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The Marriage Recital
"Extremely impressive . . . . A wonderful read from a born storyteller." -Chris Cleave, New York Times bestselling author of Little Bee
The setting: London, 1794.
The problem: Four nouveau riche fathers with five marriageable daughters.
The plan: Give the young women piano lessons. Present them at a concert performance for young Englishmen with titles but no fortunes. Marry off the daughters-very well, indeed.
The complications: The lascivious (and French) piano teacher; the piano maker's jealous (and musically gifted) daughter; marriageable daughters with mating plans of their own.
While it might be a truth universally acknowledged that a man in possession of a title and no money must be in want of a fortune, what does a sexually awakened young woman want? In her wickedly alluring romp through late-Georgian London, Italian piano-making, and tightly fitted polonaise gowns, Katharine Grant has written a startling and provocative debut in The Marriage Recital.
The setting: London, 1794.
The problem: Four nouveau riche fathers with five marriageable daughters.
The plan: Give the young women piano lessons. Present them at a concert performance for young Englishmen with titles but no fortunes. Marry off the daughters-very well, indeed.
The complications: The lascivious (and French) piano teacher; the piano maker's jealous (and musically gifted) daughter; marriageable daughters with mating plans of their own.
While it might be a truth universally acknowledged that a man in possession of a title and no money must be in want of a fortune, what does a sexually awakened young woman want? In her wickedly alluring romp through late-Georgian London, Italian piano-making, and tightly fitted polonaise gowns, Katharine Grant has written a startling and provocative debut in The Marriage Recital.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
14 people are currently reading
1065 people want to read
About the author
Katharine Grant
3 books12 followersKatharine Grant was born into a family described by Lord Burghley, Treasurer to Elizabeth 1st, as of ‘more than usual perversity’ for clinging to their Catholic faith, an act, during the Reformation, of blatant sedition. In 1746 her five times great uncle, Francis Towneley, supported Bonnie Prince Charlie, and, as a result, was the last person in the UK to be hanged, drawn and quartered. His head was spiked on Temple Bar, and thereafter had a series of slightly macabre adventures until final burial after the Second World War.
Katharine grew up on the edge of the Lancashire moors with five sisters and one brother and, sometimes using family stories, has written nine novels for children and young adults. She has written regularly for most newspapers in Scotland and is currently the Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow at the University of Glasgow. Sedition is her first novel for adults.
She has also published several books for children and young adults under the name K.M. Grant. For more information, see The History Girls: Naming myself, by Katharine Grant.
- from her website
Katharine grew up on the edge of the Lancashire moors with five sisters and one brother and, sometimes using family stories, has written nine novels for children and young adults. She has written regularly for most newspapers in Scotland and is currently the Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow at the University of Glasgow. Sedition is her first novel for adults.
She has also published several books for children and young adults under the name K.M. Grant. For more information, see The History Girls: Naming myself, by Katharine Grant.
- from her website
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 146 reviews
April 23, 2014
Well, this is a ... weird... book.
I can't really think of anything else I've read that I would compare it to. It's internally consistent, but the tone is a strange mix of humor, tragedy, and prurience.
Five young women - all the daughters of social climbers. Their parents concoct a scheme to have the girls present a musical concert, playing the newfangled pianoforte, in order to lure titled husbands.
To this end, a piano is acquired and a music master hired. However, due to the piano-seller's offense at how the sale went down, he concocts a scheme to have the piano teacher seduce and deflower all five girls, and thus ruin the families' grand plans.
As it turns out, however, not all five of the girls actually need deflowering, and this scheme is not the only one that comes into play - the tables may be turned. And they may turn at unexpected angles.
This summary makes the story sound more lighthearted than it is, however. There's a lot of darkness here: rape, incest, abuse, violence, mutilation and more. Some of it is presented quite disturbingly. But then there's still that weird humor to it. And it's not quite pornographic - there's also an odd restraint to the book.
However, it is undeniably quite perverse...
Copy won through the Goodreads First Reads giveaway. Thanks to Goodreads!
I can't really think of anything else I've read that I would compare it to. It's internally consistent, but the tone is a strange mix of humor, tragedy, and prurience.
Five young women - all the daughters of social climbers. Their parents concoct a scheme to have the girls present a musical concert, playing the newfangled pianoforte, in order to lure titled husbands.
To this end, a piano is acquired and a music master hired. However, due to the piano-seller's offense at how the sale went down, he concocts a scheme to have the piano teacher seduce and deflower all five girls, and thus ruin the families' grand plans.
As it turns out, however, not all five of the girls actually need deflowering, and this scheme is not the only one that comes into play - the tables may be turned. And they may turn at unexpected angles.
