to be is in an incinerator & would be if I hadn’t pledged myself to write it. To be honest with you, I do not want to write this book. Or any other book. I have no inspiration, no energy, no enthusiasm, & no power-of-the-pen! I sit & look at the bloody thing, & wonder what can have possessed me to embark on it. I am very glad that Heyer overcame writer’s block and completed the novel.

For while I probably wouldn’t have thought much of it if I’d read it when I first discovered Heyer’s novels at age fourteen, having read it for the first time forty years later I think it is one of her best works. This is the story of Adam Deveril, Viscount Lynton, who fought in the Peninsular War. Returning to England after his father’s death, Adam finds that his father’s extravagant spending has reduced the family fortune to a pittance. Adam’s financial situation is so dire that if he doesn't find a way to acquire money, he will be unable to support his sister and, crucially, he will have to sell the family home. All of this means that Adam cannot marry his beloved, Julia Oversley.

In order to save the family estate, Adam agrees to contract a marriage of convenience with plain and practical Jenny, daughter of the fabulously wealthy but vulgar merchant, Jonathan Chawleigh, who wants his daughter to achieve the social status that marriage into an aristocratic family will bring. Jenny, who is an old school friend of Julia’s, marries Adam knowing that he continues to love Julia. They have a child, Adam manages to win back some of his fortune through speculation and they ultimately settle down to a happy and comfortable – if not passionate –life together. Heyer did manage to achieve something different with this novel. While it doesn't have the sparkling comedy or wit of many of her other novels, it does have other qualities. At its heart, the novel is an exploration of what makes a successful marriage. And Heyer’s conclusion is that it’s not blinding, heart-stopping passion which makes a relationship last, but friendship, kindness, tolerance, patience, a commitment to the same goals and a shared sense of humour.

That’s not something I would have understood or appreciated as a teenager. As someone who has been happily married to the same person for almost thirty-five years, it's now a message that rings true.** That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with a bit of blinding, heart-stopping passion in a marriage. And this is why there’s an undertone of sadness in the final paragraphs of the novel, as Jenny, while assured of Adam’s love for her, is nevertheless conscious that she had had an “impractical dream” of inspiring in Adam the “passionate adoration” that he had felt for Julia. However, Jenny is right in concluding that “life [is] not made up of moments of exaltation, but of quite ordinary, everyday things”, which are “not very romantic, but really much more important than grand passions or blighted loves”. Of all Heyer’s novels, A Civil Contract owes the most to Jane Austen. Indeed, it can be read as a tribute to Austen in general and to in particular.

Heyer establishes the link to Sense and Sensibility very early on, by describing Jenny as someone who “looked as though she had more sense than sensibility”. Shortly thereafter, Jenny says that she is reading a book which is “by the author of Sense and Sensibility”.

Jenny remarks that she liked Sense and Sensibility, although Julia “thought it too humdrum”. It’s not surprising that Julia thought Sense and Sensibility humdrum, because Julia is very much like Marianne Dashwood, in both temperament and in fate. (She eventually acquires an older suitor who knows that she loves another man).

Indeed, the novel can be read as what would have happened if Willoughby had married a rich but physically unattractive woman a lot like Elinor Dashwood in temperament, while still having to see Marianne socially. For Jenny has a lot in common with Elinor: she’s sensible, competent, practical and puts other people’s needs – well, Adam’s needs, anyway – ahead of her own. She’s also a little like Fanny Price from (another novel which Jenny is reported as having read), but only insofar as she is in love with a man she knows loves another woman. Adam’s character can be distinguished from that of Willoughby, though. He is not a cad and while selfish and at times insensitive, he is mostly aware of his faults and makes some effort to overcome them. Of all Adam's shortcomings the worst is probably that he doesn't realise that Jenny actually loves him, and is not just sensible and kind. The parallels to Austen added a lot to my enjoyment of this novel.

However, there’s more to it than that. Adam and Jenny are interesting characters in their own right.

Jonathan Chawleigh is a masterpiece. (Heyer wrote that he “continually tried to steal the whole book, & had to be firmly pushed off the stage”. Kloester page 334).

Adam’s sister Lydia is enchanting and his annoying mother and overbearing aunt are a lot of fun. The novel also benefits from its historical setting. Heyer sets the narrative at the time of the premature celebrations that followed the initial defeat of Napoleon in 1814 and the financial panic which preceded the victory at Waterloo the following year.

Her research is excellent and historical detail is conveyed in an unforced manner, without resorting to the dreaded information dump. While my fourteen-year-old self would not have appreciated this novel to the extent it deserves, my adult self appreciates it a lot. And while I rather wish I’d read it some years ago, I’m very glad that I've finally done so. This was another enjoyable buddy read with my friend Jemidar. * ** ETA: I don't mean to imply that these factors are a substitute for love in a successful relationship.

Rather, they are an important part of what constitutes love. This is the fifth Heyer I've read, and it's my favorite to date. Given that Georgette Heyer wrote dozens of books, I still have a way to go before I can claim it as my favorite of all, but I think I've sampled enough to get a feel for the type of books she wrote and the character styles she favorited. A Civil Contract is a departure from the Heyer romantic plotlines. Although marriages of convenience are standard regency romance fare, Heyer takes this and stands it on its head by keeping the hero This is the fifth Heyer I've read, and it's my favorite to date. Given that Georgette Heyer wrote dozens of books, I still have a way to go before I can claim it as my favorite of all, but I think I've sampled enough to get a feel for the type of books she wrote and the character styles she favorited. A Civil Contract is a departure from the Heyer romantic plotlines.

Although marriages of convenience are standard regency romance fare, Heyer takes this and stands it on its head by keeping the hero and heroine from ever (yes, EVER) discovering wild, heart-stopping *lurve*. There is no conventional HEA. No passionate liplock or smoldering declaration of deathly love from our hero and heroine.

The hero of the story, Adam, is young, vaguely stupid at times, and unintentionally cruel to his lower-class wife throughout the book. Our heroine, Jenny, is not your typical romantic powerhouse at all: She's lower class, dowdy, short-necked, and red-faced. She's also possessed of a meek nature that rarely takes her lordly husband to task for all his slights to her and she seeks only to make him comfortable.

She's even willing to help him through his unrealistic obssession with the beautiful and vapid Julia (who would typically be the poster girl for romantic heroines the Regency world over). Gentle reader, I found it refreshing. I'm so sick of perfect Mary Sue/Gary Stu characters that look like models, smell like freesia, and fart rainbows and unicorns out their perfectly proportioned buttocks. Oh, sure, it's fun for the first 1,000 or so books, but after 1,001, this wish-fulfillment perfection becomes as stale and repulsive as your breath after a weekend bender. At least it does to me. ACC isn't for the HEA obsessed, but for those readers who like a little more realism added to their regency reading romps. Perhaps a bit of age or general cynicism is also helpful in enjoying this book (both qualities I've got in spades).

If you're thinking of reading Heyer for this first time, don't pick up A Civil Contract, as it really doesn't fit her general mold. But if you're tired of the same 'ole/same 'ole complete with the HEA, give this one a try. Having just read a god awful Pride and Prejudice ‘sequel’, I wanted to read a bona fide Regency romance, and picked one by no one less than Georgette Heyer, the originator of the genre, and perhaps the only romance novelist who comes with glowing recommendations from A.S. Not being a romance reader, I didn’t know what to expect, but I thought that this book is one decidedly odd romance. Imagine pitching it as a rom com/costume drama script to a Hollywood studio executive: Studio Executive Having just read a god awful Pride and Prejudice ‘sequel’, I wanted to read a bona fide Regency romance, and picked one by no one less than Georgette Heyer, the originator of the genre, and perhaps the only romance novelist who comes with glowing recommendations from A.S.

Not being a romance reader, I didn’t know what to expect, but I thought that this book is one decidedly odd romance. Imagine pitching it as a rom com/costume drama script to a Hollywood studio executive: Studio Executive (EXEC): “So what do we have here? A Civil Contract? Is it a John Grisham thing? Scriptwriter (SW): “It’s a story about marriage of convenience in Regency England. A sort of a period rom com, actually.” EXEC: “Oh, Jane Austen!

Costume drama! Pride and Prejudice was pretty good, and that little Anne Hathaway movie did OK. Chicks like them.

” SW: “It’s not from any Jane Austen book, but it's from a novel set in the same period. Specifically, it’s about the people who are involved in this marriage of convenience: the mercenary groom, the social climbing father-in-law, and the plain bride.” EXEC: “You mean they marry just for the money?” SW: “The hero --- Adam Lynton --- has to marry the heroine, Jenny, because otherwise he would go bankrupt. You see, the guy’s dad, the late Viscount Lynton, left the ancestral estate so deeply in debt that the only way to save it is for Adam to marry rich. Chawleigh, a filthy rich, self-made man from humble backgrounds, who desperately wants to marry his daughter to the ‘nobs’.” EXEC: “So this Adam guy --- he just ran with it?” SW: “Uh, no. He’s kinda of reluctant, actually, being a gentleman and all. But as the head of the family, he needs to take care of his old mom, and provide dowries for his sisters.

