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I don’t recall ever having read ‘Allegra’, although perhaps a did a few decades ago. In any case, I had entirely forgotten both the people and the story. The title character, Allegra, is twenty-five - ‘on the shelf’ in Regency times - but she’s mostly resigned to this. She would like her sister Hilary to make a good marriage, but Hilary is only seventeen, although mature for her years.
Allegra and Hilary have recently lost their father, and - in the way of inheritance laws in the early 1800s - this means they no longer have a home. Instead it goes to a second cousin, Sir Derek. Allegra is convinced he will make changes to their home, probably in poor taste. She vaguely recalls meeting him when she was a teenager, and thought him arrogant and generally unpleasant.
Sir Derek has been abroad, working in diplomatic circles in Europe, but he has returned to the UK to take up his inheritance. Allegra has been staying with an aunt, and is now returned to her home village, staying with another aunt. But these visits are not successful. Allegra is outspoken and tends to speak or act without thinking, and she has quite a temper. Hilary also has a mind of her own, and is quite impetuous. Neither wants to conform to society’s expectations, and Allegra has already refused some quite eligible suitors.
Allegra’s godmother tells her that Sir Derek is going to propose marriage to her, which startles her; however, she feels that perhaps a marriage of convenience would be a small price to pay for her own household, living in her beloved family home. But before she agrees to this arrangement, she hears rumours about ways Sir Derek has behaved to people she cares about. So she argues fiercely with him, and insists that she will do anything rather than marry him.
So she decides to travel to Brussels, where her former governess has started a school for wealthy teenage girls. She quite likes teaching, although her teacher thinks Hilary should get into society and that Allegra should chaperone her. So she dresses them well, and is happy that they meet lots of military people….
The story takes place when the city is rife with speculation about Napoleon, and whether he will march into Brussels. There are spies in their midst, yet the upper classes continue their social visits, and their endless round of balls and parties. Of course with the benefit of hindsight, I knew (vaguely) that Napoleon would be defeated - the battle of Waterloo takes place towards the end of the book and we only hear about it second-hand; by that stage, Allegra and Hilary are back in the UK.
But along the way there are assignations and an attempted incarceration, with an unlikely - but quite satisfying - conclusion. Allegra continues to be outspoken and uncertain where her heart lies; she seems, at times, deliberately contrary. Hilary, for all her youth, is more intuitive, at least until she loses her heart to one of the soldiers.
There’s a kitten in the story too - I’m not sure what its relevance is, but it’s a nice touch, demonstrating Hilary’s compassion and also her ability to focus. She’s quite a determined person, but not as hot-tempered as her sister.
The eventual outcome for Allegra was pretty much inevitable from the start, and I thought nicely done in the end, though - no doubt - with a future full of misunderstandings and battles rather than ‘happy ever after’. I wasn’t sure where Hilary’s story was going, but that, too, has a positive ending.
The writing is good, the conversation and descriptions feel authentic, and the whole set in a historical period with realistic characters scattered amongst the fictional ones. I liked this book very much; it’s not quite Heyer’s quality, but still I thought it a very good read. Recommended to anyone who likes this kind of ‘Regency romance’ novel mainly set amongst the upper classes.
Unfortunately this book, as with others by Clare Darcy, is long out of print. However it can often be found second-hand at reasonable cost, and is available for the Kindle.
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