Georgette Heyer
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Georgette Heyer (; 16 August 1902 – 4 July 1974) was an English novelist and short-story writer, in both the
Regency romance Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency rom ...
and detective fiction genres. Her writing career began in 1921, when she turned a story for her younger brother into the novel ''
The Black Moth ''The Black Moth'' (1921) is a Georgian era romance novel by the British author Georgette Heyer, set around 1751. ''The Black Moth'' was Heyer's debut novel, published when Heyer was nineteen. It was a commercial success. The story follows Lord ...
''. In 1925 Heyer married George Ronald Rougier, a mining engineer. The couple spent several years living in
Tanganyika Territory Tanganyika was a colonial territory in East Africa which was administered by the United Kingdom in various guises from 1916 to 1961. It was initially administered under a military occupation regime. From 20 July 1922, it was formalised into a L ...
and Macedonia before returning to England in 1929. After her novel '' These Old Shades'' became popular despite its release during the General Strike, Heyer determined that publicity was not necessary for good sales. For the rest of her life she refused to grant interviews, telling a friend: "My private life concerns no one but myself and my family."Hodge (1984), p. 70. Heyer essentially established the
historical romance Historical romance is a broad category of mass-market fiction focusing on romantic relationships in historical periods, which Walter Scott helped popularize in the early 19th century. Varieties Viking These books feature Vikings during the Dar ...
genre and its subgenre
Regency romance Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency rom ...
. Her Regencies were inspired by Jane Austen. To ensure accuracy, Heyer collected reference works and kept detailed notes on all aspects of Regency life. Whilst some critics thought the novels were too detailed, others considered the level of detail to be Heyer's greatest asset. Her meticulous nature was also evident in her
historical novels Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ...
; Heyer even recreated
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
's crossing into England for her novel '' The Conqueror''. Beginning in 1932 Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year. Her husband often provided basic outlines for the plots of her thrillers, leaving Heyer to develop character relationships and dialogue so as to bring the story to life. Although many critics describe Heyer's detective novels as unoriginal, others such as Nancy Wingate praise them "for their wit and comedy as well as for their well-woven plots".Wingate (1976), p. 307. Her success was sometimes clouded by problems with tax inspectors and alleged plagiarists. Heyer chose not to file lawsuits against the suspected literary thieves but tried multiple ways of minimizing her tax liability. Forced to put aside the works she called her "magnum opus" (a trilogy covering the House of Lancaster) to write more commercially successful works, Heyer eventually created a limited liability company to administer the rights to her novels. She was accused several times of providing an overly large salary for herself, and in 1966 she sold the company and the rights to seventeen of her novels to
Booker-McConnell Booker Group Limited is a British food wholesale operator and subsidiary of Tesco. In January 2017, it was announced that the British multinational supermarket retailer Tesco had agreed to purchase the company for £3.7 billion. It was confirm ...
. Heyer continued writing until her death in July 1974. At that time 48 of her novels were still in print; her last book, '' My Lord John'', was published posthumously.