This summary makes the story sound more lighthearted than it is, however. There's a lot of darkness here: rape, incest, abuse, violence, mutilation and more. Some of it is presented quite disturbingly. But then there's still that weird humor to it. And it's not quite pornographic - there's also an odd restraint to the book.
However, it is undeniably quite perverse...
Copy won through the Goodreads First Reads giveaway. Thanks to Goodreads!
April 4, 2017
This is a wonderfully sly and mischievous book which takes the bare bones of a nineteenth-century novel and gives them an audacious makeover. A group of mercantile families in 1794 London are keen to marry off their five daughters and so decide to have them give a musical concert to put them on public display and catch husbands. But with various plots afoot, the plan goes outrageously wrong...
Grant writes wonderfully but this is a darker, in places, read than some of the reviews indicate. At the same time, she takes the central conceit of nineteenth-century fiction - the marriage of girls - and boldly overturns it. The social and literary commentary is subtle but unmistakably there, and the book is imbued with a spirit of transgression from the background of the French Revolution to the ultimate fate of the girls.
So this book takes its cue more from Les Liaisons Dangeureuses than Jane Austen but with a postmodern consciousness and a deliciously wayward ending: it starts off as a romp but soon develops into something far more boldly and gloriously seditious.
Grant writes wonderfully but this is a darker, in places, read than some of the reviews indicate. At the same time, she takes the central conceit of nineteenth-century fiction - the marriage of girls - and boldly overturns it. The social and literary commentary is subtle but unmistakably there, and the book is imbued with a spirit of transgression from the background of the French Revolution to the ultimate fate of the girls.
So this book takes its cue more from Les Liaisons Dangeureuses than Jane Austen but with a postmodern consciousness and a deliciously wayward ending: it starts off as a romp but soon develops into something far more boldly and gloriously seditious.
April 14, 2014
Cleverly written but darkish satire on English social manners, in which a French music master is bribed into attempting to seduce five young pupils before the concert at which they are to be presented to their future husbands. Wicked humor alternates with pathos and a gothic intensity of emotion. Very hard to categorize, but intriguing and original.
May 11, 2014
Delightfully amoral, a wicked tale of seduction that channels both Les Liaisons Dangereuses and The Piano.
Several 'new money' families decide to showcase their daughters in the marriage market by purchasing a top-notch pianoforte and training up their girls to perform for nobility. Instrument-maker Cantabile is affronted by the idea of untrained and clumsy girls touching his handmade piece of art. He sends Monsiuer Belladroit to the families, ostensibly as their instructor. But really to seduce them all and foil the marriage schemes.
Unexpected turns come from his own daughter, talented musician Annie, born with a disfiguring hare lip, and one of the girls - Alathea, cunning and scheming plans of her own.
Like Dangerous Liasions, the period and theme of seduction fill the story. It's light in places, dark in others. The girls are well-enough differentiated to be identifiable. Alathea is admirable (and yet pitiable at times, as is Annie, who I wanted to see more of). Alathea drives the plot, and takes it in turns unforeseen.
There are some sex scenes but beautifully written to be completely implied, not explicit whatsoever.
The concert scene itself. So long anticipated. It is a delight. I soooooooo wanted to hear that music. To see those dresses.
Thoroughly enjoyed this, great period feel and hope it gets made into a film - some wonderful parts here for actors. And great humour, with Belladroit eventually having to service several curious teenagers consecutively, will transfer brilliantly to the screen. Indulge.
Several 'new money' families decide to showcase their daughters in the marriage market by purchasing a top-notch pianoforte and training up their girls to perform for nobility. Instrument-maker Cantabile is affronted by the idea of untrained and clumsy girls touching his handmade piece of art. He sends Monsiuer Belladroit to the families, ostensibly as their instructor. But really to seduce them all and foil the marriage schemes.
Unexpected turns come from his own daughter, talented musician Annie, born with a disfiguring hare lip, and one of the girls - Alathea, cunning and scheming plans of her own.
Like Dangerous Liasions, the period and theme of seduction fill the story. It's light in places, dark in others. The girls are well-enough differentiated to be identifiable. Alathea is admirable (and yet pitiable at times, as is Annie, who I wanted to see more of). Alathea drives the plot, and takes it in turns unforeseen.
There are some sex scenes but beautifully written to be completely implied, not explicit whatsoever.
The concert scene itself. So long anticipated. It is a delight. I soooooooo wanted to hear that music. To see those dresses.
Thoroughly enjoyed this, great period feel and hope it gets made into a film - some wonderful parts here for actors. And great humour, with Belladroit eventually having to service several curious teenagers consecutively, will transfer brilliantly to the screen. Indulge.
