The Black Moth

The Black Moth is Georgette Heyer's first novel, written when she was 17 years old to amuse her sick brother. It is set in 1751 in Georgian England. It features Jack Carstares, Earl of Wyncham. Few years before the story opens, Carstares protected his brother Richard by allowing himself to be disgraced for cheating at cards. Richard was madly in love with Lavinia Belmanoir, and had he been caught cheating, he couldn't have married her. Years passed. Richard is married to Lavinia, but feeling guilty for what he did to his brother. Now Jack is back, roaming his beloved South Country in the disguise of a highwayman. Not long after Jack's return, he encounters his old adversary, the libertine Duke of Andover, attempting the abduction of the beautiful Diana Beauleigh. "A romance of the eighteenth century, with a wicked Duke, self-sacrificing elder brother, weak younger brother, highwayman, gambling, abduction, and rescue all complete." THE SATURDAY REVIEW