Early years

Georgette Heyer was born in
Wimbledon, London Wimbledon () is a district and town of Southwest London, England, southwest of the centre of London at Charing Cross; it is the main commercial centre of the London Borough of Merton. Wimbledon had a population of 68,187 in 2011 which includes ...
, in 1902. She was named after her father, George Heyer. Her mother, Sylvia Watkins, studied both cello and piano and was one of the top three students in her class at the
Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including performanc ...
. Heyer's paternal grandfather had emigrated from Russia, whilst her maternal grandparents owned tugboats on the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
.Byatt (1975), p. 291. Heyer was the eldest of three children; her brothers, George Boris (known as Boris) and Frank, were four and nine years younger than she.Hodge (1984), p. 13. For part of her childhood the family lived in Paris but they returned to England shortly after World War I broke out in 1914.Hodge (1984), p. 15. Although the family's surname had been pronounced "higher", the advent of war led her father to switch to the pronunciation "hair" so they would not be mistaken for Germans. During the war her father served as a requisitions officer for the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
in France. After the war he was appointed a
Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE). He left the army in 1920 with the rank of captain, taught at King's College London and sometimes wrote for '' The Granta''. George Heyer strongly encouraged his children to read and never forbade any book. Georgette read widely and often met her friends
Joanna Cannan Joanna Maxwell Cannan (27 May 1896 – 22 April 1961) was an English writer of pony books and detective novels, the former aimed mainly at children. She belonged to a family of prolific writers. Life Herself the youngest daughter of Charles Can ...
and
Carola Oman Carola Oman CBE (11 May 1897 – 11 June 1978) was an English historical novelist, biographer and children's writer. She was best known for her retelling of the Robin Hood legend and for a 1946 biography of Admiral Lord Nelson.Entry for Carola O ...
to discuss books.Hodge (1984), p. 16. Heyer and Oman later shared their works-in-progress with each other and offered criticism.Byatt (1975), p. 293. When she was 17 Heyer began a serial story to amuse her brother Boris, who suffered from a form of
haemophilia Haemophilia, or hemophilia (), is a mostly inherited genetic disorder that impairs the body's ability to make blood clots, a process needed to stop bleeding. This results in people bleeding for a longer time after an injury, easy bruising, ...
and was often weak. Her father enjoyed listening to her story and asked her to prepare it for publication. His agent found a publisher for her book, and ''
The Black Moth ''The Black Moth'' (1921) is a Georgian era romance novel by the British author Georgette Heyer, set around 1751. ''The Black Moth'' was Heyer's debut novel, published when Heyer was nineteen. It was a commercial success. The story follows Lord ...
'', about the adventures of a young man who took responsibility for his brother's card-cheating, was issued in 1921. According to her biographer,
Jane Aiken Hodge Jane Aiken Hodge (December 4, 1917 – June 17, 2009) was an American-born British writer. Life Born near Cambridge, Massachusetts, the second child of Pulitzer prize-winning poet Conrad Aiken and his first wife, the writer Jessie McDonald. Jan ...
, the novel contained many of the elements that would become standard for Heyer's novels, the "saturnine male lead, the marriage in danger, the extravagant wife, and the group of idle, entertaining young men". The following year one of her contemporary
short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...
, "A Proposal to Cicely", was published in ''Happy Magazine''.


