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captainbella's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
_camk_'s review against another edition
3.0
Emerald is a fast and simple read with an amusing story full of deceit, action and mystery.
The book is simply written and is short so the story moves fast, which I feel is a good thing because, if it was drawn out, the book would get very boring very fast.
The book is simply written and is short so the story moves fast, which I feel is a good thing because, if it was drawn out, the book would get very boring very fast.
beccakatie's review
2.0
I felt that this book was ok, at best. It was a sweet, light read but there were aspects which I didn’t enjoy and was irritated by.
The timeline seemed very confused, especially regarding the pregnancy. Sometimes it felt like it was going very quickly, other times it seems like there were very long stretches of time which didn’t match how big Arabella would be.
In addition, much of the interaction between the characters and the dialogue felt stilted. The author appeared to have plot points and motivations in mind and attempted to shoehorn them into dialogue or a sudden revelatory monologue.
The timeline seemed very confused, especially regarding the pregnancy. Sometimes it felt like it was going very quickly, other times it seems like there were very long stretches of time which didn’t match how big Arabella would be.
In addition, much of the interaction between the characters and the dialogue felt stilted. The author appeared to have plot points and motivations in mind and attempted to shoehorn them into dialogue or a sudden revelatory monologue.
sillykitty's review
This book may have been better if written in 3rd person. I would have been able to better follow the characters and the story.
I felt like this was a story that was not very well planned out. It felt disjointed and like things were shoved in as a side note, or to just further the plot.
Emerald as a character is flatter than a blank sheet of paper. She really had no personal or emotional development and seemed to be too good at everything. She also came across as remarkably heartless when her Aunt passed. No real in depth look into how this effected her and no real insite into the depth of their relationship. Felt like her Aunt was killed off to progress the story, even then it progressed poorly.
The romance aspect of this, the apparent love between Sam and Emerald came from absolutely nowhere, in my opinion. It seemed like one moment they are talking like business associates and next minute they had far too much wine, and were professing their love for one another far too over confidently. The age of Emerald wasn't really taken in to account either. She is 15. Hope readers remember that, and realise Suckly is much worse than just an abrasive pig.
I wouldn't reread this, after finishing the book I can hardly tell you what the book is about, let alone what genera to put it in. Pretty forgettable, but easy enough to read. Just suffered from poor development and an in depth plot and look into the characters.
I felt like this was a story that was not very well planned out. It felt disjointed and like things were shoved in as a side note, or to just further the plot.
Emerald as a character is flatter than a blank sheet of paper. She really had no personal or emotional development and seemed to be too good at everything. She also came across as remarkably heartless when her Aunt passed. No real in depth look into how this effected her and no real insite into the depth of their relationship. Felt like her Aunt was killed off to progress the story, even then it progressed poorly.
The romance aspect of this, the apparent love between Sam and Emerald came from absolutely nowhere, in my opinion. It seemed like one moment they are talking like business associates and next minute they had far too much wine, and were professing their love for one another far too over confidently. The age of Emerald wasn't really taken in to account either. She is 15. Hope readers remember that, and realise Suckly is much worse than just an abrasive pig.
I wouldn't reread this, after finishing the book I can hardly tell you what the book is about, let alone what genera to put it in. Pretty forgettable, but easy enough to read. Just suffered from poor development and an in depth plot and look into the characters.
kirstysbookshelf's review
3.0
This is a historical fiction book set during the time of Queen Elizabeth 1st. The main character Emerald St John who lives with her aunt and uncle and cousin. Near the start of the book, Emerald finds out that she is to marry Lord Suckley who is a horrible man. Her brother returns home with his friend Sam who tells Emerald about a plot to kill the Queen. Emerald agrees to help by listening to people when she visits her mother's house.
This was a quick read. I thought it was an ok story at times it was a bit slow going. I feel that more could have been made about the plot to poison the Queen as this was more a side plot. The main plot was about Emerald, her marriage, and her mother.
The relationship between Sam and Emerald felt rushed which I was disappointed with as I like to see a relationship build up. I feel that this would be a good book to start with if you have never read any historical fiction.
This was a quick read. I thought it was an ok story at times it was a bit slow going. I feel that more could have been made about the plot to poison the Queen as this was more a side plot. The main plot was about Emerald, her marriage, and her mother.
The relationship between Sam and Emerald felt rushed which I was disappointed with as I like to see a relationship build up. I feel that this would be a good book to start with if you have never read any historical fiction.
blenchbooks's review
3.0
This was one of those books that kind of makes me want to stab it and rip out the pages at times. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed it and it is definitely worth a read but some parts were a little bit lacking. I love romance in novels so of course the romance between sam and emerald interested me however it did not interest for long as this, and a lot of other points in the novel, seemed to be rather rushed though. There was no bridge from friends to lovers, it seemed as if one minute they were strangers and the next they are in love and engaged to be married. I really would have liked to see a bit more of a development in their love story as it seemed to comprise of two meetings followed by a quick roll in the hay while the lesser couple of Richard and Frances's daughter ( I apologise, I cannot for the life of me remember her name. ) got a much more drawn out romance filled with secret glances and walks in the garden. Other than the speed of the novel and the events within, the only other problem I had with the novel was the casualness that was input with regards to the queen. From the beginning it felt as though the family were nothing particularly special, yes they have money and connections but with Richard out hunting his fortune it seemed as though they were still not in the highest of class. Then suddenly they are all close friends of the queen. I don't suppose the queen was friends with just anybody so it seemed odd that within two seconds they were all reasonably closely acquainted.
