Sylvester, or the Wicked Uncle
Georgette Heyer
 Sylvester, the wealthy Duke of Salford, is considering marriage. After discussing his prospects with his beloved ailing mother, who thinks he is too arrogant towards women, he travels to London to discuss the matter with his godmother, Lady Ingham, who tells him of her granddaughter, Phoebe, whose late mother was a close friend of the dowager Duchess of Salford. He departs for a hunt in the countryside and meets Phoebe's father. Impressed by the man's hunting, Sylvester consents to being his guest but is disgusted to find that he is the only person that has been invited to stay and therefore feels his hand is being forced. As the visit progresses he regrets his visit and considers Phoebe to be insipid and talentless. Phoebe's step-mother is a bully and tactlessly tells Phoebe that Sylvester has come to make her an offer of marriage. Terrified of being made to marry Sylvester and getting no sympathy from her father, Phoebe calls upon a childhood friend, Tom Orde, to help her run away to live with her grandmother, Lady Ingham, in London. Phoebe is unaware that Lady Ingham is the person who suggested Sylvester marry her. Tom has left a note for his mother who rushes round to Phoebe's parents with the news of their flight which is mistakenly taken for an elopement. Sylvester is very happy to have the excuse to return to London and comes across their carriage which has had an accident and in which Tom has broken his leg. Sylvester, decides to help them. They book in to the nearest inn, where he realizes that Phoebe is extremely smart and capable, though very impertinent. He is very angry when he learns why Phoebe has run away but decides to take her to her grandmother to punish Lady Ingham (whom he presumes will not want Phoebe living with her) for having sent him to Phoebe's family in the first place. Sylvester stays with Tom at the inn while he is recovering then visits Phoebe in London with the intention of being charming to her to make her sorry for slighting him. Phoebe meets Lady Ianthe, the silly widow of Sylvester's twin brother, who is convinced that Sylvester is evil because he is executing his brother's will exactly: her young son, Edmund, must live with Sylvester at the family home of Chance. Phoebe is struck by the parallels between the real Sylvester and the arrogant parody of him in a book which she has written and which is about to be published. She attempts to change her manuscript, but her publishers say that it is too late to do so. When her novel The Lost Heir is published, it fascinates London because of the perfect satirization of the members of high society who try to find the identity of author. Lady Ianthe, Sylvester's sister-in-law, declares that the author must know that Sylvester is so evil and takes the fairy-tale novel seriously. Phoebe, in protesting this absurdity, accidentally lets slip that she is the author. Naturally, Lady Ianthe cannot keep her peace, and soon all London society is agog. Sylvester, having decided to scotch the rumour, is so hurt by Phoebe's portrayal of him that he loses the command of feelings and insults Phoebe in public which causes a scandal and confirms Phoebe as the author. Lady Ingham decides to take Phoebe away to France with Tom Orde as their escort. Unfortunately, Lady Ianthe and her new husband, foppish Sir Nugent Fotherby, are going to France on their honeymoon with Edmund, her son, from the same port. Lady Ianthe has got the idea of taking Edmund away to France from a plot in Phoebe's novel. Phoebe tries to intervene and boards the schooner with Tom where they are 'kidnapped' by Fotherby, who orders the skipper to set sail. Edmund is sea-sick and Lady Ianthe is ill so Phoebe and Tom take over the care of the small child. Phoebe writes to Lady Ingham and Sylvester from France, but Sylvester catches up with them at an inn near Paris before he receives the letter. At first he is overjoyed to see Phoebe but then blames her for helping Lady Ianthe to kidnap Edmund but Sylvester needs Phoebe to look after Edmund on the journey back to England. Sylvester complains of all the scrapes which Phoebe has embroiled him in and, in turn, Phoebe accuses Sylvester of ruining her reputation beyond salvation. Sylvester, having realise that he loves Phoebe clumsily proposes marriage but Phoebe is outraged by the perceived sarcasm. Sylvester runs to his mother for help and she realises that he has truly fallen in love. She arranges to meet Phoebe to explain that Sylvester's arrogance has arisen from the grief he suffered after the loss of his twin brother and how much he loves Phoebe. Sylvester is summoned and again declares himself upon which Phoebe is only too happy to accept his proposal.