It was okay. Not as good as The Last of the Breed. I felt like it was kind of rushed, and the whole amnesia trope was never really fleshed out OR resoIt was okay. Not as good as The Last of the Breed. I felt like it was kind of rushed, and the whole amnesia trope was never really fleshed out OR resolved, so it seemed like sort of an easy way to write the story. I listened to the audio, and it was easy to tune out the narration and lose my place. Character development was almost zero, but that ties back in to the whole amnesia thing. ...more
Great book. This was an entire STORY, from beginning to end. The only thing that I wish he'd added was some more details about the hero's life, and I Great book. This was an entire STORY, from beginning to end. The only thing that I wish he'd added was some more details about the hero's life, and I really wanted an epilogue to tie up loose ends. ...more
Seriously fantastic story. I can't say enough about it. The characters are beautifully done...multi-layered, flawed, redeemable because of their humanSeriously fantastic story. I can't say enough about it. The characters are beautifully done...multi-layered, flawed, redeemable because of their humanity. The setting is unique and magical, just as flawed and layered as the people who chose to live there. An all time favorite. ...more
This is why I read romance. I know it's WWII and it's tragic. But I hate when a book tries to cover up a truly gut wrenching tragedy with some gentle,This is why I read romance. I know it's WWII and it's tragic. But I hate when a book tries to cover up a truly gut wrenching tragedy with some gentle, nostalgic ending. I can't ever get over the tragedy enough to enjoy anything afterward. I'm sure it's a fantastic book. The narrator did a great job. But it dragged a little at the beginning, the two protagonists don't even meet until nearly the end, and I just can't bring myself to say that I enjoyed any of it. ...more
Ellen O'Connell is a guaranteed good read. Low angst and pointless drama. Beautiful, meaningful romance. Tough cowboys, tougher women, both flawed. LoEllen O'Connell is a guaranteed good read. Low angst and pointless drama. Beautiful, meaningful romance. Tough cowboys, tougher women, both flawed. Loved it....more
An interesting twist on a historical romance involving dukes and duchesses and the snobbery of England vs. the vulgarity of Americans. I enjoyed it, aAn interesting twist on a historical romance involving dukes and duchesses and the snobbery of England vs. the vulgarity of Americans. I enjoyed it, and was well on my way to a four star read but the ending really fell flat for me.
THINGS I LIKED: I enjoyed Zoe's antics and her enthusiastic way of doing spontaneous things almost deliberately. It was sort of funny to read about her thought process just before doing something shocking, as she very nearly made a conscious decision to act a certain way without forethought. That's confusing, I know, but it was in there, and it was kind of endearing. She's known true poverty, so she appreciates every little thing about her affluent lifestyle now. At first, anyways.
Nigel, Duke of Langford, is the quintessential HR stuffy Duke, only now we get one that's refusing to modernize to electricity and indoor plumbing just as much as short skirts and jazz music. To be honest, this Duke was just a bit TOO stuffy for me.
LOVED the setting, loved the era, LOVED the altogether different tone of the book with regards to the modern world clashing with the old days. Cars vs. horses, the advancements in creature comforts, and the abrupt and violent psychosocial changes that took place during this time period are fascinating.
NOT SO MUCH: Stubborn seemed to be the name of the game with both Zoe and Nigel, and they took it too far. Nigel's preoccupation with certain safety measures got old after awhile, just as Zoe's utter disregard for any and all propriety did as well. There seemed to be little to no compromise between the two, for nearly the entire book. It was one way or the other, with a couple big incidents of crossover.
The last ten percent of the book felt completely incongruous from where I wanted/expected the book to go. I felt like one character got to throw a fit, and the other had to cave in. Not to mention the way that a certain someone ended up acting completely out of character to an extreme, while the other remained the same, only now with a sense of right-ness and superiority.
So it was a fun read in parts. Very emotional in others with regard to the war and the casualties that happened both during and after. The romance was not as believable or romantic as I needed it to be, I guess. It felt too forced, and like I said earlier...there was not a lot of compromise and meshing of two lives.
I was in such a book slump...everything I read was uninteresting and dull. JaHy saved me with this recommendation...it was diffe[image]
IT WAS SO GOOD!
I was in such a book slump...everything I read was uninteresting and dull. JaHy saved me with this recommendation...it was different in that it's a historical set right after World War II. Rarely do I read twentieth century historicals, so this was a treat.
