Penhallow

Rating:
Summary: Fear and loathing in Heyer's world.
Review: Could this really be by the same woman who wrote Cotillion, and The Grand Sophy, and many other marvellously witty historical romances? It is a Heyer that isn't a typical Heyer, but I highly recommend it. If you thought Heyer could only write romantic fluff and froth, you failed to notice and appreciate the cast-iron gauntlet of reality beneath the soft swansdown-trimmed velvet glove. Penhallow is a very unusual book, written to persuade Heyer's publishers to break off her contract - and it shows just how much talent Heyer had. She sat down and rushed off this book, and it came out as this deeply disquieting, deliberately dissatisfactory - but yet compelling and fascinating novel. One of her most savage and dysfunctional families comes together in this book. The imagery is powerful, the writing pulls no punches. This book will shock you if you thought you knew Heyer's style, it may even be a severe disappointment (I do not find it disappointing, but it is admittedly very hard to categorise) but it is frighteningly good. The tyranny and sadism of the old man unfortunately is all too believable, as are the reactions and behaviour of his family. It is a psychological novel with no romantic elements, and must not be read with the expectation of romance, but rather, prepared for the macabre, and the insights into the downtrodden or controlled psyches and minds. It is an extremely interesting book, and astonishingly well-written.

Rating:
Summary: The psychological Heyer
Review: I have to totally agree with the above review. This book is excellently written! It is similar to Agatha Christie's 'Hercule Poirot's Christmas' - only Heyer wrote her version about 5 years earlier. An old man is the tyrant of his household. When he is murdered, everything comes apart. Georgette Heyer conveys the emotions of dispair and hopelessness and regret much better than Christie does in her version. The murderer thought things would be better, they're not, but the old man can't be brought back to life again. I didn't like it because I like more light hearted books - and this is not Heyer's normal light-heartedness, admittedly, but it is very well written.

Rating:
Summary: It's not likeable, but its good
Review: I have to totally agree with the above review. This book is excellently written! It is similar to Agatha Christie's 'Hercule Poirot's Christmas' - only Heyer wrote her version about 5 years earlier. An old man is the tyrant of his household. When he is murdered, everything comes apart. Georgette Heyer conveys the emotions of dispair and hopelessness and regret much better than Christie does in her version. The murderer thought things would be better, they're not, but the old man can't be brought back to life again. I didn't like it because I like more light hearted books - and this is not Heyer's normal light-heartedness, admittedly, but it is very well written.

Rating:
Summary: Hopeless
Review: This is a surprisingly bad book. For example, its awfulness is the only surprise in it. Furthermore, the characters are dull, the dialogue is false, the predictable plot is unbelievably slow -- probably because it's so lame -- and to add insult to injury, Penhallow is a very long book with a rushed conclusion. I kept on reading only because I couldn't believe that Georgette Heyer could write so badly. Ms. Heyer, especially in her Regency romances, has proven again and again that she can delight and amuse the reader with sparkling characters who speak remarkably period dialogue. She is one of the few authors I count on to make me laugh out loud. But alas! not this time. Nothing redeems this book -- not good ideas suffering from bad writing, nor poetic descriptions, nor any moral to the alleged story. Dear reader, spare yourself the miserable trip to Penhallow

Rating:
Summary: Excellent psychology, tightly-knit
Review: This is an excellent study of domestic tyranny & its outcome. Dysfunctional families existed long before the name was coined. The murder, its circumstances & its aftermath, are all psychologically right. Georgette Heyer had acute observation & a real talent,which covered far, far more than her apparently 'fluffy' Regency novels.

Rating:
Summary: The psychological Heyer
Review: Those who expect Heyer's usual romance, or even her usual mystery will be disappointed. "Penhallow" tells the story of an elderly tyrant, who keeps a tight reign over his numerous family. Depending on their respective personality, most of them are either nervous wrecks or are holding in deeply repressed anger. With such an atmosphere, it is no wonder that Penhallow gets murdered; but the reader knows who the murderer is. There is no mystery, in other words, though there is a plot twist which allows the murderer to get away. Instead, the focus is on the intense atmosphere of bitter rivalries and anger between the members of the family. It is fascinating, in a warped sort of way, and therefore a good read; but some may find it unpleasant.