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3.31 AVERAGE
3.31 AVERAGE
It was a nice summer read, as it had a fairly quick pack to the book and other than a few moments in which the story seemed to drag, it was a book that one could read large portions of the book without really getting lost. It didn't really need to have the Bertha/Jim storyline, as it only seemed to serve really no purpose in the overall storyline and could have been easily reduced by about 50 pages and still be quite effective. Interestingly enough, the story is believed to be based on the life of Consuelo Vanderbilt. Recommended for those that like reading historical fiction.
Silly and lacking substance, but still a good guilty pleasure read.
I've read other Daisy Goodwin books and enjoyed them. So I wasn't surprised that I didn't enjoy this one when I learned it was her first. She's definitely improved.
Random things about the book annoyed me. For example, in my copy on the top of each right hand page where the title would normally be it said "My Last Duchess." Was that a working title? It didn't seem to make sense with the rest of the story. Who knows. Also, the main character, Cora, develops some sort of major nearsighted issues mid-book. Although nothing happens to bring it on so suddenly. Her nearsightedness just pops up and then is mentioned several more times through the remainder of the book.
I wanted to love the book, and parts of it I did find really interesting. But overall the characters were pretty flat and the ending wrapped up too quickly and cleanly for all the build up.
Read her other books but perhaps skip this debut novel.
Random things about the book annoyed me. For example, in my copy on the top of each right hand page where the title would normally be it said "My Last Duchess." Was that a working title? It didn't seem to make sense with the rest of the story. Who knows. Also, the main character, Cora, develops some sort of major nearsighted issues mid-book. Although nothing happens to bring it on so suddenly. Her nearsightedness just pops up and then is mentioned several more times through the remainder of the book.
I wanted to love the book, and parts of it I did find really interesting. But overall the characters were pretty flat and the ending wrapped up too quickly and cleanly for all the build up.
Read her other books but perhaps skip this debut novel.
Full review here: https://courtneyreadsromancesite.wordpress.com/
This was good, but not great. It is well-researched, and I loved how it had two parallel story arcs for both Cora and her maid, Bertha. It's fascinating to see the world of late Victorian London from these two radically different perspectives, yet see some similarities as well.
But while this story did have a strong historical basis, this book fell flat in trying to be a romance. I would argue Teddy is the hero of the book, as he has always been a faithful friend to Cora, but the "happy ending" is between Cora and and her husband Ivo, who Goodwin does not develop enough for me to say that she would be happy with him in the long-term.
This was good, but not great. It is well-researched, and I loved how it had two parallel story arcs for both Cora and her maid, Bertha. It's fascinating to see the world of late Victorian London from these two radically different perspectives, yet see some similarities as well.
But while this story did have a strong historical basis, this book fell flat in trying to be a romance. I would argue Teddy is the hero of the book, as he has always been a faithful friend to Cora, but the "happy ending" is between Cora and and her husband Ivo, who Goodwin does not develop enough for me to say that she would be happy with him in the long-term.
This book was bonkers and soap-y and romance-y and ended very abruptly and I really didn't care about anyone in it. But uh I guess it was engaging enough if you want an easy novel to blow through quickly.
predictable book of this type but it was still a good audio while walking and gardening. did not demand complete attention, but kept me interested.
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's funny; usually I rate a book with fewer stars than everybody else, but this one I'm rating higher than the average. I'm not even sure why, because I completely agree with most other readers: the plot was on the thin side, the ending unsatisfactory, and the duke difficult to understand.
I think what saved the book for me was the main character and how she grew during the course of the story, maturing from a spoiled rich girl into a woman who realized that all the money in the world isn't enough to guarantee that you get what you want out of life. I was rooting for her and hoping for her happy ending.
My biggest complaint is that the duke's POV was painfully absent. We get to spend a decent amount of time inside everybody's head but his. Even the milliners assistant gets more insight than he does. It seems intentional, but it was more than a little frustrating, especially given that his actions and moods were often erratic. And the ending was a little too rushed and sudden to adequately clear away all the cobwebs. I liked the duke because I love tortured souls lol, but I would have appreciated a deeper look into his character so that his actions would have made more sense.
I think what saved the book for me was the main character and how she grew during the course of the story, maturing from a spoiled rich girl into a woman who realized that all the money in the world isn't enough to guarantee that you get what you want out of life. I was rooting for her and hoping for her happy ending.
My biggest complaint is that the duke's POV was painfully absent. We get to spend a decent amount of time inside everybody's head but his. Even the milliners assistant gets more insight than he does. It seems intentional, but it was more than a little frustrating, especially given that his actions and moods were often erratic. And the ending was a little too rushed and sudden to adequately clear away all the cobwebs. I liked the duke because I love tortured souls lol, but I would have appreciated a deeper look into his character so that his actions would have made more sense.
I picked up this book because the Seattle Public Library's Shelf Talk blog recommended it for those who like Downton Abbey and indeed, I like Downton Abbey and I liked this book. I found it thoroughly entertaining and yet another interesting look into the lives of the English upper class. Really, I'd give it 3.5 stars, and it would have gotten four had the ending not been a bit disappointing (I was hoping for "girl grows up and triumphs over people who looked down on her and treated her badly," but instead I got "love conquers all" even though I was never all that convinced with regard to the love story in the first place).