The Talisman Ring

With Bow Street Runners popping in and out, Excisemen on the hunt for free-traders, assassins creeping in at the dead of night, and a dispossessed young nobleman - falsely accused of murder - hiding out in the cellar, the Red Lion is one busy inn. Throw in an impulsive young French girl with a decided taste for the romantic, a mature but spirited lady with a sense of humor, and the nobleman's two cousins - one stiff but honorable, and the other suave but false - and you have the recipe for a delightfully entertaining romp.

The Talisman Ring is Georgette Heyer at her best, with hilarious dialogue, exciting action, and endearing romance. I am invariably reduced to helpless giggling when reading it, and consider Eustacie de Vauban one of show more the author's most inspired creations. Her exchanges with Sarah Thale, whose amiable sangfroid in the face of absurdity makes her the perfect foil, are not to be missed!

In the midst of all this excitement, the somewhat dour Sir Tristram observes: "If,...you would all of you rid yourselves of the notion that you are living within the pages of one of Mrs. Radcliffe's romances, I should be grateful!". Happily for the reader, his request is not heeded and cooler heads do NOT prevail... show less

A fast-paced and enjoyable read if you can stand Ludovic, Eustacie and Sarah. Ludovic is so reckless while the two ladies fantasize about adventures and are dreamy, to the extent of being rather silly at times, with Sarah less so. However, it's a good thing that Heyer allowed the two ladies some sense and courage, otherwise it would be quite a tedious read.

This book is so gleefully full of smugglers, runaway brides, murderers, secret cellars, sardonic spinsters, midnight assailants, dueling pistols, lords disguised as lady's maids, absurd coincidences, gentlemen boxers, priest holes, and incriminating rings that I don't have the heart to dislike it. I have to love it.

Intrigue and smuggling with an unsolved murder; silly heroine counterbalanced by the dry wit and sensibility of the second heroine; implausible but highly amusing scenarios. This book is not a serious story but is excellent for light-hearted escapist reading.

This is Heyer at her most unabashedly silly. (I think this may be a quality of Heyer's earlier works.) The plot is ridiculous but it never tries to be anything else. It made me laugh aloud.

Unhappy with the marriage her late grandfather arranged for her, 18 year old Eustacie decides to flee to London and become a governess. But before she can catch the mail-coach, she runs into her cousin Ludovic, a suspected murderer who has been in hiding. Long story short, Eustacie ends up helping to hide Ludovic and to clear his name. In this, she is joined by Sarah Thane who is awoken by Eustacie and Ludovic's arrival at the inn, and Eustacie's betrothed, Sir Tristram.

Ludovic has a frustrating (if sometimes entertaining) propensity for taking stupid show more risks. Eustacie can be naively optimistic, but she has a useful flair for drama and romance. Sarah Thane is eager to share in the adventure, and is level-headed and resourceful about it. And then there's Sir Tristram:

“If,” said Sir Tristram forcibly, “you would all of you rid yourselves of the notion that you are living within the pages of one of Mrs Radcliffe’s romances, I should be grateful! [...]”

Excellent light entertainment. show less

I don't have a shelf for Romance, but I'm thinking perhaps I ought to make one. I'm such a bad boy for ignoring such a huge genre.

Yes. That's right. I just read Romance. I'm challenging myself.

But, to be honest and fair, this is really more of an offshoot of the old Regency Romances and full of the whole comedy of errors that we all know and love. Too good to be true? Rich grandfathers, viciously maligned cousins, onerous duties, mystery, theft, and yes, of course, Marriage.

Marriage is what brings us here today. :)

No, no I certainly cannot, she says, I must have more in my life. I must have ADVENTURE!

Oh goodness. Goodness, goodness, goodness... she has adventure, all right, and in true heavy-handed domino fashion, the most outrageous show more of fortunes follow her around, and to today's sensibilities, I'm almost over-willing to say that she's TSTL, but no! This is Romance, and it slowly dawns on me that Georgette Heyer is Playing With Us.