Marriage

While holidaying with her family in December 1920 Heyer met George Ronald Rougier, who was two years her senior.Hodge (1984), p. 21. The two became regular dance partners while Rougier was studying at the
Royal School of Mines The Royal School of Mines comprises the departments of Earth Science and Engineering, and Materials at Imperial College London. The Centre for Advanced Structural Ceramics and parts of the London Centre for Nanotechnology and Department of Bioe ...
to become a mining engineer. In the spring of 1925, shortly after the publication of her fifth novel, they became engaged. One month later Heyer's father died of a heart attack. He left no pension and Heyer assumed financial responsibility for her brothers, aged 19 and 14. Two months after her father's death, on 18 August, Heyer and Rougier married in a simple ceremony. In October 1925 Rougier was sent to work in the
Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains, : pronounced * hy, Կովկասյան լեռներ, : pronounced * az, Qafqaz dağları, pronounced * rus, Кавка́зские го́ры, Kavkázskiye góry, kɐfˈkasːkʲɪje ˈɡorɨ * tr, Kafkas Dağla ...
, partly because he had learned Russian as a child.Byatt (1975), p. 292. Heyer remained at home and continued to write.Hodge (1984), p. 27. In 1926 she released '' These Old Shades'', in which the Duke of Avon courts his own
ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
. Unlike her first novel, ''These Old Shades'' focused more on personal relationships than on adventure.Hughes (1993), p. 38. The book appeared in the midst of the 1926 United Kingdom general strike; as a result the novel received no newspaper coverage, reviews or advertising. Nevertheless the book sold 190,000 copies. Because the lack of publicity had not harmed the novel's sales, Heyer refused for the rest of her life to promote her books, even though her publishers often asked her to give interviews.Hodge (1984), p. 69. She once wrote to a friend that "as for being photographed at Work or in my Old World Garden, that is the type of publicity which I find nauseating and quite unnecessary. My private life concerns no one but myself and my family." Rougier returned home in the summer of 1926, but within months he was sent to the East African territory of
Tanganyika Tanganyika may refer to: Places * Tanganyika Territory (1916–1961), a former British territory which preceded the sovereign state * Tanganyika (1961–1964), a sovereign state, comprising the mainland part of present-day Tanzania * Tanzania Main ...
. Heyer joined him there the following year. They lived in a hut made of
elephant grass The term Elephant grass may refer to the following grass species: * The Asian '' Miscanthus giganteus'', also known as giant miscanthus, commonly used as a biomass crop * The African '' Cenchrus purpureus'', also known as Napier grass, Uganda grass ...
in
the bush "The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia and New Zealand where it is largely synonymous with '' backwoods'' or ''hinterland'', referring to a natural undeveloped area. The fauna and flora contained within this a ...
; Heyer was the first white woman her servants had ever seen. While in Tanganyika Heyer wrote ''
The Masqueraders ''The Masqueraders'' is a 1928 novel written by Georgette Heyer. It is set in Britain at a time shortly after the 1745 Jacobite rising and is concerned with a family of adventurers and escaped Jacobites. Plot summary To escape exposure as a ...
''; set in 1745, the book follows the romantic adventures of siblings who pretend to be of the opposite sex in order to protect their family, all former Jacobites. Although Heyer did not have access to all of her reference material, the book contained only one anachronism: she placed the opening of
White's White's is a gentlemen's club in St James's, London. Founded in 1693 as a hot chocolate shop in Mayfair, it is the oldest gentleman's club in London. It moved to its current premises on St James's Street in 1778. Status White's is the oldes ...
a year too early. She also wrote an account of her adventures, entitled "The Horned Beast of Africa", which was published in 1929 in the newspaper ''
The Sphere ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
''.Fahnestock-Thomas (2001), p. 4. In 1928 Heyer followed her husband to Macedonia, where she almost died after a dentist improperly administered an anaesthetic. She insisted they return to England before starting a family. The following year Rougier left his job, making Heyer the primary breadwinner. After a failed experiment running a gas, coke and lighting company Rougier purchased a sports shop in
Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
with money they borrowed from Heyer's aunts. Heyer's brother Boris lived above the shop and helped Rougier, while Heyer continued to provide the bulk of the family's earnings with her writing.Hodge (1984), pp. 27–30.