October 21, 2014
A rather silly, but enjoyable enough bit of historic erotica here... this book is trying to channel all the bawdy goodness of great classics like Fanny Hill, Dangerous Liasions and Vanity Fair with a dash of The Crimson Petal thrown in for good measure. I don't think it manages the brilliance of any of these works, but it does create a story that is worth a few hours reading.
The story follows a group of girls out to catch themselves titled husbands; money is not an issue, but breeding will be so a plot is hatched to train the girls up on the newly fashionable pianoforte and get them all to perform for prospective husbands. This concert will demonstrate their desirability and culture as well as their other attractive qualities. Unfortunatey a resentful piano-maker has a plot of his own to ruin the chances of each one of these girls, in comes a dashing music teacher and the story unfolds from there. For a modern piece the sex scenes (which are frequent) are oddly coy; this is despite there being instances of rape, incest and a brutal sexual mutilation. I;m not sure if this is done to ensure that Sedition isn't lumped into the proper erotica section, but to be honest it might well have worked better if the sexual writing had been a bit more obvious; as it is I feel this book will be too vanilla for one audience and far too graphic for most other people. An odd book.
The story follows a group of girls out to catch themselves titled husbands; money is not an issue, but breeding will be so a plot is hatched to train the girls up on the newly fashionable pianoforte and get them all to perform for prospective husbands. This concert will demonstrate their desirability and culture as well as their other attractive qualities. Unfortunatey a resentful piano-maker has a plot of his own to ruin the chances of each one of these girls, in comes a dashing music teacher and the story unfolds from there. For a modern piece the sex scenes (which are frequent) are oddly coy; this is despite there being instances of rape, incest and a brutal sexual mutilation. I;m not sure if this is done to ensure that Sedition isn't lumped into the proper erotica section, but to be honest it might well have worked better if the sexual writing had been a bit more obvious; as it is I feel this book will be too vanilla for one audience and far too graphic for most other people. An odd book.
January 24, 2019
In the London of 1794, four fathers and three mothers require husbands for their five daughters. In a meeting between the fathers, it is declared fashionable for young ladies to learn the Pianoforte, and therefore their daughters should learn the instrument and perform a concert in the hopes of seducing husbands with their music. Unfortunately, the piano maker has other ideas. His daughter, Annie, has a cleft lip, and so has always been a disappointment to him. In retaliation for him being so horrid to her, she sells his prized Piano to the girls for their concert, which has the intended result. Time for the piano maker to get his revenge. It turns out that even an innocent plan such as this can turn out to be not quite as expected.
This book, at least in my opinion, was just... meh. The plot at least did follow a storyline, but for the time that the book is set in, it was simply too difficult to believe. This book is certainly not for younger readers, as there are several references that are made purely for the more mature audience, but these references don't really seem to add anything to the story other than carry the plot along in the intended direction. The book was not all negative, however, not in any way. The girls were interesting characters, and their developments throughout the book were positive. Despite this, clearly, for me, this is the wrong genre (not that it seems to fit into either romance or erotica that I can tell), and I shouldn't read any more of it!
This book, at least in my opinion, was just... meh. The plot at least did follow a storyline, but for the time that the book is set in, it was simply too difficult to believe. This book is certainly not for younger readers, as there are several references that are made purely for the more mature audience, but these references don't really seem to add anything to the story other than carry the plot along in the intended direction. The book was not all negative, however, not in any way. The girls were interesting characters, and their developments throughout the book were positive. Despite this, clearly, for me, this is the wrong genre (not that it seems to fit into either romance or erotica that I can tell), and I shouldn't read any more of it!
March 23, 2014
The promotional blurbs make this sound like a fabulous book, one of them compares Sedition to Sarah Water's Fingersmith. When I hear a book being compared to Fingersmith I think that means the writing is excellent and the story is amazing and I get all happy and excited thinking about the potential greatness of what I'm about to read. It's always after I read the book that was compared to Fingersmith that I remember what they really mean when they compare something to Fingersmith (the story has lesbian lovers).
This novel is saucy and sexy, I will give it that but I didn't find much substance or depth beyond that and perhaps substance was never the intention. I found the story somewhat shocking, disturbing and weird, unfortunately not in a satisfying way.
The story is about five young girls, their fathers are nouveau riche and want them to marry titled men. The fathers agree on a plan; they’ll purchase a pianoforte, hire a music instructor who will teach the girls to master the pianoforte, at the end of the year they will invite potential suitors to a concert that will dazzle and amaze and marriage proposals will be won for all. Or maybe not.
I was looking forward to the complications promised by the lascivious piano teacher, the jealous piano maker's daughter and the one daughter who has a plan of her own. What I found disappointing was the believability of these character's motivations and certain key events that require the reader's suspension of disbelief.
