The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Title: The Last Unicorn

Author: Peter S. Beagle

Publisher: 1968

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 294

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Books to Movies; Fairytale Retelling - Mythology

Where I Got It: Library

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. So she ventured out from the safety of the enchanted forest on a quest for others of her kind. Joined along the way by the bumbling magician Schmendrick and the indomitable Molly Grue, the unicorn learns all about the joys and sorrows of life and love before meeting her destiny in the castle of a despondent monarch—and confronting the creature that would drive her kind to extinction...

Our Nerdy Bookish Friend selection for May (it got bumped from March). It’s been on my TBR for absolute years. I finally got around to it and I’m not sure exactly how I feel about this one. I kept having to remind myself that this was written in 1968. The story felt very dated, but again, 1968. There are a few scenes that were pretty disturbing and I couldn’t decide if they actually fit the story at all. The story meandered a little too much in sections. There are passages that are beautiful and fun. I can see why this became a classic, but I ultimately was sorta disappointed in this read.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Universal Monsters: Dracula

Title: Universal Monsters: Dracula

Author: James Tynion IV, Martin Simmonds

Publisher: Image Comics 2024

Genre: Comics; Horror; Classics

Pages: 120

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Spooky Season - D

Where I Got It: Library

THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH creators, James Tynion IV (W0rldtr33, Something is Killing the Children)and Martin Simmonds, reteam to tell a new tale of the monster who started it all!

When Dr. John Seward admits a strange new patient named Renfield into his asylum, the madman tells stories of a demon who has taken residence next door. But as Dr. Seward attempts to apply logic to the impossible...his daughter falls under the spell of the twisted Count Dracula!

Collects UNIVERSAL MONSTERS: DRACULA #1-4.

A wonderfully creepy graphic novel version of a classic story. The art is decidedly vague when it comes to the count and the horror and very clear when we follow our human characters. I loved the dichotomy of style within each page. As for the story being shown, I do appreciate that they focused on the part back in England. We see what happens to Lucy and Mina and Renfield. I do love seeing classic stories retold in different ways. A quick fun read for the day.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

Title: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Dawn of the Dreadfuls #1)

Author: Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

Publisher: Quirk Books 2009

Genre: Classics; Horror

Pages: 359

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf

Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is an audacious retelling of English literature's most enduring novel. This expanded edition of the beloved Jane Austen novel featuring all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie mayhem begins when a mysterious plague falls upon the quiet English village of Meryton—and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers—and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield. It's the perfect read for literature lovers, zombie fans, and anyone who loves a reanimated Austen.

Technically this is a reread for me, but it was chosen as a Nerdy Bookish Friends selection. After we picked it, we realized that there are two different versions: the original and a reissue with 30% more zombies. Apparently I read the original, but own the new deluxe edition. So this was basically a new read for me. To be clear, this is not high literature. Sure it’s Jane Austen’s writing for 90%. But then we thrown in random zombie phrases and scenes. It create a mishmash of genres. But I enjoyed every page of it. I love Austen and zombies, and this was the perfect read for me. I suspect that this won’t be a favorite amongst my Nerdy Bookish Friends, but I still really loved it.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Title: The Beautiful and Damned

Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald

Publisher: 1922

Genre: Classics

Pages: 422

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Winter TBR; Unread Shelf - Enough; 52 Book Club - Set in Roaring Twenties

The Beautiful and Damned, F. Scott Fitzgerald's second novel, tells the story of Anthony Patch, a 1920s socialite and presumptive heir to a tycoon's fortune, the relationship with his wife Gloria, his service in the army, and alcoholism. Anthony and Gloria are young and gorgeous, rich and leisured and they dedicate their lives to the pursuit of happiness and we follow the intimate story of their marriage as it disintegrates under the weight of their expectations, fuelled by dissipation, jealousy and aimlessness.

This one was a slog! I absolutely adore The Great Gatsby, and was wanting to cover Fitzgerald’s other major works. Everything about this one feels so clunky. We are bogged down in lots of chapters detailing Anthony’s life before the meat of the story starts. Once he mets Gloria, things become marginally better. But Fitzgerald really takes too many tangents and asides. The core of the story gets much too muddled and confusing. He definitely became a much more concise writer later. I finished this one, but would not recommend to others.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin

Title: The Left Hand of Darkness

Author: Ursula K Le Guin

Publisher: 1969

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 315

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Summer TBR

A lone human ambassador is sent to the icebound planet of Winter, a world without sexual prejudice, where the inhabitants’ gender is fluid. His goal is to facilitate Winter’s inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the strange, intriguing culture he encounters...