I admit, I should have seen it earlier. That this is a comedy and it's light-hearted and most especially, it's very, very aware of itself, the conventions of all Regency Romance, and all the popular fiction of the day. The 30's obviously needed a some humor, and this definitely fit the bill, never going over the top and always holding true to the sense of mystery, miscommunication, happy outcomes, and, of course, Romance.

If all Romance is like this or Pride and Prejudice, then I'm almost certain that I'm grossly misjudged the entire genre, and it looks like I'm going to have to ask for more goodies like this. :) show less

When my computer completely bricked on New Year's Eve in the midst of my frantic efforts to finish business while collaborators were already into their celebrations and I got past my agitated state and resigned myself to not meeting the deadline, I proceeded to make an amazing dinner, start a good book, and take a nice long bath.

The dinner was scallops in sherry-cream sauce with oyster mushrooms over polenta. Amazing and melted in the mouth.

The book was [The Talisman Ring], somehow a Heyer I have missed all these years. I enjoyed it, of course. This reissue had an intro written by [[Mary Balogh]], which also referenced [The Corinthian] that I then promptly reread from my collection. The former was published in 1936, the latter in 1940. show more I found an amusing unintentional continuity of the butler named Porson between them.

[The Talisman Ring] features two potential romantic couples, an unsolved murder mystery from years ago, and an inheritance in the balance. The legendary Lord Sylvester Lavenham lies dying as the opening scene. His pitifully small family are gathered at Lavenham Court: Beau Lavenham, great-nephew and ornament of society living on the estate at the Dower House, but held in contempt and mistrust by the old man; orphaned teenage granddaughter Eustacie de Vauban, recently retrieved from France as the Revolution is heating up yet longing for adventure; Sir Tristram Shield, the 32-year-old other great-nephew, last of his name and cynical misogynist after youthful heartbreak, stuck with being executor of the estate.

Sylvester arranges a marriage of convenience between Eustacie and Sir Tristram, who meet at the old lord's bedside. They both agree to this marriage for lack of better options, then romantical Eustacie decides Sir Tristram is way too stuffy and boring and worst of all autocratic and decides she needs to run away. Beau Lavenham is not a viable romantic alternative because Eustacie dislikes him with the folkloric wisdom of children and dogs. So where's the other potential couple? And what's the sticking point with the inheritance?

Enter Ludovic Lavenham, the other grandchild and direct heir to the title. Accused of murder years ago and fled out of the country, current whereabouts unknown. A crack shot yet claimed to have shot at and missed an owl the night of the murder. The utterly reliable Sir Tristram heard the apparently fatal shot just 10 minutes after parting ways with Ludovic, who was incredibly drunk and angry and desperate to retrieve the titular heirloom from the person who ended up dead. The talisman ring is a priceless family treasure and has been missing ever since the murder. Find it and find the real killer.

So where's the other female lead? Well, a naive runaway, a cargo of smuggled brandy, excise men in search of free traders, a missing heir who turns up unexpectedly, and shots fired in the night all collide and lead all the players to the Red Lion, where 28-year-old Sarah Thane and her brother, a respected magistrate with a cold who knows an exceptional brandy when he tastes it, have decided on impulse to stay at the inn.

For awhile there, I wasn't sure how it was going to sort out because Heyer has definitely gone the route of confirmed bachelor--rake, even--falls for artless ingenue: see [Venetia], [Arabella], [April Lady], [The Convenient Marriage], [Sprig Muslin], and the afore-mentioned [The Corinthian]. And Eustacie is young, pretty, and full of French charm. But it's clear that Eustacie and Sir Tristram are not a good match.

Heyer has also has heroines that are older, calm, capable, and unfazed by romantic heroes (or any other men) who are jerks: Mary Challoner in [Devil's Cub], Drusilla Morville in [The Quiet Gentleman], Anthea Darracott in [The Unknown Ajax], and Sarah Thane here.

Murder, mystery, and the efforts to keep Ludovic safe and hidden despite his reckless inclinations lead to endless hijinks in and around the inn. Lots of humorous scenes and dialogue and letting the various characters shine. Even the safe and sober Sir Tristram gets into the fun despite himself. And all ends well with the ne'er do well caught and our couples free to resume their lives in unexpected (by them) but happy pairings. show less