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dgirardot's review
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
stefanv's review
2.0
As someone who loves history - especially the Renaissance period - as well as historical novels in various forms, I was expecting to love this novel. And although I did have some enjoyment reading this book, I did, however, not love it. It is by no means a bad novel, but it has failed to grip me, to touch me. I never had any problems with slow paced novels - some of those are among my favourite books - but in Romola there hardly seems to be any plot development at all. A strange thing, as the novel is set in a chaotic time in history. It felt to me like George Eliot focused more on the aesthetic of her writing than on the development of the story and fleshing out of the characters. And with that we reach the main plus of Romola: it is beautifully written.
lynchian_ahab's review
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.25
lindseysparks's review
3.0
This started off slooooooow. If I didn't l like Middlemarch and wasn't planning a trip to Florence I doubt I would have kept with it. After the first 100 pages, a plot finally appears! And from there it was a surprisingly quick read. Like Middlemarch, the story centers on an intelligent youn woman who marries a scholar and things go badly. This seems odd since the author's life partner was an intellectual. Maybe the point is to look at their character amd not just their intelligence. Savonarola was portrayed more sympathetically than I would have expected and I was pleasantly surprised by Machiavelli's appearance. I liked the ending and think it was somewhat unconventional but nice.
jeansbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
erikars's review
2.0
The last quarter was good, the middle half reasonable, and the first quarter a slog. Overall, the narrative is muddled. The stories of Tito Melema, Romola de' Bardi, and the Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola (a real historical figure) are intertwined, but in a way that feels awkward rather than illuminating. The discussions of Florence, both its history and its physical setting, drag on. I kept reading because it did get better as it went along. Overall though, the good wasn't quite enough to make up for the bad.
msgtdameron's review
adventurous
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Lets be honest ,who today is aware of Northern Italian or Florentine history from 1490 - 1510? SO Eliot wrote a well researched work about the time period and the travails and trials of Florence. Seen through the eyes of a women, Romola, who lives her fictitious life in Florence. Her growth as a women, wife, Florentine, Catholic is the main plot driver. Her story is fantastic and this is a great work.
saralynnburnett's review
5.0
Love anything and everything by George Elliot and I think this is her most beautiful work. She takes you across Europe in the most the beautiful language.