Reviews

Cecily by Annie Garthwaite

ashtreene's review

adventurous emotional hopeful 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? No

5.0

hannahb92's review

informative inspiring 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

5.0

jeaniehealy's review

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

aruby888's review

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

cazxxx's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

mariasalemme's review

dark emotional hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

baratheonbooks's review against another edition

emotional informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Miscarriage

girlglitch's review

3.0

In many ways, Cecily is the perfect subject for a historical novel: she was an incredibly influential yet underrated figure. Perhaps the best thing about this portrayal is that Garthwaite doesn't try to make her likeable. She's a proud, callous and unforgiving character - and she needs to be to survive. She's fascinatingly unsympathetic, and yet you still end up rooting for her. It's a wonderful and unapologetic depiction of a medieval noblewoman, confident in both her bloodline and her abilities.

While I enjoyed following Cecily's journey over the years, other aspects of the novel suffer from its ambitious scope. Taking in such a long period of history sacrifices the immediacy you need to really bring historical fiction to life. Many of the characters end up being painted in broad brush strokes and the occasional unsubtle metaphor. Cecily's political power lies in her words, and so the dialogue is crucial. Garthwaite has an astute grasp on these pivotal conversations, and I would love to have seen a sharper focus on some of these scenes.

All in all, Cecily is a competent piece of historical fiction - with some moments of steely brilliance shining through.

*Thank you to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review*

alsamps21's review

2.0

I love this period of history and was really excited about this book but I don’t understand the positive reviews. I was DNF halfway through when I was forcing myself to read further. Somehow it’s a slog and missing pace and excitement or depth to the characters. I didn’t give it 1 star as it’s not badly written necessarily but the prose style is not for me. I wasn’t a fan of Wolf Hall for the same reason.

emmagossage's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5