A rollicking romp through Regency London

“A rollicking romp through Regency London, with a dark twist” is my summation of Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club from Australian author Alison Goodman.

As the book opens, Lady Helen, an orphan under the patronage of her kindly but fussy aunt is about to be presented at Court to Queen Charlotte.

In a brilliant first chapter Alison Goodman sets the scene. There is the detailed world of the aristocracy of London of 1812. Historical figures hover – Queen Charlotte,  mad George III, the Prince Regent, Beau Brummell. The streets of London are evoked as are establishments of the time including Hatchards bookshop, which you can still visit.

The elaborate rituals of the presentation at  Court, the nuances of the Season as young women are put on the marriage market are described in entertaining detail. In an author ‘s note Goodman admits to having ‘an obscene amount of fun researching Lady Helen’s world and the Regency era.’  This is evident.

But we learn in the first chapter that Lady Helen is no ordinary young aristocrat. Not only is she an orphan, but her mother is accused of being a traitor to England in the ongoing Napoleonic war. Lady Helen feels restless, filled with a strange energy as her Court appearance approaches.

And what has happened to the servant Berta?

Enter the villain   …   Or the hero.

Lord Carlston can lead Lady Helen beyond the ballroom to the world of Reclaimers and Deceivers, to struggles of good and evil, where the Home Office turns a blind eye to and enlists the aid of the paranormal. It is a world where there are pale blue auras or vivid blue ones with damaging tongues and lethal tails.

Goodman acknowledges her love of things Regency to Georgette Heyer, whose books her mother first acquainted her with.

This is no Georgette Heyer.

It is well written, well researched paranormal historical novel. And if you love it, the good news is, this is just the first.

Alison Goodman does not disappoint in this second novel about Lady Helen, Lady Helen and the Dark Days Pact. The world of Reclaimers and Deceivers is further revealed. The action moves to Brighton and, once again, we are treated to meticulous detail about the Regency period.

The novel opens with Lady Helen undergoing training as a Reclaimer under the guidance of Lord Carlston, who is fighting his own inner battles. Joining them are Michael Hammond and his sister, Lady Margaret and Lady Helen’s disgraced friend, Delia. Darby, Lady Helen’s maid is being trained as her Terrene. These esoteric terms are all fully explained in the course of the novel.

Real historical characters and events are skilfully mixed with the imagined world. The Dark Days Club is under the eye of the Home Office and its Secretary. The Prince Regent pens a note to Lady Helen, thanking her for her service to the country. This is the time of Napoleon – could he be the Grand Deceiver? A real assassination, the motive for which has never been established, is at the core of the novel.

We are treated to ballrooms and salons of the Regency period with lavish descriptions of clothing, jewellery, food and manners. The dark side of Regency life is also described as Lady Helen, disguised as a man, tracks down an important manuscript through bawdy houses and inns.

The ingenious plot moves at a fast pace. This is an action packed story.

Despite her powers as a Reclaimer, Lady Helen is still a woman of the early nineteenth century,  subject to the strictures and limitations of that time.

While the ending brings resolution, it also poses new problems as Lord Carlston and Lady Helen’s positions are further revealed.

These will no doubt be further explored in the book Alison Goodman is currently working on.

Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club and Lady Helen and the Dark Days Pact are books for those who like their historical novels with a touch of the Gothic supernatural. Both novels are available now from Dymocks.