Regency romances

Heyer's earliest works were
romance novel A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and usually has an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Pre ...
s, most set before 1800. In 1935 she released ''
Regency Buck ''Regency Buck'' is a novel written by Georgette Heyer. It has three distinctions: it is the first of her novels to deal with the Regency period; it is one of only a few to combine both genres for which she was noted, the Regency romance and th ...
'', her first novel set in the
Regency period The Regency era of British history officially spanned the years 1811 to 1820, though the term is commonly applied to the longer period between and 1837. King George III succumbed to mental illness in late 1810 and, by the Regency Act 1811, h ...
. This bestselling novel essentially established the genre of
Regency romance Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency rom ...
. Unlike romantic fiction of the period by other writers, Heyer's novels featured the setting as a plot device. Many of her characters exhibited modern-day sensibilities; more conventional characters in the novels would point out the heroine's eccentricities, such as wanting to marry for love. The books were set almost entirely in the world of the wealthy upper classLaski (1970), p. 283. and only occasionally mention poverty, religion or politics. Although the British Regency lasted only from 1811 to 1820, Heyer's romances were set between 1752 and 1825. According to the literary critic Kay Mussell, the books revolved around a "structured social ritual – the marriage market represented by the
London season The social season, or season, refers to the traditional annual period in the spring and summer when it is customary for members of the social elite of British society to hold balls, dinner parties and charity events. Until the First World War, i ...
" where "all are in danger of ostracism for inappropriate behavior".Mussell (1984), p. 413. Her Regency romances were inspired by the writings of Jane Austen, whose novels were set in the same era. Austen's works, however, were contemporary novels, describing the times in which she lived. According to Pamela Regis in her work ''A Natural History of the Romance Novel'', because Heyer's stories took place amidst events that had occurred more than 100 years earlier, she had to include more detail on the period in order for her readers to understand it.Regis (2003), pp. 125–126. Whilst Austen could ignore the "minutiae of dress and decor", Heyer included those details "to invest the novels ... with 'the tone of the time'".Robinson (1978), p. 323. Later reviewers, such as Lillian Robinson, criticized Heyer's "passion for the specific fact without concern for its significance",Robinson (1978), p. 326. and
Marghanita Laski Marghanita Laski (24 October 1915 – 6 February 1988) was an English journalist, radio panellist and novelist. She also wrote literary biography, plays and short stories, and contributed about 250,000 additions to the ''Oxford English Diction ...
wrote that "these aspects on which Heyer is so dependent for her creation of atmosphere are just those which Jane Austen ... referred to only when she wanted to show that a character was vulgar or ridiculous".Laski (1970), p. 284. Others, including
A.S. Byatt Dame Antonia Susan Duffy ( Drabble; born 24 August 1936), known professionally by her former marriage name as A. S. Byatt ( ), is an English critic, novelist, poet and short story writer. Her books have been widely translated, into more than t ...
, believe that Heyer's "awareness of this atmosphere – both of the minute details of the social pursuits of her leisured classes and of the emotional structure behind the fiction it produced – is her greatest asset".Byatt (1969), p. 275. Determined to make her novels as accurate as possible, Heyer collected reference works and research materials to use while writing. At the time of her death she owned more than 1,000 historical reference books, including ''
Debrett's Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder, John Deb ...
'' and an 1808 dictionary of the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
. In addition to the standard historical works about the medieval and eighteenth-century periods, her library included histories of
snuff box A decorative box is a form of packaging that is generally more than just functional, but also intended to be decorative and artistic. Many such boxes are used for promotional packaging, both commercially and privately. Historical objects are ...
es, sign posts and
costumes Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...
.Byatt (1975), p. 300. She often clipped illustrations from magazine articles and jotted down interesting vocabulary or facts onto note cards but rarely recorded where she found the information.Hodge (1984), pp. 43, 46. Her notes were sorted into categories, such as Beauty, Colours, Dress, Hats, Household, Prices and Shops, and even included details such as the cost of candles in a particular year.Byatt (1975), p. 301. Other notebooks contained lists of phrases, covering such topics as "Food and Crockery", "Endearments", and "Forms of Address." One of her publishers,
Max Reinhardt Max Reinhardt (; born Maximilian Goldmann; 9 September 1873 – 30 October 1943) was an Austrian-born Theatre director, theatre and film director, theater manager, intendant, and theatrical producer. With his innovative stage productions, he i ...
, once attempted to offer editorial suggestions about the language in one of her books but was promptly informed by a member of his staff that no one in England knew more about Regency language than Heyer. In the interests of accuracy Heyer once purchased a letter written by the
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...
so that she could precisely employ his style of writing. She claimed that every word attributed to Wellington in ''An Infamous Army'' was actually spoken or written by him in real life. Her knowledge of the period was so extensive that Heyer rarely mentioned dates explicitly in her books; instead, she situated the story by casually referring to major and minor events of the time.


Character types

Heyer specialised in two types of romantic male lead, which she called Mark I and Mark II. Mark I, with overtones of
Mr Rochester Edward Fairfax Rochester (often referred to as Mr Rochester) is a character in Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel ''Jane Eyre''. The brooding master of Thornfield Hall, Rochester is the employer and eventual husband of the novel's titular protagonist ...
, was (in her words) "rude, overbearing, and often a bounder". Mark II by contrast was debonair, sophisticated and often a style-icon. Similarly, her heroines (reflecting Austen's division between lively and gentle) fell into two broad groups: the tall and dashing, mannish type, and the quiet bullied type. When a Mark I hero meets a Mark I heroine, as in ''Bath Tangle'' or ''Faro's Daughter'', high drama ensues, whilst an interesting twist on the underlying paradigm is provided by ''The Grand Sophy'', where the Mark I hero considers himself a Mark II and has to be challenged for his true nature to emerge.