I tried reading this one again as part of the Nerdy Bookish Friends book club read. And I still didn’t like it. Back in 2011, I found this very clunky, slow-moving, and confusing. This time, I mostly still agree with that. While I can appreciate Le Guin’s attempt to discuss the big questions in sci-fi and her inspiration of many modern writers, I still find her work oddly stilted and non-engaging. I disliked every singly character we meet and was not engaged in the supposed plot line. The discussion of non-gender can be interesting, but I found many of the passages to contain a lot of misogynistic language. Feminine behaviors and attributes are almost always deemed to be unsavory. I would prefer to read a more modern take on gender and questions of gender than this ponderous tome.

star-rating-remains-the-most-important-part-of-a-review-cad0047.cad0047.png

Next up on the TBR pile:

Pebble in the Sky by Isaac Asimov

Title: Pebble in the Sky (Galactic Empire #3)

Author: Isaac Asimov

Publisher:

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 246

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - NPR Scifi

After years of bitter struggle, Trantor had at last completed its work—its Galactic Empire ruled all 200 million planets of the Galaxy . . . all but one. On a backward planet called Earth were those who nurtured bitter dreams of a mythical, half-remembered past when the planet was humanity’s only home. The other worlds despised it or merely patronized it—until a man from the past miraculously stepped through a time fault that spanned a millennium, living proof of Earth’s most preposterous claims.

Joseph Schwartz was a happily retired Chicago tailor circa 1949. Trapped in an incredible future he could barely comprehend, the unlikely time traveler would soon become a pawn in a desperate conspiracy to bring down the Empire in a twist of agony and death—a mad plan to restore Earth’s tarnished glory by ending human life on every other world.

Wow! This was such a great adventure style story. We get to see what became of Earth years after Elijah Bailey and Daneel. I needed that interlude to understand what has happened to the Galaxy. We get the very classic scifi trope of a man being transported into the future. Schwartz is a typical 1950s character and is definitely out of place in the future, but not that much out of place. Really the star of the show is Dr. Arvardan and his conspiracy theories about Earth being the birthplace of humanity. I loved how the story unfurled. We get planet, nay Galaxy wide, threats and more insight into the political relationships within the Empire. I have my momentum back and am ready to dive into the next trilogy.

Galactic Empire:

Next up on the TBR pile:

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

Title: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

Author: Winifred Watson

Publisher: 1938

Genre: Classics

Pages: 234

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Modern Mrs. Darcy; Monthly Theme - May

Miss Pettigrew, an approaching-middle-age governess, was accustomed to a household of unruly English children. When her employment agency sends her to the wrong address, her life takes an unexpected turn. The alluring nightclub singer, Delysia LaFosse, becomes her new employer, and Miss Pettigrew encounters a kind of glamour that she had only met before at the movies. Over the course of a single day, both women are changed forever.

Such a delightful book. I remembered watching the movie version years back and enjoyed it. I hoped that the book would be just as delightful and thank goodness it was. I loved the comedy of errors and the witty banter. I kept waiting to see what silly situation Delysia and Guinevere found themselves in next. I just kept smiling through the entire book. I especially loved the encounters with Edythe and Tommy. Of course there are a few lines that are not at all appropriate to us now. Be forewarned. I kept having to remind myself that the book was written in 1938. Otherwise it was a lovely book.

Modern Mrs Darcy Summer Reading Challenge 2020-2.png

Next up on the TBR pile:

Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Title: Their Eyes were Watching God

Author: Zora Neale Hurston

Publisher: 1937

Genre: Classics

Pages: 219

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: TBR Pile; Popsugar - Different Ethnicity; MMD - Different Ethnicity

One of the most important and enduring books of the twentieth century, Their Eyes Were Watching God brings to life a Southern love story with the wit and pathos found only in the writing of Zora Neale Hurston. Out of print for almost thirty years—due largely to initial audiences’ rejection of its strong black female protagonist—Hurston’s classic has since its 1978 reissue become perhaps the most widely read and highly acclaimed novel in the canon of African-American literature.

