The Curious History of Dating: From Jane Austen to Tinder

By: Nichi Hodgson

Narrated by: Nichi Hodgson

Dating has never been easy. Ever since the Georgians posted the first personal ads, finding Mr Right vs Mr Right Now has always been fraught with sexual and social tension. But as we swipe ourselves into oblivion, do we have it any easier today?

From suing a Victorian lover for breaking off your engagement to the 60s quest to date beyond class, race and gender rules, Nichi Hodgson's lively and intriguing history of amorous relationships may leave you grateful that you love in an era of swiping - not swooning.

©2018 Nichi Hodgson (P)2018 Audible, Ltd

Surface Level Sex Talk

This is not, as it might appear from the title, an anthropological look at the history of courtship ritual. What it is, is a surface skimming of the recent history of sex in the UK and America.

As the subtitle does suggest, it starts with the Regency period, however, this appears to be a marketing ploy and nothing more, as the author fails to tie in the significance of the idea of marrying for love at originated at this period and how that it was only through this that the world was able to progress into what we see today (...eventually).

There's very little focus on courting and much more time devoted to discussing if people were having sex, whether they were admitting it or not, and where and how they were having sex. This, mixed with a narration style that seemed to only want a laugh out of you, coupled with slang that is occasionally not even defined, makes the whole topic sound very cheap and not one meant for either historical or social analysis. While the author does include LGBT specifics in the discussion, the locations are limited to the two countries only.

The performance was fine, so long as the author spoke with her normal voice. However, whenever she quoted anyone, her attempt to playact was terrible. Her American accent is particularly horrendous and it actually made this audiobook difficult to finish.

If all you're looking for is a brief perusal of history through a sexual lens, go for it. If you want a deep dive into the history or just want the focus on actual courtship and not sex, give this a hard pass.