Line #62 Literature/APearlForMyMistress


1	[[quoteright:313:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cover_26.jpg]]
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3	''[[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35711385?source=ebfg_tw A Pearl for My Mistress]]'' (2017) is a novel by Annabel Fielding, set in 1930s Britain. It follows Hester, a young, ambitious girl, who finds a job as a lady's maid in order to better her prospects, as well as to escape the inevitable SmallTownBoredom. Working in an isolated household of [[ImpoverishedPatrician Impoverished Patricians]], she ends up falling in love with the young lady she serves. Lady Lucy is a sensitive and talented young woman, striving to escape her stifling, conservative surroundings. She is desperately lonely, and, after a while, she seems to return Hester's affections. Hester is overjoyed. There is a catch, though: her intelligent, passionate Lady Lucy is also a fascist sympathizer with a penchant for dabbling in international affairs...
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6	!!A Pearl for My Mistress contains examples of:
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8	* AbusiveParents: Lucy had an easily irritable, creepily possessive father and a manipulative, implied sadistic, unhealthily perfectionist mother. This part was based on very much-real Diana Mitford's childhood. The author actually ''toned it down''.
9	* AffablyEvil: Eugen is nothing if not courteous and reasonable.
10	* AmbitionIsEvil: Averted with Hester and Sophie. The former wants to find a place in a wealthy household and travel the world, the latter is very determined to become a famous jazz singer, but they are both really nice people. Played more or less straight with Lucy.
11	* AristocratsAreEvil: Averted with Eleanor. Despite being an "Honourable Miss", she is the sweetest cinnamon roll around. Played straight with... pretty much everyone else.
12	* ArousedByTheirVoice: At their first meeting, Lucy can't help but notice, how deep and pleasant Eugen's voice is. (Overlaps with EvilSoundsDeep.)
13	* BadassBookworm: Lucy is, in her own words, "weak and pale". However, she is a superb writer, so colorful and persuasive, that she could sell snow to the Inuits (and pro-German views to UsefulNotes/WorldWarI survivors...).
14	* BigScrewedUpFamily: The Palmers. It's implied, that in their heyday the Fitzmartins were also this. No, the family didn't get any less screwed-up; it just got smaller...
15	* BitchInSheepsClothing: Lucy. ''So much''.
16	* BettyAndVeronica: It's complicated. On one hand, Hester is a gentle, kind-hearted girl (Betty), while Eugen is a charismatic foreigner with VERY questionable ideals. On the other hand, though, romance with Hester is infinitely more dangerous for Lucy. [[spoiler: Her affair with Eugen is quite illicit as well, but, at least, it will not lead her into an asylum.]]
17	** A more straight-up one for Hester: cheerful housemaid Abigail vs. gorgeous NaziNoblewoman Lucy.
18	* BrainyBrunette: Lucy, unfortunately for everyone.
19	* ByronicHeroine: Lucy is an intelligent and sophisticated AntiVillain with a grandiose aim. High-minded and introspective, her great enterprise is doomed (by [[ForegoneConclusion history.
20	* TheCorrupter: Eugen von Frenzel, to Lucy. Not that Lucy is a pure [[TheIngenue Ingenue]] to start with...
21	* DarkerAndEdgier: The book was supposed to be this (if not an outright TakeThat) for the popular period dramas a lá ''Series/DowntonAbbey''. It deals with economic problems, unsavory politics and racist attitudes of the "glamorous" 1930s in a more forthright fashion.
22	* DarkIsNotEvil: Sophie Blake is a sultry [[TheChanteuse Chanteuse]] with olive skin and a serpentine body. One would expect her to be a local FemmeFatale, but she is really a cheerful, kind person who loves her sister.
23	* DefectingForLove: In-universe, Lucy mocks this trope, when Hester proposes to use it in her new novel. [[spoiler:However, that's precisely what she offers Hester in the end.]]
24	* DeliberateValuesDissonance: No one would expect Lucy, a Nazi sympathizer, to be comfortable with the notion of interracial romance; however, even "good" characters, like Hester and Sophie, are at least disturbed by it.
25	** Likewise, Lucy having a Nazi lover, who is significantly older than her, is (supposedly) forgiven much easier, than her lesbian affair with a sweet girl her age.
26	** Also, being an open Nazi sympathizer in the British society doesn't affect her career or social life at all. (The fact, that she is also a titled lady probably helps, though).
27	%% * DesperatelyCravesAffection: Ohh, Lucy...
28	* DracoInLeatherPants: In-universe, Hester tends to see Lucy as much more of a [[TheWoobie Woobie]] than she actually is, and tries to separate her (occasionally redeeming) actions from her (really horrible) beliefs. Justified; Hester is in love with her, after all...
29	* EvilCounterpart: Inverted; Charity Williams, a minor character, looks like a Good Counterpart to Lucy the AntiVillain protagonist. Charity is a well-educated, politically astute writer; however, unlike Lucy, she is implied to have come from a relatively healthy and supportive background. Also, unlike Lucy, she is evidently uncomfortable with the rise of Far Right politicians.
