Troy Chimneys

by Margaret Kennedy, Anita Brookner (Introduction)

A Victorian gentleman is forced by illness to entertain himself with the family archive, and he uncovers the Regency-era correspondence and diaries of one Miles Lufton, MP - apparently a black sheep of the family, connected with a scandal long buried. But through the pieced-together artefacts from the past, a fuller picture emerges of a man torn between two personalities - Miles, serious, studious and penniless, and 'Pronto', flirt, political mover and eternal 'extra man'. Miles longs to dispose of his disreputable alter ego, but that way lies calamity...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, British Literature, Classics, 20th Century, Historical, Modern Classics

245 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1953

About the author

Margaret Kennedy was an English novelist and playwright.
She attended Cheltenham Ladies' College, where she began writing, and then went up to Somerville College, Oxford in 1915 to read history. Her first publication was a history book, A Century of Revolution (1922). Margaret Kennedy was married to the barrister David Davies. They had a son and two daughters, one of whom was the novelist Julia Birley. The novelist Serena Mackesy is her grand-daughter.

Reviews

[JimZ · Rating 3 out of 5]

While reading this book, a thought kept on going in my mind...I don’t think I understand this, and I was scared because I thought my already limited intellectual capabilities were being further diminished. 🙁

So, after finishing the book and understanding some of it, but not understanding all of it, I turned to the Introduction in the re-issued Virago Modern Classic. It was written by Anita Brookner. In the 1980s-1990s she used to be one of my fave authors...I read all of her books. And I have a lot of respect for her (she won the Booker Prize in 1984 for Hotel du Lac...she had a PhD in Art History and one of her appointments was a professorship at Cambridge University). These are the first two sentences she wrote, and after reading them I uttered out loud “Thank God!” If Anita Brookner was a bit puzzled by the book and its story line, then I stood in good company. I think I can deduce from all of this that my intellectual capabilities remain limited but at an even keel! 🙂 🙃
• Troy Chimneys is a disconcerting novel. It belongs to Margaret Kennedy’s later period, when her plots become more complicated, SOMETIMES EXCESSIVELY SO (emphasis in the use of capital letters is by me, not by Ms. Brookner)...
And she wrote later on in the Introduction:
• ...And despite the really quite complicated and occasionally puzzling arrangement of the novel...

It helps if you know English history in the era in which Napoleon was Emperor of France. Most of the events took placed from 1782-1818 during the Napoleonic Wars. The main character in the novel was Miles Lufton and as far as I can tell he had an alter-ego named Pronto...and sometimes Miles would be thinking or talking or behaving and at other times Pronto would be thinking or talking or behaving. Another main character in the novel was Caroline Audley who was once in love with Miles Lufton, and she made the point that there were two sides of Miles, the private Mr. Lufton and the political Mr. Lufton. Pronto (not Miles) once had her hopes elevated that he liked her a lot and might propose to her, but he did not propose — rather, he left the scene for a while. He (Miles now) eventually came back and once again was attracted to her and this time proposed as Miles...but she turned him down. Soon thereafter, Miles and/or Pronto was involved in a duel with a man who was mad for some reason at Miles and/or Pronto, and Miles and Pronto got killed and that was that.

Overall, I would give the novel three stars because some of it was interesting and it wasn’t really a long read. And also because the first novel I read from Margaret Kennedy I liked a whole lot (5 stars), “The Feast”...a clever novel about the Seven Deadly Sins.

Margaret Kennedy wrote/published 16 novels (as far as I can tell) and I plan to continue to read her oeuvre. Another Virago Modern Classic reissue I have of hers and on my TBR list is 'The Ladies of Lyndon', her first novel.

Note:
Kennedy went to Somerville College, Oxford, in 1915, the same college that Winifred Holtby went to (another fave author of mine who is best known for her novel, South Riding) Holtby had this recollection of her from when they were at school.
• "She is an unobtrusive sort of person. Apart from two or three friends, she speaks to a few people, but now and then at a college debate or during dinner time discussion, she suddenly opens her mouth and makes about three remarks so witty, so disconcerting, and so shrewd that college picks up its ears and wonders whether perhaps there is more in the girl than meets the eye. Rather a brain at history, I expect she'll go down and write a textbook, said rumor." (from an article in Time and Tide magazine).

