The Black Moth - Book 42

The Black Moth was Georgette Heyer's first novel and the one that put her on the map, so to speak.  She went on to write 50 novels and this one is the prototype for her romances.  It has all of the familiar elements in it.  She wrote the book at age 17 which is really remarkable.  Apparently, she had an ill younger brother who was enamored of the swashbuckling era of England's bygone years.  The plot came from stories she would tell him to cheer him in his illness.  It was published in 1921.

The two sons of the Earl of Wyncham are both in love with the same lady, Lavinia.  The younger son is the more in love and he has gotten himself so in debt he is ruining his chances to wed.  The atmosphere is Georgian England, where the rich nobility spend their time dressing extravagantly, living lavish lifestyles of partying, drinking and gambling.   Even though the brothers are competing for the same girl, they are extraordinarily close to one another.  Under the pressure of the moment, Richard, the younger brother, cheats at cards and his older brother, Jack, takes the fall for him in an act of supreme loyalty.  But cheating at cards means a complete loss of honor in his circle of society, and he is ostracized.  He flees and spends six long years in disguise scraping out a living, first as a fencing master and then, when homesickness forces him to return to England, as a masked highwayman.

It's his life as highwayman that gets the ball rolling in terms of his eventual reconciliation with his brother.  Along the way we follow the entwined tales of Jack's friends and family, including Lavinia's elder brother the Duke of Andover, nicknamed Devil, bent on ravishing the lovely Diana.  Diana's comical aunt Bessy, Also, we meet Jack's oldest friend Sir Miles O'Hara and his new wife Molly.  And we can't forget, Jim, Jack's valet who takes care of his master, and on whom the master relies for some semblance of human friendship.  Jack's temperament is one that needs friends.

There's lots of humor and exciting plot twists.   The characters are not perhaps quite as developed as in her later books.  I found Lavinia to be a tiresome bore, too annoying to be worthy of all the grief she causes.  The story line ties up neatly in a satisfying way.

All in all, I am glad I read it.  For more book reviews go to Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks.