Georgette Heyer Quote
Were you locked in your room? enquired Sir Richard.Oh no! I daresay I should have been if Aunt had guessed what I meant to do, but she would never think of such a thing.Then--forgive my curiosity!--why did you climb out of the window? asked Sir Richard.Oh, that was on account of Pug! replied Pen sunnily.Pug?Yes, a horrid little creature! He sleeps in a basket in the hall, and he always yaps if he thinks one is going out. That would have awakened Aunt Almeria. There was nothing else I could do.Sir Richard regarded her with a lurking smile. Naturally not. Do you know, Pen, I owe you a debt of gratitude?Oh! she said again. Do you mean that I don't behave as a delicately bred femaile should?That is one way of putting it, certainly.It is the way Aunt Almeria puts it.She would, of course.I am afraid, confessed Pen, that I am not very well-behaved. Aunt says that I had a lamentable upbringing, because my father treated me as though I had been a boy. I ought to have been, you understand.I cannot agree with you, said Sir Richard. As a boy you would have been in no way remarkable; as a female, believe me, you are unique.She flushed to the roots of her hair. I think that is a compliment.It is, Sir Richard said, amused.Well, I wasn't sure, because I am not out yet, and I do not know any men except my uncle and Fred, and they don't pay compliments. That is to say, not like that.
Were you locked in your room? enquired Sir Richard.Oh no! I daresay I should have been if Aunt had guessed what I meant to do, but she would never think of such a thing.Then--forgive my curiosity!--why did you climb out of the window? asked Sir Richard.Oh, that was on account of Pug! replied Pen sunnily.Pug?Yes, a horrid little creature! He sleeps in a basket in the hall, and he always yaps if he thinks one is going out. That would have awakened Aunt Almeria. There was nothing else I could do.Sir Richard regarded her with a lurking smile. Naturally not. Do you know, Pen, I owe you a debt of gratitude?Oh! she said again. Do you mean that I don't behave as a delicately bred femaile should?That is one way of putting it, certainly.It is the way Aunt Almeria puts it.She would, of course.I am afraid, confessed Pen, that I am not very well-behaved. Aunt says that I had a lamentable upbringing, because my father treated me as though I had been a boy. I ought to have been, you understand.I cannot agree with you, said Sir Richard. As a boy you would have been in no way remarkable; as a female, believe me, you are unique.She flushed to the roots of her hair. I think that is a compliment.It is, Sir Richard said, amused.Well, I wasn't sure, because I am not out yet, and I do not know any men except my uncle and Fred, and they don't pay compliments. That is to say, not like that.
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About Georgette Heyer
Heyer essentially established the historical romance genre and its subgenre Regency romance. 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; Heyer even recreated William the Conqueror's crossing into England for her novel The Conqueror.
Beginning in 1932 Heyer released one romance novel and one thriller each year. (See List of works by Georgette Heyer.) 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".
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. 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.