By Rhys Bowen
2008, Penguin Group (USA)
I happen to love almost all things British and one of my favorite ‘things British’ is Jeeves and Wooster. It’s a TV show based on the P.G. Wodehouse books, but made hilarious by Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. (Having seen Dr. House as Bertie Wooster has exponentially increased my respect for that man’s acting ability). The show is set in swinging London in the 20s and 30s and features the high class of British society that doesn’t need to work for a living and so instead does ridiculous things and say ridiculous things and is pretty much ridiculous, but so fun to watch.
Her Royal Spyness is set in that same time period and with those same types of characters, the main character being the exception (of course). Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie (or Georgie to her friends) is 34th in line to the throne, but she’s completely broke. When an odious Frenchman threatens to take her family home she knows she needs to rise above her troubles to figure out how to save the family, but when he ends up dead in her bathtub things really get interesting. It’s a great murder-mystery that’s not too complicated, but not too easily solved either.
In the tradition of Jeeves and Wooster there are plenty of bumbling idiots with too much money for their own good, but Georgie manages to remain a definite part of that “class” without looking the fool. It’s a quality fluff read – my favorite kind.
Her Royal Spyness is set in that same time period and with those same types of characters, the main character being the exception (of course). Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie (or Georgie to her friends) is 34th in line to the throne, but she’s completely broke. When an odious Frenchman threatens to take her family home she knows she needs to rise above her troubles to figure out how to save the family, but when he ends up dead in her bathtub things really get interesting. It’s a great murder-mystery that’s not too complicated, but not too easily solved either.
In the tradition of Jeeves and Wooster there are plenty of bumbling idiots with too much money for their own good, but Georgie manages to remain a definite part of that “class” without looking the fool. It’s a quality fluff read – my favorite kind.
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