There’s just no other way out. He thinks that he’s sacrificing himself for the good of his family.” EXEC: “Okay. So, how plain is the girl? I’m thinking Natalie Portman --- or that Hathaway girl. Just put her in some kind of a dowdy getup.” SW: “Actually, she’s kinda short and plump --- “a little squab figure” is the word that’s used to describe her in the novel.” EXEC: “Eh --- gotta get someone petite for her, then. But she’s basically okay looking, right?” SW: “Umm, no. The novel says that she’s certainly not a beauty with her short neck and “mouse-coloured hair”.

And she dresses funny.” EXEC: (grumbles) “How’s that gonna sell the movie?” SW: “But she’s a sensible girl, and pretty shrewd too. She knows that her husband doesn’t love her, but gets up early every morning just to make tea for him anyway. She personally embroiders his handkerchiefs with super tiny stitches.

She makes sure that there’s hot supper on the table, no matter how late he returns home. Men like to be comfortable, and by golly, she’s gonna make him very comfortable.” EXEC: “Is that all she does? No dashing across the moor on a spirited stallion? No clever, witty talk? No ahead-of-her-time intellectual interests?

She’s a born housewife whose sole purpose in life is to make her husband comfortable.” EXEC: “Fantastic! We’re gonna have the movie picketed by every wannabe feminist in town.” SW: “But she’s feisty --- in her own way. She keeps the ancestral house spick-and-span. She reins in her snobby mother-in-law like an expert horsewoman. She transcends her vulgar background to become a proper lady.

And she eventually wins herself a handsome nobleman who in normal circumstances is way out of her league.” EXEC: (skeptical) “But where’s the drama? That can’t be all there is?” SW: “Before he was compelled to marry Jenny, Adam dated Julia ---the beautiful daughter of Lord Oversley, another rich nob --- and Jenny’s best friend from school. Julia’s dad put an end to their budding romance, because he wouldn’t have a bankrupt Viscount as son in law.

But the two still have the hots for each other, even though Adam is now kind of married.” EXEC: “So that’s what the audience has to sit through the movie? Whether plain Jenny will be successful in making her husband so comfortable, that he’ll overcome his first love and fall in love with her?” SW: “Yep.

That would be the gist of it.” It’s as if, having written dozens of romances, Heyer decided to throw herself a challenge and deliberately picked the most unpromising premise for a romance. The heroine is hopelessly plain, and virtually has nothing to make her distinguished other than her ability to be an uber Martha Stewart. The hero, despite being conventionally handsome, married her for mercenary reasons. Despite all this, Heyer managed to tell an enjoyable, even occasionally amusing story about the coming together of basically decent people who try to do their best under tawdry circumstances. There is no passionate sighs or heaving bosoms here, just the gradual triumph of prosaic sensibility (and homemaking ability) over “impractical” youthful passion. That’s a pretty subversive notion for a romance.

The one interesting thing about Jenny for me is her true motivation in accepting the marriage of convenience. She knew that Adam was her best friend’s beau and yet has little compunction in ‘stealing’ him when circumstances permitted. This seems to be grossly at odds with the rest of her characterization as a modest, sensitive, eminently sensible little homemaker. She rationalizes her actions as making the best of a bad situation (“The choice is not between you, Julia, and me, but between me and ruin!”), but it doesn’t ring true to me (Come on Jenny, admit it, you’ve got the hots for the guy since like, forever --- and you snatched him up when there’s opportunity. I don’t blame you, girl). I wish that Heyer had explored this further, but perhaps it’s too much to ask from this genteel romance. 3.5 stars, rounding up: this is a story that has grown on me.

A Civil Contract is a marriage of convenience tale, very different from Georgette Heyer's other Regency novels that I've read. There is a romance at the heart of it, as usual, but it's a little bit practical-minded and a little bit heartbreaking, as well as heartwarming.

Captain Adam Deveril, now Lord Lynton, returns to his ancestral home from the Napoleonic wars when his father unexpectedly dies. Unfortunately, he also returns home t 3.5 stars, rounding up: this is a story that has grown on me. A Civil Contract is a marriage of convenience tale, very different from Georgette Heyer's other Regency novels that I've read. There is a romance at the heart of it, as usual, but it's a little bit practical-minded and a little bit heartbreaking, as well as heartwarming. Captain Adam Deveril, now Lord Lynton, returns to his ancestral home from the Napoleonic wars when his father unexpectedly dies.

Unfortunately, he also returns home to a mountain of debt left by his profligate father, more than he can ever hope to pay off. Initially Adam decides to sell his estate and any valuable assets, but that will still leave him with insufficient funds to take care of his family, a mother and two sisters. The only alternative: marry an heiress, suggests his money manager. Adam finds the idea completely abhorrent, especially since he's just broken up with the lovely girl he loves, Julia Oversley, because he can't afford to marry her.

But Julia's father has the same idea as Adam's manager: if he can't marry for love, he should save his land and home and marry someone with money. Oversley introduces him to an impressively vulgar but good-natured middle class businessman (or 'Cit'), Mr Chawleigh, whose wish in life is for his shy daughter to be able to marry a man with a title. And when Adam's teenage sister starts talking about marrying an old man for his money or pursuing a career as a stage actress, that's the last straw.

Adam agrees to the marriage of convenience with Jenny Chawleigh, a plump and dowdy girl whom he barely knows. Chawleigh buys up Adam's mortgages and debts and gives the couple enough money to take care of their needs. Adam is trying his best to be kind to Jenny, but he resents her father's showering them with ostentatious gifts, and he's still in love with Julia, who never misses an opportunity to let him know that she's also still painfully in love with him.

Jenny (who's actually been in love with Adam ever since she met him through Julia) is trying to make the best of their marriage as well, but it's difficult when you're rather shy and unattractive and your husband is in love with your beautiful, vivacious best friend. A Civil Contract was the April 2016 monthly read for the Georgette Heyer group, and we've had some rousing discussions in the discussion threads about whether Adam made the best choice, whether Jenny was a terrible person for marrying the man her best friend Julia was in love with (but forbidden to marry), and whether this is even a good book. Opinions vary widely, but I found both Adam and Jenny to be honorable people, trying to make the best of the circumstances they're in.

The choices for both of them were very limited by their circumstances and the social restrictions of the time. Georgette Heyer was a bit of a snob and regularly dealt in stereotypes. Jenny's brash, vulgar father, and Jenny's own physical and social shortcomings, seem to support the disdain the gentry had for 'Cits,' the working class. But at the same time, both of these became very real characters to me, and the story wouldn't have been the same if Adam's choice of wife had been an easier one to adapt to.

The romantic part of me wished for more of a Cinderella moment for Jenny and/or more of a glorious Happily Ever After for her, but Heyer handled this in a more realistic way. Julia and Jenny are, personality-wise, quite a bit like Elinor and Marianne in Jane Austen's, and Heyer's characters mention that novel several times, just to make sure we don't miss the point. Julia, like Marianne, is a bit over-the-top, but I always did sympathize more with the sensible characters. This book won't end up on my favorites list; there's a little too much pain and not enough joy and humor for me to really love it as a romance, and there's also a heavy dose of Napoleonic history toward the end that, frankly, I started skimming through. But I did find much to appreciate in it, not the least the importance of behaving with kindness and honor despite adverse circumstances. GH's most unromantic romance. But does romantic love last anyway or does it change to comfortable companionship?

GH explores this theme with (as usual for her) a rich cast of colourful characters & she deftly weaves some real life history into the plot. She handles several romantic plots with considerable aplomb. Like many of her later romances, Adam isn't an idle aristocrat - he is originally a soldier, then becomes a gentleman farmer - & he is called home to England when his recently de GH's most unromantic romance. But does romantic love last anyway or does it change to comfortable companionship? GH explores this theme with (as usual for her) a rich cast of colourful characters & she deftly weaves some real life history into the plot.

She handles several romantic plots with considerable aplomb. Like many of her later romances, Adam isn't an idle aristocrat - he is originally a soldier, then becomes a gentleman farmer - & he is called home to England when his recently deceased father brings the estate to the point of ruin. Rather than lose the estate (Fontley)Adam gives up the girl he loves & marries Jenny - daughter of a Cit. While Jenny always loved Adam, Adam [comes to love Jenny and appreciates he is better with a practical wife who will create a comfortable home, than Julia who is in modern terms, a bit of a drama queen! [ ] I've read quite a few of Heyer's novels and this one struck me as particularly interesting.

