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thewritebooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Immediately after finishing this, having cried through the last 15 pages, all I could think about was the beautiful way that all of the themes came together at the end to tell a story of life and loss. We travelled through the role of medieval women in the church, female solidarity and sisterhood, sapphic love and desire, the cycles of the seasons and the catholic calendar, power and greed and the sin of creation, followed by the moral weighting of these sins against these women's souls.
The prose was never dramatic, and by avoiding direct speech throughout, the author adds to the feeling of being another witness to the years marching onwards at the Abbey. The messages in this book were very close to my heart and I would be interested in going back with tabs to track and analyse those themes a bit more, having the hindsight now to see how well they were laid out.
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Child death, Pregnancy, Sexism, Sexual content, Rape, Violence, and Animal death
Minor: Classism, Excrement, Death of parent, and Dementia
adymae11's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Death of parent, Misogyny, Child death, and Physical abuse
Minor: Mental illness, Grief, Dementia, Violence, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Cancer, and Animal death
careinthelibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Dementia, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Miscarriage, Animal death, Pregnancy, Child death, Death, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Cancer, Body shaming, Mental illness, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, War, Islamophobia, and Terminal illness
edamamebean's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Excrement, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Child death, Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Rape, Violence, Dementia, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Murder, Vomit, Bullying, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and War
deebee223's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Blood, Animal death, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Torture, Child death, Chronic illness, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Rape, Dementia, Mental illness, and Sexual assault
thecriticalreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, and Sexism
Moderate: Dementia, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Physical abuse, Blood, Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, and Classism
Minor: Excrement, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Infidelity, Death of parent, Violence, War, Torture, and Toxic friendship
dr_aimz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Dementia, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Death of parent, Cancer, Medical trauma, Violence, and Death
Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, and Domestic abuse
have_a_doris_day's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Grief, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Child death, Confinement, Dementia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Terminal illness
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, Pedophilia, War, and Rape
xjuliaaaaaax's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
We follow Marie de France over the course of her life at an English abbey from ages 17 til her death at 72. Marie de France is a real historical figure, and is known as the first female francophone poet and writer of a series of lais that are still studied; however, her true identity is not known. Groff has chosen to interpret her identity as that of Marie Abbess of Shaftesbury and half-sister to Henry II, King of England.
In this life, Marie is born to a house of lively warrior-women with free-spirits after her mother is raped by Geoffrey of Anjou, descended from a fairy. With her fairy-blood and wild upbringing, she doesn't fit in at the English court where she is forced to find shelter after her mother's death. As an ugly, unfeminine, illegitimate daughter, she is sent to an impoverished abbey to become the prioress and prevent any risk of competing heirs to the throne.
Convinced she has been sent to a living death, Marie despairs. She's been sent here by the woman she loves, Eleanor of Aquitane, Queen of England. We continually view glimpses of Eleanor through rumors that make their way to Marie, whose love eventually turns to respect and friendship for the beautiful and radiant queen who never stops seeking power. In their relationship we see two similar women born to different fates, one beautiful and given the chance to rule the world through marriage and motherhood; the other ugly, and finding greatness through community with her sister-nuns, and motherhood of a different kind as she raises the abbey from poverty, employees and educates local women, and encourages their nascent talents for the sake of their "island of women."
Marie struggles to find faith like the nuns she leads but is blessed with visions from the Virgin Mary, the holy mother. Her political mind, network of spies and friends, and holy visions establish her power locally, freeing her from the patriarchal hierarchy of the church. She builds a labyrinth around the abbey, protecting the nuns from men who wish to steal and harm them, isolating them from external forces, and securing Marie's power over her abbey.
Through her life, you see her struggle with her pride, which threatens the abbey on more than one occasion when her hand stretches too far and risks attracting too much attention to this group of women uninfluenced by men; her blasphemous tendencies, such as believing women are equal or superior to men, able to conduct mass and take confession, and that God is a woman; and her love for women, which is explored platonically, romantically, and sexually as the thing that both connects her to her community, and threatens to destroy everything she has built if she cannot control her earthly desire.
This book paints a portrait of a complex and remarkable woman who challenged all societal norms of medieval England to create a safe haven for women on earth.
How I felt:
I don't feel particularly strongly about this book. I liked the style of writing, though there are many historical references that are subtly hinted rather than overtly named, such as Geoffrey of Anjou and Richard the Lionheart. You either need to google or have a really strong knowledge of medieval history and society. There's definitely no plot here, it's really a character study. I never truly understood the underpinnings of Eleanor and Marie's relationship. Marie adored her... because she was pretty and charismatic? When she ages I think maybe also because of her power. And then why does Eleanor send Marie away, really? It's only ever hinted at but it is confusing because Marie always seems to think there's a possibility she could win Eleanor's affections, as though she had reason to hope but we are never told what possible reason she could have. I think that was the major flaw because it's the one semblance of a plotline we're given.
If you like historical character-study with a slightly sapphic tone, I'd recommend it. It's not a sapphic love-story though so do not expect that. But considering it is set in medieval times, it's quite open and accepting of lesbian relationships. No one in the novel is "out" but it feels more like that is because they are nuns than because of any homophobia in the society.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Excrement, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Dementia and Mental illness
prettiestwhistles's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Terminal illness and Death
Moderate: Animal death, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Child death, and Sexual content
Minor: Islamophobia and Dementia