Pied and Prodigious - D M Andrews

'It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a man in possession of a wife, must be in want of a good fortune.' There is much excitement in Longlawn when two men with tall hats enter the district. Mothers buy new dresses for their daughters, fathers polish up on their fencing skills, and Mr Bonnet tackles the perilous journey through the stinging nettles to call upon the new occupants of Nettlefield Park. The ditsy Jane Bonnet soon falls for Mr Blingley with all his gold jewellery, but her sister, the ever-prodigious Lizzy, very much dislikes Mr Blingley's friend, Mr Dicey, whose pied coat and tall hat strike fear into the local populace. This is a story of excessive fashion, high heels, large wardrobes, tall hats - oh, and romance!