Farewell and Thank You, Jo Beverley

The that historical romance master Jo Beverley has died. Oh, my gosh, does that make me sad to hear.

From from all her Word Wench sisters:

There was no one quite like Jo, with her calm English good sense and quiet warmth and dry wit, not to mention her taste for port wine and very dark chocolate.  She and I were friends for almost 30 years, and our careers have always tracked very closely.  In fact, my first book was published the month before Jo’s first book, which pleased Melinda Helfer, the Regency reviewer for Romantic Times Magazine, because that way she could give each of us her Best New Regency Author award for two different years.

Her full name was actually Mary Josephine (mine is Mary Jo), and I’m grateful that she went by Jo, because we were confused often enough as it was!  I would graciously accept compliments on my Rogue books, pointing out that they were actually Jo’s Rogues.  It was an honor to be confused with her. (Add Mary Balogh to the mix, and the confusion grew exponentially!)

(I’d like to say very quietly that I am a little bit relieved to learn that I’m not alone in mixing Mary Jo Putney, Jo Beverley, and Mary Balogh’s books up. Apologies to all of them.)

Jo Beverley wrote so many incredible historicals, and The Company of Rogues series was a tremendous reader favorite. Her most recent book, The Viscount Needs a Wife, was the 17th book in that series, and came out just last month.

The Word Wenches are inviting fans and friends to share their favorite memories – and the pictures of all of them together are just lovely.

My favorite memory, and I cross posted this at their site as well, isn’t so much a memory as it is a bookmark. I found this page a long time ago, and I don’t even remember what I was looking for at the time – probably names for a historical romance that I started when I was in grad school that never made it past the middle of chapter one.

Beverley’s website (JoBev.com! What a great URL!) has this wonderful “Regency Names” page, and it has been one of my bookmarks for years and years, through multiple computer upgrades and browser file imports. Why?

Among the women’s Regency names, to quote Ms. Beverley herself: Uriana (Yes, really.)

And then, farther down: Busick (I think Uriana and Busick would make a great couple!)

YES. Yes, they would. I never failed to laugh at the idea of Uriana and Busick.  So I’m raising a quiet toast to all the hours we’ve spent in Jo Beverley’s Regency, and to Uriana and Busick.

I know many readers who are “Jo Bev” fans will probably find their favorite for a re-read soon. If a reader here hasn’t read a Jo Beverley book before, which would you recommend first? Please share recommendations in the comments if you have them. 

Farewell and thank you, Ms. Beverley.