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A review by redheadreading
Viper Wine by Hermione Eyre
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This is absolutely my jam! The melding of 1630s with contemporary allusions, references and cameos lends itself to both the feeling of Kenelm as a mind too brilliant for its time, the excerpts of contemporary beauty practises points to how women's insecurities are still prayed upon to this day, and the unreality of some of the passages mimics the intoxicating, mind bending effects of the Viper Wine. Venetia and Kenelm love each other dearly but they don't understand each other and these temporal tricks highlight the gulf between them.
I loved the visual spectacles, the dark humour, the way 1600s details painted a vivid scene which was kind of enhanced by introducing achronisms (a la A Knight's Tale, giving unfamiliar readers shorthand to understanding). This absolutely will not work for everyone but very much does for me!
I loved the visual spectacles, the dark humour, the way 1600s details painted a vivid scene which was kind of enhanced by introducing achronisms (a la A Knight's Tale, giving unfamiliar readers shorthand to understanding). This absolutely will not work for everyone but very much does for me!