Reviewed for THC ReviewsUntil picking up The Black Moth, I had never read a “classical” romance, and I have to say that it was a rather different sort of reading experience that was more challenging than the typical modern romance. It is written in what I would call a literary style with vernacular that is more authentic to the time period in which it is set. It was a little difficult to keep track of all the characters, because there were so many and each one went by several different names (first, last, nickname, alias, title). It was all somewhat confusing, but I think I managed to keep up fairly well. Also, the romance itself is very low-key with nothing beyond a few chaste kisses and embraces occurring. The palette of characters in The Black Moth was more of an ensemble cast with the supposed main hero and heroine only present in approximately fifty percent of the scenes and few of those were in each other's company. All of this made the book feel a bit more like historical fiction than historical romance to me, although I have to admit that the climax was pretty romantic with the hero swooping in to save the heroine from the dastardly villain so they can live happily-ever-after.:-)Jack was a very noble hero, the heir to an earldom, who sacrificed himself for his brother in the name of love. Ever since he took the blame for cheating at a game of cards, he has been living in virtual exile, and has taken up the profession of highwayman, albeit in the style of Robin Hood. He always gives what he takes to the poor, and he refuses to rob ladies or the elderly. On the rare occasions that he makes that mistake, he apologizes profusely which was rather amusing. When he's not playing the roguish thief, he is a dandy who always tries to be at the height of fashion. Jack is the classic dashing, debonair hero, full of charm and lighthearted spirit in spite of his lot in life. When he saves the lovely Diana, they fall madly in love, although the development of their relationship is pretty much left to the imagination. Diana was a sweet girl who had unfortunately caught the unwanted attentions of the Duke of Andover, a notorious libertine. When the villainous Duke kidnaps Diana in an attempt to force her to wed him, she is rescued by Jack. She falls for her savior while he is recovering from his wounds at her home, and is terribly distraught when he is unable to return her affections and leaves. Diana was in even less scenes than Jack, so I didn't really feel like I got to know her well, but I will say that I admired her spunk and determination, as well as her ability to verbally spar with the Duke when he attempted to take her a second time.As I mentioned earlier, The Black Moth boasts a very large cast of characters, some of whom are equally as important as Jack and Diana. Jack's brother, Richard and his wife, Lavinia would be at the top of that list, experiencing their own romantic ups and downs. Richard had allowed Jack to take the blame for his actions, because he loved Lavinia so much he couldn't bear the thought of loosing her if the truth came out. He has lived with the guilt ever since, which has taken it's toll on him. At first his actions seemed selfish, leaving me unsure as to whether I liked him or not. He also had a tendency to be a doormat for his wife which wasn't particularly endearing either, but I was pleased to see him grow and change throughout the story. Lavinia was a difficult character to like, because she always seemed so spoiled and shrewish. In fact, she and all of her brothers were pretty much portrayed as hedonists with little or no self-control. Although I don't think I'll ever truly understand why all the men in her life were so taken with her, I did at least gain a small measure of respect for her by the end when she finally realized what a good life and husband she had. The other top-tier character would be Lavinia's brother, Tracy, the Duke of Andover, who became obsessed with Diana. In my opinion, he was a dangerous miscreant to have kidnapped and tried to force an innocent young woman who obviously didn't want him into marriage. I'm usually used to seeing the villain get a more sound comeuppance than Tracy did, so the way things ended with him were somewhat unsatisfying. However, I suppose that in a historical sense, sending a duke to jail is not something that would typically have happened. I also think the author was trying to show that he had perhaps learned from the experience and turned over a new leaf, although I'm not so sure I believe that. Although The Black Moth is not officially considered part of a series, it is my understanding that the Duke does return in These Old Shades.The Black Moth was definitely a change of pace from my usual romance reading. Although the story contains large swaths of dialog, punctuated by shorter passages of prose, I felt that Ms. Heyer gave the reader a good feel of what it was like to live in the Georgian era by imparting many little details of fashion and society. In fact, I learned a few new and surprising things. I might point out here as well, that a number of individuals and a few websites have this book mislabeled as Regency romance, and although the exact year is never given in the text, the historical details clearly place it in the Georgian time frame. I felt that the pacing of the book was rather up and down with some parts moving pretty slowly, leaving my mind wandering, and others being engaging and fast-paced. It took me a while to get used to how different this book was than the romances I typically read, but it ended up being an agreeable experience. Based on the ratings I've seen on various book-related sites, I'd say that The Black Moth doesn't appear to be a fan favorite, but it was good enough to make me want to pick up another Georgette Heyer book in the future. If one takes into account that Ms. Heyer wrote the book when she was only seventeen to entertain her sick brother, I'd say she did quite well for one so young.