I'm not big on the suspension of disbelief and this story requires a lot of suspension in order to be believed. There's one daughter who's more sophisticated than the others, she does a variety of things that make this novel interesting. Unfortunately for me I like my characters to do things that make sense in the context of their lives or at least seem like something they might actually do.
The other problem I had was the motivation of the characters working against the marriage of the daughters. They aren't explored to the point of understanding, they're stated almost as a given but the better part of the story completely revolves around them. Again, I just didn't find them to be very believable. There's also an element of cooperation with several characters that doesn't make any sense, except to make the story interesting.
This story was a titillating bit of fluffy sauciness with an edge of warped and depressing, but one that doesn't hold together under scrutiny or leave the reader with any feeling of satisfaction.
Thank you to the Amazon Vine program and the publisher, Henry Holt and Company, for making this copy available to me in exchange for an honest review
This novel is saucy and sexy, I will give it that but I didn't find much substance or depth beyond that and perhaps substance was never the intention. I found the story somewhat shocking, disturbing and weird, unfortunately not in a satisfying way.
The story is about five young girls, their fathers are nouveau riche and want them to marry titled men. The fathers agree on a plan; they’ll purchase a pianoforte, hire a music instructor who will teach the girls to master the pianoforte, at the end of the year they will invite potential suitors to a concert that will dazzle and amaze and marriage proposals will be won for all. Or maybe not.
I was looking forward to the complications promised by the lascivious piano teacher, the jealous piano maker's daughter and the one daughter who has a plan of her own. What I found disappointing was the believability of these character's motivations and certain key events that require the reader's suspension of disbelief.
I'm not big on the suspension of disbelief and this story requires a lot of suspension in order to be believed. There's one daughter who's more sophisticated than the others, she does a variety of things that make this novel interesting. Unfortunately for me I like my characters to do things that make sense in the context of their lives or at least seem like something they might actually do.
The other problem I had was the motivation of the characters working against the marriage of the daughters. They aren't explored to the point of understanding, they're stated almost as a given but the better part of the story completely revolves around them. Again, I just didn't find them to be very believable. There's also an element of cooperation with several characters that doesn't make any sense, except to make the story interesting.
This story was a titillating bit of fluffy sauciness with an edge of warped and depressing, but one that doesn't hold together under scrutiny or leave the reader with any feeling of satisfaction.
Thank you to the Amazon Vine program and the publisher, Henry Holt and Company, for making this copy available to me in exchange for an honest review
April 28, 2014
I would never have read Sedition if it weren't on the Desmond Elliott longlist - it just didn't sound my kind of thing. And now I've read it, I'm not sure what sort of a thing it is. It's not a satire, or a farce as it's just not funny and it's definitely not sexy. I'm the last person who would say that a novel should be instantly classifiable, and I usually enjoy something a bit different, but this is just decidedly odd. There are too many similar characters - with five sets of businessmen, wives and daughters, the main characters aside I found it impossible to keep track of who was who. Then there is the plot which is nothing short of ludicrous.
In summary, I didn't dislike it as much as I expected to, but I didn't think it was anything special either. At least I am vindicated in that if I think a book isn't for me, I'm probably right.
In summary, I didn't dislike it as much as I expected to, but I didn't think it was anything special either. At least I am vindicated in that if I think a book isn't for me, I'm probably right.
April 8, 2016
In London in 1794, four fathers buy a pianoforte for their five daughters, who are to give a concert to attract titled husbands. Let the mayhem begin....
This book was not what I was expecting when I read the blurb in the bookshop. It is dark, deceptive, and quite creepy, yet at the same time it is beautifully written, humorous in places, and exciting. It might not suit everyone, but this week it suited me perfectly.
Trigger / content warnings:
This book was not what I was expecting when I read the blurb in the bookshop. It is dark, deceptive, and quite creepy, yet at the same time it is beautifully written, humorous in places, and exciting. It might not suit everyone, but this week it suited me perfectly.
Trigger / content warnings:
April 27, 2014
This has got to be one of the strangest and most unsettling books I've ever read. In the edgy, offbeat historical fiction genre that I so love, I would compare it most to Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, but this one is far more disquieting and not near as satisfying. This is hard to rate; I loved aspects of it, and the writing is sharp and wonderful, but at the same time it's left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I think with a less jarring final section I would have really loved this.
February 8, 2015
Loved this wonderful, funny yet poignant and above all very entertaining book. A delightful read.
December 11, 2017
This is a tongue-in-cheek, droll but dark tale set in 1794 London. If you like comedies of manners set in historical times, this would be like their dark and somewhat depressing but witty cousin. It's well written, has well-developed and varied characters, supplies some very funny and entertaining moments, and manages to be unpredictable and unexpected in its development. I found myself liking and not liking the book all at the same time. When I read a comedy of manners, which I originally thought this would be, I'm looking to be entertained and to laugh at the characters' foibles and follies, but I don't expect such a dark, rather depressing outlook as this one turned out to have.