Reviews (everybody likes it!):
• Interesting podcast on Kennedy (and the book): https://www.lostladiesoflit.com/trans...
• https://shereadsnovels.com/2016/06/20...
• https://vulpeslibris.wordpress.com/20...
• https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2016/...
• https://emeraldcitybookreview.com/201...
• http://agirlwalksintoabookstore.blogs...
• https://www.librarything.com/work/19948

[Troy Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Troy Chimneys (a corruption of the French "Trois Chemins", meaning Three Lanes) is the name of a country estate purchased by the novel’s protagonist, Miles Lufton, who plans to retire there once he has achieved all there is to achieve in his political career. The story of Lufton (and his alter ego Pronto) takes place between 1782 and 1818 and reaches us, the reader, through memoirs being read by one of Lufton’s descendants in the 1880s.

The most striking thing about this novel is Kennedy’s use of language and the way in which she crafts Lufton’s own narrative style to feel so much like the voice of a Regency gentleman that one can easily forget they are reading a novel written in the 1950s and by a woman.

A rather tricky book to actually come by, unless you were fortunate enough to purchase a copy from Vintage’s limited print-run a few years ago (with the plain red cover) or can manage to get your hands on an old Virago Classic. Fortunately, I see that McNally Editions are planning to release it in March this year; a publisher that has some interesting hidden gems in its small list. By whichever means one manages to get hold of a copy, I highly recommend they do so.

[Gretchen Rubin]

A terrific old-fashioned novel, and I mean that as high praise.

[cycads and ferns · Rating 3 out of 5]

The journal entries and letters of Miles Lufton MP. In his writings Lufton often thinks of himself as two different men, sometimes Miles and other times Pronto.

“Pronto is an active, Miles a passive creature. Pronto never expects…those sudden bursts of feelings on the part of Miles which threaten, from time to time, a revolution.”


The entries include Lufton’s observations of the social and political disparities in England during the Regency era .

“Presently my father remarked that the man in the stern must be a gentleman because he had just begun a sentence with the words: I think.
Your laborer, said my father, would never do so. He may state a fact, but he will never express an opinion without some preface such as: ‘They do say….’ or ‘I’ve heard tell….’ This is not, I believe, because he does not and cannot think; it is because nobody ever asks him what he thinks.”


Lufton’s feelings of inadequacy and belief that his intentions and character are often misunderstood, are all expressed in his writings.

“A human being is uncommonly like an iceberg. Only a tenth of him is apparent to the world. But, in most cases, all is, I believe, pretty much of a piece. We can guess at the submerged creature by that portion of him which is visible above water. Perhaps I am mistaken. In my case it is not so….”

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miles Lufton is a rising MP in Regency England with excellent prospects, but he lives a double life of sorts: one side of him is "Pronto", the energetic rake who thrives in the political scene, while the "Miles" side longs for a quiet life at his country house, Troy Chimneys. The period detail and voice are excellent, and Miles' split personality is beautifully done, along with his bittersweet romance. I really, really liked this and am feeling as though I'm not doing it justice here, but if you like historical novels, it's worth searching out; I'll certainly be looking for more Kennedy.

[Bronwyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy cow, this was so good. It took me a minute to get the hang of the format and Miles/Pronto, but once I got settled it just read so quick and well. The characters are all so well drawn; everyone felt real but also felt like they were being written down by Miles (or some third person in him). Edmee and William and Caroline. Ludovic. Miles himself. I loved this.

