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#16 | ||
Wizard
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![]() The description of Isabel made her seem extremely bland. I'm worried she'll turn out out be a sexy lamp ("if you can replace your female character with a sexy lamp and the story still basically works, maybe you need another draft"). I looked up the description of Laura (the damsel in distress in "The Woman in White") for comparison, and although she's not brimming with personality, the description hints at her flaws which are important to the story. I'm not fond of the omniscient point of view. I much prefer to see what happens trough the eyes of one or more of the people in the story. Not to say that it can't be done well -- I love Austen's books -- but it makes it that much harder for me to care about the characters. So far I've just read two chapters. I'm planning to go on, but will most likely read a chapter or two inbetween other books. Last edited by hildea; 08-06-2021 at 04:04 PM. |
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#17 | |
Now what?
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So, yes, I think Woman in White can be regarded as a sensation novel. |
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#18 | |
(he/him/his)
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#19 |
languorous autodidact ✦
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I’ve got it lined up to start next, and looking forward to it. poohbear mentioned The Woman in White in the op, which I really enjoyed, so I’m excited to see how this compares.
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#20 |
languorous autodidact ✦
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I went with the audiobook, which happened to have only just been released in April this year, so that’s serendipitous.
It’s entertaining so far a few chapters in. poohbear mentioned heavy-handedness in foreshadowing and I might expand that to include heavy-handedness generally; certainly Wood won’t be accused of an overabundance of subtlety, lol. If the story is enjoyable though these things can fall by the wayside. hildea, your mention of the ‘sexy lamp’ for Isabel made me laugh although it’s sad that it’s a common enough trope to qualify for naming. |
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#21 |
Snoozing in the sun
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I agree with you and poohbear, sun surfer - distinctly heavy-handed!
I started reading a few days ago and am finding it clunky, but the story moves along well enough. I thought the introduction of the sub-plot of a murder was done clumsily. I have just finished Chapter 14, so Isabel has now married Carlyle. Things can only go from bad to worse now, as Mrs Wood has warned us! Last edited by Bookpossum; 08-18-2021 at 08:02 AM. |
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#22 |
Snoozing in the sun
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I'm getting the feeling that Daphne du Maurier must have read East Lynne - there are reminders of Rebecca, for me at least.
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#23 |
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Yes, distinctly heavy-handed. I feel like I'm reading a less well written Georgette Heyer Regency.
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#24 | |
Professor of Law
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#25 |
Snoozing in the sun
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Sorry if that’s so, but I had thought as with the previous book, that anyone just starting would avoid the thread until they were ready. Spoilers weren’t used for the Eliot discussion for that reason.
Actually, your mention of Mrs Doubtfire gave me information I didn’t have until then about how things might develop! |
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#26 | |
Now what?
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I would be interested in seeing your thoughts on this as you progress through the book. Early comments in this thread (including mine) have focused on criticism of the writing style and content ... but this book was a smash best-seller and fueled rep theater over decades. What do you think hooked the public in 1861, and kept folks coming back over and over - up to the film versions in 1931 and 1982? |
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#27 |
Snoozing in the sun
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Perhaps the fascination of a heroine who is a “fallen woman”, which was presumably a novelty at the time? I’m not up to the “fall” yet, but you can see it coming a mile off. A generation or so later (I haven’t checked the dates) Tess of the D’Urbervilles was huge too.
Last edited by Bookpossum; 08-18-2021 at 07:06 PM. |
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#28 | |
Now what?
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#29 |
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Indeed. I am cantering along through the last part of the book now, but won't make any further comment on the plot.
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#30 |
languorous autodidact ✦
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I have just finished today, and in the modern vernacular I might say she ‘went there’.
The book begins slowly and prosaically enough for a long while, and certainly much can be guessed far ahead of time. But, wow, Wood doesn’t suffice with simple delicate allusions once things go awry. She revels in giving us the messiest of scenes in all their detailed, melodramatic and even schadenfreude-ian glory. As I read further and further the phrase ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ kept popping up in my head, lol. |
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