The Woman in White

How many English novels set in extravagent estates in the mid 1800s have made you wonder, "how come these people don't have jobs?"  Sure there's the nannies and the pastors and the family attorneys and all the various servants, but most of the gentlemen and women prance around waiting for mail that tells of their beloveds also prancing around waiting for mail.

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins is a bit different.  The story opens with Walter Hartwright accepting a position as an art teacher for a couple of country estate living daughters of a nervous wreck of a gentleman.  En route to the new job, he runs into a distraught woman in white who needs directions to London and assurance that Mr. Hartwright will forget about her. He mentions the interaction to his new pupils, one, Laura, who bears astonishing resemblance to the Woman in White. And from this the stage is set for one of the first mysteries published-- and piles of letters that are sent back and forth between estates with replies that come quicker than our email of today.  Collins was a trained lawyer and goes into detail about financial and inheritance law of the time-- important if you are just going to live off interest.  A couple of notable characters are introduced along the way-- Sir Percival Glyde who is both obsequious and nervous, Count Fosco who is devious, and a slew of passerby who make the book a quick read.

Ultimately the denoument was well executed, but long! Like, 100 pages long. Other than that it was as good as the Millenium series for sure.

netflix stars: 4/5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Never Let Me Go

It is a good time of year to reflect back on school days. School is letting out and as I see kids waiting for the bus to camp, I have some fond memories-- getting "pop privileges" in 5th grade for doing good work (I always bought a Barq's for $0.40), slumber parties with my girlfriends, going to Dog n Shake for lunch in high school and summers filled with part time working and lazy afternoons at the local pool.  I'm sure there are buried memories that aren't so pleasant (maybe all of 8th grade?) but overall I had a pretty peaceful childhood, have kept some really close friends and consider myself to be successful.

The childhoods of Kathy, Ruth and Tommy in Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro seem outwardly as idyllic as any childhood-- cliques were formed, friendships made and lost, and lessons and classes taken in a posh English country boarding school.  We learn quickly that Kathy, as the narrator, is years past school and is working as a "carer" for "donors" although it's not immediately clear what that means.  There is a slow,unraveling twist throughout the book that reveals a childhood (or at least adulthood) that is in reality anything but idyllic.

I felt kind of bewildered reading this since Ishiguro seemed to use cheap techniques to keep the reader engaged ("...which is why what happened next was so surprising...") and the things which were important to Kathy, Tommy and Ruth seemed extremely trivial to me.

Never Let Me Go is like a cross between Prep and Murakami. It was a quick, compelling read, but I never felt attached to the characters.  I'll give it 3.5/5 netflix stars.

Jamaica Inn

Say you're a single woman whose closest family member has died, or perhaps you have lost the little fortune you might have had and somehow have to fend for yourself. What is your best option? Calling on your friends for help? Finding employment or try internet dating? Nope. Your best option is to time travel back to Victorian English countryside, where even though there might be no neighbors for miles and miles, there will be one single, dashing bachelor. He may be a bit rougue, but no doubt you will find yourself living happily ever after.

Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier is such a novel, but it is darker than a Jane Austen and more along the lines of a Bronte. Our heroine, Mary, has made a deathbed promise to her mother to sell the farm and go live with her aunt and uncle at Jamaica Inn. She soon learns that many strange things happen at the Inn, and her cowered aunt is not the first to tell her that her uncle is up to no good. Mary is curious, however, and soon gets embroiled in a great smuggling plot.

Jamaica Inn is a great gothic thriller and therefore a fast read. I don't read a lot of thrillers/mysteries and don't want to give away key details, but I was surprised by the twist at the end...and it's no surprise that Mary gets the guy.

Next on my list of things to do? Figure out time travel.

Netflix rating: 3/5 stars