The basic story revolves around four newly-rich families. The fathers are City businessmen, lower middle-class men who've worked their way up to having a lot of money but still don't "get no respect" because of their class standing. What to do? Marry off their daughters to peers as high up the social ladder as possible: young men with titles but little fortune.
The plan: Have the girls learn to play that newfangled pianoforte (not the been-there, done-that harpsichord that every other girl can play). To that end they buy one piano for all five girls to practice on, a piano purchased from expert piano maker Vittorio Cantabile, who also supplies them with a master piano instructor, Monsieur Belladroit, a French emigre in London fleeing his country's revolution. Once the girls have mastered the pianoforte, they will give a concert to which upper-class families with marriageable men will be invited, men who will be struck dumb with the girls' talent and wish to marry them.
Well, there will be bumps along the way. Cantabile hates these newly-rich men and has sent instructor Belladroit with the intention to seduce and deflower all five girls before concert time comes around. And there are even more bumps: 1) Most of the girls have little talent. How will Belladroit get their playing ability up to exhibition quality? 2) Cantabile's daughter Annie, born with a disfiguring harelip, has an unfortunate crush on Belladroit and a deep resentment and jealousy of the girls he is teaching. 3) Alathea, the only motherless girl of the group of daughters, has a dark secret which manifests itself in her independent behavior and sexual awareness and which possibly keeps her from being marriage material.
The culmination of all this is the concert, which, suffice it to say, goes all out of control, both in the girls' interpretation of the chosen musical piece and in the behavior of the girls themselves. Things definitely do not go as the fathers had planned. It's funny and dark and even sad and I'm glad that I read it but I was hoping for a happier ending for at least a few of the characters in the book. This entertained but ultimately depressed me.
The basic story revolves around four newly-rich families. The fathers are City businessmen, lower middle-class men who've worked their way up to having a lot of money but still don't "get no respect" because of their class standing. What to do? Marry off their daughters to peers as high up the social ladder as possible: young men with titles but little fortune.
The plan: Have the girls learn to play that newfangled pianoforte (not the been-there, done-that harpsichord that every other girl can play). To that end they buy one piano for all five girls to practice on, a piano purchased from expert piano maker Vittorio Cantabile, who also supplies them with a master piano instructor, Monsieur Belladroit, a French emigre in London fleeing his country's revolution. Once the girls have mastered the pianoforte, they will give a concert to which upper-class families with marriageable men will be invited, men who will be struck dumb with the girls' talent and wish to marry them.
Well, there will be bumps along the way. Cantabile hates these newly-rich men and has sent instructor Belladroit with the intention to seduce and deflower all five girls before concert time comes around. And there are even more bumps: 1) Most of the girls have little talent. How will Belladroit get their playing ability up to exhibition quality? 2) Cantabile's daughter Annie, born with a disfiguring harelip, has an unfortunate crush on Belladroit and a deep resentment and jealousy of the girls he is teaching. 3) Alathea, the only motherless girl of the group of daughters, has a dark secret which manifests itself in her independent behavior and sexual awareness and which possibly keeps her from being marriage material.
The culmination of all this is the concert, which, suffice it to say, goes all out of control, both in the girls' interpretation of the chosen musical piece and in the behavior of the girls themselves. Things definitely do not go as the fathers had planned. It's funny and dark and even sad and I'm glad that I read it but I was hoping for a happier ending for at least a few of the characters in the book. This entertained but ultimately depressed me.
September 9, 2020
This was a strange book set in 1790s London, a time of great political and social upheaval. Five teenage girls, daughters of wealthy men in the financial markets of the City, are in the market for marriage, preferably to the aristocracy, some of whom need the 'new' money. Two pianofortes and a teacher are hired to teach the girls this new instrument, and a concert is planned for the girls to show off their skills and physical attributes. Its a sort of human meat market.
However, subversion is in the air. The teacher, a French emigre, is also being paid by the seller of the piano to 'deflower' the girls. The girls in turn rather enjoy this! The novel culminates in the concert, which doesn't go quite as the parents planned...
I quite enjoyed this novel - it was saucy, funny in parts, sad in others, and well written. However, I never really got 'in the zone' with it.
However, subversion is in the air. The teacher, a French emigre, is also being paid by the seller of the piano to 'deflower' the girls. The girls in turn rather enjoy this! The novel culminates in the concert, which doesn't go quite as the parents planned...
I quite enjoyed this novel - it was saucy, funny in parts, sad in others, and well written. However, I never really got 'in the zone' with it.
