A review by musicdeepdive
Bleak House by Charles Dickens

challenging mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I admire the scope of this work and nothing can take away from the satire Dickens is incorporating per usual. But it is one of the Dickens novels that feels the most like a serial, bloated and stumbling over its excess and devoid of a quality central protagonist to anchor the story (Esther, bless her heart, is the weakest Dickens lead to date and it's not particularly close). The "true fans of literature" champion this as the best Dickens novel and maybe their infinite wisdom is accurate - myself, I will take my Copperfields and Twists and walk away quite happily.