Sprig Muslin

Gossip, scandal and an unforgettable Regency romance

By: Georgette Heyer

Narrated by: Amelia Donkor

Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

He thought he could set her on a better path. But they might both wander astray....

Sir Gareth Ludlow never truly recovered from the death of his fiancée. Years later, a chance encounter with Amanda, a young and devastatingly pretty runaway, inspires him to try to do the right thing and to set her on a path towards a good life.

But Sir Gareth has been neck-deep in a life of debauchery and hedonism ever since his fiancée's death, and Amanda's startlingly lively imagination proves to be more than he'd bargained for. As they both become increasingly entangled in Sir Gareth's scheme, it seems more and more difficult for either of them to lead the life they should....

A witty and delightful historical novel, Sprig Muslin shows why Georgette Heyer has such a huge and devoted readership to this day.

©1956 Georgette Heyer (P)2021 Penguin Audio

A lively story but let down by the narration

This is a rollicking good little story, typical of Georgette Heyer’s style. However, I found myself having to listen past the terrible pronunciation and intonation. The narrator has a prim enough accent but reads with absolutely no understanding. The narration obstructed the meaning of many sentences. I had to go back to speak them to myself with proper intonation and timing. The reader had difficulty with a range of words such as ‘hasten’ ‘disreputable’ ‘puss’ etc. Since the pleasure of this read has so much to do with the clever repartee Heyer writes for the characters the narration diminished the experience considerably. If you can listen past all the errors and bizarre pacing and inflection it’s a worthwhile story.

Lively and vastly entertaining.

It’s a great ride the entire way. Fast moving and fun. You will really enjoy every moment.

Favorite Author, Terrible Narration

I love Georgette Heyer and was so delighted to see a bunch of her books redone on Audible. Unfortunately, the narrator was pretty terrible. I listened to the whole book hoping it would improve or grow on me, but sadly it did not. What a shame, for the story is one of my favorites!

Sweetly witty

Light upbeat story. The witty dialogue will keep you listening and laughing out loud. Heyer’s characters are exceptional. Her pairing of personalities and circumstances keeps the listener engaged.

Cute story, entertaining

Didn’t like the narrator much at all. Had me wincing over and over again with her mispronunciations, and I started to suspect that she might be an American putting on a British accent. Ran some of her pronunciations by my English husband, and he said no way. If it ever comes out with a different narrator, I’ll probably replace it. All the same, it was classic Georgette Heyer - I’ll probably be listening to it again.

Less romance, more comedy

More emphasis on the comedy in this Heyer regency rom-com. Our hero Sir Gareth Ludlow is rejected by his prospective fiancée, and then spends most of the novel trying to help/protect a cluelessly romantic teen girl who has run away from home as part of a scheme to convince her grandfather to allow her to marry her military boyfriend. This child is so annoying that no reader can believe she and Gareth will end up together, but everyone else they meet instantly makes this assumption. Of course there's a happy ending--that's not really a spoiler, is it?
Amelia Donker narrates competently, but unfortunately has a few odd quirks: she reads every "you know" with a 21st century inflection as if it's just a filler phrase, and pronounces "puss" as "pus," rather than an affectionate abbreviation of "pussy," which just meant "kitten" in 19th century polite society.
Look, there's no such thing as a bad Georgette Heyer romance, and the rowdy final chapter of this one is worth the circuitous journey.

I thought the reader was wonderful.

Some reviewers did not like the reader of this delightful novel by Georgette Heyer. I thought she was fabulous. I loved the British accent, and her subtle differences in narration, depending on the character who was speaking. Don’t be swayed by negative comments. Try it yourself!

Although not one of Heyer’s best it has its charm

The story is fun and entertaining. The reader is really bad. It seems at times like she just doesn’t care. Although I thought she was pretty good at Hildebrand.

Historical romance classic

Another Georgette Heyer classic story. It was well narrated and with a very satisfactory conclusion.

Not Heyer’s Best, but still good fun

Less attention to the central romantic storyline than you find in my favorite Heyers, but charming madcap fun