The Rise of the Sexless Regency? maybe

I wonder if we're going to see the re-emergence of Regency romance novels sans sex.

Post Austen/Heyer there were Regency category romances, and they emulated A/H. So no sex. But they died in the 90s just as the historical Regency romance took off. Amanda Quick* started writing these longer, steamy-riffic Regencies, and these days that's all you can find. Authors like Loretta Chase still write the light, witty sort of stuff, but there has to be lotsa sex. (She used to write category Regency, so I guess she made the transition.)

I don't dislike the sex books, but they have a completely different tone than the Heyer type books. Completely outrageous things happen in these books. They're modern people in a Regency setting, with modern morals, and a modern way of talking. I might enjoy the characters, but I don't feel transported to a different universe. For example I'm reading a romance about an 18 year old who pretends to be a guy's mistress at a weekend orgy. In Heyer's Regency (and I'm pretty sure real life), never, never in a million years would a well brought up young man bring a similarly brought up young woman to an orgy. It's insane. But her character is super cute, so it's fine. I'm enjoying the book.

But sex relieves romantic tension. "No kissing til the last chapter" tends to recreate what it's like to be falling for someone and not knowing if they like you back. O the torture of it all! If you're going to have sex with someone, well, clearly there's some interest there. In order to keep the tension going, the stakes have to be raised in other ways. Heyer has some books where The Kiss happens halfway through, cause there's a mystery to carry the novel the rest of the way. In modern novels, things usually go nuttier than that. Spies and supa-adventures and massive misunderstandings and break downs and family drama.

I don't dislike the current Regency historicals, I just want to see more variety. That's why I enjoyed Jude Morgan's Indiscretion so much. Finally someone writing in the old Austen-Heyer tradition. Right now Goodreads is taking votes for the best books of 2012, and in amongst the usual suspects of erotica, semi-erotica, and paranormal was Edenbrooke.

I'd never heard of it, but it's just a Regency novel without the sex. It is published by Blue Mountain who are owned by a Mormon publishing group, so I assume this isn't where the next great gay romance is going to come from--but I gather it also is not a Christian Romance ("inspirational romance" as it's called). But Edenbrooke was published under a new line that will be dedicated to "clean" romances.

I don't care for this "clean" terminology, cause I don't think sex is morally dirty; but I do hope that the popularity of this book means we'll be seeing this sub-genre of romance re-emerge.

____
There were bodice rippers before Quick, but I think the popularity of her style led to historicals being overwhelmingly set in the Regency, as opposed to the United States, pirate ships, etc.
   

I've got my heroine--now for the hero!

I wrote 1600 words of this second draft of my book and then, as mentioned, stopped to find my heroine. Now that I've got her, my hero has morphed. The romantic interest has to compliment my protagonist. When picking, for example, a male love interest I don't dream up Mr Dreamy McDreamy; I pick someone who'll make an interesting couple.

Georgette Heyer did wonderful pairings. In Friday's Child she paired Hero, who was a total pushover, with a self-centered playboy. In Cotillion she took the Regency version of Bertie Wooster and, rather than pairing him girls who read Nietzche, she gave Freddy the tender-hearted Kitten. The cute thing in that book is that it looks like Kitten's going to end up with the guy she's had a crush on, the Classic Romance Novel jackass Jack. But she picks Freddy. Yay!

Another great pairing in Cotillion is Freddy's extremely stupid and good natured cousin Dolph, who is paired with a gentle but Very Sensible (think Mary Poppins) woman who can take him in hand without torturing him as his mama does.

In The Corinthian we have a fop who falls in love with a trouble-making scamp. But in other Heyers, when a less frivolous hero runs into the Regency Manic Pixie Dream Girl, he gladly turns to his plainer and quieter childhood friend to help fix all the problems (Charity Girl, The Foundling.) The Foundling was especially cute cause the hero was slight, with a bad leg--babied by his family and servants. He has to escape them! before he can have a bit of fun.

Since my protagonist is a Freddy, I feel she needs her own "Kitten." She needs to be the slightly less ineffective of the two.

In the old rom version of my story Love Interest was played by Roy Dupuis, who you might recognize as Michael from Nikita. He's (as Wodehouse would say) steeped to the gills in serious purpose.



In my comedy version of the book I recast him as Patrick Huard (below: the French one) cause this actor is a comedian.



But he's too gregarious to be Kitten.

Then this week the song "She Will Be Loved" came on my computer while I was putzing around, and I suddenly pictured Adam Levine. Not his personality, but a tall, too skinny, dark haired guy who has trouble looking people in the eye--and for some reason I can picture Levine in the role.



Though combined with Éric Bruneau when I'm trying to hear him speak in my head. (My hero's not especially cute like these guys. It's just hard to find actors who aren't Ridiculously Good Looking.)*

I suddenly saw my hero: A graphic novel writer/artist, smitten by dipstick Pauline. Now I just need to figure out how to have a dipstick as a protagonist who's supposed to have a Masters in history. I suspect she's going to end up with a BA. She can manage that--even Bertie Wooster went to Magdalen College (Oxford.)

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* Fernando once met a guy I worked with who was this sort of blonde Adonis; and Fernando said: "Oh my God, you are ridiculously good looking! Just like in Zoolander!"
   

The lost co-authored novel of Austen and Heyer!

I haven't written yet tonight! Because I was reading my book and hit that unputdownable mark. I have to highly recommend this book, if you're a fan of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer. It's as though they discovered notes to an unwritten Austen novel, and gave them to Heyer to write. In other words, like the author's own style and not a knock off Austen imitation. (Like that horrid horrid hilariously bad Austen novel by Colleen McCullough. Be sure to read my review of that one!)

