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Whistle Stopper - Phyllida and the Brotherhood of Philander: A Novel
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List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $5.43
Your Save: $ 9.52 ( 64% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780061451362
ISBN: 0061451363
Label: Harper Paperbacks
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 560
Publication Date: 2008-05-01
Publisher: Harper Paperbacks
Release Date: 2008-04-29
Studio: Harper Paperbacks
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: not stunning, but likeable
Comment: Phyllida and the Brotherhood of Philander is the story of Phyllida, an author of trashy gothic romances, and her bisexual husband, Andrew Carrington. Andrew married Phyllida in order to do his duty by his family and secure an heir. Phyllida married Andrew in order to be able to continue her career as an authoress. Both went into the marriage with open eyes, knowing Andrew would continue his dalliances with his male friends (in the titular Brotherhood of Philander). Neither expected to fall in love with the other.
Reading Phyllida reminded me greatly of quite a few fanfics I enjoy. There's a three-sided relationship: Andrew and Phyllida, Andrew and his lover(s), and his lover(s)'s friendship with Phyllida. Add in some spying and there you go. Oh, and did I mention it's a Regency novel?
The book is...okay. It is not stunning, nor is it horrible. Like I said, it reminds me very much of many fanfics I have read. The author weaves the lives of the characters - not only Phyllida and Andrew, but those of the entire Brotherhood - in and out of each other throughout the novel, and throws in a spy subplot to (it seems) draw the entire story out another two hundred pages. I would have been happy without the spy subplot, just reading the story of Andrew, Phyllida, Harry, Matthew, and the rest of the Brotherhood.
I stayed up all night to read the last two hundred pages, because I was engrossed with the characters' stories. However, I don't think I'll be borrowing this from the library again, nor will I be purchasing it any time soon.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I was so excited and then so very disappointed
Comment: As a fellow librarian who appreciates historical romance novels and as a woman currently dating a bisexual man, I was so very excited to read this novel. However, it was a painful read that left me feeling as if I had been wasting my time. The heroine comes so close to being likable, and then disappoints time and again. My least favorite moment was after her "almost rape" where she decided that she hadn't really been raped so it shouldn't be a big deal. Because, you know, violent and potentially deadly sexual assault in your own house by your husband's servant only counts if your attacker completes "intercourse". There were many passages I had to read out loud to my friends so they could be mocked and I often had to close the book in annoyance. I think that had the book gone through a few more revisions and had the characters been thought through a bit more, it could have been a perfectly fine book. I am willing to give this author another chance, should she write something else. I would recommend getting this book from your local public library rather than purchasing it if you really want to read it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Trashy
Comment: I thought Phyllida was too stupid to be believable, especially when presented as an very intelligent female. Also, No virginal Regency maiden would enter a marriage like that, unless forced. Even if she was attracted to her gay husband, an inexperienced female of that era would be far from titalated when observing her husband fondling other men. I have read plenty of gay fiction and Regency novels to feel comfortable in my opinion of this book.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Great Summer Read
Comment: Herendeen, Ann. "Phyllida and the Brotherhood of Philander", Harper, 2008.
A Great Summer Read
Amos Lassen
This is Ann Herendeen's first novel and it is just a delight to read. Herendeen breathes new life into the romance novel. She takes a look at sexuality, class, gender and gives us a wonderful love story which is full of wit, humor and romance. The characters are fantastic and the author's look at the regency world is so very interesting.
Phyllida Lewis, a young and beautiful writer agrees to enter into a marriage of convenience with Andrew Carrington, a gay heir to an earldom. She is attracted to him but she knows that he is more interested in men, especially those who are his friends in the Brotherhood of Philander--an elite gentlemen's club. She soon discovers that her husband has absolutely no idea of the ways to satisfy a woman. Andrew is the penultimate society gentleman and Phyllida is a writer of anonymous romance novels. What began as a marriage turns into drama and each tries to protect the other from any kind of harm. What eventually happens is that they end up hurting each other.
Herendeen created the character of Andrew to be the typical fop and there were times I just wanted to get into it with him but Phyllida always managed to hold her own.
The book is an easy read and is really a lot of fun and Ann Herendeen knows how to tell a story.
Customer Rating:
Summary: superbly written "bisexual regency romance"
Comment: In 1812 London, as a future earl Andrew Carrington knows he must begat the heir and the spare; thus he must find an appropriate wife who will not be upset with his dalliances as his sexual preference is males. He thinks he found the perfect spousal breeder in impoverished romance author Phyllida Lewis, who he admires and believes he might love. Andrew deems life is good when on top of meeting and marrying the understanding Phyllida, he makes the acquaintance of baronet heir Matthew Thornby.
Andrew's perfect world splinters when a blackmailer tries to extort money from him. Worse someone molests his charming Phyllida, but forces her silence with the threat of exposing her husband. Though she hides the truth, Andrew learns what happened to her. Feeling like a loser, Andrew wonders what he can do to protect his beloved wife and his cherished lover from harm.
This fabulous erotic Regency romance stars three likable fully developed individuals with diverse personalities who bring a different look at the usual locales and suspects that frequent sub-genre novels. The story line is fast-paced as the audience knows from the title that Andrew is atypical of the normal historical romantic novel hero. His relationships with Phyllida and Matthew are beautifully portrayed and his feelings of inadequacy are caused because he cherishes and loves both of them. Humorous and satirical as Ann Herendeen skewers the ethics of the Ton (and by implication modern day American hypocritical claims of morality) PHYLLIDA AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF PHILANDER is a superbly written "bisexual regency romance".
Harriet Klausner
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Editorial Reviews:
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The meddling mothers of the Regency would do anything to wed their daughters to Andrew Carrington, the wealthy, handsome, and athletic heir to an earldom. There is one problem, however. No woman in all England would suit the determined bachelor, for Andrew far prefers the company of men—at his table and in his bedroom. But with privilege comes responsibility. Andrew must take a bride. And while Phyllida Lewis, the penniless, spirited, and curvaceous author of romantic novels, is not quite what his family had in mind, a marriage to her would enable Andrew to live his life as he pleases. The arrival of Matthew Thornby, the honorable and dashing son of a self-made baronet, into their cozy arrangement makes Andrew's happiness complete. Yet a shrewd enemy is waiting in the wings, threatening to expose them all—an act that will surely lead to scandal and ruin.
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