Julian Fellowes’s Belgravia by Julian Fellowes

Narrated by Juliet Stevenson

I’m sure that most people will be familiar with the name of the writer of Gosford Park and the creator of the hugely successful Downton Abbey. In his latest novel, Julian Fellowes continues to explore England’s past and to look particularly at the class system and the way in which convention and reputation so dominated British society in the 19^th century. As one would expect from an Oscar winning screenwriter, the story is beautifully written and developed; and as one would expect from Julian Fellowes, it’s full of acute social observation and comment delivered in a classically understated, English manner. The book’s gentle pacing may not suit all tastes, but when you throw in the hugely talented Juliet Stevenson into the mix as the narrator, that only allows the listener more time to listen to her beautiful voice and enjoy her truly outstanding performance.

Belgravia is very much an ensemble piece, the story of two families who would probably not have ever come into each other’s social orbit but for a twist of fate that ends up setting in motion a train of events that continue to have repercussions over two decades later.

The story opens just before the famous ball held by the Duchess of Richmond in Brussels on the eve of the Battle of Quatre Bras (which would eventually lead to the battle at Waterloo). James Trenchard is a successful tradesman who is widely known as “Wellington’s Vittler” because he is the army’s chief supplier of pretty much everything. He, his wife, Anne, and their eighteen year old daughter, Sophia, are in Brussels with the army, and Sophia, a very pretty girl, has attracted the attention of Edmund Bellasis, the son of the Earl of Brockenhurst. Sophia is excited about the ball as she expects to see and dance with Edmund, but her mother is sceptical. Anne Trenchard is a practical woman; a tradesman’s daughter, no matter how beautiful, could never aspire to marry a viscount, and she is naturally worried for her daughter’s heart as well as her virtue. But James is more indulgent and quite happy at the attention being paid his daughter by a future earl.

When the terrible news that the French are almost upon the town reaches the ball, everyone immediately springs into action. The troops are rallied, promises are exchanged, goodbyes are said – and Sophia, miserable and scared for Edmund gets a shock. We learn shortly after this that she is carrying Edmund’s child; the couple had been married in Brussels by a friend of his whom she believed to be a clergyman, but who, she realised on the night of the ball, was nothing of the sort. Edmund was killed at Waterloo, so there is no hope for it but for Sophia to go away from London to have the baby in secret. Poor Sophia dies giving birth to her son, Charles, who is then, as James and Anne have agreed, taken in by a Sussex clergyman, the Reverend Pope.

Anne feels the wrench very deeply, losing both her daughter and grandson at one fell swoop, but there is no other way to preserve Sophia’s reputation, and she goes along with it.

Over the years, James becomes more and more successful, transferring his business interests into property development. He is a good, bluff, hearty man, but he is an inveterate social climber, something which makes Anne very uncomfortable as she dislikes forcing her way into a society that clearly doesn’t want her. Yet one afternoon, at a tea party, she finds herself in conversation with Edmund Bellasis’ mother, Lady Brockenhurst, and a chance comment from that lady decides Anne upon a course of action that will see family secrets exposed and petty jealousies explode into something far more ominous.

The storyline of Belgravia is rich and multi-layered and the relationships and connections between the characters are very well drawn. James and Anne Trenchard are at the heart of the story; Anne is a wonderful character, a kind, compassionate woman whose gentle manner belies a steel backbone. She doesn’t like her husband’s social climbing and there are a couple of times in the story when James treats her very shabbily, but there’s no question that these two are bound together by a strong, deep affection. Their son, Oliver, is discontent with the path in life that has been allotted him and proves a continual disappointment to James. His father wants him to work alongside him in business, but Oliver has no aptitude for or interest in it and aspires to be a country gentleman instead. His wife, Susan, is a calculating woman who is as unhappy as her husband, feeling that her social ambitions are being thwarted by Anne because Anne doesn’t go out into society as much as Susan would like. There’s an equally well-rounded set of secondary characters, too, all of whom have important parts to play in the wider context of the story.

As one would expect from Mr. Fellowes, the story has a fantastic sense of time and place. From the discussion of the building projects of Thomas Cubitt (with whom James is associated), the recent invention of “afternoon tea” as taken up by the ladies, the attention paid to the strict adherence to the social hierarchy and convention; the descriptions of gowns, house interiors, the London streets … it’s all beautifully detailed and part of the rich fabric of the novel as a whole.

Juliet Stevenson’s name will be familiar to many, whether from her numerous stage, television and film appearances or her large catalogue of audiobooks. She is the perfect narrator for this material; her lovely contralto is incredibly easy on the ear and her vocal characterisations are, quite simply, sublime. Every single character, no matter how large a part they play in the story, is clearly and effectively differentiated by means of a wide variety of timbre and accent and appropriate changes of pitch where necessary. Her pacing is spot on, her acting choices are excellent – it’s a flawless performance and one I can’t recommend highly enough.

Julian Fellowes’s Belgravia is an engrossing, highly enjoyable piece of historical fiction with a dash of mystery and a smidgeon of romance. It’s a superb listen on all fronts and an audiobook I have no hesitation in strongly recommending.

Caz

Narration: A+

Book Content: B+

Steam Factor: You can play it out loud

Violence Rating: None

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Hachette Audio