It's called Indiscretion by Jude Morgan. (Yes--a man!) About a down on her luck woman who takes a post as a lady's companion, and then bla bla bla scandal romance witty banter. I don't want to say more and spoiler it. But really, if you've read all of Austen's books and you're all "Why why aren't their more?" then give this one a try.

Here are some of my favorite lines--they're not spoilers.

It is plainly Mrs Catling's pleasure to pin her acquaintances like so many butterflies, and there is nothing to be gained by wriggling.

"And now over there is a gentleman who should not wear tight pantaloons. You will see when he turns around. There. That is why."

"...soon dinner will run into bed-time, and we shall all eat reclining like the ancient Romans--about whose digestion, you know, I have often wondered. Whether a dose of rhubabrb might have made a difference to Nero or Caligula is a question you might ponder, my dear, next time you go through your Tacitus."

I must try to be charitable, Caroline thought: probably she doesn't mean to sound as if she is continually translating from Latin.

"Very well." Matthew gave her such a hurt, wistful, nobly forbearing, and absolutely infuriating look that if Caroline had been a rich aunt she would have cut him out of her will on the spot.

He peered gloomily into a folio of maps. "I always think Brazil is too big."

"We are always parting! It's supposed to be sweet sorrow or something, isn't it? Those poets. They'll say anything."

"I found out when I went away from Wythorpe the first time in November--remember? How nice it is to rhyme, I must do it all the time."

"I have been run over by the speeding chariot of fate, caught up in its spiked wheels." - "I hate it when that happens," said Stephen.

 

I'll tell you what (Humor by Heyer)

I've made a start to my book and, aside from one scene, it's not funny. Not as funny as I want it to be. So I've paused a moment to read some Dickens and Heyer.

My characters are coming off too realistically, whereas the kinds of comic characters I like are always exaggerations, as though you were drawing a caricature of someone you know in real life.

For example, some of Heyer's funniest side characters are in her book Friday's Child. It's about a sort of macho guy's guy who needs to marry to get his inheritance so he proposes to a sweet but quite silly childhood friend, whom he doesn't realize is in love with him. The romance of the book comes from Sheringham's gradual coming to love and acting protective of his bride Hero, though it takes some help from his friends. And the humor of the book comes from his friends.

Here are two scenes that show, I think, just how expertly Heyer draws her comedic characters.

There are three friends, George, Fakenham (Ferdy), and Ringwood. Here's George's first entré into the book...

*

"Don't try to trifle with me, Sherry! Don't try it I say! I know where you have been! You have taken a damned advantage of me, by God!"

"No, he hasn't," said Mr Ringwood. "Now, sit down, George, for God's sake, and don't put yourself in a pucker over nothing! I never saw such a fellow!"

"Nothing to be in a pucker about," said Mr Fakenham, adding his helpful mite. "Sherry's going to be married."

"What?" gasped Lord Wrotham, turning a ghastly colour, and rolling his eyes towards the Viscount.

"No, no, not to Isabella!" Mr Ringwood assured him, touched by the sight of such agony. "Really, Ferdy, how can you? Sherry's going to marry another female."

Lord Wrotham staggered to a chair, and sank into it. Anxious to make amends, Mr Fakenham poured out some ale, and pushed the tankard towards him. He took a pull, and sighed deeply. "My God, I thought--Sherry, I have wronged you!"

"Well, I don't mind," said the Viscount handsomely. "Got too much else to think about. Besides, you're always doing it."

"Sherry," said Wrotham, fixing him with a hungry gaze, "I insulted you! If you want satisfaction, I will give it to you."

"If you think it would afford me satisfaction to stand up for you to blow a hole through my chest, you're mightily mistaken, George!" said Sherry frankly. "I'll tell you what: if you don't stop trying to pick quarrels with your best friends, you won't have any left to you!"

--> George continues to call people out throughout the book. But no one "go out" with him, because he's the best shot in town.

*

Here's the scene just after Sherry and Hero are married. It's possible he hasn't told his friends this is a marriage of convenience:

Once outside the church again, the Viscount handed his wife into the hackney, and turned to consult his friends on the best way in which to spend the evening. Mr Ringwood stared at him very hard, and even Ferdy, who was not much given to the processes of reasoned thought, goggled a little at the suggestion that they should all foregather at Fenton's for an early dinner, pay a visit to the theatre, and wind up the eventful day by partaking of a snug little supper at the Piazza.

"But Sherry, dear boy! Lady Sheringham--wedding night--won't want a party!" stammered Ferdy.

"Fudge! What the devil should we do, pray? Can't spend the whole evening looking at one another!" said the Viscount. "Kitten, you'd like to go to the play with us, wouldn't you?"

"Oh, yes, do let us!" cried Hero at once. "I would like it of all things!"

"I knew you would. And you would like Gil and Ferdy to go along with us too, I dare say?"

"Yes," agreed Hero, smiling warmly upon these gentlemen.

"Then that's settled," said the Viscount, getting into the hackney. "Fenton's Hotel, coachman! Don't be late, Gil!"

The vehicle drove off, leaving the Honourable Ferdy and Mr Ringwood to look fixedly at one another.

"Know what I think, Gil?" Ferdy asked portentously.

"No," replied Mr Ringwood. "Damned if I know what I think!"

"Just what I was going to say!" said Ferdy. "Damned if I know what I think!"

Pleased to find themselves in such harmonious agreement, they linked arms in a friendly fashion, and proceeded down the road in the direction of Conduit Street.