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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
adventurous
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:
Complicated
It has taken me a long time to finish reading She, but that doesn't mean that I haven't enjoyed it. The narrative was perhaps a little longer than it needed to be, and it did seem a little slow at times, but that's simply the nature of classic novels and, despite these negatives, there is a lot to love about this story.
What I Loved:
One thing that really struck me about She is just how unusual it is. I loved the fantasy elements of it, and could see many comparisons to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, particularly considering the Dead Marshes and the Mirror of Galadriel. More than anything else though, I can't deny how gripping this story is. There is so much action, and almost all of it is exceptionally gripping.
"No nightmare dreamed by man, no wild invention of the romancer, can ever equal the living horror of that place, and the weird crying of those voices of the night, as we clung like shipwrecked mariners to a raft, and tossed on the black, unfathomed wilderness of air."
The story was also really thought-provoking. There were some really interesting comments made about death in this book, particularly considering the afterlife. After all, immortality may seem attractive, but do any of us really want to carry all of our bad memories around with us - forever?
What I Didn't Like:
I mentioned earlier that this book was a little slow in parts, and although this wasn't too much of an issue, it did mean that, at times, I wasn't able to get excited about the story. I also struggled a little with the characters - although they were well developed, there wasn't a lot of variation, which, unfortunately, is true of most classics.
One of the big reasons why this story may have seemed slow was probably due to the amount of time that it dedicated to philosophy. I have already said that I did enjoy these thought-provoking discussions, but they seemed a little over the top at times, and I did start to get a little annoyed with Haggard. It just felt as though he had already made his point, but then felt the need to repeat it over and over again.
Overall:
She came as a real surprise to me. I was definitely not expecting to like it as much as I did, but I'm certainly glad that I gave it a chance. The story was really unusual, and that unpredictability added a lot to its tension. Like almost every book I have reviewed, it has its negatives, but I cannot dislike this book, particularly considering its fantastic ending, which is perhaps one of the most dramatic conclusions to a book that I have ever read.
It's not my favourite book, but it's (as you would expect) very well written, and is definitely unusual, as not too many classics are based around fantasy.
What I Loved:
One thing that really struck me about She is just how unusual it is. I loved the fantasy elements of it, and could see many comparisons to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, particularly considering the Dead Marshes and the Mirror of Galadriel. More than anything else though, I can't deny how gripping this story is. There is so much action, and almost all of it is exceptionally gripping.
"No nightmare dreamed by man, no wild invention of the romancer, can ever equal the living horror of that place, and the weird crying of those voices of the night, as we clung like shipwrecked mariners to a raft, and tossed on the black, unfathomed wilderness of air."
The story was also really thought-provoking. There were some really interesting comments made about death in this book, particularly considering the afterlife. After all, immortality may seem attractive, but do any of us really want to carry all of our bad memories around with us - forever?
What I Didn't Like:
I mentioned earlier that this book was a little slow in parts, and although this wasn't too much of an issue, it did mean that, at times, I wasn't able to get excited about the story. I also struggled a little with the characters - although they were well developed, there wasn't a lot of variation, which, unfortunately, is true of most classics.
One of the big reasons why this story may have seemed slow was probably due to the amount of time that it dedicated to philosophy. I have already said that I did enjoy these thought-provoking discussions, but they seemed a little over the top at times, and I did start to get a little annoyed with Haggard. It just felt as though he had already made his point, but then felt the need to repeat it over and over again.
Overall:
She came as a real surprise to me. I was definitely not expecting to like it as much as I did, but I'm certainly glad that I gave it a chance. The story was really unusual, and that unpredictability added a lot to its tension. Like almost every book I have reviewed, it has its negatives, but I cannot dislike this book, particularly considering its fantastic ending, which is perhaps one of the most dramatic conclusions to a book that I have ever read.
It's not my favourite book, but it's (as you would expect) very well written, and is definitely unusual, as not too many classics are based around fantasy.
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
She is a remarkable, fascinating character, but the past part of the book to me is the style: poetical with a touch of horror
This was written in the late 1800s so has a lot of “casual” racism and sexism, and could never get more than three stars from me for that alone because that stuff is dreadful to read.
But the plot was interesting and added a supernatural element to a classic adventure tale. Some reviews mention that they found the pace too slow but I found it was fine for me. It was easy to imagine the places they visited, and the whole book had a kind of National Treasure adventure vibe because of the historical links.
But the plot was interesting and added a supernatural element to a classic adventure tale. Some reviews mention that they found the pace too slow but I found it was fine for me. It was easy to imagine the places they visited, and the whole book had a kind of National Treasure adventure vibe because of the historical links.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Eh this novel is a bit too... Victorian for its own good. It's basically a couple of white English guys go to Africa and say the most racist things they possibly can. Apart from the blatant and offensive racism, the story is enjoyable. This isn't a novel that takes itself seriously. It's a light, fun read, nothing more.
Since this is one of the most influential and best-selling novels of all time (it's sold 100 million copies, the same as The Hobbit and double the amount of copies Deathly Hallows has sold) it is kinda disappointing that it is overall so-so. Oh well.
Since this is one of the most influential and best-selling novels of all time (it's sold 100 million copies, the same as The Hobbit and double the amount of copies Deathly Hallows has sold) it is kinda disappointing that it is overall so-so. Oh well.
First of all: the summary of this book is inaccurate. Ayesha does not have the "violent appetite of a lamia," which, if you are me, is a disappointing mislead because I was expecting something awesome. She doesn't thirst for blood so much as kill either when her orders are disobeyed (like when the tribe of people ordered to bring our main characters to her unharmed tries to cannibalize them, which would piss anyone off I think) or when the only man she passionately loves is possessed by another woman.
She is a thoroughly Victorian female villain, in that it's her beauty, sex appeal, and passion that give her power, as much or more than her cunning does. Her beauty entraps men -- even our main character, who happily proclaims himself a misogynist because no woman back home will have him thanks to his ugliness. Clearly you don't read pulp fiction -- especially pre-1900s pulp fiction -- expecting enlightened gender politics, but I was annoyed that this "evil" woman just acts the way she does because she's so in love with some guy. Be moar evil, Ayesha? :(
Alas, I am a sucker for adventure stories/potboilers/penny dreadfuls with your quintessential gentlemen in three piece suits nearly tumbling off cliff ledges and cartoonishly gracing "savages" with their White Nobility and admiring the beauty of the African landscape before whipping out a rifle and totally owning some majestic big game, and maybe encountering dinosaurs.* And that's what this book is. Love it or leave it.
* = There are no dinosaurs in this book, but there are mummified human corpses set on fire and used as torches. Cool.
She is a thoroughly Victorian female villain, in that it's her beauty, sex appeal, and passion that give her power, as much or more than her cunning does. Her beauty entraps men -- even our main character, who happily proclaims himself a misogynist because no woman back home will have him thanks to his ugliness. Clearly you don't read pulp fiction -- especially pre-1900s pulp fiction -- expecting enlightened gender politics, but I was annoyed that this "evil" woman just acts the way she does because she's so in love with some guy. Be moar evil, Ayesha? :(
Alas, I am a sucker for adventure stories/potboilers/penny dreadfuls with your quintessential gentlemen in three piece suits nearly tumbling off cliff ledges and cartoonishly gracing "savages" with their White Nobility and admiring the beauty of the African landscape before whipping out a rifle and totally owning some majestic big game, and maybe encountering dinosaurs.* And that's what this book is. Love it or leave it.
* = There are no dinosaurs in this book, but there are mummified human corpses set on fire and used as torches. Cool.