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jessreadthis's review against another edition
4.0
Will you give me your word of honour, " said Melanie, "that I am not going to die"
As first lines go, I found this one to be utterly intriguing. The rest of the novel continued to intrigue to the point of filling up 4-5 pages and notes for bookclub discussion. I loved Laski's writing and how little tidbits in part two were nods to part one. Her first line sets a tone of ominous foreboding. She wove the entire story together in a tapestry filled with prose, anxiety, religious musings, and the utter despair of waking up entrapped in another's body with your mind actively knowing who you are. And yet, there is no escape. The novel really read like a slow burn for me. The reader is slowly learning who Milly is right along with Melanie, as we are privy to Mellie's thoughts and emotions the entire time in Part Two. Laski slowly unravels the plot, the helplessness, the despair in turning to religion for saving and being let down, and ultimately the need for one to save oneself. But has it been too late? Just incredibly beautifully written and I have a bit of research to do in numerology as I have a hunch this is a layered novel with more meanings to it than what meet the eye.
Quotes I loved: and warning they are spoilery. Writing them here so I can remember them.
"And as she lay there, so nearly, so nearly asleep, she was unthinkingly aware of the sky, and the flowers, and the music, of sun-warmed air on her body that was at last sure of the happiness to come. Time died away, the solitary burden of human life was transformed into glory, and Melanie, withdrawn into ecstasy fell asleep. "
"and at last, there was nothing but darkness, and in the darkness the ecstasy, and after the ecstasy, death and life"
As first lines go, I found this one to be utterly intriguing. The rest of the novel continued to intrigue to the point of filling up 4-5 pages and notes for bookclub discussion. I loved Laski's writing and how little tidbits in part two were nods to part one. Her first line sets a tone of ominous foreboding. She wove the entire story together in a tapestry filled with prose, anxiety, religious musings, and the utter despair of waking up entrapped in another's body with your mind actively knowing who you are. And yet, there is no escape. The novel really read like a slow burn for me. The reader is slowly learning who Milly is right along with Melanie, as we are privy to Mellie's thoughts and emotions the entire time in Part Two. Laski slowly unravels the plot, the helplessness, the despair in turning to religion for saving and being let down, and ultimately the need for one to save oneself. But has it been too late? Just incredibly beautifully written and I have a bit of research to do in numerology as I have a hunch this is a layered novel with more meanings to it than what meet the eye.
Quotes I loved: and warning they are spoilery. Writing them here so I can remember them.
"And as she lay there, so nearly, so nearly asleep, she was unthinkingly aware of the sky, and the flowers, and the music, of sun-warmed air on her body that was at last sure of the happiness to come. Time died away, the solitary burden of human life was transformed into glory, and Melanie, withdrawn into ecstasy fell asleep. "
"and at last, there was nothing but darkness, and in the darkness the ecstasy, and after the ecstasy, death and life"
rcsreads's review against another edition
4.0
I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't time travelling tuberculosis!
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Well written and engaging but very odd.
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Well written and engaging but very odd.
schoolofholly's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Almost a 5 star but there was a little something missing in the exploration of the past scene, it needed fleshing out a little.
mythandmiddlegrade's review against another edition
5.0
Throughly enjoyed this, such an interesting concept. The time travel ‘rules’ where particularly interesting - especially Melly’s inability to say things that Milly wouldn’t know of. The levels of description and subtly allowed for a fully formed story despite the short format.
maccymacd's review against another edition
2.0
hmmm, this is the first Marghanita Laski book I haven't really loved. Unfortunately I didn't even like it that much. The theme of the book is time travel, namely the heroine of the book Melanie goes back in time 100 years by falling asleep on her new chaise longue. It was too philosophical, too concerned with women's inferiority and so frustrating that I could barely finish it. *SPOILER AHEAD*
Melanie is concerned with having TB at the beginning, and then when she travels back in time she has TB, but unlike 1950s standards (where the cure was fresh air, rest and good, healthy food) the doctor won't do anything to help her, thinking she is a lost cause. She is only a silly woman after all. I will not give up on Laski however, as "Little Boy Lost" and "To bed with Grand Music" were both 5 star reads for me, so I will seek out "The Village" regardless of my feelings towards this novella.
Melanie is concerned with having TB at the beginning, and then when she travels back in time she has TB, but unlike 1950s standards (where the cure was fresh air, rest and good, healthy food) the doctor won't do anything to help her, thinking she is a lost cause. She is only a silly woman after all. I will not give up on Laski however, as "Little Boy Lost" and "To bed with Grand Music" were both 5 star reads for me, so I will seek out "The Village" regardless of my feelings towards this novella.
lectrice's review against another edition
4.0
A short but mystifying read reminiscent of The Yellow Wallpaper, with a time travel twist: it reads a bit like a parable about maternal ambivalence or postpartum depression, but I’m not sure if it suggests that too little has changed around gender roles between the Victorian era and the 1950s, or that things have thankfully improved in the later era.
florapants84's review against another edition
4.0
I cannot tell you enough how much my family and I enjoyed the PBS series The 1900 House. It's hard not to romanticize the Victorian era, so when a modern London family is given the opportunity to go back in time, and live in a remodeled home according to the customs of the era, they jump at the opportunity. Shoot, I'm sure I would have also, except that as the show went on, one realizes that modern advances in technology, science, and society have made life so much easier now.
The Victorian Chaise-Longue is a wonderful time travel novel that has quite a few horror elements. Melanie is newly married and has just given birth to a child. Due to health issues, she's been confined to bed since her pregnancy in present day (1953, the time the book was published). Upon being moved to another room in the house for a change of pace, she is laid to rest on a Victorian chaise-longue that she purchased at an antique shop. Upon waking from a nap, she soon realizes that she's trapped in another woman's body...in a bygone era. Is she just having a nightmare, or this a form of reincarnation? The scary conclusion left more questions unanswered than anything else.
I loved the way Laski wrote. Her descriptions of everything, right down to the curtain fabric and wallpaper, really painted a lovely picture of two bygone eras. I'm so glad that her work is being reprinted. The introduction by P.D. James also shed some light on Laski's other work outside of writing, including journalism. She sounded like a very interesting woman!
The Victorian Chaise-Longue is a wonderful time travel novel that has quite a few horror elements. Melanie is newly married and has just given birth to a child. Due to health issues, she's been confined to bed since her pregnancy in present day (1953, the time the book was published). Upon being moved to another room in the house for a change of pace, she is laid to rest on a Victorian chaise-longue that she purchased at an antique shop. Upon waking from a nap, she soon realizes that she's trapped in another woman's body...in a bygone era. Is she just having a nightmare, or this a form of reincarnation? The scary conclusion left more questions unanswered than anything else.
I loved the way Laski wrote. Her descriptions of everything, right down to the curtain fabric and wallpaper, really painted a lovely picture of two bygone eras. I'm so glad that her work is being reprinted. The introduction by P.D. James also shed some light on Laski's other work outside of writing, including journalism. She sounded like a very interesting woman!
jemimahorne's review against another edition
mysterious
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
3.5
blankgarden's review against another edition
5.0
My thoughts: https://theblankgarden.com/2021/05/31/review-the-victorian-chaise-longue-by-marghanita-laski/