Wherein I ramble about Patricia Veryan

[dangermousie]

Currently I am rereading and delighting in Patricia Veryan's Nanette.

Patricia Veryan is one of the very few romance authors I like. Mainly because her biggest influence is actually not one of the standard famous romance novelists, but Jeffery Farnol, a turn of the century British author of a bunch of romantic adventure novels (I am especially fond of Amateur Gentleman and Definite Object).

Her novels always have the requisite romance but they have fun, solid adventure plots which have just as much, if not more prominence than romances. PV wrote books set in 1745-1749 era and books set during Regency era (as well, as one non-romance novel, Poor Splendid Wings, about American pilots stationed in England in WWII, which I adore). Nanette, set in Regency England, is part of her 'Sanguinet Series,' a bunch of interconnected novels which have the same cast of core characters and villains (but you can read them separately).

Nanette follows the adventures of the Redmond brothers, Harry and Mitchell. Well, to be honest, Harry is the main character, but Mitchell sort of takes over the book (or does his best to). Harry is a former military officer, who left the Army after being seriously wounded in Spain. Mitchell, who is rathr younger, is the absent-minded, delightfully lunatic Oxford scholar. When the book starts, it turns out that they are penniless as their recently deseased father lost everything he owned in a card game. Harry tries to conceal the truth from the absent-minded Mitchell, sending him back to the University with the last of the money, and sets out to investigate the truth. In his journeys, in addition to a lot of hurt/comfort, he comes across a bizarre peddler named Diccon and an odd young woman known only as 'Nanette.' Both also have something to hide, and then there is also the mystery of the new owner of Harry's property and his connection to a murder a few years ago.

Meanwhile, Mitchell who finds out the truth despite Harry's efforts, sets out to do some investigating of his own, in an inimitable fashion, demonstrating the most matter-of-fact, laid-back ruthless/reckless streak.

Harry is a wonderful hero (so common-sense and good, without being dull) and Nanette is an OK heroine (she is not one I love but I don't dislike her either), but for me, the book is almost stolen by Mitchell. While I like most of Veryan's heroes, Mitchell is the only Regency one I truly adore. I think he sort of ran away with Patricia Veryan too. After all, it's pretty interesting that the very last book in the Sanguinet Saga, the one that resolves the conspiracy, is Mitchell's book, Sanguinet's Crown. I also think, I read it first, which is pretty odd :P Much as I adore Mitchell of SC, I like Mitchell of Nanette even better. In SC, he is all 'I am messed up by the humiliation/torture/whipping in Nanette so I will cover my scholarliness and boyishness with tough veneer and sarcasm' and while this is both understandable and awesome, I adore the 'forget my hat but still take down those threatening my brother' Mitchell of Nanette. Of course, how can I complain when PV seems to have given Mitchell the most h/c of any of her Regency guys. Heh. And the best Regency heroine (while I like Nanette OK, I adore Charity, Mitchell's heroine. Yay).

OK, ramble over...

Comments

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Mainly because her biggest influence is actually not one of the standard famous romance novelists, but Jeffery Farnol, a turn of the century British author of a bunch of romantic adventure novels (I am especially fond of Amateur Gentleman and Definite Object).

Her novels always have the requisite romance but they have fun, solid adventure plots which have just as much, if not more prominence than romances.

Actually, most of the good romance novels are the ones that ignore other romance novels and cliches and look to other things. My favorite romance novelist, Marsha Canham(who, sadly, as quit writing, like most of the really good ones...) Looked to classic adventure novels and swashbucklers for her inspiration.

I've actually never read Veryan, which is odd, given how many romance novels I've read(though they've been mostly for distraction since I was 18 or so...but I almost lived on them as a teen)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Oooooh, must check out MC then! Never heard of her before but sounds good.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Pale Moon Rider. Scarlet Pimpernel-like highwayman. French Revolution escapee. Evil Guardian. Evil fiancee. serious manpain towards the end(but not ONLY the end)

She also has a very good Robin Hood trilogy, where the otp in each book takes on certain aspects of the legend(sadly, she quit writing before she got to the book about the Will Scarlett character and the daughter of the main character...I started shipping them when I learned that, as a kid, she presented her parents with a long list of reasons they should arrange for the two of then to get married)

I'm also very fond of Swept Away, about an amnesiac british spy(which, incidentally, became a very In thing for historical romance novels right after...maybe it was already an In thing, but I hadn't read others before it)

There's also a trilogy set around the Battle of Culloden, all about the same couple, that's pretty much her most popular books. I like them, but at the time I read them, the market was oversaturated with books with Scottish heroes and Evil Brits, most of which weren't nearly as good(I blame Diana Gabaldon.) I'd probably like them a lot more if I read them now that every book I pick up doesn't have a similar concept(though the first 2 came out before that was the In thing...I just didn't read them until they'd been out for a while)

Really, though, I like all her books(well, all the ones I could get ahold of,) though her westerns are a little weak in comparison.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

I read one series of hers and loved it and then forgot her name which drove me up the wall. And then I found it out and wrote it down somewhere and read nothing else until your post reminded me about her. I must get hold of some more because I really liked what I read.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, which one? So curious. But yeah, most of them (with few exceptions) are quite good.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

The Golden Chronicles, I think. It was the one set after Culloden and there were lots of Jacobites on the run and a hidden Jacobite treasure. I picked up one by chance at the library and then went back and read all the rest I could get...sadly then I kept forgetting the author's name. It's even sadder that apparently none of them seem to be in print any longer.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I love TGC. Her tales of jeweled men are set in the same time period and feature some of the same characters. They are pretty easy to find used.

[thinking-lotus.livejournal.com]

oh I loved the Georgette Heyer regency novels a million years ago. Some haven't dated too badly. I'll have to take a look at these, though in general, I am not a huge fan of the romance genre (with the exception of Heyer and Dunnett).

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

GH is fun. Some of it is a little too snobby for my tastes but a lot is really good.

I don't think Dunnett is a romance author, though. Historical novelist, yes, but romance?

[thinking-lotus.livejournal.com]

oh you're right. I don't always remember to make a distinction between romance novels and "historical romances" which are not the same thing.

I normally mostly read science fiction/"slipstream" and "serious literature" so tend to lump other genres together--bad!

Although recently I hardly read any fiction that's not in manga form lol (one of the side effects of parenthood).