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katecurry's review against another edition
mysterious
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? It's complicated
2.0
I was engaged until the party and then it unraveled quickly. The characters were undeveloped and the plot barely existed. Then the end was a disaster. The author took an easy out as if they were done with the story as well.
sarahpreno's review against another edition
2.0
While I did end up liking the ending of this book and really enjoyed the writing style throughout I got lost in the middle. A lot of the events that take place in the middle of the book seem unnecessary to me and outside of the main plot. I was grabbed in the beginning and got reigned back in for the finale but was bored with the middle.
beth_zovko's review against another edition
3.0
More like 3.5 out of 5. Let me preface this review by saying that I adore Sadie Jones' work. Her book 'The Outcast' means as much to me as the entire Vonnegut canon. 'The Uninvited Guests' was not TO, but I did not expect it to be.
The premise is intriguing: an Edwardian family is preparing for the eldest daughter's birthday party, when a train crash nearby sends the survivors to their home, ostensibly to be fed, treated, etc., but it becomes clear that something's not right with these people. Things get even stranger when a subtly menacing passenger insinuates himself into the birthday party, and ultimately, causes them to turn on each other.
As a mixture of 'Pride and Prejudice,' a ghost story, society drama, with a little Dickens' class division thrown in, the story is bound to get tangled and drag at parts. Jones' keeps us interested through omniscient narrative(ooh, look at my college degree showing.) We skip from room to room, person to person. Think 'Big Brother' meets 'Downton Abbey.' I have never read anything quite like it.
The thing I love, LOVE about Jones' writing is how she paints the most vivid of scenes with the minimum of words. From the grimy, steamy kitchen to the lawn after a spring rain, you are there. Even better, she uses little tricks of sentence structure to color her characters: double edged words, phrases that could be taken more than one way, these are used for her more dubious creatures. She muddles with words just as her character befuddles with actions.
Toward the end, there was just too much going on that the story was verging on silly. Throw in an impromptu sex scene, and I was ready to put it down just as it ended. I will definitely read this one again; now that I know who to trust.
The premise is intriguing: an Edwardian family is preparing for the eldest daughter's birthday party, when a train crash nearby sends the survivors to their home, ostensibly to be fed, treated, etc., but it becomes clear that something's not right with these people. Things get even stranger when a subtly menacing passenger insinuates himself into the birthday party, and ultimately, causes them to turn on each other.
As a mixture of 'Pride and Prejudice,' a ghost story, society drama, with a little Dickens' class division thrown in, the story is bound to get tangled and drag at parts. Jones' keeps us interested through omniscient narrative(ooh, look at my college degree showing.) We skip from room to room, person to person. Think 'Big Brother' meets 'Downton Abbey.' I have never read anything quite like it.
The thing I love, LOVE about Jones' writing is how she paints the most vivid of scenes with the minimum of words. From the grimy, steamy kitchen to the lawn after a spring rain, you are there. Even better, she uses little tricks of sentence structure to color her characters: double edged words, phrases that could be taken more than one way, these are used for her more dubious creatures. She muddles with words just as her character befuddles with actions.
Toward the end, there was just too much going on that the story was verging on silly. Throw in an impromptu sex scene, and I was ready to put it down just as it ended. I will definitely read this one again; now that I know who to trust.
khornstein1's review against another edition
1.0
I'm sorry but I really disliked this book. I was promised "Edwardian wit and opulence" and reviewers alluded to Downton Abbey...OK, it's the same time period BUT I found the characters one-dimensional and not very likable, and the plot while trying to achieve something different (kind of a paranormal Upstairs/Downstairs experience) was just two bizarre to be drawn into. To be drawn into the paranormal you have to LIKE the characters! And just describing a room with Edwardian stuff in it does not make it Edwardian. I did like the bit about Smudge bringing her pony into the house to sketch. That is a very funny idea but I think I like it because it actually could happen. I'm giving the book one star for proper use of the English language and the effort I imagine Sadie Jones put into writing it. SORRY!
mrsdryoder's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars, really. Despite my usual reading of the end first, this book still managed to surprise me. Probably one of the weirder books I've read, but it was interesting enough for me to read it in a day.
mrs_baas's review
3.0
What a very odd twist at the end. Wish Jones would have fleshed it out a bit more, as I left the story feeling a tiny bit confused on the deals. Overall a very interesting story.
payton_spool's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
annabellelb_'s review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0