Wilful Impropriety

by Ekaterina Sedia

Published 7 June 2012

The Victorian era is significant for the rise of the middle classes and marked changes in social relationships, both in the home and in wider society, with the proliferation of domestic help and the development of increasingly rigid gender roles.

These are romances that chafe against the restrictions of the period, with heroes and heroines who defy social convention, igniting firestorms of gossip. The aristocrats, impostors, social climbers, domestic workers and undercover agents of these stories exist in an authentically lush world, depicted here with telling attention to detail.

While most of the stories are strongly realistic, some incorporate elements of fantasy.


A fantastic collection of stories of love and intrigue that focus on the trappings of the popular Victorian era, enlivened with fantastical elements and incorporating some noir and detective pieces, by O. M. Grey, Leanna Renee Hieber, N. K. Jemisin, Eliza Knight, Sarah Prineas, Delia Sherman, Genevieve Valentine and many more.
Full list of contributors: Vivian Caethe; Leanna Renee Hieber; Seth Cadin; Tiffany Trent; Eliza Knight; Sara Harvey; Rick Bowes; Genevieve Valentine; Nisi Shawl; Maurice Broaddus; Ella D’Arcy; E. Catherine Tobler; Sarah Prineas; Barbara Roden; Mary Braddon; Mae Empson; Caroline Stevermer; Delia Sherman; Tansy Roberts; N. K. Jemisin; O.M. Grey.