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A review by sophiefrancoiselucie
Uncle Silas: A Tale of Bartram-Haugh by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
3.0
It took me nine months to finish this book, which, obviously, is not a good sign. I had high expectations because I love gothic novels, and even more so when they’re set in the Victorian era. Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed.
What I usually enjoy about Gothic novels is that they’re creepy, action-packed and that there are always very silly and unbelievable plot twists. I find that deeply entertaining. (I mean, The Monk by Lewis is all about that, and it’s just soooo good) Here, however, everything was too slow and obvious. Although a lot of things were creepy and the atmosphere was well rendered, it was just not working for me. I spent weeks not even looking at this book, even if I had some moments where I was like ‘oooh this book is exciting!’ but most of the time, I knew what was bound to happen and what truly interested me was not so much developed (I would’ve loved to know way more about Maud’s father and Dr Bryerly, who were very creepy and intriguing).
It was not a terrible read - hence the 3 stars - but I wouldn’t really recommend it because I didn’t find this novel worth the commitment.
What I usually enjoy about Gothic novels is that they’re creepy, action-packed and that there are always very silly and unbelievable plot twists. I find that deeply entertaining. (I mean, The Monk by Lewis is all about that, and it’s just soooo good) Here, however, everything was too slow and obvious. Although a lot of things were creepy and the atmosphere was well rendered, it was just not working for me. I spent weeks not even looking at this book, even if I had some moments where I was like ‘oooh this book is exciting!’ but most of the time, I knew what was bound to happen and what truly interested me was not so much developed (I would’ve loved to know way more about Maud’s father and Dr Bryerly, who were very creepy and intriguing).
It was not a terrible read - hence the 3 stars - but I wouldn’t really recommend it because I didn’t find this novel worth the commitment.