"Havisham" by Ronald Frame~The Whole Story!

SUMMARY :

IN THE TRADITION OF WIDE SARGASSO SEA, HAVISHAM IS THE ASTONISHING PRELUDE TO CHARLES DICKENS'S GREAT EXPECTATIONS.

Before she became the immortal and haunting Miss Havisham of Great Expectations, she was Catherine, a young woman with all of her dreams ahead of her. Spry, imperious, she is the daughter of a wealthy brewer. But she is never far from the smell of hops and the arresting letters on the brewhouse wall—HAVISHAM—a reminder of all she owes to the family name and the family business.

Sent by her father to stay with the Chadwycks, Catherine discovers elegant pastimes to remove the taint of her family's new money. But for all her growing sophistication, Catherine is anything but worldly, and when a charismatic stranger pays her attention, everything—her heart, her future, the very Havisham name—is vulnerable.

In Havisham, Ronald Frame unfurls the psychological trauma that made young Catherine into Miss Havisham and cursed her to a life alone, roaming the halls of the mansion in the tatters of the dress she wore for the wedding she was never to have.

PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK:

Published by: Picador
Pages:  368
Author:  Ronald Frame
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Purchase:  Barnes & Noble


ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Ronald Frame was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and educated there and at Oxford University. His novel The Lantern Bearers was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, named the Scottish Book of the Year, and cited by the American Library Association. He is also a dramatist and winner of the Samuel Beckett Award. Many of his original radio plays have been broadcast by the BBC. He lives outside Glasgow.

THE BOOKISH DAME REVIEWS :

"Havisham" is one of those books that starts off slowly and then builds to a crescendo as it moves along.  Written with the hand of a clear and clean storyteller, it flows inevitably, grabbing our interest as Miss Havisham grows aware of her own world and circumstances.

Ronald Frame is an author of strong imagination who is obviously well-acquainted with Dickens and his London.  While he doesn't seek to copy Dickens's style, he does keep to the rhythm of the times and the pace of the original story.

The easy characterization in this novel caused me to fall in love all over again with Miss Havisham.  Frame gives us the bones of her naivete, her delicate mind and nature; and her vulnerability to love.
What a venerable and unique subject she is for literature, and what a worthy job he does of describing her to us.  I've always loved her strange ways and delighted in France's exploration of her mysterious background.

This is a book for all fans of Dickens's Miss Havisham.  Those who have wondered what happened to shape her and what happened to cause her to ultimately live the bizarre and fatalistic way she did; seeking to warp and destroy the lives of innocent others.

I recommend this book but warn once again that while it's not written exactly in the style of Dickens, Mr. Frame has his own hand at storytelling that is unique.  His use of classical literary quotes sprinkled throughout makes the book seem both ethereal and beautifully timeless.  It is not by any means an ordinary historical fiction read.

4 stars                     Deborah/TheBookishDame

"The Gilded Lily" by Deborah Swift~Historical Fiction Captivates!

 

 

SUMMARY :

 

A spellbinding historical novel of beauty and greed and surprising redemption

England, 1660. Ella Appleby believes she is destined for better things than slaving as a housemaid and dodging the blows of her drunken father. When her employer dies suddenly, she seizes her chance--taking his valuables and fleeing the countryside with her sister for the golden prospects of London. But London may not be the promised land she expects. Work is hard to find, until Ella takes up with a dashing and dubious gentleman with ties to the London underworld. Meanwhile, her old employer's twin brother is in hot pursuit of the sisters.

Set in a London of atmospheric coffee houses, gilded mansions, and shady pawnshops hidden from rich men’s view, Deborah Swift's The Gilded Lily is a dazzling novel of historical adventure.

PARTICULARS OF THIS BOOK :
Published by:  St. Martin's Press
Pages:  471 and Reader's Guide
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Author's Site:  Deborah Swift

ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Find out more about this exciting new historical fiction author by clicking this link at Macmillan New Writers:  http://macmillannewwriters.blogspot.com/

Her other book out now:

Both of these books may be found at:
Barnes & Noble   and   Amazon


THE BOOKISH DAME'S REVIEW :

How I enjoyed this historical fiction!  "The Gilded Lily" is a large book with some 470 pages, but worth every word read.  I wasn't very well versed in the Reformation and the historical details of that period of English history, so I found the book fascinating in costume detailing and incidences of the times.  This is a beautifully developed novel that captivated and held me spellbound. 

Characters Sadie and Ella are sympathetic and living creatures in this story.  Ms Swift immediately draws a natural connection with them for us  She holds us rapt with attention as they forge their way  through the tough streets and warrens of London in the 1600's.  I found the development of their hard-scrabble lives provoking an anxiety in me that matched what they must have been going through, and Ella's small successes made me feel relief, as well. 

My favorite character was Sadie, who was a kinder and more empathetic figure throughout the novel.  Ella was tough and feisty as she needed to be for the two of them to survive!  Jay, under world fop and proprietor's son of the town's famous pawn shop, is a complex character I loved to puzzle out.

I thought the visual creation of the settings of London were wonderful in this book.  The pawn shop in particular came as alive as a Dickens novel!  For instance, I climbed and explored the rafters with Ella as she toured them initially with Jay who took her there with his vision of a glorious "lady's beauty" secret getaway.  The creation of the actual "Gilded Lily" was fascinating.  This is a book with ambiance.

This is a historical novel that moves swiftly, telling the story of two sister's survival against all odds.  It's a feminist novel of sorts, and that made it a great find, as well.  Not a sappy novel where the women are pawns of the men.  I highly recommend it for a good read.

4 stars                     Deborah/TheBookishDame