A review by georgianagligor
Ross Poldark by Winston Graham

4.0

This book is located at the border of soapy literature and hard core family saga, and I cannot make up my mind as to where it belongs. I was intrigued by the series' trailer and then I decided the book must be better. Which it was. It paints a realistic photo of the second half of the 18th century Cornwall, with mining struggles, rich and poor, love and marriage, all sprinkled with unexpected twists and turns. This book does good service to good description, keeping the language of the poor as authentic as possible and the language of the rich equally realistic. At times, language shows just how ridiculous rich men are when claiming they are a different breed from the common miner on their propriety. Ross Poldark, the centerpiece of the cover is both the centerpiece of the novel. He is the only one who manages to blur the lines between traditional landlord and his working force, between himself and the other gentry members (with their aloofness and "manners"). Ross himself is on the edge of convention: a soldier who returns from the battlefield, a risk taker, a master, a worker, a rebel.