30	* EvenEvilHasStandards: Lucy is ([[ProtagonistJourneyToVillain at least, by the end of the story]]) totally a-okay with propaganda, manipulation, [[spoiler:blackmail and working for the Nazis]]. However, the notion of marital infidelity disgusts her.
31	* EvilMentor: Eugen's conversations with Lucy have shades of this.
32	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler: Lucy Fitzmartin. It's debatable, of course, how much of a "face" she initially was. She ''did'' already work for a fascist organization, however moderate one, in the beginning... (And managed to get ''worse.'')]]
33	* FallenOnHardTimesJob: Lucy's family regards her journalistic occupation to be this. Lucy herself actually enjoys both the job itself and the independent income it allows her.
34	* FemmeFatale: that's Sophie's stage persona, that has almost nothing to do with her actual personality. Granted, she is not averse to a little wheeling and dealing, but there is nothing really devious about either her or her plans.
35	* FieryRedhead: Abigail.
36	* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Hester considers herself and Sophie to be this (herself being the responsible one, of course). It's not quite as simple - Sophie is more impulsive and passionate, but she is certainly not foolish.
37	* GentlemanSnarker: Better known in society as Lady Lucy Fitzmartin.
38	* GrammarNazi: Lucy, in more ways than one.
39	* GreaterScopeVillain: Eugen serves the scheming German ambassador, Joachim von Ribbentrop; and behind him, in turn, looms a shadow of one [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler failed Austrian artist]]...
40	* HeroOfAnotherStory: [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Real-life]] Stephanie Von Hohenlohe. Although she is more likely to be considered a VillainOfAnotherStory...
41	** Also, Charity Williams - a passionate intellectual and a successful writer, who is evidently uncomfortable with the rise of right-wing politicians. She appears only in two scenes, though...
42	* HonorRelatedAbuse: What teenage Lucy was subjected to after her secret correspondence with her cousin was uncovered.
43	* HypocriticalHumor: [[spoiler: Yes, Lucy, you are just the person to condemn someone for illicit affairs...]]
44	* IcyBlueEyes: Lucy's blue eyes are described as "lucid" and "unsettlingly clear". Though a lot of people seem to mistake them for InnocentBlueEyes...
45	* ImpoverishedPatrician: The Fitzmartins are this.
46	* IncestSubtext: All the actual situations involving Hester and Sophie are quite innocent. However, in-universe, Lucy tends to regard their relationship... a little strangely.
47	** A much more chilling example for Lucy herself. When describing her possessive father, she mentions, that he could have wanted her for himself. And her laugh at the moment sounds quite humorless.
48	* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: In the end, Lucy is doing just fine (although she is an emotional mess). So does Eugen. They have rosy plans for the future, that might or might not include an engagement and a road trip through Europe.]]
49	** Although, given certain later events of European history, this might be more like KarmaHoudiniWarranty...
50	** Kind of TruthInTelevision, given, that neither Diana Mosley nor Stephanie von Hohenlohe (both partly inspiration for Lucy's character) suffered any serious repercussions even ''after'' the war, let alone before.
51	* KissingCousins: Lucy and Albert. Justified; it's the early 20th century England we are talking about, after all...
52	* LightIsNotGood: Lucy is a blue-eyed, ivory-skinned, semi-translucent young lady with a bright smile. [[MeaningfulName Even her names, both the first and the middle one, mean "light"!]] However, if you read the book till the end, you'll see, that she is very, very... not good. At best, she is an AntiVillain. At the very best.
53	* LoveRedeems: Hester puts great hopes in this trope; [[spoiler: however, it ends up {{deconstructed\|Trope}}...]]
54	* ManicPixieDreamGirl: Lucy's courtship of Hester has some shades of this. It doesn't last, though.
55	* ManipulativeBastard: Basically a part of Eugen's job description. [[spoiler: And Lucy's, eventually.]]
56	* MostWritersAreWriters: Not only is Lucy a writer and a journalist; she is a writer with a clear penchant for ''historical fiction''. But we really, really hope she is not an AuthorAvatar.
57	* MsFanservice: Try counting all the scenes, where Lucy is either undressed, half-dressed, or only dressed in someone's shirt or a SexyBacklessOutfit...
58	* NaziNobleman: Eugen is an interesting example. Being a younger son in a minor family, he wouldn't have gotten much out of his origins, even if the revolution didn't come into play. And, as it is, he actually thinks the whole landed wealth and title thing to be a relic of a bygone age, and is enthusiastic about the new German regime, more popular in nature.
59	** His sort-of historical inspiration, Count Von Durckheim, went even further - he felt so strongly on the subject, that he actually rejected his inheritance altogether.
60	* NaziProtagonist: Downplayed with Lucy Fitzmartin. She is more of a "moderate Nazi sympathizer protagonist".