Thrillers

'' The Conqueror'' (1931) was Heyer's first novel of historical fiction to give a fictionalized account of real historical events. She researched the life of
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
thoroughly, even travelling the route that William took when crossing into England. The following year, Heyer's writing took an even more drastic departure from her early historical romances when her first thriller, ''Footsteps in the Dark'' was published. The novel's appearance coincided with the birth of her only child, Richard George Rougier, whom she called her "most notable (indeed peerless) work".Hodge (1984), p. 35. Later in her life, Heyer requested that her publishers refrain from reprinting ''Footsteps in the Dark'', saying "This work, published simultaneously with my son ... was the first of my thrillers and was perpetuated while I was, as any Regency character would have said, increasing. One husband and two ribald brothers all had fingers in it, and I do not claim it as a Major Work." For the next several years Heyer published one romance novel and one thriller each year. The romances were far more popular: they usually sold 115,000 copies, while her thrillers sold 16,000 copies. According to her son, Heyer "regarded the writing of mystery stories rather as we would regard tackling a crossword puzzle – an intellectual diversion before the harder tasks of life have to be faced".Devlin (1984), p. 361. Heyer's husband was involved in much of her writing. He often read the proofs of her historical romances to catch any errors that she might have missed, and served as a collaborator for her thrillers. He provided the plots of the detective stories, describing the actions of characters "A" and "B".Hodge (1984), p. 40. Heyer would then create the characters and the relationships between them and bring the plot points to life. She found it difficult at times to rely on someone else's plots; on at least one occasion, before writing the last chapter of a book, she asked Rougier to explain once again how the murder was really committed. Her detective stories, which, according to critic Earl F. Bargainnier, "specialize in upper-class family murders", were known primarily for their comedy, melodrama, and romance. The comedy derived not from the action but from the personalities and dialogue of the characters. In most of these novels, all set in the time they were written, the focus relied primarily on the hero, with a lesser role for the heroine. Her early mystery novels often featured athletic heroes; once Heyer's husband began pursuing his lifelong dream of becoming a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
, the novels began to feature solicitors and barristers in lead roles. In 1935, Heyer's thrillers began following a pair of detectives named Superintendent Hannasyde and Sergeant (later Inspector) Hemingway. The two were never as popular as other contemporary fictional detectives such as
Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...
's
Hercule Poirot Hercule Poirot (, ) is a fictional Belgian detective created by British writer Agatha Christie. Poirot is one of Christie's most famous and long-running characters, appearing in 33 novels, two plays ('' Black Coffee'' and ''Alibi''), and more ...
and
Dorothy L. Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers (; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime writer and poet. She was also a student of classical and modern languages. She is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between th ...
's
Lord Peter Wimsey Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey (later 17th Duke of Denver) is the fictional protagonist in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers (and their continuation by Jill Paton Walsh). A dilettante who solves mysteries fo ...
. One of the books featuring Heyer's characters, ''Death in the Stocks'', was dramatized in New York City in 1937 as ''Merely Murder''. The play focused on the comedy rather than the mystery, and although it had a good cast, including
Edward Fielding Edward Fielding (March 19, 1875 – January 10, 1945) was an American stage and film actor. Career Edward Fielding appeared in nearly 40 Broadway productions between 1905 and 1939, often in leading roles. He played as a leading man with famous ...
as Hannasyde, it closed after three nights.Hodge (1984), p. 43. According to critic Nancy Wingate, Heyer's detective novels, the last written in 1953, often featured unoriginal methods, motives, and characters, with seven of them using inheritance as the motive. The novels were always set in London, a small village, or at a houseparty.Wingate (1976), p. 308. Critic Erik Routley labelled many of her characters clichés, including the uneducated policeman, an exotic Spanish dancer, and a country
vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...
with a neurotic wife. In one of her novels, the characters' surnames were even in alphabetical order according to the order they were introduced.Routley (1972), pp. 286–287. According to Wingate, Heyer's detective stories, like many of the others of the time, exhibited a distinct snobbery towards foreigners and the lower classes. Her middle-class men were often crude and stupid, while the women were either incredibly practical or exhibited poor judgement, usually using poor grammar that could become vicious.Robinson (1978), pp. 330–331. Despite the stereotypes, however, Routley maintains that Heyer had "a quite remarkable gift for reproducing the brittle and ironic conversation of the upper middle class Englishwoman of that age (immediately before 1940)". Wingate further mentions that Heyer's thrillers were known "for their wit and comedy as well as for their well-woven plots".


