A review by life_of_wine_and_books
Wideacre by Philippa Gregory

4.0

I knew that this book was twisted when I started reading it, but I was actually unprepared for how messed up the main character, Beatrice, was at times. Despite that, I found that I could not put this book down no matter how hard I tried.

The one thing I had to remind myself over and over again is that Beatrice is doing everything she does because of her obsession with her family's estate, Wideacre, which absolutely blows my mind at times when you see just how far she'll go. As the summary on the back of the book implies, she will stop at no measure to preserve the land she has come to love so much, which is something that in this generation it is hard to understand.

While not all the characters are particularly admirable, I found myself sympathizing with the innocent victims of Beatrice, those who were simply dragged into the mess she made. Once they recognized it, it made it even more difficult to see them suffer, which is something I attribute to good writing.

If you are looking for a happy ending, don't even bother picking this book up the first place, as most of the characters do not get one, and most of those who suffer are completely innocent. I am intrigued, however, because there are two more books in this series, and I cannot wait to see how Philippa Gregory tops this one.