A very powerful story featuring a fascinating female protagonist. I really fell into reading about Janie's struggles and triumphs. At times I had to put the book down because it was so intense. But that intensity is what made the book so amazing. Hurston's book was ahead of its time. I could see this book being published today. It feels so current and modern. This book is not a light fun read, but was definitely enjoyable.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Daisy Miller and Washington Square by Henry James

Title: Daisy Miller and Washington Square

Author: Henry James

Publisher: 1878; 1880

Genre: Classics

Pages: 288

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Share-a-Tea; A to Z - W

In Daisy Miller, James paints a vivid portrait of a vibrant young American girl visiting Europe for the first time. Lovely, flirtatious, eager for experience, Daisy meets a wealthy American, Mr. Winterbourne, and a penniless but passionate Italian. Her complex encounters with them and others allow James to explore one of his favorite themes, the effect of Americans and Europeans on each other.

I enjoyed the styled writing of this short novella. However, I can't quite get behind the characters. Daisy is very much like another Daisy of literature, completely one-dimensional. I just couldn't deal with her lack of depth. So mixed feelings on this one I guess...

Washington Square’s Catherine Sloper is Daisy Miller’s opposite. Neither pretty nor charming, she lives with her wealthy, widowed, tyrannical father, Dr. Austin Sloper, who can barely conceal his disdain for his shy, awkward daughter. When a handsome suitor, Morris Townsend, comes calling, Catherine’s father refuses to believe he is anything other than a heartless fortune hunter and sets out to destroy her romance.

This story I enjoyed a bit more than the first one. I enjoyed the interplay between all the characters and personalities. I have read that James disliked this story very much, but I enjoyed this slice of life.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay

Title: Picnic at Hanging Rock

Author: Joan Lindsay

Publisher: 1967

Genre: Classics

Pages: 198

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Share-a-Tea

It was a cloudless summer day in the year 1900. Everyone at Appleyard College for Young Ladies agreed it was just right for a picnic at Hanging Rock. After lunch, a group of three girls climbed into the blaze of the afternoon sun, pressing on through the scrub into the shadows of the secluded volcanic outcropping. Farther, higher, until at last they disappeared. They never returned. . . .

One of those books that I have wanted to read, but never actually got to it. This is our book club selection for July so I had to read it. This book was great! I loved the characters and Lindsay's descriptions of said characters. I didn't know exactly what I was getting into, but quickly I dove into the mystery of the disappearance. I didn't quite realize that the focus of the story was on the side character more than the disappeared. I love that the mystery is never truly resolved, but left to the reader's imagination. I can't wait to watch the movies and new mini series.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery

Title: Anne of Avolnea (Anne Shirley #2)

Author: L.M. Montgomery

Publisher: 1909

Genre: Classics

Pages: 276

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Reading Assignment; Popsugar - Childhood Classic I've Never Read; Seasonal Series - Green on Cover

Following Anne of Green Gables (1908), the book covers the second chapter in the life of Anne Shirley. This book follows Anne from the age of 16 to 18, during the two years that she teaches at Avonlea school. It includes many of the characters from Anne of Green Gables, as well as new ones like Mr Harrison, Miss Lavendar Lewis, Paul Irving, and the twins Dora and Davy.

I liked this volume more than the first in the series. Anne at 16 is a much more interesting character than Anne at 11. And I loved the introduction of some new characters and residents of Avonlea. Overall it was a very fun read for the day.

Anne Shirley:

#1 Anne of Green Gables
#2 Anne of Avonlea
#3 Anne of the Island
#4 Anne of Windy Poplars
#5 Anne's House of Dreams
#6 Anne of Ingleside
#7 Rainbow Valley
#8 Rilla of Ingleside

Next up on the TBR pile:

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Title: Anne of Green Gables (Anne Shirley #1)

Author: L.M. Montgomery

Publisher: 1908

Genre: Classics

Pages: 198

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Popsguar - Mentioned in Another Book; Seasonal Series - Set in Spring

When a scrawny, freckled girl with bright red hair arrives on Prince Edward Island, Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert are taken by surprise; they'd asked for a quiet boy to help with the farm work at Green Gables. But how can you return a friendless child to a grim orphanage when she tells you her life so far has been a 'perfect graveyard of buried hopes'? And so, the beguiling chatterbox stays. Full of dreams, warmth and spirit, it is not long before Anne Shirley wins their hearts.

Somehow I have lived for 36 years having never read this book. As a child I was a huge fan of The Secret Garden and Little Women, but never picked this one up. Strange. Having read it, I understand the appeal to young children. Anne is a precocious and entertaining character. It wasn't the best book I've ever read, but I chalk that up to being a grown woman.