What I took from this book, besides the beautiful love story, is how little compassion people sometimes have for one another, but especially when we get that "mob" mentality. If everyone says something, thinks something, does something, it must be okay, right? And that couldn't be further from the truth. [image]
Standing up for what you believe in, whether it's an ideal, a cause, or a person, is always the right thing to do. We are so caught up with acceptance and popularity that we often leave our values in the past. I've done it, especially when I was younger. I think, I hope, that now that I'm a little older, that my core beliefs are strong enough to withstand peer pressure just as Sarah did. She is a remarkably admirable character. Where others saw a freak, she saw a human being. Where others saw someone to fear, she saw someone to love. Where many others found only contempt, she found compassion.
♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ "If his story was true, he'd probably not been touched by gentle hands since he was very young. Her heart ached at the thought of so many years of loneliness and isolation." ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
One of my favorite parts is when Sarah gives Tom a massage that turns into so much more....not sexually, but healing. It was a very powerful moment, exhibiting the importance of not only human touch, but contact and connection in sensual, spiritual ways as well. The awe that Tom has for Sarah is as heartbreaking as it is beautiful.
♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ "I will not let you go, she repeated to herself. I'm finally starting to come alive. There's no way I can go back to being half dead again." ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
One gripe I have with the book...and it's really a cumulative gripe with all books that deal with bigotry and judgment...is how the Christians are portrayed yet again as hateful, narrow-minded fools. We're not all that way, folks. Just saying...it'd be nice to get a pastor/preacher who actually practices what he preaches once in awhile. Although I think back in this time period, acceptance was even harder to come by. Another issue I had was how quick the time frame was, but it's easily understandable considering the circumstances. It's just a pet peeve of mine.
Above all, this is a love story between two unlikely characters: a WWII widow and the tattoed freak from a traveling carnival. The chemistry between the two is evident from the start, and this author did a fantastic job of moving the story along quickly without getting bogged down with unnecessary drama and details. And yet it didn't feel as if it lacked anything; rather, I was invested fully during the entire story. It was actually very refreshing to read a story that feels as if it was written from the heart rather than written with an audience in mind.
A few more selling points: Tom is a wonderful beta male, something I don't often read. The sex is surprisingly hot but also wonderfully sensual, and this is a stand alone, which seems to be a rarity lately.
I've been looking for unique and new, and Harlow wrote something that hit me at just the perfect time! Set in the 1920's, during the time of the prohiI've been looking for unique and new, and Harlow wrote something that hit me at just the perfect time! Set in the 1920's, during the time of the prohibition, Tiny's gangster love triangle is sexy, intense, and just angsty enough to fit into the New Adult mold.
Enzo is the mob boss's son and the clear cut bad boy of the two men vying for Tiny's attention. He doesn't even pretend to be a nice guy, which is honestly the most sexy thing about him. He lusts after Tiny, and has no qualms about letting her know...both physically and verbally. His words are sexy, his actions sexier. Even if his Dad IS the guy who kidnaps Tiny's father, I can't help but swoon along with her every time Enzo walks into a room.
Joey is the annoying lifelong friend of Tiny's who has recently come back into her life. He's changed from the annoying boy who pestered her to death when they were children. Now he's annoying mainly because he calls her "Little Tomato" and because her pulse tends to go haywire when he touches her. Joey is the good guy, and Tiny's a good girl. But they both can't stay good in this world of bootlegged liquor, powerful Italian mobsters, and underground speakeasies where sex and alcohol flow freely.
I'm already halfway through book two and am anxious to see who the victor is between the two men. Thanks to Jeanne for the recommendation!...more
From some other reviews (and even my husband's opinion,) I thought that I'd fall heDNF @45%...no rating :( What I expected: [image]
What I got: [image]
From some other reviews (and even my husband's opinion,) I thought that I'd fall head over heels for this book. That was so far from right, it's not even funny. I got as far as I did because the writing is very descriptive, somehow mysterious, and I kept expecting...the next...scene...to...blow...my mind. Never happened. Not once did I get any real emotion or even a sense of direction from this story. At the halfway point, the author was still introducing characters and I just couldn't go on any more.
What's the point to the book? What IS the plot? I really don't know. So much time and effort is giving to mood setting and atmosphere, and very little is given to actual character development. Even though you spend a lot of time with the characters, after awhile, the author moves on to the next couple of Night Circus inductees and just mixes them in with the rest. Add that to actual time changes, from the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth, and an odd little generational gap/connection, and I just got confused.
