A very thought-provoking read. Like you, most of what I know of History is through media. But I feel like not much of it, especially in my region, shows the many shades of grey. It's either tragic or sanitized. I am learning so much from your articles. Cheers from the edge of the Atlantic.
Oct 30, 2023·edited Oct 30, 2023Liked by Shelf Love
Do any sources attribute the Regency fascination to the BBC tv productions of Austen’s works? They did all 6 of her novels between the late 70s/early 80s, and then did them all again in the 90s & those films do a similar job of obscuring the origins of the protagonists’ wealth, ignoring the existence of any non-white characters, etc.
I’m fascinated to learn of the Angelique novels, which sound more in the vein of a Hornblower or Sharpe-type series where one character is traced through a series of adventures where they just happen to be at the most pivotal place at the most pivotal moment of any given historical event. It’s so common for this to be a male character (Hornblower, Sharpe, Aubrey & Maturin, Forrest Gump) but much less for women (maybe the Outlander series?).
i read forever amber and angelique at +/- 15, good to hear about them in the greater scheme of things (romance). Loved them, at the time.
I would say that also, there being so many, contributes to more being written because they serve as investigative work for other authors (sometimes, the only investigative work), and because the function as a brand: you know exactly what you're getting for your money.
I love my Regencies but this really made me think about why.
A very thought-provoking read. Like you, most of what I know of History is through media. But I feel like not much of it, especially in my region, shows the many shades of grey. It's either tragic or sanitized. I am learning so much from your articles. Cheers from the edge of the Atlantic.
Do any sources attribute the Regency fascination to the BBC tv productions of Austen’s works? They did all 6 of her novels between the late 70s/early 80s, and then did them all again in the 90s & those films do a similar job of obscuring the origins of the protagonists’ wealth, ignoring the existence of any non-white characters, etc.
I’m fascinated to learn of the Angelique novels, which sound more in the vein of a Hornblower or Sharpe-type series where one character is traced through a series of adventures where they just happen to be at the most pivotal place at the most pivotal moment of any given historical event. It’s so common for this to be a male character (Hornblower, Sharpe, Aubrey & Maturin, Forrest Gump) but much less for women (maybe the Outlander series?).
Terrific article. Most thought provoking, especially given I write in the Regency genre. Thank you! Vicki
very informative post, thank you...
i read forever amber and angelique at +/- 15, good to hear about them in the greater scheme of things (romance). Loved them, at the time.
I would say that also, there being so many, contributes to more being written because they serve as investigative work for other authors (sometimes, the only investigative work), and because the function as a brand: you know exactly what you're getting for your money.