Heyer is a legend among romance readers--her characters have depth, the events make sense, and while these are books with more talk than action, that talk is lively and always well written. Heyer's novels fall into a few categories: silly, young heroine marries worldly hero and the two agree to a 'French' marriage, only to discover they are in love; older, independent, soph [ ] I've read quite a few of Heyer's novels and this one struck me as particularly interesting. Heyer is a legend among romance readers--her characters have depth, the events make sense, and while these are books with more talk than action, that talk is lively and always well written.

Heyer's novels fall into a few categories: silly, young heroine marries worldly hero and the two agree to a 'French' marriage, only to discover they are in love; older, independent, sophisticated woman finally meets a man that's up to scratch and is persuaded to marry; independent, free-spirited mature lady (i.e., in her twenties) wreaks havoc among society before finally being convinced to settle down; older woman resists a convenient marriage to an even older eligible bachelor, only to find that said bachelor is in fact in love with her. A Civil Contract isn't quite like any of those. Adam returns from Salamanca only to discover that his newly inherited estates are heavily mortgaged. His only choice is to sell the family seat or to marry a wealthy heiress. He gives in and weds plain (but loaded) Jenny Chawleigh, but sacrifices his own happiness in the bargain--settling for money means he can never marry Julia, the beautiful young woman he's been in love with for a few years. Practical Jenny decides at the outset that she's determined to make him comfortable, and so she sets up his house, makes sure his favorite macaroons are always around, has a son, and generally turns a blind eye to the fact that her husband practically drools every time Julia walks into the room. The usual antics ensue in which patient, devoted Jenny martyrs herself on the altar of domesticity and good housekeeping, while Julia turns out to be a selfish flirt.

The novel is odd however: Jenny has a son. This is the only Heyer novel (to my knowledge) in which the heroine has a child. Given the awkwardness of many of the scenes between Jenny and her husband, the romantic fantasy is radically disrupted by the idea that (within the framework of the romance formula) these two practically perfect strangers are 'breeding' (as Jenny puts it). Heyer even incorporates this break into the story itself: Julia, upon learning of Jenny's pregnancy, can only utter 'Only to be expected. How--how stupid of me!'

Julia could well be echoing the reader's own thoughts on this topic. The pregnancy, instead of drawing the couple closer together, has only heightened their conflicts and brought to the surface both Adam's emotional infidelity and his lack of respect for the excellent qualities in his wife. It is, in fact, only to be expected that even a marriage of convenience would result in children, and yet this is the only Heyer novel in which this occurs. Such a plot structure hardly bodes well for a satisfactory 'happy ending.' To Heyer's credit, she doesn't give in, either. It would be so easy to make Adam suddenly do a 180, but this is not a novel that can end happily--Adam is selfish and thoughtless. Jenny, despite her refreshingly prosaic nature, has determined to devote her entire life to making Adam comfortable and happy.

The novel ends with Adam admitting that he loves his wife and that he couldn't do without her. Julia becomes 'only a boy's impractical dream,' but practical Jenny must admit to herself that Adam still loves his dream more than he loves his reality. Jenny argues to herself 'they would have many years of quiet content: never reaching the heights, but living together in comfort and deepening friendship... I daresay I'm better off as things are.' Once again, the romance reader cannot help but agree with such an assessment, and yet admitting Jenny is right is paramount to admitting the fallacy of romance fiction, in which 'heights' and 'deepening friendship' go hand-in-hand, just like the simultaneous orgasm.

Heyer has written a wonderful anti-romance romance, and yet it seems very fitting to me that this should be her only one. I am going to gush. I've read a lot of Georgette Heyer - as the originator of the regency romance, she is a hugely influential author. She is a talented, careful writer with a flair for comedy, and some of her best books are also some of her funniest. A Civil Contract is a departure from her usual formula, and it knocked my socks off. It begins with Adam Deveril being forced to return home from his position in the Army, as his spendthrift father has unexpectedly died in a riding accident, and he h I am going to gush.

I've read a lot of Georgette Heyer - as the originator of the regency romance, she is a hugely influential author. She is a talented, careful writer with a flair for comedy, and some of her best books are also some of her funniest. A Civil Contract is a departure from her usual formula, and it knocked my socks off. It begins with Adam Deveril being forced to return home from his position in the Army, as his spendthrift father has unexpectedly died in a riding accident, and he has inherited Fontley, the rapidly deteriorating family seat, and a whole pile of debt incurred by his improvident parent. I'm sure he intended to remake the family fortunes, if he could step away from the gaming table/horse races long enough to stop losing money, but whatevs, dad.

Adam is most definitely not cut from same cloth as his father, though they may share a tailor. He is a clear-eyed realist with some actual scruples, and it becomes apparent that Fontley is going to have to be sold to pay for the debts left behind when dad kicked off the mortal coil. His business manager is relieved to note that Adam doesn't seem to have many illusions about winning back the family fortunes on the turn of a card, but isn't thrilled to see the family seat go out of the family, and suggests that Adam look about for an heiress to marry. Adam, on the other hand, is deeply infatuated with the sylph-like Julia Oversley, this year's most popular and sought after debutante. And Julia reciprocates these affections. He realizes that he can't marry Julia, given that once Fontley is sold he will quite literally not even have a pot to pee in, but in the interests of love, he is going to sacrifice himself on the altar of bachelorhood.

And then he meets Jonathan Chawleigh, a wealthy Cit whose made his fortune in trade. Here there be cashflow. Chawleigh has no illusions about Adam being likely to fall in love with his daughter, the ordinary Jenny, but that's all right with him. He wants Jenny to marry into a social class to which he himself will never gain entry.

While he was hoping for an Earl, Adam, a mere Viscount, will do. He meets Jenny. Small, a bit plump, with a short neck, she is no Julia.

But they get on, a bit, and agree to marry. 'He was obliged to master an impulse to retreat, and to tell himself that her acceptance of the proposed match was no more coldblooded than his own. He was quite as pale as she, and he replied, in a strained voice: ‘Miss Chawleigh, if you feel that you could bear it I shall count myself fortunate. I won’t offer you false coin. To make the sort of protestations natural to this occasion would be to insult you, but you may believe me sincere when I say that if you do me the honour to marry me I shall try to make you happy.’ She got up. Don’t think of that!

I don’t wish you to try to – Only to be comfortable! I hope I can make you so: I’ll do my best. And you’ll tell me what you wish me to do – or if I do something you don’t like – won’t you?’' And so it begins. They marry, and try to make a life together.

There are several times in this book where my heart just broke for Jenny. She is obviously in love with Adam - she had been friendly with Julia and had met him while he danced attendance on her much prettier friend. But she is wise beyond her years, and realizes that while she cannot compete with Julia in looks or fairylike appeal, she is married to him, and Julia is not. She sets out to make a place for herself the only way she knows how: by becoming the mistress of Fontley, by not complaining if he is late, by making sure he has his tea how he likes it. If this sounds like Jenny is masquerading as a Golden Retriever, well, I can understand that. But that's not how it felt.

It felt wise. And generous. And, in the end, Jenny shows herself to be a better person, and a better wife, than the immature and self-centered Julia would have been. Speaking to Julia as she makes the claim that it is Jenny who has gained the most as a result of the marriage, Adam says: 'He did not answer for a moment, and then he said gently: ‘I owe Jenny a great deal, you know.

She studies all the time to please me, never herself. Our marriage – isn’t always easy, for either of us, but she tries to make it so, and behaves more generously than I do. Given her so much! You know better than to say that, my dear! I had nothing to give her but a title – and I wonder sometimes if she sets any more store by that than you would.' Finally, charmingly, convincingly, Adam falls in love with 'his Jenny,' not in the infatuated way that a callow youth loves a lovely girl, but with gentle and real commitment: 'Yet, after all, Jenny thought that she had been granted more than she had hoped for when she had married him. He did love her: differently, but perhaps more enduringly; and he had grown to depend on her.

She thought that they would have many years of quiet content: never reaching the heights, but living together in comfort and deepening friendship. Well, you can’t have it both ways, she thought, and I couldn’t live in alt all the time, so I daresay I’m better off as things are.' And so, Heyer convinces me that, in the end, they will be a truly happy couple. Adam will fondly remember his brief but passionate love for Julia. But he will always come home to Jenny, because she, as it turns out, is the love of his life. 'After all, life was not made up of moments of exaltation, but of quite ordinary, everyday things.'

A Georgette Heyer Regency Romance unlike any other she wrote. Farming Simulator 2013 Free Download Full Game For Android. It's one of the most hotly debated about Heyer stories because it is hate and loved in equal turns. She, herself, hated it at least in the middle of writing it. Personally, I think it is one of her best and delves deep into the unromantic side of romance, unrequited love, secret love, friendship, class differences, and marriages of convenience all in one. The characters are still colorful and sparkling.