Financial problems

In 1939, Rougier was
called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
, and the family moved first to
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
, then to
Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th c ...
, so that Rougier could easily commute to London. The following year, they sent their son to a preparatory school, creating an additional expense for Heyer.
The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...
bombing of 1940–41 disrupted train travel in Britain, prompting Heyer and her family to move to London in 1942 so that Rougier would be closer to his work. After having lunch with a representative from
Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint (trade name), imprint of Hachette (publisher), Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs ...
, who published her detective stories, Heyer felt that her host had patronized her. The company had an option on her next book; to make them break her contract, she wrote ''Penhallow'', which the 1944 ''Book Review Digest'' described as "a murder story but not a mystery story". Hodder & Stoughton turned the book down, thus ending their association with Heyer, and Heinemann agreed to publish it instead. Her publisher in the United States, Doubleday, also disliked the book and ended their relationship with Heyer after its publication.Hodge (1984), p. 63. During World War II, her brothers served in the armed forces, alleviating one of her monetary worries. Her husband, meanwhile, served in the
Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting w ...
, besides continuing as a barrister. As he was new to his career, Rougier did not earn much money, and paper rationing during the war caused lower sales of Heyer's books. To meet their expenses Heyer sold the Commonwealth rights for ''These Old Shades'', '' Devil's Cub'', and ''Regency Buck'' to her publisher,
Heinemann Heinemann may refer to: * Heinemann (surname) * Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company * Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States See also * Heineman * Jamie Hyneman James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...
, for £750. A contact at the publishing house, her close friend A.S. Frere, later offered to return the rights to her for the same amount of money she was paid. Heyer refused to accept the deal, explaining that she had given her word to transfer the rights. Heyer also reviewed books for Heinemann, earning 2 
guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...
for each review, and she allowed her novels to be serialized in ''Women's Journal'' prior to their publication as hardcover books. The appearance of a Heyer novel usually caused the magazine to sell out completely, but she complained that they "always like my worst work". To minimize her tax liability, Heyer formed a
limited liability company A limited liability company (LLC for short) is the US-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...
called Heron Enterprises around 1950. Royalties from new titles would be paid to the company, which would then furnish Heyer's salary and pay directors' fees to her family. She would continue to receive royalties from her previous titles, and foreign royalties – except for those from the United States – would go to her mother. Within several years, however, a tax inspector found that Heyer was withdrawing too much money from the company. The inspector considered the extra funds as undisclosed dividends, meaning that she owed an additional £3,000 in taxes. To pay the tax bill, Heyer wrote two articles, "Books about the Brontës" and "How to be a Literary Writer", that were published in the magazine ''
Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...
''. She once wrote to a friend, "I'm getting so of writing books for the benefit of the Treasury and I can't tell you how utterly I resent the squandering of money on such fatuous things as Education and Making Life Easy and Luxurious for So-Called Workers." In 1950, Heyer began working on what she called "the magnum opus of my latter years", a medieval trilogy intended to cover the House of Lancaster between 1393 and 1435. She estimated that she would need five years to complete the works. Her impatient readers continually clamored for new books; to satisfy them and her tax liabilities, Heyer interrupted herself to write Regency romances. The manuscript of volume one of the series, '' My Lord John'', was published posthumously.Devlin (1984), p. 390. The limited liability company continued to vex Heyer, and in 1966, after tax inspectors found that she owed the company £20,000, she finally fired her accountants. She then asked that the rights to her newest book, '' Black Sheep'', be issued to her personally.Hodge (1984), p. 169. Unlike her other novels, ''Black Sheep'' did not focus on members of the aristocracy. Instead, it followed "the moneyed middle class", with finance a dominant theme in the novel. Heyer's new accountants urged her to abandon Heron Enterprises; after two years, she finally agreed to sell the company to
Booker-McConnell Booker Group Limited is a British food wholesale operator and subsidiary of Tesco. In January 2017, it was announced that the British multinational supermarket retailer Tesco had agreed to purchase the company for £3.7 billion. It was confirm ...
, which already owned the rights to the estates of novelists
Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...
and Agatha Christie. Booker-McConnell paid her approximately £85,000 for the rights to the 17 Heyer titles owned by the company. This amount was taxed at the lower capital transfer rate, rather than the higher income tax rate.


