I was browsing Borrowbox looking for a new audio book and this popped up. It was described as a fantasy version of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer – how could I resist?
Here’s the blurb …
On her eighteenth birthday, Lady Truthful, nicknamed “Newt,” will inherit her family’s treasure: the Newington Emerald. A dazzling heart-shaped gem, the Emerald also bestows its wearer with magical powers.
When the Emerald disappears one stormy night, Newt sets off to recover it. Her plan entails dressing up as a man, mustache included, as no well-bred young lady should be seen out and about on her own. While in disguise, Newt encounters the handsome but shrewd Major Harnett, who volunteers to help find the missing Emerald under the assumption that she is a man. Once she and her unsuspecting ally are caught up in a dangerous adventure that includes an evil sorceress, Newt realizes that something else is afoot: the beating of her heart.
In Newt’s Emerald, the bestselling author of Sabriel, Garth Nix, takes a waggish approach to the forever popular Regency romance and presents a charmed world where everyone has something to hide.
The description was true! Probably more Georgette Heyer than Jane Austen with all the cant terms (tiger, foxed, slowtop, etc.). I really enjoy it – so much fun. The description of the clothes was fabulous, and the balls, and the behaviour of the ton were exactly what you hope for in a regency romance. The magic added a bit of extra spice to the story.
It’s quite short – more of a novella – and easy to read. There is adventure, magic, a beautiful heroine, and a handsome (titled and wealthy) hero, why wouldn’t anyone want to read it?