To be fair, I listened to the audiobook. I guess I have a problem with old British dudes because he once again made me want to fall asleep. I felt like I was getting a lecture or something. I prefer younger narrators. I'm good with British, promise. I just think this book could have been more upbeat and fun, and I might have enjoyed it more. I'm really bummed because I had such high hopes. I just can't bring myself to slog through another four or five hours of a non-story. ...more
“God forgive, Jervaulx - that I sh'd love thee." "That I should love thee.”
Out of all of the Historical romances I’ve read, this is the one that s
“God forgive, Jervaulx - that I sh'd love thee." "That I should love thee.”
Out of all of the Historical romances I’ve read, this is the one that stands out as the most unconventional of them all. What a brave author to have tackled this subject, and what a remarkably insightful, tender way to do it.
~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*` MY SYNOPSIS: Archimedea Timms is a Friend…a Quaker…a quiet, devoutly religious and pious woman who grew up in that lifestyle. She knows no other way; and even if she did, she would still choose her way of life. She lives for God, to honor him in all ways, eschewing anything material, convenient, stylish, creaturely and popular for her people’s way of life. [image]
Meanwhile, Christian, the Duke of Jervaulx…or the “D of J”, as he’s referred to in the gossip columns, is as far from religious and pious as can be. His way of life is one of parties and womanizing, indulging in any spontaneous vice he can. He’s a Duke, and he lives as if he has no rules.
These two couldn’t be further apart socially or morally, so where’s the connection? Maddy’s father is a brilliant mathematician, and so is Christian. [image] Though they haven’t met, they have been collaborating on a breakthrough formula sure to amaze the world of mathematics. To be blunt, they're nerds in the very best way possible, and this fact not only brings Christian back down to the world of mortals, but it brings him into contact with Maddy.
“Maddygirl deserved to be a duchess. It had been a great mistake of nature to make her a thee-thou sugar scoop bonnet.”
Maddy and Christian have one night of interaction between them, when Christian presents his case to the London Analytical Society. And he proves that he does have a good character when he also gives credit to the blind Quaker man who has so diligently worked with him on this project. He also shows his romantic, poetic, and compassionate side to him when he gives her father the gift of a lifetime…he lets him “see” the daughter that he hasn’t seen since he lost his eyesight more than a decade ago.
This is really the only taste that the reader will get of Christian before a horrific incident takes everything away from him…
Christian Nicholas Francis Langland, His Grace the Duke of Jervaulx, Earl of Langland and Viscount Glade…has a stroke.
He wasn’t a two-year-old. He had not lost his reason. He isn’t mad; he is maddened.
Of course, no one back then knows what a stroke is, so it seems as if overnight, the Duke has lost his mind, his ability to speak and reason, and much of his ability to move. He is spirited off to an insane asylum. Of course, the proprietors think they are helping to cure the poor helpless (and very rich) inhabitants of their establishment. But ice baths and isolation, chains and condescension don’t seem to be doing the trick for a man who is completely sound of mind. In fact, Christian is perfectly fine inside his head…he just can’t move right, or speak well, and his frustration and anger add to the illusion of insanity. [image]
Fortunately, fate steps in and Maddy is led to help her uncle who runs the very asylum that Christian was taken to. And Maddy feels it is her calling to reach out to the mad Duke. In fact, Maddy realized very quickly that Christian isn’t mad at all. And this realization is the beginning of a tender, remarkable story unlike one I’ve ever read before.
~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*`~`*` MY THOUGHTS: This was definitely unexpected but I’m so happy that I read it. I heard from a few people that they didn’t like Maddy very much and at first I couldn’t see why. However, as the story wore on, her pious attitude wore on me. A the beginning, she was such a strong character, doing not what was expected, but what she felt was right. Even though she disapproved of Christian’s lifestyle with ever fiber of her being, she literally put aside all prejudice and judgment in order to help the helpless.
“It was pointless, this small attempt at escape. He defeated her. What she wished to avoid was inside her; not for one instant as she walked did she think of anything but Jervaulx.”
And boy, was Christian helpless! I’ve never felt such pity and horror over a character’s treatment before. To be reduced to this raving madman…going from this vital, brilliant man with the world at his feet…to THIS…imprisoned against his will, his own family unwilling to see anything but madness and insanity…poor Christian! He really was a figure of pity. However, my pity turned to admiration quite quickly. Talk about stubborn and tenacious! As Maddy begins to weaken in character for me, Christian became the stuff of legend. He just never gives up. He is so willful and strong, and with the help of this lowly Quaker woman, he overcomes so much. All he needed was for one person to believe in him.
