A Fashionable Indulgence

Charles (The Magpie Lord) has built a reputation for tight, enthralling plots and explicit homoerotic romance, often with a paranormal edge. This opener to the Society of Gentlemen series, set in late Regency England, is a more discursive project. Harry Vane renounces his parents’ Radical politics and poverty—but how can he adopt the establishment privilege of his long-estranged paternal family without selling his soul? His Galatea-esque makeover is reluctantly crafted by family friend Julius Norreys, a Waterloo veteran turned dandy. Emotional developments are mostly understated, as the two transition smoothly from mentor/aspirant to friends with benefits to reluctantly admitting that they might, perhaps, care for one another. The conflict lies in the social dilemmas created by Harry’s Radical past; he ardently desires wealth, but he refuses to abandon his seditionist friends even after the inflammatory events of the Peterloo Massacre. Side stories, polemics, and crises of conscience are necessary to the project of developing immature Harry into a respected man, and to lay the groundwork for future books. They’re also a lot to fit into this short novel, and even fans of history will be left wishing for more romance. Agent: Deirdre Knight, Knight Agency. (Aug.)