Jane Austen’s classic Pride and Prejudice was first published on the 28th of January, 1813.
Tag: Regency
Regency is NOT Victorian – which is NOT Edwardian!
Paris in 1901 – a time of photography and airships.
All right, I’ve had it. If I see one more book or television show or movie about the Tudors or Marie Antoinette or World War One labelled as a “Regency romance”, I’m going to scream!
Even if you use a slightly extended version of the term “Regency” to describe historical romance books (say, 1800 to 1830), I think it should be made illegal to call stories set a full century before or after the era “Regency romances”.
A popular author’s new historical romance series is allegedly set in the early 1900s, and yet it’s being labelled “Regency” by readers and publishers alike, and fails to include any of the massive changes that happened in the world in those ninety years between one era and the other. I’m seeing this so often in historical fiction that it’s driving me bonkers!
Here’s how it works:
1811-1820
Jane Austen, skinny dresses, Napoleon, and a man too mentally unstable to rule on the British throne.
1837-1901
Trains, photographs, telegrams, telephones, big sleeves and even bigger skirts, Christian morals hiding dirty lifestyles, and a short, (allegedly) grumpy lady on the British throne.
1901-1910
Cars, airships, early feature films, and a large, sickly man on the British throne.
Labelling an Edwardian book set nearly a century after Jane Austen died as Regency is like setting a book in 2019 and including the first Academy Awards (with Emil Jannings – born 135 years ago – winning best actor), Stalin’s purges, the birth of Audrey Hepburn and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and the death of Wyatt Earp. Oh, and while we’re at it, we might as well include the Wall Street Crash and the beginning of the Great Depression, and pretend the internet doesn’t exist. In 2019.
Absurd? Yes. So please, please stop it. The past is a little more complicated – and interesting – than that.
Jane Austen’s Emma
I wasn’t aware a new movie adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma had been made! Here’s the trailer – the film is out early next year.
Dear Cover Designers…
What’s wrong with this cover?, you might ask, and – at first glance, my answer would be: nothing.
The gown is one of my favourite colours, and the diamond theme makes it all sparkly and pretty. It’s in the same pseudo-Regency style as most historical romance covers these days, and it gets bonus points for skipping the waxed/oiled/mostly naked man to go with the woman.
However…
This book is set in the **twentieth century**.
As in: this book is set in the century we were born in.
It already drove me bonkers how all Victorian-era historical romances end up with Regency covers, because:
(Regency era.)
(Victorian era)
(Victorian era.)
And – here’s the era the book in question is set. She looks a little different to the woman in the blue dress!:
Two things are at work here:
#1 “Regency” has become shorthand to indicate any book set in any century in the past.
Which is annoying because:
#2 Fans of the genre are treated like they’re stupid.
It’s such a pet hate of mine, if you failed to notice! 🙂
Recently Reread: Pride and Prejudice
I reread Pride and Prejudice (and Persuasion) every so often, because why not?!
Unlike many people, who seem to have studied Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters at school or university, I never did. Even though I majored in English in college (the finally two years of high school) and in literature at university, I’ve had to discover some of these classics on my own.
I think I develop a greater appreciation for Austen every time I read her work. However, one thing I noticed in this reread is that Elizabeth Bennet considers herself an “I’m not like other women!” lady. She actually makes several statements to that effect, including directly to Mr Darcy near the end. Funny, that in 2019 we still can’t get authors to stop writing characters who think like that!
Anyway, other than that little discovery, I still liked it. 🙂
Out Now: Ladies of Intrigue by Michelle Griep
Ladies of Intrigue is a compilation of three of author Michelle Griep’s books, and is out now.
The series is Christian fiction, set in the Regency and Victorian eras, and the reason I’m promoting it here is because that cover is GORGEOUS!
Cover Love
This three-book compilation of Michelle Griep’s Regency and Victorian-era Ladies of Intrigue series is so gorgeous.
The trilogy will be released in one volume at the beginning of next month. (It’s Christian fiction, though, so beware if that’s not your thing…)
Happy Birthday, Jane Austen!
The Regency’s most famous author was born on this day, 243 years ago.
Manga Sense and Sensibility
Today is the anniversary of the first publication of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility.
If manga is your thing, Stacy King, Po Tse and Udon Entertainment have you covered!
