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teresabreading's review against another edition
5.0
Ok wow. Not what I expected. Not at all. Such a straightforward, simple story but so emotional and so much more. Can’t really explain it.
robbstarks's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
3.5
“they stood together in the gloom of the spruces, an empty world glimmering about them wide and gray under the stars.”
jenmkin's review against another edition
2.0
Fun fact: Liam Neeson is Ethan From in the movie adaptation of this book, and also that movie is Terrible (with a capital 't' that rhymes with 'p' that stands for 'poorly executed')
lauracohran's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed this much more than I expected - I was worried it would be slow, but I was engaged and didn't want it to end.
harlando's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not a fan of romance, but I read that this was one of the best romantic novels of all time. I really hope that isn't true.
Ethan is unhappy. He is stuck with a unproductive farm that barely makes money, a sickly, sour wife who he married in order to avoid what he thought would be a life of loneliness. He probably would have been better staying lonely for a while. Enter sour wife's gorgeous cousin. She move s in to act as an unpaid servant after some family tragedy leaves her with nowhere else to go. Of course Ethan is drawn to the only warm person in his cold house. She has several suitors in the town, but somehow falls for Ethan too. That much is pretty standard. the prose is sometimes elegant, but also dips into pretentious a time or two.
It starts to fall apart when Ethan tries to commit double suicide by crashing a sled into a tree. This is bizarre. Why a sled? I can only imagine that Wharton was wracking her brain for a dramatic way to cripple Ethan and Mattie, but to believably not kill them.
Why doesn't Ethan just disappear with Mattie? He thinks about it. Asks her about it and she is game. He seems to dismiss it for two reasons, he's broke, and he feels bad about running out on his awful wife, Zeena. The former is just and obstacle and the later might revel in the sort of martyrdom that comes from having your husband run off.
Not a favorite.
Ethan is unhappy. He is stuck with a unproductive farm that barely makes money, a sickly, sour wife who he married in order to avoid what he thought would be a life of loneliness. He probably would have been better staying lonely for a while. Enter sour wife's gorgeous cousin. She move s in to act as an unpaid servant after some family tragedy leaves her with nowhere else to go. Of course Ethan is drawn to the only warm person in his cold house. She has several suitors in the town, but somehow falls for Ethan too. That much is pretty standard. the prose is sometimes elegant, but also dips into pretentious a time or two.
It starts to fall apart when Ethan tries to commit double suicide by crashing a sled into a tree. This is bizarre. Why a sled? I can only imagine that Wharton was wracking her brain for a dramatic way to cripple Ethan and Mattie, but to believably not kill them.
Why doesn't Ethan just disappear with Mattie? He thinks about it. Asks her about it and she is game. He seems to dismiss it for two reasons, he's broke, and he feels bad about running out on his awful wife, Zeena. The former is just and obstacle and the later might revel in the sort of martyrdom that comes from having your husband run off.
Not a favorite.
lacewing's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-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? No
3.25
whoevenisdee's review against another edition
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
letiziajurado0603's review against another edition
4.0
Mi tercer libro de Edith Wharton y mi amor por esta autora no para de crecer.
Ya nos mostró su maestría como retratista de la alta sociedad neoyorquina a finales del siglo XIX en La edad de la inocencia y en La casa de la alegría. Aquí nos demuestra su versatilidad y su habilidad para cambiar de registro con la misma delicadeza y elegancia.
Un relato de apenas 100 páginas que te sumerge en una atmósfera nevada y fría, que te presenta a unos personajes desgraciados y una vida rural y misántropa rodeada de pobreza.
En ciertos aspectos me recordó a Cumbres Borrascosas y eso me encantó. Muy recomendable
Ya nos mostró su maestría como retratista de la alta sociedad neoyorquina a finales del siglo XIX en La edad de la inocencia y en La casa de la alegría. Aquí nos demuestra su versatilidad y su habilidad para cambiar de registro con la misma delicadeza y elegancia.
Un relato de apenas 100 páginas que te sumerge en una atmósfera nevada y fría, que te presenta a unos personajes desgraciados y una vida rural y misántropa rodeada de pobreza.
En ciertos aspectos me recordó a Cumbres Borrascosas y eso me encantó. Muy recomendable