There are the witty dialogues if A Georgette Heyer Regency Romance unlike any other she wrote. It's one of the most hotly debated about Heyer stories because it is hate and loved in equal turns. She, herself, hated it at least in the middle of writing it. Personally, I think it is one of her best and delves deep into the unromantic side of romance, unrequited love, secret love, friendship, class differences, and marriages of convenience all in one. The characters are still colorful and sparkling.

There are the witty dialogues if not as frequent and some humor. There is also a bittersweet flavor. A heroine who is a decided underdog in personality, appearance, and ability must find her way against a rival for the affection and respect of a man who married for necessity and resents his situation. I loved seeing shy, awkward Jenny paired with the dashing, disappointed Adam. I read this one for the first time when in my thirties. I point this out because I think it makes a difference where one is at in age and life as to how this book will speak to them.

I never was a dreamy romantic teen, but I don't think I would have understood enough about relationships to appreciate this book if I had read it then. I would have liked it because when all is said and done; its a good story. But, I might not have loved it and praised it as one of her best like I do now.

It's not light, flirty, and easy as most. It's more akin to her historicals like The Spanish Bride or An Infamous Army of which its a contemporary story set during the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Heyer really put in the time with how a marriage of convenience, particularly with partners from a different class, would work out for them and their families. There are nuances in this one and little bits of discovery.

Jenny's motives all along are deliberately kept vague until near the end. Characters on the peripheral like Lord Rockhill and Lord Brough see things so much more clearly than others who are close to the source.

The hero, Adam, is so lost, defeated, bitter, and angry. I liked that she brought him along slowly until he came into his own learning his own worth and that of Jenny. The book ends at the place that some might describe as more open-ended than happily ever after. It leaves things at a point where it is easy to see the direction for the future depending on how the reader understood the vague subtleties. Much of the obvious, open conflict is resolved, but yet, it leaves off without making any big, solid declarations about the future as the beginning of something new has started. All in all, I think it shows another facet to the writer's storytelling.

This one is a not so obvious gem and great if the reader is looking for marriage of convenience and class difference tropes all in one. Adam Deveril of the Duke of Wellington's 52nd Regiment has only recently returned to active combat duty after being wounded when he learns of the tragic death of his father, Viscount, Lord Lynton of Lincolnshire. He is more shocked to learn that his father died in massive debt and their estate, Fontley Priory is mortgaged to the hilt.

Adam has only one choice: sell. How can he sell his family home? He has a mother and two younger sisters to support.

Even if Charlotte accepts her belov Adam Deveril of the Duke of Wellington's 52nd Regiment has only recently returned to active combat duty after being wounded when he learns of the tragic death of his father, Viscount, Lord Lynton of Lincolnshire. He is more shocked to learn that his father died in massive debt and their estate, Fontley Priory is mortgaged to the hilt.

Adam has only one choice: sell. How can he sell his family home? He has a mother and two younger sisters to support. Arasu Kannada Movie Songs Free Download 320kbps.

Even if Charlotte accepts her beloved Lambert (despite Mama's disapproval), there's still Lydia to support and dower. Sell he must. Adam's man of business proposes another solution: marry an heiress. The idea is repugnant to Adam. Though he is in love with the beautiful Julia Oversley, she is not the heiress he needs but neither can he offer marriage situated as he is on the brink of ruin. Julia's father, Lord Oversley, agrees with Wimmering that Adam should marry an heiress and he has just the woman in mind.

Lord Oversley has an acquaintance, a friend you could say, in the City with a very nice daughter of marriageable age. When Adam first meets Jonathan Chawleigh he is aghast at the idea of having this larger than life man with a loud voice and poor taste in clothes as his relative, but Jonathan Chawleigh is a man used to getting his own way and before Adam can really object, he finds himself married to Chawleigh's only child, Jenny. He vaguely remembers Jenny as one of the satellites orbiting Julia aiding his recovery but he can't really recall anything about the woman.

Jenny Chawleigh is neither beautiful nor a sparkling wit. She's dumpy and shy but she lacks the sensibility necessary for a grand romance and promises to do her best to make Adam happy. This is Georgette Heyer's un-romance novel. It's completely different from anything else she ever wrote. It starts off very similar with the familiar old characters: the military hero, the drama queen Mama, the saintly sister, the hoydenish sister, the beautiful girlfriend and a proposed marriage of convenience. The beginning of the story moves very slowly.

It took me longer than normal to read this book because the first half didn't really hold my interest. I found it a little too concerned with boring details about estate management, farming and domestic comfort.

The last half of the book picks up and I couldn't put it down. I wasn't quite sure how it would all work out.

The dust jacket describes this book as 'a social comedy at its happiest.' That is not how I would describe the novel. It has funny moments and happy moments but most of it is more sober and mature than Heyer's other novels. Here Heyer offers us a look at what she considers a successful marriage. There is some great commentary here and some lovely passages describing the characters' relationship.

The sense side of me really valued the novel for this interesting and realistic look at marriage but the sensibility side prefers the marriage plot romances. Adam is a complicated character. He is the only surviving son which puts a great burden on him. He's lived with the knowledge of his father's hedonistic lifestyle his entire life but couldn't do anything to stop his father from ruining himself. Adam is first and foremost in his mind a soldier.

His family's happiness and comfort has to take precedence over that and it's difficult for him to adjust. He's also very proud and his pride can make him prickly and sometimes even subtly cruel. I didn't like the way he treated Jenny at first but I know he was still grieving for his old life and too proud to admit he didn't know what he was doing and the situation was out of his control.

I think this is the first time in Adam's adult life he has had to make decisions. In the army he did what he was told and make decisions based on what wouldn't get himself and his men killed. Transition to civilian life is tough for Adam. This really comes out at the end, on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo when he can't believe the world is going on much as it did before. I grew to like Adam a lot by the end of the novel. His character growth is amazing as he comes to terms with his situation and starts trying a little harder to be a good husband.

I really liked Jenny. I can relate to being dumpy, shy and sensible. I don't think she's a doormat as some people have criticized her. She does try hard to please Adam and be the 'angel in the house' that was becoming the ideal. Jenny agreed to the marriage, so it was her choice.

She knows not to expect romance. She's aware of Adam's feelings for Julia and how Julia considered Adam hers.

Jenny has no illusions that her marriage will be the be all end all of romantic lobe stories. She takes the time to learn what Adam likes and how to make him happy. I think that is what a good partner does. They take an interest in the other's activities and interests. Jenny does have opinions and she knows how to get things done. She can be forceful when she wants and after bottling up all her emotions, she pops like a cork in a bottle and it all comes out!

She is a much better wife for Adam than Julia. The one thing that bugged me about her was her excessive use of slang. I don't know where or how she picked it up but all the characters use the same slang and understand each other though they come from different backgrounds. It doesn't bother me in other books but because Jenny's father is nouveau riche (a 'mushroom') and she's an only child, it didn't quite ring true. Julia is not a character the sensible reader will like.

She's not like Marianne Dashwood. Julia is a spoiled brat who thinks the universe revolves around her. She's used to having men fall in love with her and Adam is kind of different because he's a wounded war hero. She's romanticized him in her mind and also romanticized The Priory. Julia needs to be the shining star of her universe. She needs to be loved and adored while Adam just wants to be a comfortable farmer. Julia is a lot like the awful Tiffany in but not quite as horrible.

Julia's parents are aware of her faults and her father knows that as much as he loves his daughter, she would never make a good wife for Adam. In a way, I almost feel bad for Julia because her personality is not one that attracts young men to marriage and her story is kind of sad. As always, Heyer populates her book with some quirky secondary characters. The largest being Jonathan Chawleigh.

A 'Cit,' he's a businessman to the core who scrabbled his way up from nothing. He loves to throw money around and has horrendous taste but his heart is pure gold. He is a doting Papa and loves his only daughter. Though he wants a title for her and to have her accepted into society, it's for her mother's sake.

It was her mother's dream and not Jonathan's. He wants nothing for himself except the happiness of his beloved daughter. He loves to lavish gifts on people because it makes him happy to make them happy. Or at least he hopes they'll be happy. He's not very good at choosing the right gifts but he means well. He doesn't understand Adam and Adam doesn't really understand Jonathan. The next larger than life character is Adam's little sister Lydia.

Not yet 'out' she has a limited view of the real world. She's stuffed her head full of silly romances and gothic novels. She's so young and innocent she thinks sacrificing herself to marry an old man or becoming an actress is romantic. She has no conception of what treading the boards actually meant and how it would affect her family.

Lydia adds a lot of comic relief to the novel. She's lively and fun and for some reason, Jenny really responds to the younger girl's enthusiasm. I love how loyal and kind Lydia is without being a boring goody goody like her sister Charlotte. Lydia's story is a coming of age plot where she comes to understand how real life marriages are messy and complicated and vastly different from the fairy tales she has imagined. Like Julia, Lydia is happy when someone pays attention to her, but unlike Julia she's not selfish or 'puffed up on her own consequence.' I loved her and wished she was in more of the novel. Another character I loved and wished there was more of was Aunt Nasington.