61	* NobilityMarriesMoney: Sir Palmer and Marianne Lindley are a rather heartbreaking example. What makes it even more heartbreaking is the fact, that they are based on the true story of Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India, and his first wife Mary.
62	** On a grander scale, she ponders as to whether Britain and (early) UsefulNotes/NaziGermany are this, especially in certain aspects. After all, both use slogans like "we turn modern girls into little housewives" unironically...
63	* OldDarkHouse: Hebden Hall.
64	* OldRetainer: Mrs. Mullet. Hester dreads over the prospect of becoming one some day.
65	* OnlySaneWoman: Lucy considers herself to be one. Sophie actually ''is'' one.
66	* OopNorth: Where the Blake sisters hail from. Neither is overjoyed by it.
67	* PragmaticVillainy: [[spoiler: Lucy hopes, that Sir Palmer isn't going to go all violent on his daughter's black suitor... because otherwise it will screw Lucy's scheme to bribe Sophie]].
68	* PreventAWar: Lucy is a rare (anti)villainous example with this trope for a motivation.
69	* ProtagonistJourneyToVillain: Lucy starts out as a rebellious, spirited young woman. [[spoiler: Towards the end, she becomes a staunch Nazi supporter, ready to sacrifice anything and anyone to her cause.]] Has some FromNobodyToNightmare undertones.
70	* PiggybackingOnHitler: Eugen von Frenzel is a rather mundane example. He is hardly an ardent National Socialist; however, he panders to Nazi ideas in his research and writing in hope to advance his own academic career.
71	** [[spoiler: Lucy in the end qualifies, too.]]
72	* PurpleProse: In-universe. Lucy is embarrassed of her early writing, because it consisted mostly of this. Justified, she wrote it when she was thirteen and she was basically raised by Georgian and Victorian novels.
73	* RavenHairIvorySkin: Lucy's appearance. Her skin is directly compared to ivory on more than one occasion.
74	* ServileSnarker: Hester is in general less snarky than her mistress, but she has her moments.
75	* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: Eugen's manner of speech has to be seen to be believed.
76	* SexyBacklessOutfit: Lucy wears one to her evening at Lady Cunard's, where she meets Eugen for the first time.
77	* ShoutOut: During her conversation/confrontation with Sophie, Lucy says at one point "You underestimate my power". These were the exact words of a [[Film/RevengeOfTheSith certain other young talent, corrupted into service to a totalitarian government]]...
78	** Lucy and Eugen's first meeting is one hell of a shout-out to Music/{{Evita}}.
79	* SilkHidingSteel: Lucy evolves from a more straight-up [[TheIngenue Ingenue]] into this.
80	* SoftSpokenSadist: Lucy's mother. Must be InTheBlood; when Lucy starts to speak "with the softness of winter mists", it rarely means anything good...
81	** Lucy isn't really sadistic, though. Her villainy is largely [[PragmaticVillainy pragmatic]].
82	* SouthernBelle: It's implied, that Eleanor's mother, Marianne Lindley, was one.
83	* SmallTownBoredom: In part what propels Hester to seek not-very-lucrative employment as a lady's maid.
84	* TechnicalVirgin: [[spoiler: Lucy invokes this trope before sleeping with Eugen. "Never been with a man", indeed...]]
85	* ThoseWackyNazis: Only one actually shows up in the plot, but they are frequently referenced.
86	* UnholyMatrimony: [[spoiler: Lucy and Eugen form something like this towards the end.]]
87	* UptownGirl: Lady Lucy is this to her maid Hester. [[spoiler: The romance doesn't end well.]]
88	* VillainousCrush: Lucy's love for Hester can be considered this.
89	** Eugen von Frenzel's crush on Lucy can ''definitely'' be considered this.
90	* VillainHasAPoint: Lucy actually has plenty of points, particularly regarding the hypocrisy of much-idealized aristocratic "old world" (arranged marriages, kept mistresses, negligent education for girls etc.).
91	* VillainProtagonist: [[spoiler: Lucy deteriorates into one of those pretty quickly]].
92	* WeCanRuleTogether: [[spoiler:A rather downplayed example, as Lucy doesn't really ''rule'' anything per se. However, she offers Hester to assist her in service to those, who do.]]
93	* WhiteSheep: Eleanor, for the Palmers. Lucy ''looks'' like one for the Fitzmartin family... until it turns out, that she inherited all the familial screwed-upness, and then some.
94	* WickedCultured: Eugen. He is extremely well-mannered, well-educated, well-traveled and well-dressed. He is also an opportunist, [[spoiler:a blackmailer]] and a Nazi. [[spoiler:Towards the end, Lucy shows some undertones of this trope, too.]]
95	* WrongGenreSavvy: Teenage Lucy considered herself to be a Gothic novel heroine. Her living in an OldDarkHouse OopNorth didn't help.
96	** Likewise, Hester seems to think, that she is in a Literature/JaneEyre-like narrative as a plucky, highly principled underling, who will soften and redeem her dark and troubled master (in this case, mistress).
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