Dashing heroes and enterprising heroines - Rated 
I found this book entertaining and amusing. Lord Sheringham (Sherry) is rejected by the Incomparable and outstandingly beautiful Miss Milborne and vows to marry the first woman he meets. Fortunately this happens to be Hero Wantage (Kitty), a young and naive girl who has loved him since childhood. Although he is not in the least in love with her they elope.
The story is quite predictable, but none the less enjoyable, as Kitty and Sherry embark on a series of mishaps, mayhem and scrapes. The trouble is that he doesn't realise she loves him and carries on as though he were still single and she takes what he says as the gospel truth, resulting in chaos and disaster. Eventually she takes the drastic step of running away from him aided and abetted by his friends, George, Lord Wrotham, Mr Ringwood and the Hon. Ferdy Fakenham. The end result as Sherry desperately tries to find her is very much in the vein of a Whitehall farce, with disguises and mistaken identities.
Georgette Heyer's portrayal of Regency England is superb in detail and atmosphere. The beauty and skill of this elegant, romantic novel is that it transported me back in time to Regency England, a time of dashing heros and enterprising heroines.
A delightful and funny romp through Regency era London society - Rated 
After years of hearing the praises of author Georgette Heyer, I could no longer resist the temptation and dove in head first on the recommendation of Heyer enthusiast Vic (Ms. Place) of Jane Austen's World, selecting the author's favorite book Friday's Child. Since Heyer published 56 books over 53 years, she had a few to choose from and I was confident that this neophyte would have one of the better novels to begin my indoctrination. I now see what all the fuss is about. Georgette Heyer is a treasure.
Spendthrift Anthony Verelst, Viscount Sheringham doesn't give a fig about his finances until his creditors do. Selfish, impetuous and deeply in debt, he is unable to access his inheritance until he reaches 25 or marries and sets out to acquire a wife proposing to his neighbor and lifelong friend Isabella Milborne, an `Incomparable', whose beauty and elegance are renown. She doesn't think much of the idea or of Lord Sheringham's dissipated lifestyle and rebuffs the offer. Indignant, he swears to marry the next girl he sees who happens to be seventeen year old Hero Wantage, the neighborhood orphan Cinderella living with cousins who want to farm her out to be a governess. By no means a scholar, Hero is miffed by the work plan just wanting to have a bit of fun and enjoy the charms of society in London. Seizing the opportunity, Hero accepts Sherry's proposal and they run away to London to be married. It is here we are introduced to the real heart of the story, Sherry's three male friends: his two cousins steady Gilbert (Gil) Ringwood and the foppish Hon. Ferdinand (Ferdy) Fakenham, and his hot headed friend George, Lord Wrotham who form sort of a bumbling bachelors club of Regency society dandies. Their influence drives the story as they help Hero (nicknamed Kitten) unschooled in the nuances of social etiquette and a bit lacking in common sense out of all sorts of scrapes that threaten her reputation and infuriate her husband who in turn is as equally clueless about his own responsibilities as a newly married man.
Heyer gives us a delightful view of Regency era London with its social outlets for the rich: fashion, dancing, parties, gambling, romantic intrigues, and the gambit of other frivolous extravagances that entertain the high society 'ton' world. Her characters are each distinctive in personality and well drawn out. The three bachelor friends were especially enjoyable as their priceless dialogue humorously captures that uniquely British drawing room chatter of "I dare says" and "dash it alls" that at times from other authors seems trite, but in this case just lifted the colloquial credibility and ambience. Even though this novel was written over sixty years ago, it is surprisingly superior in style and creativity to many being produced today. Friday's Child reads like an expertly paced stage play, and I felt the influence of Heyer's contemporaries in playwrights Noel Coward and George Bernard Shaw in the satirical social commentary and humorous biting dialogues. There were a few holes in the plot such as Sherry's concerns over his uncle's abuse of the trusteeship of his estate not materializing or Hero's continual naïveté among others, but they were very minor and did not spoil my enjoyment. The gradual maturity and transition by both protagonists gave for a rewarding end. It is easy to see why so many Jane Austen fans adore Georgette Heyer as they share in the sisterhood of the `Gentle Reprove Society' of comedic social satire. Friday's Child matched it's namesake from the old nursery rhyme as loving and giving, and critics marginalizing Heyer's works as mere romances take heed. Like Austen's novels, this is so much more than Chicklit.
Laurel Ann, Austenprose
My 2nd Favourite - Rated
My favourite is Cotillion but this is a close second. In reviews I don't like to spoil the story. Just to say there are some laugh out loud moments, it is a real romance, though Sherry doesn't know it. Another GH book I can read again and again.
Very enjoyable, thank you. - Rated
As others have said it is the supporting characters that make this book so enoyable. For Ferdy and Gil I had Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt from The Mighty Boosh, which worked rather well, and an early 90's Brett Anderson from Suede for George. Ferdy made me laugh out loud on occasion.
Russell Brand made an excellent Sherry, but I couldn't come up with someone for Hero, which was a bit of a struggle throughout the book, to be honest.
Very good, though.
Not Heyer favourite of mine - Rated 
Firstly I do adore Heyer having discovered her relatively recently, but this just isn't up there with the best of the best for me. Her books do tend to fall into cohorts and this is one with an innocent heroine and one of the young, immature heroes. Personally I prefer the darker, sardonic and more masterful types (Faro's Daughter, Regency Buck, These Old Shades, Devil's Cub) so this was never really going to work for me. Both the hero and heroice struck me as rather silly rather than charmingly innocent - but then maybe I'm a cynic!
Having said that though Heyer is still head and shoulders above most romance writers (and I don't usually read romance precisely because it's so predictable and try-hard written) - she is witty, stylish, writes wonderful dialogue and really conveys a sense of the Regency period. So while this isn't one of my favourites, I'd still recommend Heyer highly.
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