Finding so young and pretty a girl as Amanda wandering unattended, Sir Gareth Ludlow knows it is his duty as a man of honour to restore her to her family. But it is to prove no easy task for the Corinthian.
His captive in spring muslin has more than her rapturous good looks and bandboxes to aid her - she is also possessed of a runaway imagination...
- ASIN B002UZNHJO
- Publish Date 8 September 2008 (first published 16 March 1950)
- Publish Status Unknown
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Audible Studios
- Edition Large type / large print edition
- Format Audiobook
- Duration 10 hours and 6 minutes
- Language English
Reviews
MurderByDeath
I'm being kind with 3 stars.
I totally get why people love this Heyer book so much; I do. But I really disliked it. It's beautifully written and the narrator of this version did a fantastic job (although her Mr. Theele kept making Peter Sellers' Sidney Wang character pop into my head; I couldn't shake the feeling that when she read it she had a rictus-like smile on her face. But I digress.)
So what didn't I like? Amanda. Dear God in heaven; at her best-behaved I'd have left her on the side of the road, taken Joseph with me, and buried her in the carriage's dust. At her worst I wanted to slap her stupid. I very nearly didn't finish the book.
I know I was supposed to find her and her antics a hilariously entraining romp, and I have no problem understanding why most people do, but she's just such a spoiled rotten brat and I was stuck listening to her ridiculous tantrums and schemes for 2/3 of the book.
Why didn't I just dnf it? Because everyone I know and trust loved it, and I really liked Lady Hester and Sir Gareth. I'd have loved this book if it had more of them and less of that little idiot Amanda.
But after saying all of that, this is a personal thing; the book is superbly written and flows beautifully. I hated the predominant character but that's not because she's badly written; likely the opposite. If you can laugh at the antics of a teenager scheming to get her own way with careless but cheerful disregard for others, I highly recommend you put this Heyer at the top of your list. If you're disinclined to find charm in spoiled teens, you might want to stick with Heyer's other titles.
N.B. - notwithstanding the rictus-smile narration of one of the characters, I'd totally listen to this narrator's work again; she did an excellent job.