I recently read The Feast, which was my first Kennedy, and knew I needed to read more and I’m so glad to have read this. I’ll definitely have to pick up The Constant Nymph soon.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ran across this book in a used book store a few years ago and picked it up on a whim because I love British books, especially those either written or set in the 19th century (the Regency era is a bonus). I think this is a genuine forgotten classic. Beautiful book--extraordinarily well-written, the main characters of Miles and the woman he loves are very well drawn, and the story is one of those exquisitely bittersweet ones that are so often the best to read.

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fell in love with Kennedy's writing in The Feast, and her work is similarly splendid here. It might not be quite so transcendent, but it is equally fascinating and marvelous, with Shakespearean overtones. I love how Kennedy plays with form--it's a memoir, it's letters present and past--and self. So much to turn over in my mind! One to read many more times to tease out the meanings. I really feel all kinds of ways about this weird little main character.

Another serendipitous find at the Seminary Co-op Bookstore in Chicago--bless McNally Editions for putting this book back in print!

[Sophia Eck · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh! i’m already crying!

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

An historical novel, Troy Chimneys is set in Regency England, it concerns the two different sides of one man’s personality. Miles Lufton M.P is a self-made politician. He comes from a large, loving family. His father, an Anglican priest, his mother seemingly loved and respected by all. Miles is a second son, so needs to make his own way in the world, and has been doing a pretty fair job of it. Miles appreciates the countryside around him, he is a reliable, trustworthy young man, often driven to rail against injustices, happy in the company of a local farmer, the humble friend of his childhood. However, increasingly Miles feels that he is in fact two men; Miles Lufton, and his alter ego Pronto.

Full review: https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2016/...

[Madeline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a little disappointed there wasn’t more drama or intrigue surrounding the dual personality of the narrator, but this still proved to be a pleasant book where I empathized and enjoyed reading about Miles Lufton and Pronto’s friendships, heartbreaks, and conflict of personality.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book rewarded my persistence completely. My mind right now is scattered and craves the straightforward, so I was put off by how demanding it is to get oriented to the setting and characters here. So much about this book is, like the water reflecting on the ceiling of the house named in the title, refracted. It's not stream of consciousness, it's stream of setting.
The final third of the book is entirely satisfying. First, it entirely fulfills and subverts the regency romance novel in so many ways. Point of view. Plot. Characterization. And yet, this is a romance novel, and a very satisfying one. Second, it is in rich conversation with the novels of its timespan - the Jane Austen/Charlotte Bronte/Anthony Trollope eras. A female character speaks about "Emma" in the voice, perhaps, of the real-life sharp-tongued Jane Austen, saying that it is men who prefer the drawing room novel because they have the luxury of leaving it. How it nods to Trollope would take too long, but the final sentence of the novel mentions a Mrs. Poole living in Jamaica which I can only hope is a reference to Grace Poole's mother - she who takes care of Bertha in Rochester's attic.
Finally I love how this book is also sort of about reading novels: he analyzes his own character, characters analyze each other, and they even analyzed characters in books exactly the way we do in English class and book clubs. In class (I used to be a seventh grade English teacher), we make Venn diagrams about characteristics and in book club we imagine the characters to have fixed inner lives we can know by interrogating what they say and what others say about them. But this book says - no, characters have rich inner lives of their own, having nothing to do with author or reader, and our impressions should be as Miles and Caroline, taking pleasure in the reflection of the water on the ceiling. Ephemeral, precious, mysterious.

[Adelaide Mcginnity · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every aspect of Troy Chimneys - its prose, its characters, its well-researched look into regency era England, its exploration of the difference between a politician's public and private faces - are absolutely fantastic, with the exception of its plot. Troy Chimneys has no overarching plot. It, in some sense, reads like a memoir of someone who never actually existed. The segments are very episodic; plot points run their course in twenty pages only to be replaced with entirely different ones, and Kennedy's choice of ending, while definitely stolen from the Russian school, lacks the punch of similar endings in Lermontov and Pushkin through lack of proper build-up. Finally, I found the choice of framing Mile's/Pronto's story with Victorian-era epistles to be both unnecessary and detracting; had this book been re-written as a more conventional third person historical novel with a tightened focus, I think Troy Chimney could have been a great, rather than just a good, novel.

