A review by doug_whatzup
The Forest by Edward Rutherfurd

2.0

Having read both Sarum and the two books of the Dublin Saga, I was really looking forward to reading this book. I'm not sure why it was such a letdown: it's no more sprawling than the aforementioned novels; the format (a series of geographically-centered short stories spanning centuries, similar writing style) identical to the others. Maybe it was just a desire to get back to Rumpole, a far more interesting character than any of the ones here, but none of these stories moved me in any way. I guess that's why it took me 3 weeks to slog through 598 pages.

If you're interested in England or a fan of well-written historical fiction, you'll probably enjoy The Forest. For me, though, well, it was just okay.

Now, back to Rumpole.