She reminded me of a Maggie Smith character and if the BBC and PBS want to team up to produce a series of Georgette Heyer adaptations, Maggie Smith would be the best choice for Adam's aunt. She comes on to direct the action, utter a bon mot and then she exits again. I also really liked Adam's friend Brough. He was funny and comes across as stupid when he isn't really. He's a loyal friend and a good brother. Besides Julia, the one character I couldn't stand was Adam's mother.

She's a lot like an older version of Julia. She makes mountains out of molehills and revers the memory of her late rakehell husband when he doesn't deserve it.

She's selfish and manipulative. The Dowager Lady Lynton is a character type Georgette Heyer used in other novels. Read this once you are past the starry eyed romantic stage of life. This is not a conventional romance or a conventional Heyer.

It's not even. It's different but I liked it more than I thought I would. I hate to confess this, but I am really not a GH fan. I have read them all, but srsly, I just don't feel the love. Probably because the very first GH I ever read was this one, and it damn near ruined my appreciation for historicals for life. All I can say is thank goodness I soon ran into Candace Camp and Marion Chesney and most especially Loretta Chase and Elizabeth Neff Walker's pretty much saved the entire Regency Genre for me.

This is an excellently written novel, unfortu I hate to confess this, but I am really not a GH fan. I have read them all, but srsly, I just don't feel the love. Probably because the very first GH I ever read was this one, and it damn near ruined my appreciation for historicals for life.

All I can say is thank goodness I soon ran into Candace Camp and Marion Chesney and most especially Loretta Chase and Elizabeth Neff Walker's pretty much saved the entire Regency Genre for me. This is an excellently written novel, unfortunately it is not very romantic. I realize Ms. Heyer was trying to convey the realities of an arranged marriage but I read romance novels for the happy ever after and the ending of this novel was anything but. My heart breaks for Jenny who is faced with the prospect of a continuing marriage with more love on her side than on his. Adam is carelessly affectionate towards her, and seems content, but you just know a few years down the road he'll have some discreet, pretty mistress and Jenny will be stuck.

This is one time I wish the heroine could have gotten a fabulous lover who would make her feel as loved and adored as Adam initially felt for Julia. I don't think Adam can ever appreciate just how much Jenny had to adjust to be married to him and he will never appreciate how much she loves him. The writing itself is very good, but every time I read this novel I always wish Ms.

Heyer had put in some illuminating moment for Adam to realize what a great treasure he found in Jenny and would have him tell her how much he adored her. All in all a fascinating novel to read but definitely not a romance. Aww, Georgette Heyer. How come I never review her books? I became a huge Heyer fan in my romantic teens, and I have to say, her books never pall; if anything I enjoy them even more now that I am wallowing in my middle years. I remember being disappointed when I read this book first: it's about Adam, whose profligate father dies, leaving him penniless and unable to marry the beautiful and romantic Julia. Julia's father, sympathetic to Adam's dire financial straits, puts him in the way of marrying Aww, Georgette Heyer.

How come I never review her books? I became a huge Heyer fan in my romantic teens, and I have to say, her books never pall; if anything I enjoy them even more now that I am wallowing in my middle years. I remember being disappointed when I read this book first: it's about Adam, whose profligate father dies, leaving him penniless and unable to marry the beautiful and romantic Julia. Julia's father, sympathetic to Adam's dire financial straits, puts him in the way of marrying Jenny Chawleigh, the plain, practical daughter of a blunt, ill-bred (but rather endearing)rich London merchant. So, though his heart is Julia's, Adam marries Jenny - who secretly loves him. I didn't like this much when I wa sixteen, because I wanted Adam and Julia to end up together - or Adam and Jenny to find true love. And what actually happens is somewhat different.

But I'm a lot older now, and this has become possibly my favorite Heyer. I love the encounters between the elegant Adam and his rough-hewn father-in-law - especially when Mr. Chawleigh tries to 'smarten the young couple up a trifle.' It's so sweet! Heyer makes me do the happy dance. Settling for someone you don’t love, and then finding value, and it’s good. And your life is better.

Readers in the mood for “true love” with passion and seduction, will not want this. Some find it sad. Although I wasn’t sad. I felt calm and pleased at the end.

THE STORY: Adam’s father dies leaving huge debts. Adam needs to sell the family’s London house and possibly the ancestral home. A friend arranges a meeting between Adam and Jonathan a wealthy business man. Jonathan wants a title for his daug Settling for someone you don’t love, and then finding value, and it’s good.

And your life is better. Readers in the mood for “true love” with passion and seduction, will not want this.

Some find it sad. Although I wasn’t sad. I felt calm and pleased at the end. THE STORY: Adam’s father dies leaving huge debts.

Adam needs to sell the family’s London house and possibly the ancestral home. A friend arranges a meeting between Adam and Jonathan a wealthy business man. Jonathan wants a title for his daughter Jenny. In return he will pay Adam’s mortgages and other things. The wedding is arranged and occurs.

OPINION: I loved watching Jenny. She is short, stout, unattractive, and quiet. She knows Adam will never look at her with romantic feelings. She accepts that.

Her goal is to give Adam a comfortable life. She turns out to be an ideal wife. Things she does are perfect for what is needed. She is thoughtful, cares about others, and desires to please both her father and husband. She has become one of my favorite characters.

So solid, so true. And at the end, Adam realizes what a treasure he has in her. This book is not romantic love. It’s a different kind of love. Before Adam met Jenny, he and Julia had a romantic love - an infatuation. Adam never felt that way for Jenny.

But at the end, Adam was comfortable, laughing, and happy in his life with Jenny. A few times my mind wandered.

I forget what those parts were about. Some of them were military things. So I wasn’t fully engaged all the way through. But I enjoyed the relationships and characters as a nice change from traditional romance, which the author is famous for. The narrator Phyllida Nash was good. DATA: Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 13 hrs and 37 mins.

Swearing language: The word God a few times. Sexual content: none. Setting: 1814 to 1815 England.

Book Copyright: 1961. Genre: relationship fiction, regency. This is a book that is hard to love as an impressionable adolescent but is highly valued by more mature fans of GH and gains appeal with every reread. Yet it has a tinge of melancholy throughout due to the fact that Adam sacrifices himself for his family/estate by marrying Jenny for her money, and he (at least initially) believes she is marrying him for his title, whereas in fact, although she is in some way willing to please her father (who wants her to marry into the aristocracy) she secretly This is a book that is hard to love as an impressionable adolescent but is highly valued by more mature fans of GH and gains appeal with every reread. Yet it has a tinge of melancholy throughout due to the fact that Adam sacrifices himself for his family/estate by marrying Jenny for her money, and he (at least initially) believes she is marrying him for his title, whereas in fact, although she is in some way willing to please her father (who wants her to marry into the aristocracy) she secretly loves Adam and hopes to make him happy. Ultimately, she realizes she can make him comfortable and that he values her sincerely - but that is about as good as it's going to get.

The book is extremely well written with memorable characters, and really deserves a 4 1/2. I have to save my 5s for absolute favorites like Venetia, Frederica and Devil's Cub. I have a friend who, when darkness comes and pain is all around, resorts to re-reading her collection of Georgette Heyer novels. I did not really understand what she saw in these, the best of the Regency romances (unless you count Jane Austen's novels, which of course were also Regency romances) until a couple of years ago when I read some of the best-known of them, The Corinthian, The Nonesuch, and Charity Girl. These books sparkle. Forget Harlequin.

These are first-rate novels. So when someone I have a friend who, when darkness comes and pain is all around, resorts to re-reading her collection of Georgette Heyer novels. I did not really understand what she saw in these, the best of the Regency romances (unless you count Jane Austen's novels, which of course were also Regency romances) until a couple of years ago when I read some of the best-known of them, The Corinthian, The Nonesuch, and Charity Girl.

These books sparkle. Forget Harlequin. These are first-rate novels. So when someone in my online Trollope group recommended the Georgette Heyer (pronounced 'hair' rather than 'higher' for reasons you can read about in Wikipedia) novel, A Civil Contract as a study in class differences and class signs, I decided it couldn't hurt to try it.

I'm very glad I did. The story has a somewhat preposterous foundation. Lord Lynton has died and his son, Captain Deveril, as he has been, becomes the new lord and returns home to his family's estate. He finds it in dilapidated condition and discovers he has inherited his father's debts. Once he has paid off the bills there is nothing to live on or to use to bring the farms of the estate into profitable condition. What is he to do? His attorney and financial advisor tells him to marry money.