Since I am a reader who would rather read a well-written book about nothing than a badly written book with the best plot in the world, I enjoyed Troy Chimneys. But if you want a plot driven page-turner, this book would not be high on my list.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miles and Pronto, two regency men in a single mind. Miles is the dreamer who wishes to retire in the country, if only Pronto the ambitious and socially adept MP would hurry up and get his affairs in order.

I fell in love with this book. Its frame narrative of a Victorian relative reading Miles's biography and letters, Miles's perfectly calibrated regency voice and idealism colored with cynicism. He's an eternal dreamer with no real hope for his dream and oodles of self-hatred for his own flaws.

You know, I think that a certain lady in this novel is right. Miles has never been superior to Pronto. And there is likely no third person occupying the protagonist's mind. There is only a burgeoning realization that, perhaps, Miles has misjudged Pronto. Both personas are flawed. I only wish we could hear from Pronto's side. It's hard to judge without more knowledge of what Miles finds so horrible about him.

Recommended if you like historical fiction (whether set in the regency period or at some other time) with intricate psychological portraits and the perfect dose of subjectivity.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the British regency era, Miles Lufton finds himself split in two. There's his "Miles" side where he is an eternal dreamer and longs to retire to the countryside, and then there's Pronto: a social-climbing rake embedded in the political scene. The book is told through a series of journal entries (and some letters), and I really enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek aspects of it. He has an interesting sense of humor, and that made me sympathize with him every time things didn't go his way.

I was surprised to find out this book was written in the 1950s by a woman because she captures this male character's voice so well. I've seen this book compared to the style of Jane Austen, and I agree. I could go on and on, but the quirks, challenges, and disappointments will be appreciated even more with a fresh mind. Definitely recommended.

[Stevie Carroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the structure of this book – diary entries framed by correspondence between the inheritors of the papers and the descendants of the diarist's family – but the story and characters left me cold. Miles Lofton has redeeming features, but 'Pronto', the part he plays to those who might support his political career just didn't work for me. The book didn't shy away from its inevitable tragic ending, but I can't help feeling it needed something more somehow.

[Brian E Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is a bit unusual in its format. There is an overall framing device consisting of correspondence written in 1879-1880 among the young adult descendants of the Lufton/Chalfont family. These descendants are interested in the contents of the journals and memoir of an ancestor named Miles Lufton written between 1808 and 1818. An older member 1880 family members advises that these written materials should be left alone.
Except for a short beginning, interlude and ending sections with the 1880 intra-family correspondence, the story consists of materials from the 1810 -1818 Regency era journal entries and memoir of Miles Lufton. The story is predominantly told through Miles’ first-person narration from his journals and memoir.
I thought the novel was creatively set up but only partially successful in its execution. On the positive side, Kennedy’s writing style, though reflecting the time period, was still quite readable, neither overly difficult nor simple. Kennedy also created some interesting characters.
The main character Miles/Pronto was an engaging protagonist. Miles is a creative thinker and tells his story with wit and insight. He even creates a more outgoing alter-ego named Pronto to conduct most of his worldly interactions.
At first, I thought the creation of the alter ego Pronto would be weird, but I found it to be a harmless conceit for Miles to cope with life and did not play as disruptive of a role as I had feared. Kennedy also created a variety of other interesting characters such as Lord Chalfont/Ludovic, Caroline Audley, Cousin Ned Chadwick and especially Ned’s chameleon force of nature wife, Edmee aka Mrs. Ned.
Despite the presence of these interesting characters and some interesting vignettes, the story never was compelling to me. I never looked forward to reading it and often found my mind wandering a bit as I read. I was surprised as the first novel I read by Ms. Kennedy, The Feast, was a very enjoyable and compelling reading experience
I’m not sure why I struggled with this book’s story. It may have been how Kennedy organized and set up her story events that caused me problems. Each time I came to a new vignette, it often took me some time to place the characters and events in the context of Miles’ narration. I often chose to pause and go back to previous passages to help with character identification and placement. As a result, I never felt any flow to the story or even any feel for where it was ultimately going.
The more ‘clunky’ story progression may be due to Kennedy’s use of the journals to tell the story and/or her use of the different time period framing devise and/or her attempt to have the story and language accurately reflect the story’s time periods. In addition, perhaps the characters and story events were just not as interesting to me as I thought they were.
Whatever the reason was, this Kennedy novel did not make for a smooth or very entertaining reading experience. I rate this as a 3-star novel, saved from 2-star status by the memorable characters and degree of creativity involved.

