Stately Pursuits

Hettie Langden agrees to "house-sit" her great uncles' shabby mansion while she recovers from a broken heart and ponders what to do with her life. While the plot of this British romantic comedy is predictable, its colorful cast of characters and wit are delightful enough to raise it above others of this genre. Both male and female voices are highly differentiated and totally in keeping with their characters. This is the great strength of Roe Kendall's performance. Unfortunately, she too often rushes the narrative and, since timing is everything in comedy, the humor is lost. A pause at chapter breaks and in other appropriate places would have strengthened the reading also. S.S.R. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine

June 29, 1998
Cheery, good-natured and predictable, British writer Fforde's latest stylish romance (after Wild Designs) relates the story of a young, freshly jilted and heartbroken protagonist, Hetty Longden, who gets more than she bargained for when she agrees to house-sit for her ailing elderly uncle Samuel while he is hospitalized. Hetty finds Courtbridge, Samuel's stately manor home, in desperate need of renovation; moreover, Samuel is deeply in debt. Even more threatening than loan officers, though, is Connor Barrabin, Samuel's gruff and irascible heir (known as "Conan the Barbarian" to locals), who intends to raze the house and erect a theme park on the property as soon as Courtbridge comes into his possession. Hetty, like the other residents of the small English village, is horrified by the potential loss of this piece of their national heritage and is determined instead to fix up the stately home and open it to the paying public for tours and parties. Rallying the help of the multitalented townsfolk and the local Brownie troop, plucky Hetty gets the house in shape, meanwhile managing to rebuild her shattered confidence and make some wonderful new friends. Also, not surprisingly, Hetty finds a sensitive and loving man beneath Connor's abrasive exterior, and the two fall in love despite their opposing views about the fate of the house. Although the plot isn't terribly imaginative, the novel has a warm and fuzzy charm, some nice comic scenes and the usual romantic contretemps.