“He was the Devil - smiling a little tender, a warmth that she’d never foreseen, not in all her everyday prayers to God to keep her soul safe and in spiritual grace. Never once had she imagined that Satan would smooth her hair, would smell of heat and earth…wouldn’t speak, wouldn’t hiss evil promises in her ears. Never once had she thought he would be anything but ugly and corrupt and easy for virtuous Archimedea Timms to scorn.”
Their romance…it’s truly epic. It’s so much more than I can say. It’s a forbidden love for so many reasons but not the typical taboo pairing. This is a slow, sensual dance. There’s nothing lascivious about it…I wonder if people will be turned away, thinking of a romance between a slobbering, raving madman and a shy, dowdy, naïve Quaker woman. Not at all. It was beautiful. [image]
“I‘m afraid,” she whispered. “I‘m afraid of what thou wilt do to my soul and my heart.” “Your heart…is precious to me,” he said quietly.”
Christian himself is reduced to a small world, relying on his “Maddygirl” for everything…dressing, feeding, even speaking at first. As the threat to his title, his lands, his standard of living and his very freedom becomes more and more real, it is apparent that small successes and slow progress in everyday functions is critical. Maddy believes in him, and she falls for him despite her every attempt to stay devoutly impersonal.
“Oh, stop, say stop, but it‘s too late. Too late. Because God forgive me, I love thee more than my own life.”
[image] I encourage anyone who likes a romance with depth, who loves the tortured hero but is tired of the same old same old story being retold by different authors, who likes to read outside of the box every once in awhile to do themselves a favor and pick up this book. It's not a happy story...for the most part. It's a heartbreaker and a tearjerker. I mean, it literally made my tummy hurt and my heart ache for all that both of these two went through. But in the end, I was left feeling that happy, sigh-worthy feeling of a beautiful love story, for that's what this really was. And also a story about the resilience of humanity, about how much we each need someone to build us up, to believe in us. In everyday life, perhaps just for an ego boost, someone to say "Yes, you can" when the rest of the world is saying "No, you can't." That's a real partnership, a real love, and true devotion. In the end, Christian and Maddy had that, and it was a hard fought war...but oh, so worth it....more
It's worth every bit of hype. Straight to my favorites shelf. A historical romance, from the WWII era. Poor, lonely people who are both at a low pointIt's worth every bit of hype. Straight to my favorites shelf. A historical romance, from the WWII era. Poor, lonely people who are both at a low point in their lives. They find each other and one of the sweetest, most evocative stories I've ever read unfolds. Magical. ...more
"She had never thought her name lovely until she heard him say it, his warm Scots voice lingering softly over the word."
Fair warning: I am going
"She had never thought her name lovely until she heard him say it, his warm Scots voice lingering softly over the word."
Fair warning: I am going to ramble like a loony bin in this review. I could give this five bright shining stars on one hand, or three grumpy stars on the other. I'm settling for four because the writing and the overall tone for this story are outstanding and far outdo many of the modern books that I read today. I've rated this based on a mix of literary merit and on my enjoyment, which is what I try to do with every book I read. I've been contemplating my feelings for Bride of the MacHugh for a few days now and I'm still unsure as to how I feel. I'll try to explain but it's going to sound like I'm talking in circles...which I am, because that's how my brain is working right now.
[image] (This gif is dedicated to Bama, because I know how she adores them :P )
MY SYNOPSIS: Elspeth Lamond has spent her life in London with her mother, under the guardianship of the Earl of Argyll. When her mother extracts a promise while on her deathbed that Elspeth will go to Scotland to put herself under the protection of her Campbell family, she feels honor bound to hold up that vow. Only the warring clans in Scotland could make such a mess of her life, and being a woman in that time basically meant being reduced to a bartering tool. Elspeth finds herself in that very position, tossed around between the Campbells, Lamonds, MacHughs, and MacDonalds. Only the MacHughs do this in such a bold manner, stealing her away from her family and giving her no choice but to comply.
But it is the proud and infamous Alex MacHugh who holds her reluctant interest. Their passion for each other is evident from their first meeting, but it's a fickle passion. Sometimes love and hate feel much the same. Elspeth feels lost and alone amid these wild people, and she resents the feelings that she feels for the MacHugh leader.
"It was exceedingly difficult to keep her resolve, not to feel very young and lonely and forgotten. The world had narrowed down to the melancholy sky touching the tops of the mountains, those great squat monsters shouldering one on the other as far as the eye could see, and the grim MacHughs who rode beside her as strangers."
MY THOUGHTS: And here comes the mess...