January 31, 2015
I loved this book, right up until the end, when I didn't (which means I wish I could give it 4.5 stars). The plot involving four bourgeois families in late 18th-century London out to marry their five daughters into the nobility is a brilliant skewering of economic marriage and the type of romance novel that celebrates it. "Jane Austen on crack," as one reviewer put it, is a good description, although LSD might have been a better drug of choice.
Grant's writing is crisp, the narrative economical, and the situation hilarious, despite its darker elements, which include incest and rape. The characters are deftly drawn, if not all fully developed. It's more of a farce than realistic fiction, so I was willing to forgive its characters for acting in not quite realistic ways. Once I accepted that a piano builder could be so offended by a customer's philistinism and social climbing that he would send a piano tutor to deflower the five daughters, ruining their chances of a good marriage, the rest seemed quite plausible. Right up to the ending, that is, when it seeme that Grant set her thumb too heavily on the scales of plausibility in order to get the ending she wanted.
Despite my disappointment with the ending, it's well worth the read. And to cure my dissatisfaction, I wrote a fanfictional alternate ending. If you were equally disappointed, you'll find it over on Archive of Our Own.
More thoughts on the ending in the spoiler section:
Grant's writing is crisp, the narrative economical, and the situation hilarious, despite its darker elements, which include incest and rape. The characters are deftly drawn, if not all fully developed. It's more of a farce than realistic fiction, so I was willing to forgive its characters for acting in not quite realistic ways. Once I accepted that a piano builder could be so offended by a customer's philistinism and social climbing that he would send a piano tutor to deflower the five daughters, ruining their chances of a good marriage, the rest seemed quite plausible. Right up to the ending, that is, when it seeme that Grant set her thumb too heavily on the scales of plausibility in order to get the ending she wanted.
Despite my disappointment with the ending, it's well worth the read. And to cure my dissatisfaction, I wrote a fanfictional alternate ending. If you were equally disappointed, you'll find it over on Archive of Our Own.
More thoughts on the ending in the spoiler section:
April 6, 2016
My main reservation about a lot of historical novels is that the writers have often done so much research that the novel becomes so stuffed with period detail that the story gets swamped and I feel I'd be better off reading a non-fiction account. That's not the case with this novel. There's just enough background to give you a sense of London in 1794 -and, in particular, the effects of French Revolution hovering over everything. The beginnings of the industrial revolution and the shift of power from the old aristocratic class to the new money of the middle classes is also ever present without being hammered home in a novel which is about the newly wealthy middle class families trying to marry their daughters into the aristocracy.
However, the story is only loosely connected to a naturalistic picture of the period. By the end, it has become increasingly operatic and over-the-top sensational. If it was a film, it would have been directed by Ken Russell (it reminded me most of his 1970s movie The Devils in its build up of sexual frenzy). I found it very readable but I had to make a lot of effort at times to suspend disbelief and go with the excessive flow. As a very non-musical person, I also found the detailed descriptions of the musical practice and preparations tedious.
However, the story is only loosely connected to a naturalistic picture of the period. By the end, it has become increasingly operatic and over-the-top sensational. If it was a film, it would have been directed by Ken Russell (it reminded me most of his 1970s movie The Devils in its build up of sexual frenzy). I found it very readable but I had to make a lot of effort at times to suspend disbelief and go with the excessive flow. As a very non-musical person, I also found the detailed descriptions of the musical practice and preparations tedious.
February 3, 2014
This book is not about sex, though there's plenty of it, often hilarious, occasionally not. Sex is the pepper and salt atop the meat pie. This book is about power. It's uses and abuses and the many shades inbetween; keeping it, loosing it, aspiring to it, wielding it. Brought down and sent up by it (the denouement, a poke in the ribs at'Big Brother' type celebrity), a masterpiece and one of the funniest descriptions I've ever read, I'm still laughing. The power of love and the power of tyranny. The subtle changes in the balance of it and their devastating effects, some seen some unseen.And the power possesions have over us, tangible or intangible. Power in the hands of the wise and the silly, the weak and the strong, the loved and the loving. Beautifully written, not a word too much or badly chosen, some of the descriptons pure poetry. A good 'book club' read, there's much to discuss.Katharine Grant
June 28, 2016
"This man was French. She felt quite flustered. He must be a catholic, and probably part of the nonsense going on over the sea ... Mrs Frogmorton stood straight. She understood at once that she was being charmed. This is what foreigners did. She resented it."
It would have been hard not to read this book about London and the anticipation during the French Revolution and not draw parallels to today's political happenings.
The fear of the foreigner and the unspoken truths about sex are what push this novel along. It plays heavily on the social expectations of women during the 18th and 19th centuries. Although, not quite pushing the boundaries as far as they could go, in my opinion.