This was the first novel by Heyer, and also it had its share of problems, it read very well, showing the hand of the future master of the romance genre.The novel is set not during Regency – that period will be introduced into Heyer’s fiction later – but vaguely in the middle of the 18th century. Traveling to the continent is still sort-of a fashion for British aristocracy, and no one heard of Napoleon yet. Life is peaceful, except for our hero, Jack.Seven years ago, Jack and his younger brother Richard participated in a card game. Richard cheated. When the cheating was discovered, Jack, who loved his baby brother dearly, took the blame and became social pariah. Now he roams the English countryside, occasionally posing as a highwayman and robing fat merchants. He misses the society and his ancestral home but bravely refrains from fixing his situation, ready to sacrifice everything for his brother’s happiness... until he meets Diana, the heroine, and falls in love. Then his sacrifice becomes an unbearable burden, but what can a noble hero do? Sadly, neither Jack nor Diana are really the protagonists of this tale. The book’s title actually refers to the bad guy, a cynical and slightly sinister Duke of Andover. With his nickname Black Moth, he is the antagonist of the story. That’s in a nutshell the problem of this book. It lacks focus and the clearly defined lead characters. More often than not, the author concentrates not on Jack or Diana but either on the sardonic black-clad Duke or on Jack’s brother, weak but squirming from the pangs of conscience Richard. Or even on Richard’s wife, capricious and empty headed creature Lavinia. Hardly any time or page space is given to our sympathetic but or-so-honorable hero and heroine. Eventually, good guys prevailed, of course, and love triumphed, but the entire book has a feel of Victorian fiction much more than the 20th century literature, which is understandable. It was published in the transitional period, in 1921, and Heyer herself still needed some experience to rise to the heights of her talent and become the founder of modern romance genre. She was still learning the craft.What struck me in this book was the double standards exercised by British aristocrats. I don’t remember reading about it in any other Heyer’s novel, but here it’s naked and repulsive. After the card cheating incident, Jack spent some time in Europe, making his living as a fencing teacher. That time is behind him now, but he still bemoans it bitterly: that he, a British earl, had to teach fencing. It was a horrible time for him. I read about it and thought: why? It was an honest occupation. But obviously not for a nobleman, right? The Duke of Andover (the villain, remember) once fought a sword duel with a commoner, or at least a man he thought a commoner. After the faux commoner won, the duke accepted his defeat, gave up his sword, and then, after his adversary turned away, he shot him.Afterwards, the characters discuss this episode and come to the conclusion that the duke definitely didn’t know that his opponent belonged to the aristocracy too. He would never have shot him otherwise. Not even Black Moth would stoop to such dishonor. And again, I wonder. It’s dishonorable to break your word to another aristocrat but it’s okay to betray your word to a commoner? Some honor! Still, I enjoyed this book. For all its flaws, it was an entertaining tale and definitely a must-read for all Heyer’s and historical romance fans.
What do You think about The Black Moth (1979)?
When he was young, Jack Carstares took the blame when his younger brother was caught cheating at cards. He was ostracized from society and fled to the Continent, where he eventually made his fortune gambling and teaching fencing. Now he has returned to England, where he plays at being a highwayman (but in fact, gives all his ill-gotten gains to the poor). When his younger brother realizes that Jack is back, he is wracked with guilt, but as before his love for the spoiled Lavinia keeps him from revealing the truth.Meanwhile, the Duke of Andover (called Devil by friends and foes alike) has fallen for young Diana. He woos her under a false name, then tries to abduct her--but Jack, in his guise as a highwayman, fights him back. The Duke returns to London to come up with another plan to get Diana into his clutches, and Jack and Diana fall in love while she nurses him from his wounds. But Jack is still unwilling to cast aside his bad reputation, and so he and Diana cannot get married. Alack! It all ends happily, of course.This is a very odd book. First off, the morality system is quite strange: when Jack is accused of cheating at cards his friends and family cast him out entirely. But the Duke can try to seduce, abduct, and full on rape a lady *repeatedly*, and no one considers so much as disinviting him from a party. Nor, in fact, will Jack even reveal the Duke's real name to the woman he tried to ruin--he puts actual effort into keeping the Duke's true identity a secret. Madness!The other oddity is that the male friendships are given so much more intensity and page time than the romance between Jack and Diana. Jack and his valet Jim have an adorably/uncomfortably (depending on your feelings about class differences) feudal relationship. A great deal of the book is made up of conversations between Jack and O'Hara, who adore each other, banter constantly, and defend each other viciously. And, of course, there is the Duke and his bff Fortescue. The book opens with a letter from the Duke to Fortescue, and finishes with the Duke and Fortescue talking in their shared lodging in Venice. The Duke says Fortescue is literally the only person he likes in the whole world, and Fortescue spends all his time hanging out with the Duke, trying to get him to talk about his feelings. Although Diana does not get nearly the amount of page time the menfolk do (and in fact, Lavinia and O'Hara's wife get about as much page time as she does), she's a good character. She particularly shines in her final showdown with the Duke. But as for the Duke himself--I don't get why Heyer would want to write this character again, nor why anyone finds him fascinating. He's just another drawling menacing asshole, another Marquis St. Evrémonde or Lucius Malfoy. Maybe I'm just tired of the type, which seems to be everywhere in Regency romances.
