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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
Like it better as an audio book but would not recommend audio on the first read-through
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Spoiler
The image of Dr Lawrence squeezing the heart of his dying ex-wife to keep her alive is so gothic and hardcore I can't get it out of my mind.Lost the understanding of the plot towards the end. I literally couldn't tell you what happened during one of the last chapters, it was so confusing.
Still liked it, the plot just ran away from the story and became a jumble of words?
Spoiler
The image of Dr Lawrence squeezing the heart of his dying ex-wife to keep her alive is so gothic and hardcore I can't get it out of my mind.Lost the understanding of the plot towards the end. I literally couldn't tell you what happened during one of the last chapters, it was so confusing.
Still liked it, the plot just ran away from the story and became a jumble of words?
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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:
Yes
I absolutely loved this. Not everyone will be into it, and I admit to looking up the ending because my friend said it was confusing, bur it made total emotional sense to me. I really love what happened thematically here, and the prose and character and descriptive work are all really good.
It's a solid book, and a delightfully dark read, with lots of fun medical history references. The secondary parallel world could have been more heavily described, but its not really the point of the book.
Definitely will be reading more by this author!
It's a solid book, and a delightfully dark read, with lots of fun medical history references. The secondary parallel world could have been more heavily described, but its not really the point of the book.
Definitely will be reading more by this author!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail
“Death always wins, except in a world where it doesn’t.”
4.5 stars
The Death of Jane Lawrence was an eerily atmospheric book of gothic horror and romance. Reminds me a whole lot of Crimson Peak mixed with The Haunting of Hill House with a side of hidden magic.
Jane Lawrence married Augustine Lawrence not for love in the beginning but rather it’s a marriage of advantage. I love how much of a learner Jane is. She strives to learn anything and everything and I see that of myself in her. She’s inquisitive and a very fast learner too hence she fit well in Augustine’s surgery on a daily. Not only that, despite the hauntings of Lindridge Hall, she also comes off as quite fearless and that totally reminds me of Edith from Crimson Peak. They both give off the same vibes truly and if you are a huge fan of Crimson Peak as I am then you’ll definitely love this book, without a doubt.
This is my first Caitlin Starling’s book and I am absolutely immersed in her wonderful writing. Everything she wrote, she created in this one, was simply atmospheric enough to make my whole entire being levitate. The only thing that made it miss the .5 stars was how rushed everything felt. I’d love to read more of what happens to Jane and Augustine after. But nevertheless, such a good, spooky plot. Perfect for spooktober indeed
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Like a cross between Jane Eyre (marriage of convenience that might grow into something more, except he has secrets!) and Crimson Peak (SOMETHING is wrong with this house! Something CREEPY, linked to his past!), though it was difficult to get a clear fix on the time period: I thought at first we were in a Victorian-ish setting, but then Jane has trauma from a war in her childhood that involved bombings and gas (so one of the World Wars?) Things take a surreal turn and suffer a bit of a lag when we get into the husband's secret studies. The conclusion might be a bit reader-divisive in a 'love it or hate it' way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Blood
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this book continues the tradition of characters named jane i would follow into hell.
picture me as stefon at the weekend update desk, because this book has everything: a practical marriage of convenience that turns into something truer (and something even more terrible), a mathematician protagonist and her wet cat of a surgeon husband, a haunted house, an operating theater, terrible things done, terrible things undone, magical rituals, hands covered in blood, paranoia, romance, dread, surgeries written out in exquisite and nauseating detail, and a woman in the yellow wallpaper.
i have not stopped thinking about it since i read it, and have succumbed to a previously dormant obsession with gothic novels and gothic stories the likes of which are liable to have me pacing the halls at night, blood-shot and muttering and frantically trying to get anyone else to feel what i feel.
i think jane is such a stunning protagonist, so smart and so brave and so feeling. most of my annotations in the margins were just “oh, jane” over and over and over again as the story unfolded, with the written inflection of someone smoothing their hand down a person’s cheek. and i think augustine is such a brilliant character for her to play against and also i might have a little bit of a crush on both of them, and i’m willing to stand by it even with the entire events of the novel in mind
picture me as stefon at the weekend update desk, because this book has everything: a practical marriage of convenience that turns into something truer (and something even more terrible), a mathematician protagonist and her wet cat of a surgeon husband, a haunted house, an operating theater, terrible things done, terrible things undone, magical rituals, hands covered in blood, paranoia, romance, dread, surgeries written out in exquisite and nauseating detail, and a woman in the yellow wallpaper.
i have not stopped thinking about it since i read it, and have succumbed to a previously dormant obsession with gothic novels and gothic stories the likes of which are liable to have me pacing the halls at night, blood-shot and muttering and frantically trying to get anyone else to feel what i feel.
i think jane is such a stunning protagonist, so smart and so brave and so feeling. most of my annotations in the margins were just “oh, jane” over and over and over again as the story unfolded, with the written inflection of someone smoothing their hand down a person’s cheek. and i think augustine is such a brilliant character for her to play against and also i might have a little bit of a crush on both of them, and i’m willing to stand by it even with the entire events of the novel in mind
A woman marries a doctor only to find out he's cursed because of magic he did to bring back his previous dead wife. Started out really well with a cool gothic feel but the pacing was way off. All this stuff happened over 2 days and it became very muddled.