The Grand Sophy

Synopsis

When the redoubtable Sir Horace Stanton-Lacy is ordered to South America on diplomatic business, he leaves his only daughter Sophy with his sister's family, the Ombersleys, in Berkeley Square. Upon her arrival, Sophy is bemused to see her cousins in a sad tangle. The heartless and tyrannical Charles is betrothed to a pedantic bluestocking almost as tiresome as himself; Cecilia is besotted with a beautiful but feather-brained poet; and Hubert has fallen foul of a money-lender. It looks like the Grand Sophy has arrived just in time to sort them out, but she hasn't reckoned with Charles, the Ombersleys' heir, who has only one thought- to marry her off and rid the family of her meddlesome ways.

Loved

• Sophy! Oh my goodness. I don't even know how to describe her. Just thinking about her makes me laugh. She is the most audacious, confident, sassy, and witty regency heroine I've ever met. Imagine the pluck of Anne Shirley, the wit of Elizabeth Bennett, and the brains of Hermione Granger- all sprinkled on top with a wild sense of humor and ability to embrace chaos. As an example- one of my favorite scenes is when she shoots a hole in the wall just to prove she knows how to shoot a gun. And she's dang good at it too. She takes the world by the horns and doesn't let anything get in her way of helping other people in the most bold and bizarre manner.

• The banter. Sophy's banter with Charles and the other characters had me laughing out loud throughout the book. Sophy's wit honestly makes the Austen heroines look dim (don't hate- I adore the Austen heroines). But Sophy's got a confidence and audacity that would drop the jaw of Jane Austen herself. Sophy's comments, observations and arguments had me flipping back pages to read them again because they were so entertaining and sharp.

• The chaos. Everyone in this book is dealing with some huge problem, and the deeper the problems become and the higher the stakes rise, the more Sophy shines and thrives. She even creates much of the chaos in order to solve everyone's problems, which becomes messy and hilarious. And while everyone's scratching their heads trying to keep up with her, Sophy is one step ahead of everyone, outsmarting them and dumbfounding them with her bold confidence and pragmatic problem solving.

• The ending. The ending of this story was so bizarre and chaotic that I couldn't believe what I was reading as it was happening. After finishing the book, I put it down and laughed, so pleased that Georgette Hyer pulled off such a wild story with such a perfectly bizarre finale. The whole ending compiles disaster after disaster, which create the perfect setting for Sophy to thrive with her charm and bold confidence.

• The romance. "Charles!" uttered Sophy, shocked. "You cannot love me!" "I don't: I dislike you excessively!" he said savagely. This romance was so funny because the characters didn't even realize it was happening until almost the last page. I about died at Charles trying to keep up with Sophy and getting outsmarted or outwitted by her so many times, yet finding himself completely enamored with her in spite of himself. I love how the romance resolved too in true Sophy fashion- amidst complete chaos and utterly bizarre circumstances.

Didn't Love

• I just adored this book. My only small complaint is that Sophy does fall in love with her first cousin- but I got over that, knowing that's just how things went in those days :)

Content

• Language: 
• I don't remember any language- but there may have been some "damns" and "hells."

• Sexual content: 
• Nothing sexual, just a kiss or two, but nothing described.

• Violence:
• One character is threatened by a man to whom he owes money.

Overall Thoughts

Wow, my sister recommended Georgette Hyer to me, and I'm so glad she did! I absolutely ate up every crumb of this story and licked the plate afterward. I think everyone needs to experience the whirlwind and laugh that is Sophy Stanton-Lacy. She is unlike any heroine I have ever met, and I definitely won't forget her anytime soon. I promise this book will make you smile, laugh, gasp, and drop your jaw at Sophy's pluck and ability to dumbfound and charm the most intimidating people. I can't recommend this story enough- I dare you to try to getting through it without laughing out loud one time ;)