I actually tend to like the historical novels...particularly Highlander romance novels...that add plotlines based loosely on historical characters and facts. It adds realism to the book and a gravity to the characters actions. And once I've read more than a few written about the same characters (ex: the Campbells, MacGregors, Earl of Argyll), I begin to paint a picture in my head of what might have ACTUALLY happened in real life. It's fascinating, albeit likely highly romanticized. Scotland is so rich in history, and there is so much to tell, that no matter what, it's always fascinating to me. Here is a picture of Fraoch Eilean, one of the major strongholds in the book: [image]
That being said, this book in particular was stuffed full of politics of the day and warring clans, name dropping, history and loads and loads of political intrigue and dialogue. Too much for my taste. It pushed the romance into a corner for much of the book.
The balance between the romance and the multiple skirmishes and goings on around MacHugh and Elspeth was not actually balanced at all. There wasn't much face to face time between these two prideful lovebirds. But...and here comes the circles...what intimacy there was, was perfect.
This is a couple that not only lusts and loves but they understand each other with a look, they touch each other without physical contact. The buildup of their romance is extremely slow, and it's phenomenal how the author leads the reader to believe so completely in this passion that they feel for each other without ever actually saying it outright. It felt very natural, even though Elspeth seemed to want to fight it. MacHugh...the arrogant bastard...simply chuckles at her stubborn refusal to acknowledge their attraction. And I chuckled right along with him, shaking my head and wishing I could just give her a little whisper in her ear to stop fighting the inevitable.
The romance was wonderful, what there was of it. There really was too much history and politics for my taste, but I also believe that what is written in the pages of this book was meant to be just this way. Maybe it's a sign of modern literature that I've ventured so far into romance that my books need to be saturated with it. **Shrug** I don't really care, because I like what I like. Even with too much politics, it still didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book. The love scenes are fade to black (which did not detract from my enjoyment here), and that also is somewhat of a pet peeve of mine, because I think that sex is vital to a relationship and it's very hard for me to believe in passion without reading the evidence of it. Which leads me to a huge no no that was within this book, and the reason that I couldn't give it five stars. This isn't a plot line spoiler, but I am tagging it for those who can't take minor spoilers. (view spoiler)[ MacHugh's lover, Kate, is a big part of the story. I had assumed when we first met her that they had been intimate prior to MacHugh's meeting Elspeth. Kate and Elspeth meet and it's obvious that Kate is jealous of the attention that MacHugh gives Elspeth. The women have a catty disposition toward each other, and MacHugh seems to be highly amused by this. And then, at around 40 PERCENT in to the book, it comes to light that he is STILL SLEEPING WITH HER. What the hell? Almost halfway through the story, and he's made it obvious that he is doing this weird chasing of Elspeth, and he's still boinking this woman? Then, a couple of scenes later, he has the gall to tell one of his friends that he is “being true to a certain lass.” When did this realization come about? There was no written evidence of him having any kind of mental turning point in which he decides to forgo his affair and be true to Elspeth. (hide spoiler)] I am shaking my damn head, because that seriously almost ruined this romance for me. I am, however, glad that I stuck it out. One of my favorite quotes:
"...he had heard tales of the young MacHugh Chief, related to him with respect and admiration oft-times tinged with awe. The lad was a swordsman and fighter of great repute, but his most valuable asset was his ability to lead men. The MacDonlad cause was desperately in need of leaders, men the caliber of Alexander MacHugh, whose very name would bring men flocking to his banner."
Rarely do I get to read an author as talented as this one in the genre that I adore. I find at times that I take the best of what is available rather than the best that there is. And that was not the case with this one. This is a beautiful novel, and despite my complaint, I very much recommend any historical romance lover who can set aside feminist tendencies to read this. For the era that it is written, it's one of the best I've read. ...more
"And yet, yo see, North and South has both met and made kind o' friend in this big smoky place." [image][image]
I almost feel like a fraud reviewing bo"And yet, yo see, North and South has both met and made kind o' friend in this big smoky place." [image][image]
I almost feel like a fraud reviewing books like this. I know that there are probably many details that I miss entirely, some nuances that go straight over my head, but these are my thoughts...however scattered they are.
Margaret Hale's father has been the spiritual leader of his community of Helston for decades. Now he questions his faith...not necessarily his belief in God, but maybe the infallible constancy that ministers should have. While Margaret herself has been living among high society with her aunt for the last years, when her father decides to leave the church and uproot his family, she moves with her mother and father to the Northern city of Milton.
