Venetia

Miss Venetia Lanyon is comfortable and competent managing her family’s country estate since her father died and her older brother went off to war. She is kept busy with estate matters and fending off suitors who don’t interest her, but from time to time she feels uneasy about her future. What will happen to her when her brother comes back? Her friends urge her to marry her worthy suitor—the only option for a lady of quality. But Venetia wants so much more out of life.

From the moment Venetia meets Lord Damerel, her scandalous neighbor, aka the “Wicked Baron”, she finds herself lit with a flame hitherto unknown to her. Their compatibility in mind and spirit accompanies an undeniable attraction. But Damerel has led a dissolute life, and he withdraws, afraid that his love for Venetia will ruin her socially. It is up to Venetia to muster all her ingenuity and daring to get what she wants—no matter what anyone else may think.

GEORGETTE HEYER has charmed tens of millions of readers with her delightful sense of humor and unique take on Regency romance. This edition includes an original foreword by New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James.

Pam’s Take

Venetia is a charming novel that showcases both Georgette Heyer’s mastery of the Regency romance, and the enduring appeal of the ‘reformed rake’ trope. Heyer was a seasoned writer by the time it was published in 1958, and the story shows her maturity. It is exceptionally well-written, very romantic, and has more sensuality between the main characters than earlier novels.

At twenty-five, Venetia Lanyon is living a sheltered life on the family’s Yorkshire estate with her scholarly younger brother, Aubrey. Their mother died when she was very young, and her father never stepped up fully as a parent. Not out in Society, she lacks the polish of a fashionable young lady.

Her unaffected nature sets her apart from the women her rakish neighbor Lord Damerel usually associates with. Known by the local gossips as the ‘Wicked Baron’ – he has never forgiven himself for a past mistake that established his libertine reputation. When he comes face to face with Venetia, who is out picking berries one afternoon, their encounter is one of the most memorable in Regency romance-land.

Venetia, having crossed onto Damerel’s estate in pursuit of her dog, decides to remain awhile and pick his blackberries. She is startled to be interrupted by the lord, himself, who taking her for a ‘village maiden’ claims a kiss as payment for the fruit. Venetia’s unusual reaction intrigues him and right from the start the chemistry between them is obvious.

When Aubrey has an accident and must recover at Damerel’s home, Venetia and Damarel forge a friendship over their shared interests and sense of humor. The more time they spend together, the deeper their affection. Damerel eventually realizes he is madly in love, but he also knows the damage their connection could cause to Venetia’s reputation. Having embraced a more honorable path, he must make a tough decision.

The finely-tuned climax of the story comes after some emotional twists that kept me turning pages, until the satisfying conclusion.