Imitators

As Heyer's popularity increased, other authors began to imitate her style. In May 1950, one of her readers notified her that
Barbara Cartland Dame Mary Barbara Hamilton Cartland, (9 July 1901 – 21 May 2000) published as Barbara Cartland was an English writer, known as the Queen of Romance, who published both contemporary and historical romance novels, the latter set primarily duri ...
had written several novels in a style similar to Heyer's, reusing names, character traits and plot points and paraphrased descriptions from her books, particularly ''A Hazard of Hearts'', which borrowed characters from '' Friday's Child'', and ''The Knave of Hearts'' which took off '' These Old Shades''. Heyer completed a detailed analysis of the alleged plagiarisms for her solicitors, and while the case never came to court and no apology was received, the copying ceased.Kloester (2012) pp. 275–9 Her lawyers suggested that she leak the copying to the press. Heyer refused. In 1961, another reader wrote of similarities found in the works of Kathleen Lindsay, particularly the novel ''Winsome Lass''.Kloester (2012), pp. 335–336 The novels borrowed plot points, characters, surnames, and plentiful Regency slang. After fans accused Heyer of "publishing shoddy stuff under a pseudonym", Heyer wrote to the other publisher to complain.Hodge (1984), pp. 140–141. When the author took exception to the accusations, Heyer made a thorough list of the borrowings and historical mistakes in the books. Among these were repeated use of the phrase "to make a cake of oneself", which Heyer had discovered in a privately printed memoir unavailable to the public. In another case, the author referenced a historical incident that Heyer had invented in an earlier novel. Heyer's lawyers recommended an injunction, but she ultimately decided not to sue.


Later years

In 1959, Rougier became a
Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...
. The following year, their son Richard fell in love with the estranged wife of an acquaintance. Richard assisted the woman, Susanna Flint, in leaving her husband, and the couple married after her divorce was finalized. Heyer was shocked at the impropriety but soon came to love her daughter-in-law, later describing her as "the daughter we never had and thought we didn't want". Richard and his wife raised her two sons from her first marriage and provided Heyer with her only biological grandchild in 1966, when their son Nicholas Rougier was born. As Heyer aged she began to suffer more frequent health problems. In June 1964, she underwent surgery to remove a kidney stone. Although the doctors initially predicted a six-week recovery, after two months they predicted that it might be a year or longer before she felt completely well. The following year, she suffered a mosquito bite that turned septic, prompting the doctors to offer skin grafts. In July 1973 she suffered a slight stroke and spent three weeks in a nursing home. When her brother Boris died later that year, Heyer was too ill to travel to his funeral. She suffered another stroke in February 1974. Three months later, she was diagnosed with lung cancer, which her biographer attributed to the 60–80 cork-tipped cigarettes that Heyer smoked each day (although she said she did not inhale). On 4 July 1974, Heyer died. Her fans learned her married name for the first time from her obituaries.