Anne Shirley:

#1 Anne of Green Gables
#2 Anne of Avonlea
#3 Anne of the Island
#4 Anne of Windy Poplars
#5 Anne's House of Dreams
#6 Anne of Ingleside
#7 Rainbow Valley
#8 Rilla of Ingleside

Next up on the TBR pile:

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

Title: Cranford

Author: Elizabeth Gaskell

Publisher: 1853

Genre: Classics

Pages: 257

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Popsugar - Movie I've Already Seen; A to Z - C

Cranford is an affectionate and often moving portrait of genteel poverty and intertwined lives in a nineteenth-century village. One of Elizabeth Gaskell's most beloved works, it centres on a community dominated by women and governed by old-fashioned ways. The formidable Miss Deborah Jenkyns and the kindly Miss Matty's days revolve around card games, tea, thriftiness and an endless appetite for scandal, until change comes into their world - whether it is the modern ideas of Captain Brown, a bank collapse, rumours of burglars or an unexpected reappearance from the past.

Classic that has been sitting on my shelf for too long. I enjoyed this one, but it's definitely not for everyone. I love how Gaskell has structured the book as more of vignettes than cohesive consecutive chapters. The reader gets little slices of life in Cranford filled with colorful characters and insights into relationships. I see this as a mix between Charles Dickens and Jane Austen. I'm not a huge fan of Dickens, but I adore Austen. This was a good mixture of the genres. While the book is very good, I loved the BBC miniseries starring Dame Judi Dench as Miss Matty. She is a treasure!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Title: Herland

Author: Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Published: 1915

Genre: Classics - Feminism

Pages: 128

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual (Feminism); Reading Assignment; Popsugar - About Feminism

Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) was an American sociologist, writer, and a lecturer for social reform. She was a utopian feminist. Her best remembered work today is her short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper".
"Herland" (1915) describes an isolated society comprised entirely of women who reproduce via parthenogenesis. The result is an ideal social order, free of war, conflict and domination.

I've read and loved Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper", but somehow I never picked this one up. Thankful that I did as it's an interesting bit of feminist history. I immediately fell for the account of this utopian society populated only by women. Gilman allows the reader to feel the wonder and confusion along with her three main male characters. Her thoughts of motherhood and societal worth are interesting if a bit outdated. But reminding myself that she wrote this in 1915 gives me the correct lenses to read it through. I don't expected 21st feminist critique from her, but am fascinated by her early 20th century approach.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Bostonians by Henry James

Title: The Bostonians

Author: Henry James

Publisher: 1886

Genre: Classic

Pages: 496

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: TBR Pile; Modern Mrs Darcy - Classic I've Been Meaning to Read; A to Z - B

The Bostonians is a bittersweet tragicomedy that centers on an odd triangle of characters: Basil Ransom, a political conservative from Mississippi; Olive Chancellor, Ransom's cousin and a Boston feminist; and Verena Tarrant, a pretty, young protegee of Olive's in the feminist movement. The story-line concerns the struggle between Ransom and Olive for Verena's allegiance and affection, though the novel also includes a wide panorama of political activists, newspaper people, and quirky eccentrics.

Hmmm... so I wanted to like this novel as it deals with some interesting themes, but I just couldn't get over James's seeming derision of the feminist movement. I was very interested in the dichotomy between the Basil and Olive's cultures. The novel is a fascinating look at the North/South divide, the conservative/progressive struggle, and in general men and women. I was fully into the premise of setting the two main characters up as competitors for Verena's affections and loyalty. What I wasn't too keen on is the portrayal of the feminists and as silly and even caricatures of people. In the end, Verena's choice is presented as a possible mistake, but James plays it coy. So I felt like James wasn't really taking either side in the debates he set up on the book. Overall, a bit of a disappointment for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights

Title: The Arabian Nights: Tales from a Thousand and One Nights

Translated: Richard Burton

Publisher: 1932 version

Genre: Classics

Pages: 1049

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual (FanPro); Reading Assignment; Modern Mrs. Darcy - More than 500 pages

Full of mischief, valor, ribaldry, and romance, The Arabian Nights has enthralled readers for centuries. These are the tales that saved the life of Shahrazad, whose husband, the king, executed each of his wives after a single night of marriage. Beginning an enchanting story each evening, Shahrazad always withheld the ending: A thousand and one nights later, her life was spared forever.

This volume reproduces the 1932 Modern Library edition, for which Bennett A. Cerf chose the most famous and representative stories from Sir Richard F. Burton's multivolume translation, and includes Burton's extensive and acclaimed explanatory notes. These tales, including Alaeddin; or, the Wonderful Lamp, Sinbad the Seaman and Sinbad the Landsman, and Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, have entered into the popular imagination, demonstrating that Shahrazad's spell remains unbroken.