Lord Lynton is madly in love with Julia Oversly and won't even consider it. But he realizes he cannot marry Julia, whose father is not wealthy and has little money to give her as a dowry.

Julia's father tells him to marry money, and sends to him a very wealthy lower class businessman who proposes that Lynton marry his daughter who is short, plump, and homely. Backed into a financial corner, Lord Lynton marries Jenny Chawleigh. The rest of the story is about how Lynton deals with a vulgar father-in-law with ostentatious taste who is always giving him elaborate gifts he doesn't want and who eventually tries to tell him how to run his life. Jenny has to deal with a husband who is clearly still in love with another woman. An assortment of delightful characters arrive onstage as the new Lady Lynton is presented at court and Lynton's sister makes her debut and receives a proposal from an older man whom his mother thinks is the perfect match.

Heyer uses the British army, the Napoleonic wars, and Waterloo to move the plot along and provide a delightful climax to Lynton's story. A Civil Contract is quite unlike Heyer’s other novels, because the romance is understated and, indeed, there isn’t much romance at all, at least not in the same sense. It’s a much more practical novel, dealing with the realities of life: more or less arranged marriages, marriages of convenience, unsuitable matches The most entertaining thing about it is the clash between the aristocratic main character and his father-in-law, Mr Chawleigh. In fact, Mr Chawleigh quite steals the show on a number A Civil Contract is quite unlike Heyer’s other novels, because the romance is understated and, indeed, there isn’t much romance at all, at least not in the same sense.

It’s a much more practical novel, dealing with the realities of life: more or less arranged marriages, marriages of convenience, unsuitable matches The most entertaining thing about it is the clash between the aristocratic main character and his father-in-law, Mr Chawleigh. In fact, Mr Chawleigh quite steals the show on a number of occasions. Jenny is one of Heyer’s better-realised heroines in one sense: she is practical, not very subtle, and devoted from the start to making her new husband comfortable and happy. Of course, that’s a stereotype too, and one which readers may well find less engaging than the sharp back-and-forth of Heyer’s Sophy (for one example). Still, Jenny clearly knows her own mind and does not regret things, although she does have human feelings — wishful thinking, some jealousy, etc, etc. I find her interesting because she’s so untypical of Heyer — a cosy little homemaker!

And one with whom we sympathise, even though I did feel that Julia’s flaws were somewhat overdone, in a sort of ‘well, if Julia’s too nice then Jenny isn’t going to come into her own at all’ sort of way. Really, A Civil Contract is about marriage, not about courting (like The Convenient Marriage, which has some similarities, though not in the characters); it’s about a quieter sort of love, not a grand passion. It’s about making the best of things, and about having a partner who you can rely on.

Adam finally realises that that’s what he has in Jenny, and that’s lovely: the way his snobbishness initially gets in the way is annoying, but he learns. As someone in a nearly eleven-year relationship (not to mention someone who feels no sexual attraction at all), this is in many ways more true of my experience, and it’s nice to see it in a romance novel (of sorts; I think this is less clearly romance than some of Heyer’s others, but if we divide her work into historicals, romances and mysteries this seems to fit most into the romance section, being too recent in date for the historicals and clearly not a mystery). It might be fun to have a passionate doomed love for someone, but what matters is whether you can work together, work things out together, communicate.

Jenny and Adam do model that, as each learns to discuss things with the other and share their lives. In other ways, A Civil Contract is interesting because of the background of the French Revolution, the perspective of Adam as a former soldier, and the class mixing which happens as a result of the marriage. There are some very entertaining characters, including some very determined and headstrong women who are very different to Jenny, but still positive. (Lady Nassington is one; Lady Oversley is another, in a way; and of course, Lydia.) All in all, this isn’t one of the more adventurous stories, like The Talisman Ring, and neither is the romance one with tension or too much worry about how it’s going to work out. It is, for the most part, fairly comfortable — though I wonder if perhaps it would have been less so in more class-conscious times. (Says the daughter of a working class man and a upper-middle-class woman, whose families cordially, and sometimes not so cordially, hated each other!).

This is one of the late books of Heyer and one can see this novel is thoughtful. Yes, it isn't a witty Regency romance. I would not say it is a sad story but it isn't nor (the fans of Heyer will know what I mean). This piece is something between a historical romance and a historical fiction.

You can see how much did Heyer know about Regency era. Everyday life (mostly) of nobility. I don't recall that in any other book of Heyer there is so much about agriculture in those time This is one of the late books of Heyer and one can see this novel is thoughtful. Yes, it isn't a witty Regency romance. I would not say it is a sad story but it isn't nor (the fans of Heyer will know what I mean). This piece is something between a historical romance and a historical fiction.

You can see how much did Heyer know about Regency era. Everyday life (mostly) of nobility. I don't recall that in any other book of Heyer there is so much about agriculture in those times. It was quite interesting.

On the other hand, there is the world of the gossips about royalty. The Prince Regent is in the background of many Regency books (it is obvious) but here I felt almost as I would have gossiped with them. The third main group of historical information is about fights with Napoleon. There were moments that I recalled The Infamous Army. I was a little bored once or twice, but only because I know it to well. Let me say it one more time: 'A Civil Contract' has more historical facts than most of Heyer Regency romances. And those facts are added to the plot in smooth, engaging way.

Now, let's get to the story and characters. As you would have expected there are interesting characters: Mr Chawleigh, Lydia, Lynton, Charlotte, Julia Oversley, Jenny, Rockhill and so on.

Every one gives something special to the novel. I can see how good writer was Heyer. I couldn't find a one tiny evidence of fortuity in this story. Even so, I must admit I am not a fan of Jenny.

But, as I have written it many times, I don't have to like a character to like a book/a story. And the story is original. I say, even phenomenal.

There weren't romantic raptures between the main couple. The hero was in love with the other girl. [I was expecting to the end that he would have looked at Jenny and would have felt in love with her at last. But honestly, how it was it made the story and book more wonderful. ] I am sure that for some people this climate (as in below spoiler) can be boring. But not for those who understand what kind of story it is.

['Jenny, are you sure you like this scheme?’ Adam asked, when they were alone. ‘Yes, that I do!’ she replied. ‘Don’t you?’ ‘Oh, yes! As long as it won’t put you to a great deal of trouble.’ ‘It won’t put me to any trouble at all. But if you had rather –’ ‘No, there must be a party, of course – or, at any rate, you all think so!’ ‘Well, it’s natural we should, but if you don’t wish it –’ ‘My dear, you are perfectly right, and I do wish it!' ] This is the story which you can understand reading the quotes below: The next days brought their duties, their small successes, and their annoying failures But it was only in epic tragedies that gloom was unrelieved. In real life tragedy and comedy were so intermingled that when one was most wretched ridiculous things happened to make one laugh in spite of oneself After all, life was not made up of moments of exaltation, but of quite ordinary, everyday things As you see there is more to read between the lines of this novel.

So, in my opinion, it is one of the best book of Heyer. Although you can't describe it as a typical Regency romance. This is a different sort of Georgette Heyer novel.

It's almost an anti-romance, where instead of falling deeply in love, our hero and heroine settle for good enough. It's an interesting plot variation. We have a heroine who isn't a beauty, and whose many self-deprecating comments are not contradicted by her friends, who perhaps see no reason to deny an obvious lack of advantage.

We have a hero who is infuriating not because he's an arrogant ass in the mold of Mr. Darcy, but because he is kind and This is a different sort of Georgette Heyer novel. It's almost an anti-romance, where instead of falling deeply in love, our hero and heroine settle for good enough. It's an interesting plot variation. We have a heroine who isn't a beauty, and whose many self-deprecating comments are not contradicted by her friends, who perhaps see no reason to deny an obvious lack of advantage. We have a hero who is infuriating not because he's an arrogant ass in the mold of Mr. Darcy, but because he is kind and considerate and can't truly be faulted for not being in love with his wife.

The prose is lovely, as usual: long, complex sentences with plenty of semi-colons, and dialog liberally sprinkled with exclamation points and Regency slang. There are moments of quiet humor, but it's not as funny as many of Heyer's books. This is very readable, but it isn't one of my favorites. There's something a little off about the interaction between the couple. Particularly the hero's endearments come off as condescending since there's relatively little intimacy between them.

This was a weird book to read. I knew going in that this was the 'controversial' Heyer, where you either really like it or you don't, and I think I ended up somewhere in the middle. I liked Jenny. I mostly liked Adam. The side characters are glorious, even Julia who is really well drawn despite the fact that I loathe her. I only mostly liked Adam, because I thought he spent too much time feeling sorry for himself and he REALLY took his wife for granted, and was far too often casually cruel to her This was a weird book to read.

I knew going in that this was the 'controversial' Heyer, where you either really like it or you don't, and I think I ended up somewhere in the middle. I liked Jenny. I mostly liked Adam. The side characters are glorious, even Julia who is really well drawn despite the fact that I loathe her.

