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A review by bookswithlydscl
Estella's Revenge by Barbara Havelocke
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo/Hera for an eARC of "Estella's Revenge" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.
Great Expectations is one of my favourite Dickens stories. Atmospheric, gothic with incredibly memorable and iconic characters, so when I saw that Barbara Havelocke was giving us a chance to dig deeper into Estella's story I knew that I needed to read it and I wasn't disappointed.
In this dual timeline novel we split our time between Estella's youth and her present as she starts out married life to the despicable Drummle. She has been bred to hate men and to keep her heart cold by jilted bride and mother Miss Havisham and as she realises that her deal with Drummle won't quite follow her plan she moves towards vengeance whilst battling to decide if she should fully embrace the darkness within.
The setting and atmosphere of this novel is spot on. It's gothic, dark and moody, perfectly suiting our characters, the story and the classic Satis House. The writing is beautiful, tragic and full of intrigue which keeps you turning the page wanting to see how this tale unfolds.
This is not simply a re-telling of Great Expectations. As with many of the feminist re-tellings of Greek myths we've been seeing, this is a woman finding her voice, her identity and her power.
Fans of Fyneshade will identify a lot of Marta in Estella and will enjoy the same complex and immersive type of tale and fans of bad men getting what's due to them will also enjoy this gothic, historical fiction.
Great Expectations is one of my favourite Dickens stories. Atmospheric, gothic with incredibly memorable and iconic characters, so when I saw that Barbara Havelocke was giving us a chance to dig deeper into Estella's story I knew that I needed to read it and I wasn't disappointed.
In this dual timeline novel we split our time between Estella's youth and her present as she starts out married life to the despicable Drummle. She has been bred to hate men and to keep her heart cold by jilted bride and mother Miss Havisham and as she realises that her deal with Drummle won't quite follow her plan she moves towards vengeance whilst battling to decide if she should fully embrace the darkness within.
The setting and atmosphere of this novel is spot on. It's gothic, dark and moody, perfectly suiting our characters, the story and the classic Satis House. The writing is beautiful, tragic and full of intrigue which keeps you turning the page wanting to see how this tale unfolds.
This is not simply a re-telling of Great Expectations. As with many of the feminist re-tellings of Greek myths we've been seeing, this is a woman finding her voice, her identity and her power.
Fans of Fyneshade will identify a lot of Marta in Estella and will enjoy the same complex and immersive type of tale and fans of bad men getting what's due to them will also enjoy this gothic, historical fiction.