Most of the stories included in this collection have not been seen since their first publication nearly one hundred years ago. Georgette Heyer’s novels, however, continue to sell in large numbers around the world and she has become that rare thing – a perennial bestseller. Forty-five years after her death she is considered a classic author and, as her works endure and interest in Heyer continues to grow, her early short stories take on a new significance. In light of this, we wanted to make these stories available to readers everywhere and to offer an introduction and afterword to each story. The introductions place the stories in their historical and cultural context and give a sense of Heyer’s life at the time. The afterwords offer readers a modern take on the stories’ 1920s sensibilities and humorously highlight the many subtle and not-so-subtle differences between Heyer’s time and ours. Of course, each story can be enjoyed in its own right without reading the commentaries, though we hope that they will add to the reader’s enjoyment of these very early Heyer works.

“A PROPOSAL TO CICELY”

INTRODUCTION

As far as we know, “A Proposal to Cicely” was Georgette Heyer’s first published short story. It appeared in print in the English journal The Happy Mag in September 1922. Brought out by George Newnes Ltd., who also published the famous Strand Magazine, The Happy Mag was a new publication, having begun in June of that year with a particular focus on humour. A monthly magazine, it would become most famous for the “William” stories written by Richmal Crompton. Although a claim in the Age of Storytellers that the magazine had “launched the career of Georgette Heyer” is untrue – she had already had considerable success with her first novel, The Black Moth (1921) and a second novel, The Great Roxhythe, was due out in the coming November – the publication of “A Proposal to Cicely” in The Happy Mag did mark the beginning of an intensive period of short story writing for her.

Unlike her first two novels, both of which had historical settings, “A Proposal to Cicely” was her first contemporary story. It is a romantic tale which tells of Cicely and her “first cousin once removed” Richard Spalding, who wants to marry her. So far, she has refused every one of “Dicky’s” proposals and when the story opens Cicely is “absolutely sick” of everything and “ready to do something desperate.” Richard takes this all in good part and there follows an illuminating conversation which reveals much about the characters.

Richard is one of those men of independent means so beloved of writers. He does not have to work but has money enough to live a life of leisure. Heyer describes him as “an athlete and an amateur boxer,” but Cicely tells him “you don’t do anything,” though she does concede that he has stood for Parliament “and all that sort of thing.” When Richard mentions in passing that he spent four years in the trenches, Cicely is “slightly mollified,” though she tells him frankly, “I don’t count that”.