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A review by robinwalter
Green Money by D.E. Stevenson
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
The Douay-Rheims Bible renders Proverbs 25:11 as " To speak a word in due time, is like apples of gold on beds of silver" and that is exactly why Green Money gets 5 stars from me. After the dour darkness of Charlotte Fairlie and the pretentious philosophical palaver of Darkling Death, Green Money was right on the money!
Before the story even started, Ms Stevenson gave a signal that promised a fun read. The disclaimer finished with
as the book is a work of fiction and does not pretend to be a veracious chronicle of facts, the author makes no apology for two small anachronisms which may be found therein.
A delightfully brazen warning that the worst thing to do with the story that follows would be to take it seriously. Happily, that disclaimer was not disingenuous. The book was A LOT of fun, exactly the sort of palate cleansing spirit-lifting tonic I was craving after two books that had been hard work to finish.
It reminded me very much of the Fair Miss Fortune, my first Stevenson. I described that one as feeling like a less frenetic Wodehouse, and that fits for this delightful comedy too. George is the Gussy Fink-Nottle of horses, with the added gift of being very astute about understanding people too - except the one person he's destined to be with, natch. When circumstances see him end up as the only honest trustee of a very rich, very beautiful young girl, the stage is set for humor, hijinks and happiness that I'm sure Plum would have enjoyed.
Like any good comedy, there's just the right amount of conflict, and what made it so entertaining in this story is that the "enemy" was not an enemy at all. George's mother (a very entertaining character) misread a situation and went to war. She said of her foe “Well, you may be right, but it comes to the same thing in the end: I don’t want a moron for a daughter-in-law.” without knowing she had nothing to fear.
There were still examples of Ms Stevenson's thoughtful observations in this story, my favourite being Nobody’s life is static. There is movement and development in every life all the time. Even those people who are stuck fast in a backwater looking at the stream of life flow past are subject to the law of eternal movement; for, if nothing else is happening to them, there is change taking place in their own souls.
But they added just the right touch of substance to the soufflé, and were fundamentally positive, unlike much of Charlotte Fairlie.
If you're looking for a sweet, funny and uplifting comedy romance, I strongly green light handing over your money for Green Money.
Before the story even started, Ms Stevenson gave a signal that promised a fun read. The disclaimer finished with
as the book is a work of fiction and does not pretend to be a veracious chronicle of facts, the author makes no apology for two small anachronisms which may be found therein.
A delightfully brazen warning that the worst thing to do with the story that follows would be to take it seriously. Happily, that disclaimer was not disingenuous. The book was A LOT of fun, exactly the sort of palate cleansing spirit-lifting tonic I was craving after two books that had been hard work to finish.
It reminded me very much of the Fair Miss Fortune, my first Stevenson. I described that one as feeling like a less frenetic Wodehouse, and that fits for this delightful comedy too. George is the Gussy Fink-Nottle of horses, with the added gift of being very astute about understanding people too - except the one person he's destined to be with, natch. When circumstances see him end up as the only honest trustee of a very rich, very beautiful young girl, the stage is set for humor, hijinks and happiness that I'm sure Plum would have enjoyed.
Like any good comedy, there's just the right amount of conflict, and what made it so entertaining in this story is that the "enemy" was not an enemy at all. George's mother (a very entertaining character) misread a situation and went to war. She said of her foe “Well, you may be right, but it comes to the same thing in the end: I don’t want a moron for a daughter-in-law.” without knowing she had nothing to fear.
There were still examples of Ms Stevenson's thoughtful observations in this story, my favourite being Nobody’s life is static. There is movement and development in every life all the time. Even those people who are stuck fast in a backwater looking at the stream of life flow past are subject to the law of eternal movement; for, if nothing else is happening to them, there is change taking place in their own souls.
But they added just the right touch of substance to the soufflé, and were fundamentally positive, unlike much of Charlotte Fairlie.
If you're looking for a sweet, funny and uplifting comedy romance, I strongly green light handing over your money for Green Money.