It wasn't a bad read. It was a good idea. I think that more could have been explored, however. And this is where the book falls in the category of entertainment rather than political statement.
March 31, 2014
I received a wonderfully written story with engrossing characters ARC goodreads giveaway Sedition: A Novel by Katherine Grant.
Four fathers get together and come up with the perfect plan to marry off their daughters, a piano concert performance. Mr. Drigg's purchases a pianoforte from Mr. Cantabile who recommends Monsieur Belldroit. The instructor, Monsieur Belldroit, doesn't only want to help the young ladies with their pianoforte lessons.
Read the captivating, entertaining, humorous, engaging characters, well written, highly recommended story Sedition: A Novel by Katherine Grant.
Four fathers get together and come up with the perfect plan to marry off their daughters, a piano concert performance. Mr. Drigg's purchases a pianoforte from Mr. Cantabile who recommends Monsieur Belldroit. The instructor, Monsieur Belldroit, doesn't only want to help the young ladies with their pianoforte lessons.
Read the captivating, entertaining, humorous, engaging characters, well written, highly recommended story Sedition: A Novel by Katherine Grant.
October 8, 2014
Wow, this was a weird one! I really don't know how to rate it or what to say. The author, in her notes, says she gave it to her 92 year old father to read and he promptly developed shingles and retired to his bed. I can't imagine giving this to my father to read, and that must be a first as I take books to him on a weekly basis and never apply any prudence to my choices.
So, five girls and one French music teacher. Chuck in a girl with a facial deformity, some particularly horrible parents and a pianoforte or two and - voila - you have a book. A very strange one.
So, five girls and one French music teacher. Chuck in a girl with a facial deformity, some particularly horrible parents and a pianoforte or two and - voila - you have a book. A very strange one.
January 25, 2021
London, 1791, In order to marry off their daughters to titled gentry, four nouveau riche fathers organise for their daughters to learn the piano and to give a recital. The fathers might want one thing, but their daughters have their own agency which subverts the plan and drives the story. Grant fascinatingly takes measure of her characters by their appreciation and execution of “Herr Bach’s" music. In her wickedly alluring romp through late Georgian London’s love and marriage market, Grant tips the Jane Austen marriage story on its ear. Thumbs up from me!
May 5, 2014
What a riot! This novel takes place in the late 1700's, and I never heard a version of the young teenage girl of that era depicted like this before. The novelist has been writing children's and young adult stories for years and is well respected. It was a lot of fun and I read it pretty darn fast!
November 24, 2016
Grim. Repulsive and sordid and done before - perhaps not to the accompaniment of Bach, but done before. At times I felt grubby reading it and what worries me more is why the man at Waterstones recommended it to me!
December 13, 2015
Well, that was brilliantly, ridiculously mad. This book is the exact definition of a wild ride from start to finish.
December 6, 2015
Seduction, music and calculation in 1794 London: a slow-paced but entertaining historical novel full of lasciviousness and delightfully devoid of moral hang-ups.
November 5, 2016
It didn't work for me. Compared on the back cover to Sarah Waters - in my mind the comparison is an unfavourable one.
May 4, 2017
Reading this book, I learned that any amount of incest is more incest than I was anticipating.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 26, 2020
Dirty, delicious, and kind of devastating - probably the most fun book I've read all year (decade?). TV adaptation please.
October 25, 2017
Several wealthy merchants in London are looking to marry off their daughters, Georgina, Harriet, Evelina, Marianne and Alathea. In a bid to see their daughters well-matched, the families engage the services of a pianoforte teacher. The teacher will help the girls prepare for a concert which will then launch them into Society while simultaneously displaying them to eligible men. The families hope that they girls will charm potential husbands with their talents at this concert. These plans are undermined when devious Alathea Swaneyford decides that she will not let others plan her fate and concocts a scheme of her own.
This book has an interesting premise and is extremely well-written. Grant is a talented author and her descriptions of Georgian London are realistic and add the to dark atmosphere of the novel. There are several unanticipated, and often very dark, twists which will keep you intrigued as the book progresses. The characters are well developed, if not necessarily likable, and you have clear insights into what motivates the baser of them to act as they do.
Despite this, it is impossible for me to accept how the other girls reacted to the plot set in motion by Alathea. Their behaviour seems counter-intuitive to everything well brought-up women would have been taught about their roles and place in Georgian society. It is difficult to get past this as it is such a major element of the novel.
Overall, an entertaining and unpredictable book with atmospheric prose. It can be a dark and unsettling read at certain points but this serves to move the plot along and it is never done in a gratuitous way. Though a bit far-fetched, 'Sedition' is worth reading if you don't mind suspending belief.
3.5 stars.