I only mostly liked Adam, because I thought he spent too much time feeling sorry for himself and he REALLY took his wife for granted, and was far too often casually cruel to her. I do love the idea that marriage for love is not necessarily the ideal, but that companionship and shared desires are ultimately a strong bond on their own. But that's not completely what we got, because from the beginning, it's pretty clear that Jenny was at least a little in love with Adam, which set up a disparity that was REALLY uncomfortable to read at points. But the place they left it was mostly positive and I am content enough with that. I just with that Adam hadn't been stupid for so much of the book.

That would have made it easier to accept the ending for me. The realness of some of the bursts of negative emotions experienced by the characters, the bile sometimes expressed, made me somewhat uncomfortable at times while reading this. This is why it is not my favorite Heyer. It's slightly dark overtones means it really isn't a relaxing read. Love the historical details.

As always I learnt something new about the period. The glimpse into the life of a cit was intriguing. And she somehow managed to make a completely vulgar character affable and charming The realness of some of the bursts of negative emotions experienced by the characters, the bile sometimes expressed, made me somewhat uncomfortable at times while reading this. This is why it is not my favorite Heyer. It's slightly dark overtones means it really isn't a relaxing read. Love the historical details. As always I learnt something new about the period.

The glimpse into the life of a cit was intriguing. And she somehow managed to make a completely vulgar character affable and charming in his own right in the way the dad was portrayed. Amusing as always in parts but the focus here was more about life being about settling and making the best of things. And how we cling to and revere what we can't have much longer than we ought. Hero needed a bit of a dressing down for his behavior at times and the heroine was a bit self deprecating but they were both wonderful for all that. The realism, longing and angst was too much for the reread pile though. Great for a first time let's finish the Heyer collection read, though never as a recommendation for someone who doesn't already know and love the author.

Maybe ok for the cynic first time reader who hates traditional romance? On a unrelated side note I am ashamed to say I was hit out of left field by her pregnancy. My first shocked thought was 'Wait, how is she pregnant.

They've slept together!?' In my defense they really had no change in interaction to indicate physical intimacy. Spoiled, I am! I tell you, by all these infinitely blatant, unnecessarily explicit modern style historical romances which totally made me forget there was a more subtle touch possible. Not everything has to be contrived modern writer trope/ plot nonsense about 'let's get to know each other better before consummating our arranged marriage'.

Of course he was taking care of his husbandly duties off scene from the minute they were married. Georgette Heyer wrote two types of romance novels. One type was lighter, often verging on farce or containing large doses of adventure, such as Faro's Daughter or The Talisman Ring. The other type was more serious such as These Old Shades or this book, A Civil Contract. We hear a lot in romances about couples who married for money but they tend to be couples on the periphery of the main action. In this book, Heyer took the bold action of making a distinctly unromantic match the main story.

Adam Georgette Heyer wrote two types of romance novels. One type was lighter, often verging on farce or containing large doses of adventure, such as Faro's Daughter or The Talisman Ring. The other type was more serious such as These Old Shades or this book, A Civil Contract. We hear a lot in romances about couples who married for money but they tend to be couples on the periphery of the main action. In this book, Heyer took the bold action of making a distinctly unromantic match the main story. Adam Deveril must marry money or lose the family estate.

Jenny Chawleigh's father is vulgar but rich and wants to boost his daughter into society. Complicating matters is the fact that Adam has been in love for some time with their one mutual acquaintance, Jenny's friend Julia who is everything that Jenny is not — cultured, sensitive, and beautiful. Jenny is painfully shy, direct, and plain. Overall, this is a look at marriage and how one makes one's life work when our plans for the future are torn away from us. I remember when I was a college student, first discovering Heyer, this was one of my least favorite books. Now, with much time behind me and a 33-year marriage, it is one of my favorites.

This is the first time that I've read a Georgette Heyer novel and I loved it. It was like stepping back in time to live with real people. The way Heyer supplied so many small details that give you such a complete picture of what life must have been like in the Regency period in England. The romantic plot centres on a Viscount who reluctantly enters into a marriage of convenience with a wealthy commoner's daughter due to his father's death and substantial family debt he has inherited. For much of t This is the first time that I've read a Georgette Heyer novel and I loved it. It was like stepping back in time to live with real people.

The way Heyer supplied so many small details that give you such a complete picture of what life must have been like in the Regency period in England. The romantic plot centres on a Viscount who reluctantly enters into a marriage of convenience with a wealthy commoner's daughter due to his father's death and substantial family debt he has inherited.

For much of the novel Adam is in love with Julia, and Jenny his loving and long-suffering wife waits with patience and kindness. Adam is a quiet man of the gentry who is constantly at odds with his father-in-law who is very wealthy and wants to shower Adam and his daughter with generous gifts, most unwanted.

I couldn’t help comparing Georgette Heyer to Jane Austen. I certainly enjoyed her writing as much as I do Jane Austen, perhaps even a little more because of the wonderful details. OMG I read this because the heroine's name was Jenny and I was all 'but my name is Jenny!

Well GUESS THE FUCK WHAT this was not as successful a strategy as when I used the same strategy to start reading romance novels for the first time (Proof by Seduction what what). Jenny's nouveau riche father organizes for her to marry this snooty noble whose heart belongs to another, and he spends most of the book being snooty to her while she does infinity emotional labor and, you know, ACTUAL LAB OMG I read this because the heroine's name was Jenny and I was all 'but my name is Jenny! Well GUESS THE FUCK WHAT this was not as successful a strategy as when I used the same strategy to start reading romance novels for the first time (Proof by Seduction what what). Jenny's nouveau riche father organizes for her to marry this snooty noble whose heart belongs to another, and he spends most of the book being snooty to her while she does infinity emotional labor and, you know, ACTUAL LABOR to make his world super duper comfortable.

And at the end of the book he's like 'actually it is pretty okay to have a wife who caters to my every need' and we're supposed to feel like this is a happy ending. GET A GODDAMN GRIP GEORGETTE HEYER. Excellent characterization. Not exactly a romance, this is heartwarming fiction set in the Regency period in England. An admirable nobleman returns from the Peninsular Wars to find that his father drained the estates. Deadbeat dad is dead, and Adam is desperate. He marries for financial gain, setting his chin to treat his borgeous wife with kind respect.

But Adam grows to truly regard Jenny. Together, they slowly realize that life is good. No Byronic passions, no soul bonds, but these good frien Excellent characterization.

Not exactly a romance, this is heartwarming fiction set in the Regency period in England. An admirable nobleman returns from the Peninsular Wars to find that his father drained the estates. Deadbeat dad is dead, and Adam is desperate. He marries for financial gain, setting his chin to treat his borgeous wife with kind respect.

But Adam grows to truly regard Jenny. Together, they slowly realize that life is good. No Byronic passions, no soul bonds, but these good friends will become wonderful parents. I just know it. Heyer portrays Jenny as a Plain Jane. Short, stout, and quiet, yet sensitive to the needs of others, and awake on every suit.

Pragmatic and a realist, she doesn't expect her charming, handsome, athletic Lord to love her, but is content to bask in his presence. So, she sets out to make him comfortable and happy. Jenny is like a pearl at the bottom of a pool, with the kind of beauty only the worthy can espy.

Good old Adam realizes what a rare find she is, eventually. His awakening is hindered by his preoccupation with a previous infatuation, Julia. It feels good to read this story of friendly love. In the end, Adam is honestly happy with Jenny. Is Jenny happy? She is simply too much a realist to wish for the moon.

Like Adam, she realizes her good fortune, too. Even Jenny's dad is happy. A somewhat similar book is, by Mary Balogh. A gentle romance about an impoverished young gentleman who is encouraged to marry a rich heiress who though not beautiful is eminently sensible, and who happens to be the former best friend of his beautiful first love. I'm always impressed that Heyer's good characters constantly struggle to improve their virtue, overcoming anger and pride and trying to be of service and to make life pleasant for others.

This is contrasted with the self-centred, subtly petulant attitude of the social belle who al A gentle romance about an impoverished young gentleman who is encouraged to marry a rich heiress who though not beautiful is eminently sensible, and who happens to be the former best friend of his beautiful first love. I'm always impressed that Heyer's good characters constantly struggle to improve their virtue, overcoming anger and pride and trying to be of service and to make life pleasant for others.

This is contrasted with the self-centred, subtly petulant attitude of the social belle who always wants to be admired. It is perhaps more realistic than some of Heyer's other plots, because the characters don't escape the real hardship that comes from denying the impulse of first love (blind as it so often is) and following the call of duty, and though it could be criticised for being mercenary, the hero's actions were motivated not so much by greed as by duty toward his family and to his future wife. Though his first love claims she would have been happy living in a poor but quaint cottage, in reality she is not suited to a life of toil and would likely have been miserable once the romance faded into reality. And the hero does learn to love his common sense wife as they get to know each other through shared daily struggles, and especially as they see the efforts made by the other for their sake. Heyer really does help you understand the value of selfless love. An effective antidote to the self-indulgent romances that saturate the YA scene.

