nickdablin 's review for:

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

5.0

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad tense slow-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: Yes

---

I shouldn't be surprised that one of Dickens' most famous works is a great read, but it still caught me off guard with how spectacularly tense and thrilling this is. It takes a long time to get there of course - Dickens writes with the pace of a steam locomotive - at first, grindingly slow, but building speed into the second act and hurtling to the bittersweet conclusion. The climax of the novel is somewhat predictable, but the writing is so strong that it doesn't matter. The characters and their interactions leap off the page, and if at times early on, Dickens' wordy style feels like filibustering, at other times it's used to great comic effect. This is, by nature of its subject, quite a dark novel, so the lighter, comedic elements woven through it provide much needed relief. 
Well worth the effort of the slower first act for anyone interested in reading a classic with all the excitement of a modern thriller.
 This Penguin edition has a wealth of notes and appendices to help the modern reader navigate some of the more obscure terms and historical references, and it's made me interested in learning more about the French revolution.