Scan barcode
haneves's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
rosiev425's review
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
deegee24's review against another edition
2.0
Starts out strong but loses focus about 2/3 of the way through. Some of the descriptive passages are beautiful and the initial world-building is intriguing. But I simply could not understand the relationship between the two main characters, Jewel and Marianne. Jewel rapes and beats her and she totally submits herself to his control and is intensely drawn to him, despite being conscious of the patriarchal system of the Barbarians. There is probably some sado-masochism at work here, but the characters are not given enough depth to make it seem believable. Also, the characters and the dystopian setting become increasingly allegorical as the novel goes on, yet it remains unclear what we are to make of the allegory. The book reminds me somewhat of some of the more radical films of the French New Wave, such as Godard's Weekend and Buñuel's Belle du Jour, but more muddled.
adax's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
susanearlam's review against another edition
5.0
Loved the uncomfortable nature of this. And the refusal to be pinned down to a genre.
londonbookworm_'s review against another edition
4.0
A strange, gothic fantasy with a strong-willed young heroine, Marianne, at its centre. I found myself inside this weird dream of a novel, captivated by the savage, divided world that in many respects was not all too different from our own.
Living in a secluded tower alongside the Professors, Marianne grows up with a dark curiosity for the outside, for the Barbarians who pillage her town and murder her brother. Years later she escapes with one, embarking on a dangerous journey into their way of life. It’s full of unexpected, awful and unnerving twists and turns. It’s a mash of characters where hate and lust, safety and surrender blend into everyday life. And it’s a creepy, fascinating tale of a woman you can’t help but admire.
Throughout, Carter’s sharp, dark prose puts you on edge. She uses her words sparsely, giving just enough information, but leaving much of the world to your imagination. Despite being written in the 60s this feels as modern as if it were written today, and she’s definitely a writer I’ll look for more on.
Living in a secluded tower alongside the Professors, Marianne grows up with a dark curiosity for the outside, for the Barbarians who pillage her town and murder her brother. Years later she escapes with one, embarking on a dangerous journey into their way of life. It’s full of unexpected, awful and unnerving twists and turns. It’s a mash of characters where hate and lust, safety and surrender blend into everyday life. And it’s a creepy, fascinating tale of a woman you can’t help but admire.
Throughout, Carter’s sharp, dark prose puts you on edge. She uses her words sparsely, giving just enough information, but leaving much of the world to your imagination. Despite being written in the 60s this feels as modern as if it were written today, and she’s definitely a writer I’ll look for more on.
theaurochs's review against another edition
4.0
A sharp and beautiful ode to the apocalypse, and to the the frivolty and frailty of our social structures.
Carter uses a perverse exaggeration of the Gothic novel here- the truly gothic, with hapless heroine, large imposing house in the middle of the woods, and all the social conflict of that genre. But here they are pitted against genuine anguish, and used to further showcase the meaninglessness of the problems encountered.
This is a wry and intelligent lampooning of literary tropes and of the roles of women in literature in particular, and certainly packs an intense punch.
Loses the final star only for not really going anywhere in the end. It is not impossible nor, in my opinion, unreasonable for a book so steeped in metaphor to still weave a coherent and engaging narrative, but that ultimately falls at the wayside and we have no resolution to a lot of the themes and characters that are created. Still very much worth a read.
Carter uses a perverse exaggeration of the Gothic novel here- the truly gothic, with hapless heroine, large imposing house in the middle of the woods, and all the social conflict of that genre. But here they are pitted against genuine anguish, and used to further showcase the meaninglessness of the problems encountered.
This is a wry and intelligent lampooning of literary tropes and of the roles of women in literature in particular, and certainly packs an intense punch.
Loses the final star only for not really going anywhere in the end. It is not impossible nor, in my opinion, unreasonable for a book so steeped in metaphor to still weave a coherent and engaging narrative, but that ultimately falls at the wayside and we have no resolution to a lot of the themes and characters that are created. Still very much worth a read.
d_m's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0