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njh_books's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was not sure what I was expecting but this was not it. Still, I read it in less than 72 hours soooo was very enticing.
It is for sure not for anyone who is squeamish. It does include a lot of graphic descriptions of violence and body parts/blood and injuries and death.
The different narrators threw me for a bit at first, just since we had "Goody", but really it was (surprise) Arnold as the narrator for the first 240 pages. The intimate friendship between Goody/William and Johnstone was interesting to see from an outside perspective, but also I think one could've not included that section and everything would have still worked/made sense without it. I did enjoy Arnold's section at the end and Goody coming back in to cut him off, though I wish the epilogue was longer because I'd be intersected to see how her life was as Goody again (and with Lily.
I'm glad Lily and Goody got their happy ending, but Lily put Goody through the wringer after Arnold's injury and poor Lily suffering on her wedding day. It was nice to see that she came back to herself or her new self towards the end of the pregnancy/after the birth. The women in this book really get the absolute worst of the lot.
As I said with another book earlier this year (looking at you A Secret History), I could've done without the incest, though one could argue it's not technically incest, but the whole having been raised together as brother and sister did make it a bit incesty...
It is for sure not for anyone who is squeamish. It does include a lot of graphic descriptions of violence and body parts/blood and injuries and death.
I'm glad Lily and Goody got their happy ending, but Lily put Goody through the wringer after Arnold's injury and poor Lily suffering on her wedding day. It was nice to see that she came back to herself or her new self towards the end of the pregnancy/after the birth. The women in this book really get the absolute worst of the lot.
As I said with another book earlier this year (looking at you A Secret History), I could've done without the incest, though one could argue it's not technically incest, but the whole having been raised together as brother and sister did make it a bit incesty...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Gore, Sexual violence, Blood, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, War, Violence, Torture, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, Rape, and Incest
Minor: Child abuse, Abandonment, and Child death
burrowsi1's review
adventurous
dark
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
jashanac's review
I should've done a try-a-chapter before even buying this one. Simply not the writing style for me, at least at this moment. Not vibing with it.
jmatkinson1's review
3.0
1742 and the once prosperous town of Winchelsea is now just a haunt for smugglers. For orphan Goody Brown, her world is turned upside down when her adoptive father falls foul of the gang he works with and is mudered. Goody vows revenge and becomes a smuggler, a Jacobite and more.
Although this is a short book at times it feels interminably long and there are huge gaps in the narrative. It also feels as though several 'woke' elements are thrust together and lie uncomfortably in an already packed narrative. We have racism, slavery, lesbianism, transgender alongside violence and a strong historical element. The first part seems long yet Culloden and the rest gallops by - a solid enough book but not a memorable one.
Although this is a short book at times it feels interminably long and there are huge gaps in the narrative. It also feels as though several 'woke' elements are thrust together and lie uncomfortably in an already packed narrative. We have racism, slavery, lesbianism, transgender alongside violence and a strong historical element. The first part seems long yet Culloden and the rest gallops by - a solid enough book but not a memorable one.
jemple's review
2.0
I picked this book up because I thought the cover was pretty. It is not a pretty book. I regret judging this book by its cover.
Winchelsea is about the gritty world of 18th centrury smuggling, told through the story of Goody, its androgynous protagonist. If you squint reeeally hard, it's a coming of age story about her growing from a smuggler's child into a smuggler, pirate and adult.
Goody doesn't so much grow into an adult as she swings from trauma to trauma like Tarzan, watching her family and friends be injured or killed over four years. She never seems to dwell for long on what she has lost, but you probably can't in that situation?
Personally I liked the first half of this book more, as it focused more on introducing the coastal setting.
Did not like the second half so much. Oh did I mention the incest? So much incest...
I'm unsure what rating to give this book, but overall I didn't "enjoy" it so I'm giving 2 stars. I will say that there was a lot going on, and it was an interesting and insightful read about smuggling on the south coast in that time period.
Winchelsea is about the gritty world of 18th centrury smuggling, told through the story of Goody, its androgynous protagonist. If you squint reeeally hard, it's a coming of age story about her growing from a smuggler's child into a smuggler, pirate and adult.
Spoiler
Goody doesn't so much grow into an adult as she swings from trauma to trauma like Tarzan, watching her family and friends be injured or killed over four years. She never seems to dwell for long on what she has lost, but you probably can't in that situation?
Personally I liked the first half of this book more, as it focused more on introducing the coastal setting.
Did not like the second half so much. Oh did I mention the incest? So much incest...
I'm unsure what rating to give this book, but overall I didn't "enjoy" it so I'm giving 2 stars. I will say that there was a lot going on, and it was an interesting and insightful read about smuggling on the south coast in that time period.
teri_b's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Winchelsea takes us to a corner of Britain that is off the beaten roads, and yet also Winchelsea does have its pirates and its history of social uprisings.
Having read this book, I got the audiobook from my local library, I found a broadened understanding of British history and how wild and free life was, at least imagined in this book a couple of hundred years ago. It wrote the characters directly into the landscape and the place/places where they lived and grew up. Amazing.
The narrators of the audiobook are superb and brought the story further to life.
Having read this book, I got the audiobook from my local library, I found a broadened understanding of British history and how wild and free life was, at least imagined in this book a couple of hundred years ago. It wrote the characters directly into the landscape and the place/places where they lived and grew up. Amazing.
The narrators of the audiobook are superb and brought the story further to life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Incest
camijupiter's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
One of the best adventures I’ve ever read, mixing history and piracy. Very well structured and particularly original, a refreshing read that reconciled me with fiction. Simply Superb.
b_austridge's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
heretherebemonsters's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
miriames2's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0