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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
Meh. This portrayal of Victoria didn't make me love her. It made me wonder how the world has made it so far when we've depended on spoiled "leaders" like this.
If you're a diehard Anglophile you might enjoy this story but otherwise I'd say pass.
If you're a diehard Anglophile you might enjoy this story but otherwise I'd say pass.
Enjoyable book and a good look at the beginning of her long reign. It brought some stories to life and although it takes some liberties with the timeline and maybe enhances some stories, it's a good read.
This book is somewhere between 3 and 3.5 for me.
My biggest critiques are:
-I wanted to know how Goodwin got the information specifically or how true certain big aspects were. An afterword would have been great.
-I wanted a triumphant Victoria moment. I never felt like beaming at my pages in pride for the queen I’d spent so much time with. Some big independent Victoria proving herself moment.
Overall though, I enjoyed the writing and generally the story. I think there could have been more of this, but, I enjoyed the politics and favouring of Whigs and Tories and the way that made its way into the story.
It didn’t leave me in love, but I enjoyed this read!
My biggest critiques are:
-I wanted to know how Goodwin got the information specifically or how true certain big aspects were. An afterword would have been great.
-I wanted a triumphant Victoria moment. I never felt like beaming at my pages in pride for the queen I’d spent so much time with. Some big independent Victoria proving herself moment.
Overall though, I enjoyed the writing and generally the story. I think there could have been more of this, but, I enjoyed the politics and favouring of Whigs and Tories and the way that made its way into the story.
It didn’t leave me in love, but I enjoyed this read!
I thoroughly enjoyed this look at young Victoria's life & the beginning of her reign. I will say; however, that it is blurbed incorrectly by People [magazine] as "an irresistible love story...fans of Downtown, The Crown, etc. will want to dive right in..." Firstly, I saw nothing reminiscent of Downton Abbey within its pages. I do whole heartedly agree however, that it will appeal to fans of The Crown. I also disagree with it being marketed as a "love story", I would argue that it reads more as a coming-of-age tale. Victoria is a teen when she becomes Queen of England and this book focuses on her exerting control over her own life for the fist time, finally escaping from under the over protective yet oft times neglectful rule of her mother and the power obsessed machinations of her mother's advisor, Conroy, who only wants to be the driving force behind the crown.
I enjoyed seeing Victoria mature and think for herself, while simultaneously shaking my head at her inevitable poor choices and infatuation with Lord Melbourne. I kept wishing she would just let him retire. I did like how the rest of the "characters" were protrayed. There was just enough intrigue and drama to maintain a compelling narrative without adding drama for drama's sake.
I'm looking forward to learning more about Queen Victoria and reading the biography We Two: Victoria and Albert: Rulers, Partners, Rivals by Gillian Gill.
Worth noting that Daisy Goodwin also wrote the PBS Masterpiece period drama: Victoria starring Jenna Coleman & Tom Hughes. I personally intend to watch it, (hopefully sooner rather than later).
I enjoyed seeing Victoria mature and think for herself, while simultaneously shaking my head at her inevitable poor choices and infatuation with Lord Melbourne. I kept wishing she would just let him retire. I did like how the rest of the "characters" were protrayed. There was just enough intrigue and drama to maintain a compelling narrative without adding drama for drama's sake.
I'm looking forward to learning more about Queen Victoria and reading the biography We Two: Victoria and Albert: Rulers, Partners, Rivals by Gillian Gill.
Worth noting that Daisy Goodwin also wrote the PBS Masterpiece period drama: Victoria starring Jenna Coleman & Tom Hughes. I personally intend to watch it, (hopefully sooner rather than later).
I really enjoyed this book! I already knew everything that happened in it because I watched Victoria on Masterpiece and I've read three other books about Queen Victoria but it was still really fun to read a novelized version of her story. It was fun to be reminded of the early parts of her reign. I would say this book does move quite swiftly from one topic/moment to the next, but Daisy Goodwin definitely had a lot of ground to cover in a relatively short amount of time. I would definitely recommend this book to people who have little to no knowledge of Queen Victoria who want to learn more about her, especially if they don't want to delve too deeply into complex biographies. I think younger readers would also gain a lot from reading this book because it would keep their attention probably better than a dry biography (younger=teenage).
emotional
informative
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very similar to the first four episodes of Victoria on PBS. I really liked it!
Oddly, the characters in this (based on) true story seem less believable than than her regular entirely fictional ones. And some parts seemed repetitive or the reactions of the characters didn't seem logical. So I would say it wasn't great. ... But, I went looking for more information on Queen Victoria afterward. Watched the 2009 Emily Blunt movie right away and probably would have watched the TV version of the book if it were available online. So I can't say I didn't find it interesting!
This was a fun, easy read, but it was a bit irritating that it was essentially identical to the show (which was written by the same author).
Amazing. Simply stunning. I watched the PBS show before reading this, and it definitely helped the story come alive in my eyes. This author writes beautifully about a time period that I am very interested in.