This book has an interesting premise and is extremely well-written. Grant is a talented author and her descriptions of Georgian London are realistic and add the to dark atmosphere of the novel. There are several unanticipated, and often very dark, twists which will keep you intrigued as the book progresses. The characters are well developed, if not necessarily likable, and you have clear insights into what motivates the baser of them to act as they do.
Despite this, it is impossible for me to accept how the other girls reacted to the plot set in motion by Alathea. Their behaviour seems counter-intuitive to everything well brought-up women would have been taught about their roles and place in Georgian society. It is difficult to get past this as it is such a major element of the novel.
Overall, an entertaining and unpredictable book with atmospheric prose. It can be a dark and unsettling read at certain points but this serves to move the plot along and it is never done in a gratuitous way. Though a bit far-fetched, 'Sedition' is worth reading if you don't mind suspending belief.
3.5 stars.
September 17, 2017
Katharine Grant has written a treat of a historical comedy in Sedition, saucy and spicy and savory. I tasted. I feasted. I glutted.
In England just before the close of the eighteenth century, Ms. G gives us four merchants, Messrs. Drigg, Brass, Frogmorton and Sawneyford, who concoct a scheme to parlay their mercantile riches into titled marriages for their daughters. The plan involves a pianoforte from an Italian instrument-maker, lessons from a French music master, and a grand concert that their wives will conduct, showcasing the results. But after suffering an insult, the piano-maker turns the tables on the merchants by employing the Frenchmen to ruin each of the daughters in turn, so that their promised husbands will return them untouched. And this is only the beginning.
The result of these and other subtle machinations is a cunning, bawdy romp through Old London. Ms. Grant scatters images in all directions ("From somewhere emerged the proprietor, balding, thin as drawn steel and draped about with wire and ivory, felt and pivots, jacks, stops, mutes, and pins.") and makes love to the music itself ("She played it as Herr Bach intended except that the pathos was so sinuous and sensual, the audience might have been watching a very slow, very melancholy, and very indecent ballet."). No character goes unscathed ("The richness and fine cut of the cloth, expert hair, and clever powdering had successfully transformed Marianne from potato to full-blown hyacinth."), each the victim of the author's rapier wit.
This is Katharine Grant's first book for adults. I can but hope there are more to come.
In England just before the close of the eighteenth century, Ms. G gives us four merchants, Messrs. Drigg, Brass, Frogmorton and Sawneyford, who concoct a scheme to parlay their mercantile riches into titled marriages for their daughters. The plan involves a pianoforte from an Italian instrument-maker, lessons from a French music master, and a grand concert that their wives will conduct, showcasing the results. But after suffering an insult, the piano-maker turns the tables on the merchants by employing the Frenchmen to ruin each of the daughters in turn, so that their promised husbands will return them untouched. And this is only the beginning.
The result of these and other subtle machinations is a cunning, bawdy romp through Old London. Ms. Grant scatters images in all directions ("From somewhere emerged the proprietor, balding, thin as drawn steel and draped about with wire and ivory, felt and pivots, jacks, stops, mutes, and pins.") and makes love to the music itself ("She played it as Herr Bach intended except that the pathos was so sinuous and sensual, the audience might have been watching a very slow, very melancholy, and very indecent ballet."). No character goes unscathed ("The richness and fine cut of the cloth, expert hair, and clever powdering had successfully transformed Marianne from potato to full-blown hyacinth."), each the victim of the author's rapier wit.
This is Katharine Grant's first book for adults. I can but hope there are more to come.
March 30, 2022
I wish I could give this a higher review, because there were several things I liked about the story. The negatives were too severe, though, to prevent me from giving this more than an average review. The ending disappointed me severely. There was absolutely no narrative satisfaction or logic behind Alathea's death, other to, once again, bury your gays and continue Annie's life as a misery. While the middle of the book soared for the gentle treatment of Annie's disability and Annie and Alathea's relationship, this ending soured everything that came before it. Relatedly, while I can do the cognitive work to understand Alathea's view of her rape at her father's hands as something she does to protect herself, the narrative does not make it clear enough.
Another more minor complaint is that the book is short but stuffed with characters and it becomes very difficult to keep track of them, especially since the fathers are always referred to by the last names but the daughters by the first, so I had no idea who belonged to what family by the end.
The sections on piano were tedious at times but easy enough to glaze over; I'm sure if you're an avid piano player, you might enjoy it.
Another more minor complaint is that the book is short but stuffed with characters and it becomes very difficult to keep track of them, especially since the fathers are always referred to by the last names but the daughters by the first, so I had no idea who belonged to what family by the end.
The sections on piano were tedious at times but easy enough to glaze over; I'm sure if you're an avid piano player, you might enjoy it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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