New Books Network Janice Hadlow, "Rules of the Heart" (Henry Holt and Company, 2026)
Mar 22, 2026
Janice Hadlow, novelist and former TV producer with a first-class degree in history, explores an 18th-century affair. She unpacks why older married women took younger lovers and the social rules that kept them discreet. Letters, long-distance longing, age and desire, and the risks of scandal all come up. Hadlow also reads a key scene and teases an Austen-adjacent next project.
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Why Older Women Took Younger Lovers
- Eighteenth century aristocratic affairs with younger men were common and partly pragmatic.
- Young men avoided women their own age to protect reputations, so experienced older women offered both discretion and social advantage.
The High Stakes Women Faced If Exposed
- Married aristocratic women risked losing money, home, reputation, and even their children if exposed for adultery.
- Harriet had a settlement but spent it, illustrating how fragile women's finances and shelter were after marriage.
Letters Kept Long Distance Love Alive
- Letters were the era's social lifeline and Harriet was a prolific, candid letter writer who preserved her feelings.
- She and Granville developed systems (numbering, secret addresses) to sustain thousands of letters across continents and war.