[Alarie]

This novel just wasn’t for me. I planned to read for about 100 pages to give it a fair review. I enjoy 19th century novels, so I was not bothered by a 20th century novelist working hard to capture a 19th c. memoir. I did appreciate her dry wit. Kennedy had skill, but there was too little action, just talk, talk, talk, by a lazy, wanna be freeloader. Around page 70, when he seems to fall in love and pledge himself to making a living, I thought the book was perhaps waking up, but that was a short-lived promise. I have a big stockpile of more promising books to read. I gave up about a third of the way through.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprised by this one! I went in thinking it was a sort of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde but set in the regency period story, and that it was going to be much darker than it is, but it turned out to be something quite different. One of the best regency pastiche out there - definitely one of the smartest - the line about how men love Jane Austen so much because, unlike women, they can escape the drawing room... brutal.

[Harry Smith]

When I get my £4000 p.a., I'll write my memoirs too

[Linnea · Rating 3 out of 5]

a solid 3 for Margaret Kennedy
a solid 4/4.5 as a book overall Margaret Kennedy is fantastic

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a novel that I would rescue from a burning building. I think it is utterly superb, and not nearly well enough known.

The hero is Miles Lufton, a popular but impoverished gentleman, whose survival depends on his usefulness as a politician and smoother of paths. He plays his part to perfection, as Pronto, the indispensable man about town and general fixer, but all along he yearns to retire to the country and leave his life of mild deception and bad faith behind - but how can he honestly come by the resources to realise his dream?

No more spoilers - read it and love it.

This is my full review on Vulpes Libris: http://wp.me/p7orS-5ZM

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished reading "Troy Chimneys" (McNally Editions). Margaret Kennedy writes a good story! I'm not sure if the plot needs the letters from the Victorian descendants of the protagonist MP Miles Lufton to churn forward. Although, as a fan of letter writing, I thought it was a neat inclusion.

The prose and sudden plot turns (and the frailty of pre-Industrial upper-class ladies and gents) reminded me a lot of Jane Austen. The only difference is Kennedy writes with more quickness. I do wonder why she wrote in a man's voice. Maybe the answer's obvious...

[Jason RB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant book. Was recommended by the blacklisted
Podcast as the best historical fiction novel of the 20th century. Not sure would agred , for me James Clavell would earn that title. However it is funny, interesting and keeps your interest the whole way through. Being English it is about class but is surprisingly funny

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since reading The Feast I have become a big Margaret Kennedy fan. Troy Chimneys is very different but the same good writing. It is partially an epistolary novel and partly a fictitious memoir written by Miles "Pronto" Lofton. There is something reminiscent of P.G Wodehouse here and because it is set in the Regency era, I think of Jane Austen, as well. Next up: The Constant Nymph.

[Sue Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took a while to get into this book. It has quite a complex structure but once into it I was totally absorbed. My opinion of Margaret Kennedy remains high. It’s a pity more of her novels haven’t been re-published. Maybe soon...?

[Kay Robart · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review here:

http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2017/...

[Rosetta Whyte · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an unusual way to present this story. The heart of the book is the memoir and the transformative nature of the remembering. Quite haunting and charming I’m charmed by Margaret Kennedy

[Rachel Kowal · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.21

More amusing than I thought it would be. Proofread this for a freelance project.

[Silvia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite the compelling read, loved the characters.