It may sound from the above comments that there was little I liked about this novel but actually I did rather enjoy it. The plot was original and interesting with some good twists. The characters were quite well developed and the dynamics between them were intriguing. I would definitely recommend it as a good historically set novel.
It may sound from the above comments that there was little I liked about this novel but actually I did rather enjoy it. The plot was original and interesting with some good twists. The characters were quite well developed and the dynamics between them were intriguing. I would definitely recommend it as a good historically set novel.
aira_reads's review
1.0
It was okay. Not my cup of tea. Annoying characters (in fact, all of them are annoying except for one or two)
Favorite lines
"I'm stupid with cards, Your Majesty," I told her. "I don't like gambling and my conversation is mostly about vegetables."
@Gold is only down because it lacks polishing," replied the a Queen."
Favorite lines
"I'm stupid with cards, Your Majesty," I told her. "I don't like gambling and my conversation is mostly about vegetables."
@Gold is only down because it lacks polishing," replied the a Queen."
reviewdiaries's review
2.0
This review was written for The Review Diaries: http://reviewdiaries.blogspot.com/2011/08/emerald-st.html
This blurb and this cover combination had me set up to be really excited when this book came out a few days ago. Unfortunately though, it turned out to be quite a disappointment.
Having read the brilliant books by Eve Edwards set in Elizabethan England, I suppose I was expecting a high standard of writing, but I was sadly let down.
The book is an exercise in what happens when you ignore the rule of ‘show not tell’. I was never allowed to see or feel anything for myself as a reader; it was always Emerald telling me exactly how I should feel, but often giving no explanation which just left me feeling irritated.
Emerald herself is hard to sympathise with, she never seems to become fully three dimensional – in part because we never get to see anything, we’re just told by her. She’s a very forward thinking, modern girl, but with no reasoning behind it. It’s very hard to make her character and the setting relate to each other.
And if Emerald is hard to like, the rest of the characters are even worse. The book was populated with stereotypes and horrid people. You have to have relatable sides to people, even if ultimately they aren’t very nice, but no-one really justifies their actions and they remain odd people that have mood shifts in mere seconds. There is no build up, no character development, and as a result it’s not particularly interesting to read.
A vast amount of backstory clogs up the first twenty odd pages, and whilst that information would be useful to the reader, it’s very hard work plodding through all of that when there’s no real investment in the story yet – it was enough to make me want to put down the book and stop bothering to wade through it. Backstory helps to flesh out the characters, but in this case it was monotonous, and as Emerald was telling it, highly frustrating. She would talk about how she never spoke to her father and barely saw him, and then detail all he would do with his days – details she would never actually know.
The speech is riddled with modernisms, to the point that it never really felt like we were in Elizabethan England at all. And when people are speaking they have no balance between normal speech and suddenly yelling. I never really got to care about the characters – the only nice one has two conversations with Emerald and then they’re in love, another highly irritating moment. By all means have characters fall in love, but give some reason, some sort of real interaction between them that inspires it.
The plot jerks around all over the place, with some passages and incidents so muddled and confusing that I had to go back and re-read whole sections of it. So all in all, a not particularly inspiring read.
For all that, the last eighty odd pages where the plot actually picks up are quite good. It’s still full of holes, but at least it was engaging enough that I wanted to find out what happened. However, for all the hype I wasn’t all that fussed on this book, and I won’t be seeking out any other books written by Wallace.
This blurb and this cover combination had me set up to be really excited when this book came out a few days ago. Unfortunately though, it turned out to be quite a disappointment.
Having read the brilliant books by Eve Edwards set in Elizabethan England, I suppose I was expecting a high standard of writing, but I was sadly let down.
The book is an exercise in what happens when you ignore the rule of ‘show not tell’. I was never allowed to see or feel anything for myself as a reader; it was always Emerald telling me exactly how I should feel, but often giving no explanation which just left me feeling irritated.
Emerald herself is hard to sympathise with, she never seems to become fully three dimensional – in part because we never get to see anything, we’re just told by her. She’s a very forward thinking, modern girl, but with no reasoning behind it. It’s very hard to make her character and the setting relate to each other.
And if Emerald is hard to like, the rest of the characters are even worse. The book was populated with stereotypes and horrid people. You have to have relatable sides to people, even if ultimately they aren’t very nice, but no-one really justifies their actions and they remain odd people that have mood shifts in mere seconds. There is no build up, no character development, and as a result it’s not particularly interesting to read.
A vast amount of backstory clogs up the first twenty odd pages, and whilst that information would be useful to the reader, it’s very hard work plodding through all of that when there’s no real investment in the story yet – it was enough to make me want to put down the book and stop bothering to wade through it. Backstory helps to flesh out the characters, but in this case it was monotonous, and as Emerald was telling it, highly frustrating. She would talk about how she never spoke to her father and barely saw him, and then detail all he would do with his days – details she would never actually know.
The speech is riddled with modernisms, to the point that it never really felt like we were in Elizabethan England at all. And when people are speaking they have no balance between normal speech and suddenly yelling. I never really got to care about the characters – the only nice one has two conversations with Emerald and then they’re in love, another highly irritating moment. By all means have characters fall in love, but give some reason, some sort of real interaction between them that inspires it.
The plot jerks around all over the place, with some passages and incidents so muddled and confusing that I had to go back and re-read whole sections of it. So all in all, a not particularly inspiring read.
For all that, the last eighty odd pages where the plot actually picks up are quite good. It’s still full of holes, but at least it was engaging enough that I wanted to find out what happened. However, for all the hype I wasn’t all that fussed on this book, and I won’t be seeking out any other books written by Wallace.