—Wealhtheow
I have been putting off getting back to my reviews for so long, that this one may be a bit choppy, as the story is not as clear in my brain anymore. :P Please forgive. ;) But I did write down some points to hit so I'll follow those! :DOne thing I loved about The Black Moth was the theme of loyalty in the family. Our family is the best and closest earthly thing we have, and they deserve our utmost loyalty! Especially the two brothers in this story, really got this point across. Both of them stayed loyal to the other by keeping things quiet that could cause ruin for their sibling but gain for themselves, to keep each other safe- and in the end everything worked out. :)Dicks wife Lavinia REALLY got on my nerves for the better part of this book! She was so annoying and demanding- she kept bringing to mind that verse in the Bible that says "A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike." ;P But she was another aspect of the book that I ended up really liking, and it played along with the loyalty theme. Her transformation was really sweet to watch, and I felt so happy for Dick in the end- knowing he had truly loved her from the very start, and never let her down, even when she was horrid and selfish. The hero of our story- Lord John Carstares- reminded me a lot of Wesley, from The Princess Bride. Calm, daring, servant-hearted, great sense of humor, disguises! :D I really enjoyed his character.Diana, seemed to me to be put out more as a secondary character than as the heroine- like she was there merely as a love interest for the hero. Being a love interest and being a heroine are two completely different things- so I would have to say the title would go to Lavinia, who got most of the limelight. However I did really enjoy Diana's character! I liked that she was bold and confidant, but also sweet tempered and positive. :)There was definitely no mistaking our villain! Tracy was so conniving and mean in that smooth-and-creepy way. I was glad Diana could tell from the start that he was bad news- I can't stand a 'heroine' who is completely oblivious to what everyone else around her can see clear as day (when it comes to spotting the villain). I was glad that he lived in the end- another score for the hero- because he was able to make up with his siblings and carry on the family theme, and actually apologize to the heroine for being so nasty, but still got his punishment, as he deserved (another thing I can't stand is a villain who gets off completely without even being reprimanded). My favorite couple from this story was Miles and Molly. They were so sweeeet!!! :DThe ending to this story was hilarious! Most comedic way to make everything lighthearted and involve all the characters at once that I've ever read. Well done. :)
—Alice
This is a fascinating story of not one but two romances. When I first read it *cough* in my teens, I was enthralled by the wicked protagonist Tracey "Devil" Belmanoir and loved the romance with Jack and Diana. But this time I found myself taking more notice of the secondary romance between Lavinia and Richard, Jack's brother.This an adventurous romp about Jack Carstares who takes the blame for his brother's cheating and is exiled from society. We enter the story when Richard has encountered Jack as a highwayman and the Earl, their father is dead. Jack is the rightful Earl and Richard is anxious he have his inheritence but is still unable to bear the thought of disgrace if he admits his guilt. He has his wife Lavinia to consider now and she is against him revealing the truth.The story follows Jack rescuing Diana from Devil's clutches only to fall victim to love and finding his sacrifice hard to bear. Richard is increasingly consumed by guilt, thinking of Jack in want and alone.All through it we have the Duke of Andover, Belmanoir, manipulating events and plotting the ravishment of Diana, though even he seems so taken with her he might consider marriage.This is a wonderful story with a fabulous cast of characters. Some say it isn't her best, but it is her first and quite amazing. I love how it all comes together at the end for happy endings.
—Fiona Marsden