I would give this 5 stars, but I realize that they are issues with this translation and compilation. I really did enjoy many of the stories listed in this volume. They are full of intrigue and adventure. But after reading the wikipedia page on the work, I have wish I would have read the new Syrian translation and compilation. Burton's volume took many liberties in editing and adding elements of the stories. Darn Victorians! Maybe someday I will get around to reading a newer version of the tales and see how they compare.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Title: The Haunting of Hill house

Author: Shirley Jackson

Publisher: Viking 1959

Genre: Classics - Horror

Pages: 182

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Classics -- 20th Century

First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a "haunting"; Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.

How have I never actually read this one? I read and loved Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and We Have Always Lived in the Castle. This one is such a masterpiece of terror and suspense. By the end of the book the reader starts to doubt even their own experience in reading this volume. Did the supernatural elements actually occur or was it all in our imaginations? Did Eleanor actually feel called to the house or was she just wishing for a place to belong? I put the book down at the end and promptly started doubting my own thoughts of what happened. Such is the brilliance of Shirley Jackson. Fascinating book. A great choice for spooky October. Now to watch the two movie adaptations...

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Title: The Turn of the Screw

Author: Henry James

Publisher: 1898

Genre: Classics

Pages: 327

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Read Your Book Shelf; Classic - Horror

A young governess is sent to a great country house to care for two orphaned children. To begin with Flora and Miles seem to be model pupils but gradually the governess starts to suspect that something is very wrong with them. As she sets out to uncover the corrupt secrets of the house she becomes more and more convinced that something evil is watching her.

A random classic from my bookshelves. Somehow I have never gotten around to reading this one. I dove in and am so glad I did. This is a fascinating novella of potential supernatural events. I loved the ambiguity in James' writing. The characters are interesting and the house as a character is fascinating. I especially loved the critical essays presented after the novella in my edition. It was nice to read some more academic reviews of this story.

Next up on the TBR pile:

After Alice by Gregory Maguire

Title: After Alice

Author: Gregory Maguire

Publisher: William Morrow 2015

Genre: Reimagined Classic

Pages: 288

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Ebook; 52 Books - W44

In this brilliant work of fiction, Gregory Maguire turns his dazzling imagination to the question of underworlds, undergrounds, underpinnings—and understandings old and new, offering an inventive spin on Carroll’s enduring tale. Ada, a friend of Alice’s mentioned briefly in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, is off to visit her friend, but arrives a moment too late—and tumbles down the rabbit-hole herself.
Ada brings to Wonderland her own imperfect apprehension of cause and effect as she embarks on an odyssey to find Alice and see her safely home from this surreal world below the world. If Eurydice can ever be returned to the arms of Orpheus, or Lazarus can be raised from the tomb, perhaps Alice can be returned to life. Either way, everything that happens next is “After Alice.”

Alice in Wonderland is one of my favorite books of all time. I was very much looking forward to reading this reworking of this story. I enjoyed reading about Ada and Lydia's experiences after Alice disappeared down the rabbit hole. It was an interesting little book. Maguire even wrote the book in a style that reminded me of Lewis Carroll's style. Recommended for lovers of the original.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

Title: Ethan Frome

Author: Edith Wharton

Publisher: 1911

Genre: Classic Fiction

Pages: 99

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Rory Gilmore; 1001 Books; TBR Reduction; A to Z - E; 52 Books - W5; Classics - Name in Title

Perhaps the best-known and most popular of Edith Wharton's novels, Ethan Frome is widely considered her masterpiece. Set against a bleak New England background, the novel tells of Frome, his ailing wife Zeena and her companion Mattie Silver, superbly delineating the characters of each as they are drawn relentlessly into a deep-rooted domestic struggle. Burdened by poverty and spiritually dulled by a loveless marriage to an older woman. Frome is emotionally stirred by the arrival of a youthful cousin who is employed as household help. Mattie's presence not only brightens a gloomy house but stirs long-dormant feelings in Ethan. Their growing love for one another, discovered by an embittered wife, presages an ending to this grim tale that is both shocking and savagely ironic.

A classic author I have been meaning to read for years now. I have to admit that I was slightly disappointed in this novel. I just wasn't feeling any of the characters. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the bleak landscape. Those were where Wharton truly shined. But the characters and storyline just weren't that intriguing to me at all.