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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
The tale is really interesting but I just feel as if the tale is very confusing at times and it can drag a bit because of it. Overall I did enjoy it but I did struggle to get through it as well.
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
mysterious
slow-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:
No
This twisty turning tale of siblings, family, those we love and those outside our circle, was fascinating. A book I will recommend and be thinking of along time into the future. well crafted stories in stories, related people, sneaky creepers and ghosts.... This tale will keep you on your toes and interested all the way to the end.
(Written in late October 2009. I'm pulling reviews off of my very dusty blog.)
The Thirteenth Tale is very much a reader’s story, a book for people who love books — and in this case, old books in particular. It’s the sort of tale in which you know your heroes by how much they love to read. The narrator, Margaret Lea, lives above the antiquarian bookstore that she and her father run. An amateur biographer, she is prevailed upon to write the life story of a famous novelist called Vida Winter.
A dying woman haunted by her past, Miss Winter wants to tell her story straight through, from beginning to end. Margaret agrees, but insists on first getting three facts she can check through public records, something to insure that Miss Winters isn’t giving her the sort of fairy tale biography she gave reporters throughout her career. And of course it’s in the checking of those facts that Margaret gets the hints that help her piece together what Vida Winters isn’t telling her, and even what Vida Winter doesn’t know.
With Halloween approaching I felt the need for a book of ghost stories, or perhaps Dad’s collection of classic tales of suspense. Short of Hamlet and Nearly Headless Nick, I didn’t see any ghosts in our bookcases, but I did remember that The Thirteenth Tale was full of an atmospheric creepiness. Vida Winter’s bizarre biography contains obsession, madness, and an understaffed Gothic mansion in which a few survivors rattle around — possibly with the company of a ghost. Intent on proving that the unreliable Miss Winter is telling the truth, Margaret delves into these mysteries while also trying to reconcile her own personal tragedy. As it takes place in November and December, the setting is very bleak midwinter-y and it made a great read for a quiet Halloween weekend.
Better still, since I’d read it only once, a couple of years ago, I didn’t remember all of the plot twists — but it would have been worth re-reading even if I had, as the prose is just beautiful.
The Thirteenth Tale is very much a reader’s story, a book for people who love books — and in this case, old books in particular. It’s the sort of tale in which you know your heroes by how much they love to read. The narrator, Margaret Lea, lives above the antiquarian bookstore that she and her father run. An amateur biographer, she is prevailed upon to write the life story of a famous novelist called Vida Winter.
A dying woman haunted by her past, Miss Winter wants to tell her story straight through, from beginning to end. Margaret agrees, but insists on first getting three facts she can check through public records, something to insure that Miss Winters isn’t giving her the sort of fairy tale biography she gave reporters throughout her career. And of course it’s in the checking of those facts that Margaret gets the hints that help her piece together what Vida Winters isn’t telling her, and even what Vida Winter doesn’t know.
With Halloween approaching I felt the need for a book of ghost stories, or perhaps Dad’s collection of classic tales of suspense. Short of Hamlet and Nearly Headless Nick, I didn’t see any ghosts in our bookcases, but I did remember that The Thirteenth Tale was full of an atmospheric creepiness. Vida Winter’s bizarre biography contains obsession, madness, and an understaffed Gothic mansion in which a few survivors rattle around — possibly with the company of a ghost. Intent on proving that the unreliable Miss Winter is telling the truth, Margaret delves into these mysteries while also trying to reconcile her own personal tragedy. As it takes place in November and December, the setting is very bleak midwinter-y and it made a great read for a quiet Halloween weekend.
Better still, since I’d read it only once, a couple of years ago, I didn’t remember all of the plot twists — but it would have been worth re-reading even if I had, as the prose is just beautiful.
USA Today calls is "Eerie and fascinating" and I agree. It's a lovely little story about haunted pasts and confronting ghosts; a search for identity and for family and for Truth. The mysteries were extremely well woven together, revealing just enough to keep you turning pages.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Fun gothic style mystery with a book lover under current.
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Moody, bookish, and filled with secrets — exactly my kind of storytelling.
dark
mysterious
slow-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
A lot of the fiction I read gets tagged as « literary fiction » but this is the first book I’ve read in quite some time that truly fit that category. It’s an homage to gothic literature (and has countless allusions to Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and other literary touchstones) with a few unique twists of its own. Ultimately, the book becomes a story about agency and grappling with dark legacies and trauma. It wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea, but I don’t regret reading it and don’t doubt that it will stick with me for a while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Abandonment
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization