“The Great Roxhythe” isn’t Heyer’s finest novel, but I liked it more than some of her later works.

Political intrigue is the order of the day, featuring Roxhythe working unconditionally for his master Charles II. Although some scenes are engaging, much of the time nothing substantial happens. While l like novels that are dialogue heavy, this one has so much “talking” that there’s little room for action. So, despite the fast pace created through copious dialogue, the story suffers from a lack of engaging conflict.

Roxhythe as a character is appealing. He’s something of a prototype for Heyer’s characters in later novels.

While the authentic language in this author’s Georgina and regency novels works well, her emulation of seventeenth-century speech is less effective, owing to it being that much older and therefore difficult for a modern audience to follow. For example, it took me some time to gather that “an” means “if”. Sometimes a character will say “hath”, and sometimes “has”, which feels inconsistent. I’d rather the author used contemporary language for her contemporary readers.

When characters write letters to each other, we get old spelling as well:

“Nowe he at last hath His Rightfull Place, after soe Many Yeares Patient Waiting.”

Doubtless some readers will appreciate the authenticity, but others will agree with me when I state that this approach slows the narrative down. Yes, the old style is understandable, but it requires more concentration, which interrupts the narrative flow.

My biggest criticism is this sort of thing:

“I mean le Marquis de Roxhythe, who is perhaps epris de Madame, who is sans doute eprise de lui. He is ever in Attendance on her, and Shows himself tres beau cavalier ...”

I hate it when authors presume that because they understand a foreign language, all their readers will do as well. It’s arrogant on an author’s part to do this. Using foreign words or phrases locks out any readers who can’t speak the language in question. A good author should never leave any reader in the dark. Challenge them, yes, but don’t exclude them from the story by using foreign words and/or expressions. Always put the reader first, or else why bother writing for publication?

Another element that spoils this novel is the amount of “telling” instead of “showing”. For example, “Lady Frances was surprised” and “Charles was angry” are blatant telling. The high number of adverbs in the book also “tell”.

I understand that “The Great Roxhythe” is the author’s second book, so you could argue that this is why it’s not brilliant, yet I really like her first book. ( )

This is somewhat out of the usual for Heyer, and I'm note sure I enjoyed it particularly. Roxhythe is a member of the aristocracy and a close favourite of Charles II. Set after the restoration, it is evident that Roxhythe accompanied Charles during his exile and struggle to regain the crown and has since devoted himself to Charles. At the crux of the book, we discover that he is also prepared to put Charles' interests and wished above those of his country. The counter to this is Roxhythe's new secretary, a young man named Christoper Dart. He is of puritan stock, and his loyalty will be to country over person, as is evident by his removing himself from Roxhythe's service after he discovers he has been duped into some intrigue that he cannot approve of.
The relationships at the heart of this are devotion between men and how that can blight or make your life experience. In the end, this does not end happily, but I can't say that I was disappointed to have got to the end of it. As an experiment, I'm not sure it worked for me. ( )

restored text, photocopied, each page has darker background

When I found this previously undiscovered by me Heyer, I was so excited. However, there was a reason this book is not well-known. It just wasn't up to Heyer's normal standard. I am glad I read it, just to help complete my Heyer collection but it was sadly disappointing. ( )

Set during the reign of Charles II of England, in the 1670s. Roxhythe has been one of Charles' best friends since the days of exile while Cromwell ruled in England after the English civil war. He rarely discusses politics, but undertakes various intrigues at Charles' request. His secretary, Chris Dart, is a man of honor and loves Roxhythe devotedly, but when he finds out about the intrigues can no longer work for someone he feels has betrayed his honor.

Although there is fascinating character in the book, this is not a romance in a traditional sense. It is, in a different way... it is the story of the platonic but strong love of Roxhythe and Charles and Roxhythe and Chris Dart. Because these end, as all things must, it has a tone of bittersweet and melancholy, which sets it apart from most of Heyer's works. It is not less worth reading than her other books, however. ( )