Legacy

Besides her success in the United Kingdom, Heyer's novels were very popular in the United States and Germany and achieved respectable sales in
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
. A first printing of one of her novels in the Commonwealth often consisted of 65,000–75,000 copies,Reinhardt (1974), pp. 257–258. and her novels collectively sold over 100,000 copies in hardback each year.Hebert (1974), pp. 254–255. Her paperbacks usually sold over 500,000 copies each. At the time of her death 48 of her books were still in print, including her first novel, ''The Black Moth''.Hart-Davis (1974), pp. 258–259. Her books were very popular during the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
and World War II. Her novels, which journalist Lesley McDowell described as containing "derring-do, dashing blades, and maids in peril", allowed readers to escape from the mundane and difficult elements of their lives. In a letter describing her novel ''Friday's Child'', Heyer commented, "'I think myself I ought to be shot for writing such nonsense. ... But it's unquestionably good escapist literature and I think I should rather like it if I were sitting in an air-raid shelter or recovering from flu." Heyer essentially invented the historical romanceA historical romance is a
romance novel A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and usually has an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Pre ...
set in the past. This is not to be confused with historical fiction that was influenced by
romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
.
and created the subgenre of the
Regency romance Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Rather than simply being versions of contemporary romance stories transported to a historical setting, Regency rom ...
. When first released as mass market paperbacks in the United States in 1966, her novels were described as being "in the tradition of Jane Austen".Robinson (1978), p. 322. As other novelists began to imitate her style and continue to develop the Regency romance, their novels have been described as "following in the romantic tradition of Georgette Heyer". According to Kay Mussell, "virtually every Regency writer covets
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
accolade". Heyer has been criticised for anti-semitism, in particular a scene in ''
The Grand Sophy ''The Grand Sophy'' is a Regency romance novel by Georgette Heyer. It was first published in 1950 by Heinemann (book publisher), Heinemann in the UK and G. P. Putnam's Sons, Putnam in the U.S. Sales were brisk. Heinemann reported that in Austral ...
'' (published in 1950). Examination of family papers by Jennifer Kloester confirms she held prejudiced personal opinions. Despite her popularity and success, Heyer was largely ignored by critics other than
Dorothy L. Sayers Dorothy Leigh Sayers (; 13 June 1893 – 17 December 1957) was an English crime writer and poet. She was also a student of classical and modern languages. She is best known for her mysteries, a series of novels and short stories set between th ...
, who reviewed '' An Unfinished Clue'' and '' Death in the Stocks'' for ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
''. Although none of her novels was ever reviewed in a serious newspaper,Byatt (1975), p. 297. according to
Duff Hart-Davis Peter Duff Hart-Davis (born 3 June 1936), generally known as Duff Hart-Davis is a British biographer, naturalist and journalist, who writes for ''The Independent'' newspaper. He is married to Phyllida Barstow and has one son and one daughter, th ...
, "the absence of long or serious reviews never worried her. What mattered was the fact that her stories sold in ever-increasing numbers". Heyer was also overlooked by the ''
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...
''. The 1974 edition of the encyclopædia, published shortly after her death, included entries on popular writers
Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...
and Sayers, but did not mention Heyer.Fahnestock-Thomas (2001), p. 261.


See also

*
Dandy A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance, refined language, and leisurely hobbies, pursued with the appearance of nonchalance. A dandy could be a self-made man who strove to imitate an aristocratic lifestyle desp ...
*
Fop Fop is a pejorative term for a foolish man. FOP or fop may also refer to: Science and technology * Feature-oriented positioning, in scanning microscopy * Feature-oriented programming, in computer science, software product lines * Fibrodysplasia ...
* List of works by Georgette Heyer


References


Citations


General and cited references

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * *


External links


Georgette Heyer website

Notes on 2009 Heyer conference
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Heyer, Georgette 1902 births 1974 deaths 20th-century English novelists 20th-century English women writers Booker authors' division English crime fiction writers English historical novelists English people of Russian descent English romantic fiction writers English women novelists People from Wimbledon, London Women historical novelists Women mystery writers Women romantic fiction writers Writers of historical fiction set in the modern age Writers of historical romances