Blog Post #3- Kelroy

I haven’t fully come to enjoy the Austen style of “novels of manners” until recently as I’ve matured. Reading Kelroy now, it’s officially solidified my love for the “sentimental novel” (whatever that means). It’s truly a shame that a novel this well written has been somewhat lost in the shuffles of history. I feel like, so far at least, Rush has given just about EVERY character a backstory, motivation, physical characteristics that match their personality and backstory. This was something I feel like some novels from this era have this with their female characters, which makes sense due to the amount of female writers in this genre, but their male characters usually fell a tad flat. Rush however, is a genius at character development. I think Mrs. Hammond might be one of my favorites since the way Rush writes about her circumstances makes her an understandable villain. “”Happy at the full attainment of her wishes, Mrs. Hammond had now not a Care on Earth, beyond the preservation of her health (…) and having secured to her daughter the position of all which she considered desirable(…) she received a stroke of apoplexy which deprived her of her speech, and the use of her right side.” (Rush p 182). Also, don’t even get me STARTED on Kelroy, who I love. I’m a sucker for brooding romantic dandies.