"Her keen enjoyment of every sensuous pleasure, was balanced finely, if not overbalanced, by her conscious pride in being able to do without them all, if need were."
Milton is an industrious city full of factories and rich tradesmen and merchants. But there are also the poor, the underfed, the "little guys" who work in those factories day after day just to make enough to feed their families. Margaret's first impression of Milton is not a good one, and her prejudice about her new home town is made known to any who will listen.
And while there were time that Margaret's prejudice really grated my nerves, she grows so much as a person during the course of this story that it's next to impossible not to empathize with her. Both of her parents seem to be weak in character, leaning so heavily on their daughter and giving her so much emotional responsibility as to question who the parents are. What did they do while she was away from them? By the end of the book...poor Margaret!!
"I have passed out of childhood into old age. I have had no youth - no womanhood; the hopes of womanhood have closed for me - for I shall never marry; and I anticipate cares and sorrows just as if I were an old woman, and with the same fearful spirit. I am weary of this continual call upon me for strength."
Mr. Hale has taken up tutoring those who wish to learn. One of his student is John Thornton, who happens to be one of the richer men in Milton. [image][image]
He and Margaret definitely do not hit it off on their first meeting. These are two very strong personalities, people with rigid convictions who aren't afraid of speaking their mind...and they often do.
Still, Thornton has a fascination with the outspoken Margaret.
"He almost said to himself that he did not like her, before their conversation ended; he tried so to compensate himself for the mortified feeling, that while he looked up on her with an admiration he could not repress, she looked at him with proud indifference, taking him, he though, for what, his irritation, he told himself he was - a great, rough fellow, with not a grace or a refinement about him. Her quiet coldness of demeanor he interpreted into contemptuousness, and resented it in his heart to the pitch of almost inclining him to get up and go away, and have nothing more to do with these Hales, and their superciliousness." [image][image]
Despite her disapproval of everything he is and does, he is continually drawn back to her; due to circumstance or compulsion, he always comes back. Margaret also wages a subtle battle with herself in regard to her feelings for Thornton...though she hides it extremely well. This was a frustrating aspect of the book for me. Thornton is a very kind man. He reveals his difficult childhood to Margaret, he becomes a very good friend of her father's, and shows the Hales every courtesy he can, despite their fairly low status in society. And yet Margaret takes her sweet time coming to terms with the fact that he's a very good person.
"Their intercourse had been one continued series of opposition..."
While this slow moving romance develops, the meat of the story is the industrial revolution taking place in towns like Milton. Factories needed workers, and often those workers were treated no better than animals. The threat of a strike is ever present. And a strike in those days, when no work meant no food, was much more violent than what it means today. Deplorable, dangerous, and inhumane working conditions led to chronic illness and death for many of the employees.
One such family portrayed in this book is the Higgins family. Nicholas, the father, and Bess and Mary, his daughters, are a huge part of the story. Not only are they fast friends of Margaret's, but Bess has some sort of sickness of the lungs from which she is dying. Her friendship with Margaret and her faith in God when every one around her is faithless is heartwarming and heartbreaking all at once.
Tragedy is ever present in this novel. Death comes to everyone, but it seemed to come an awful lot for the people in Margaret's life during the two plus years that she is in Milton.
"And that was death! It looked more peaceful than life..." [image][image]
So while this is definitely not an uplifting romance, it's definitely a story about friendship. Relationships can be formed with people from all walks of life, and it's those relationships that shape who you are. Margaret starts off resigned to her fate, living in this dirty, loud city with these boisterous, rude people. Her character development is by leaps and bounds and huge revelations.
"Oh! had any one such just cause to feel contempt for her? Mr. Thornton, above all people, on whom she had looked down from her imaginary heights till now! She suddenly found herself at his feet, and was strangely distressed at her fall."
Though the end is quite abrupt...it really needed more. After this epic journey of self discovery, to end a book in the middle of one of the most powerful scenes was a bit of a downer. And here's where I can tout the miniseries from which all of the pictures in this review came from. Rarely do I like a movie more than the book that it is about, but I sure did in this case! I'm glad that I read the book first, for sure. But the movie clarified some of my questions and romanticized the story enough for me to relate to it a bit more.
Buddy read with Blacky, Karen, Tea, Cathy, and Amaryllis...Muah!!! ***************************************** This ebook is FREE!!! It's considered a public domain book, so you can download it at Project Gutenberg here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4276 in many different formats, and share away! [image]...more
Duchess Nicole
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Books:
genre-historical-fiction
(32)
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