Reviewed for. The one where financial ruin forces Lord Lynton to marry rich merchant's daughter Jenny instead of his true love Julia. This is the first time I've read a Heyer book -- or for that matter any Regency -- that was about marriage rather than about courtship.

I liked it very much. Adam is both warm and good, but immature -- another thing that I haven't seen in other Heyer books -- and so he has a lot of changes to go through over the course of the book. It was a pleasure to see him find a good balanc The one where financial ruin forces Lord Lynton to marry rich merchant's daughter Jenny instead of his true love Julia. This is the first time I've read a Heyer book -- or for that matter any Regency -- that was about marriage rather than about courtship. I liked it very much. Adam is both warm and good, but immature -- another thing that I haven't seen in other Heyer books -- and so he has a lot of changes to go through over the course of the book. It was a pleasure to see him find a good balance of power with Jenny's father, or figure out how much she was quietly doing for him while he did nothing for her.

Jenny doesn't change much; she gains confidence, and we get to know her better. I liked her very much, but then I don't need to be persuaded that sense is preferable to sensibility; I found Julia laughable pretty much from page one. (Speaking of, in two places Jenny mentions that she's reading a Jane Austen novel. It takes considerable authorial confidence to invite that comparison!) I don't really see what Rockhill wants with Julia, when he sees through her so well that he can conspire with Jenny to change her mind. He knows how to manage her, yes, but it seems tiresome to have to do so. My 26th Georgette Heyer Former Captain Lynton, now Viscount, comes home to find himself the heir to debts after the death of his father. With a mother and two sisters to support, and lacking any means of restoring his family's wealth, he is facing disaster, Lynton reluctantly agrees to marry plain and shy Jenny Chawleigh, a common born heiress.

This is the slowest of slow burn, but the payoff is worth it. If you like your romance stormy and passionate this book is not for you. No romantic kisses, My 26th Georgette Heyer Former Captain Lynton, now Viscount, comes home to find himself the heir to debts after the death of his father. With a mother and two sisters to support, and lacking any means of restoring his family's wealth, he is facing disaster, Lynton reluctantly agrees to marry plain and shy Jenny Chawleigh, a common born heiress. This is the slowest of slow burn, but the payoff is worth it.

If you like your romance stormy and passionate this book is not for you. No romantic kisses, nobody is swept off their feet. It’s a psychologically realistic study of people who are unlike in temper, in class and yet are forced into intimacy. People may find Jenny unremarkable as a heroine, but I admire the determination and the common sense she brings into the arrangement. There are a lot of uncomfortable and even cringe worthy moments, that blend well with the understated humor. I wish there was less info on the war front, but I understand it was necessary to the story. But the ending felt really underwhelming and abrupt and I wish the couple had spent more time discussing their relationship and feelings so that I could more easily believe the romance.

Still it's charm lies in how such a quiet story manages to be interesting. The plot line of this book attracted me, when I read Hana's review, and I'm glad that I took the plunge.

Heyer's writing is so engaging that if I were given the opportunity, I would have read this without stopping. Her historical research on the events surrounding the narrative, as well as the language and slang of the Regency period, is very impressive. She conveys the tension and excitement in London as everyone awaited news of the result of the Battle of Waterloo. She's a very good writer who The plot line of this book attracted me, when I read Hana's review, and I'm glad that I took the plunge. Heyer's writing is so engaging that if I were given the opportunity, I would have read this without stopping. Her historical research on the events surrounding the narrative, as well as the language and slang of the Regency period, is very impressive. She conveys the tension and excitement in London as everyone awaited news of the result of the Battle of Waterloo.

She's a very good writer who tells a story superbly. The characters were all very well drawn, and my favorite was Mr. Adam's mother, the Dowager, reminded me of Mrs. Bennett, from P&P. The storyline itself was excellent, and I thought the conclusion was very appropriate and in line with how the main characters were described. Heyer's exploration of a marriage of convenience was thoughtful, and not at all what I expected. The dialogue reminded me a bit of Jane Austen, and I was tickled that Austen was referred to a couple of times in the narrative.

Overall, an excellent and engaging read! This is possibly my favorite Heyer book thus far in terms of the love story itself. There was just something so satisfying about the heroine being so awkward and having such a ridiculous father who loved her so much and was trying to make her into something she wasn't.

I thought Adam was a gentleman, and thought he did rather a good job at coming to terms with the way his life was going to be. I never once understood the appeal of what's-her-face.

She was a self-absorbed, melodramatic dingbat. Y This is possibly my favorite Heyer book thus far in terms of the love story itself. There was just something so satisfying about the heroine being so awkward and having such a ridiculous father who loved her so much and was trying to make her into something she wasn't. I thought Adam was a gentleman, and thought he did rather a good job at coming to terms with the way his life was going to be.

I never once understood the appeal of what's-her-face. She was a self-absorbed, melodramatic dingbat. You leveled up, Adam. Georgette Heyer was a prolific historical romance and detective fiction novelist. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brother into the novel. In 1925 she married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer, and he often provided basic plot outlines for her thrillers. Beginning in 1932, Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year.

Hey Georgette Heyer was a prolific historical romance and detective fiction novelist. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brother into the novel.

In 1925 she married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer, and he often provided basic plot outlines for her thrillers. Beginning in 1932, Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year. Heyer was an intensely private person who remained a best selling author all her life without the aid of publicity.

She made no appearances, never gave an interview and only answered fan letters herself if they made an interesting historical point. She sometimes wrote under the pseudonym Stella Martin. Her Regencies were inspired by, but unlike Austen, who wrote about and for the times in which she lived, Heyer was forced to include copious information about the period so that her readers would understand the setting. While some critics thought her novels were too detailed, others considered the level of detail to be Heyer's greatest asset. Heyer remains a popular and much-loved author, known for essentially establishing the historical romance genre and its subgenre Regency romance.

Publication date 1961 Media type Print ( & ) Pages 384 pp A Civil Contract is a novel by, first published in 1961. Set in 1814-1815, it is also a historical novel and follows the general pattern of storytelling of Heyer's other novels. The romantic plot centers on a viscount who reluctantly enters a marriage of convenience with a wealthy commoner's daughter. Plot summary [ ] Viscount Lynton comes home to find himself the heir to debts after the death of his father. With a mother and two sisters to support, and lacking any means of restoring his family's wealth, he is facing disaster. When he visits his solicitor to discuss selling the family home, a marriage of convenience is suggested as an alternative.

Though reluctant, Lynton meets with Mr Chawleigh, a common Cit, and with Jenny, his plain and exquisitely shy daughter, and eventually agrees to be married. It is a simple contract; Jenny gains a title and Lynton receives enough money to take care of his family obligations and save his estate.

However, he remains in love with Julia Oversley, who is the exact opposite of Jenny. While Julia is ethereally beautiful and elegant, Jenny is plain and dowdy.

The marriage is not a very happy one, although Jenny, who has been secretly in love with Lynton for a long time, tries to make his life as comfortable as she can. In turn, Lynton, who is an honorable gentleman, resolves to bury his feelings for Julia and protect his new wife as he launches her into society. His father-in-law, Mr Chawleigh, is well-meaning but lacks the social graces with which Lynton is familiar and thereby makes it difficult for Lynton to forget he is in his debt. The young man often wishes he were free of his obligations to him. A veteran of the (1808–1814), Lynton has followed the exile and return of with keen interest.

Having read about the forthcoming battle in Belgium, he decides to gamble on the stock exchange. His personal involvement with previous battles lead him to the conviction that will not lose, so rather than take his father-in-law's advice to sell his funds he gambles on victory.

And, as he had foreseen, shares plummet, only to soar again at the news of victory at (1815). Lynton has made his fortune, and no longer needs his father in law's financial support. However, Jenny's pregnancy and confinement have brought the two men to a greater understanding of one another.

Rather than insult Chawleigh by repaying him, he suggests that the property titles held by Chawleigh be passed on directly to his newborn grandson. Lynton's final act of including Chawleigh as one of the newborn's names, is a mark of respect that delights the older man. In the meantime, Julia has married an older and wealthy suitor, whom she flaunts on a rather nerve-wracking visit to Lynton's. The latter realizes with a guilty feeling that he will probably be much happier and comfortable with devoted Jenny than he would ever have been with beautiful but self-centered and demanding Julia. The novel ends with a scene intended to illustrate the contentment of married family life with a comfortable and supportive woman whom Lynton realises he genuinely loves, albeit a calmer affection than the youthful passion that characterised his feelings for Julia Oversley.

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