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c_wilkinson's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism and Racial slurs
aliwhaley's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This book is well plotted with plenty of twists and turns and red herrings to keep you guessing, but why is the middle section so boring?
Weirdly, I think it suffers from over-thinking. I think Wilkie Collins was so determined to make sure there were no plot holes, and make sure that everything was explained and justified, that reading the tightly woven plot is like wading through mud.
E.g The time elapsed from deciding to give Franklin laudanum to actually doing it must be at least 50 pages, and all because Collins is double-securing all the explanations. There’s a whole paragraph on why Ezra doubles the dose from 20 to 40mg. WHY?!
It is a good book, it’s interesting to see how the detective genre began, especially with tropes like the detective’s sidekick narrator (Hastings / Dr Watson / Betteredge) represented here.
Also, I was surprised to see that (amongst all the casual racism / colourism and stereotyping in the book) Collins does at least acknowledge that English colonisers stealing diamonds from Indian people (and religious shrines) is a bad thing, and makes a curse stem from that crime.
I was surprised that the ‘happy ending’ was the diamond returning to India. I thought the book would resolve with Rachel getting her birthday diamond back. I was happy to see that the diamond went back to it’s shrine, although I think Collins had it return to India so that the curse would end, not so that the religious Indian people would have their shrine restored and their property back.
There is also something to be said for the characters. They were comedically larger than life in some places but that injected some humour into the book. I very much enjoyed Betteredge’s reliance on Robinson Crusoe. I got that the religious Miss Clack was a caricature intentionally, and that we were meant to hate her, but once that joke got old I found her chapters stopped me from wanting to pick the book back up.
Something I learnt from this book was about the existence of ‘visiting cards’ / ‘calling cards’ - a card that you leave at someone’s house if you call for them and they’re not in. I think this is where the criminal ‘calling card’ comes from
Weirdly, I think it suffers from over-thinking. I think Wilkie Collins was so determined to make sure there were no plot holes, and make sure that everything was explained and justified, that reading the tightly woven plot is like wading through mud.
E.g The time elapsed from deciding to give Franklin laudanum to actually doing it must be at least 50 pages, and all because Collins is double-securing all the explanations. There’s a whole paragraph on why Ezra doubles the dose from 20 to 40mg. WHY?!
It is a good book, it’s interesting to see how the detective genre began, especially with tropes like the detective’s sidekick narrator (Hastings / Dr Watson / Betteredge) represented here.
Also, I was surprised to see that (amongst all the casual racism / colourism and stereotyping in the book) Collins does at least acknowledge that English colonisers stealing diamonds from Indian people (and religious shrines) is a bad thing, and makes a curse stem from that crime.
I was surprised that the ‘happy ending’ was the diamond returning to India. I thought the book would resolve with Rachel getting her birthday diamond back. I was happy to see that the diamond went back to it’s shrine, although I think Collins had it return to India so that the curse would end, not so that the religious Indian people would have their shrine restored and their property back.
There is also something to be said for the characters. They were comedically larger than life in some places but that injected some humour into the book. I very much enjoyed Betteredge’s reliance on Robinson Crusoe. I got that the religious Miss Clack was a caricature intentionally, and that we were meant to hate her, but once that joke got old I found her chapters stopped me from wanting to pick the book back up.
Something I learnt from this book was about the existence of ‘visiting cards’ / ‘calling cards’ - a card that you leave at someone’s house if you call for them and they’re not in. I think this is where the criminal ‘calling card’ comes from
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Racism
hashputin's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Religious bigotry, and Sexism
Moderate: Terminal illness, War, Murder, and Addiction
morenowagain's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Terminal illness, and Suicide
Moderate: Classism, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Murder
bibliophilemama's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Suicide, and Sexism
iarlais's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Fascinating to read what is commonly seen as the first detective novel. Standing upon rich language and a genuinely fascinating mystery that builds itself up layer by layer, this book is an excellent example of the genre, as well as the first. The jump from different narrators really helps you feel the weight of the mystery, as so many people work together to solve it. I did personally find that the story dragged at times, and the characters, while interesting enough, weren't altogether unique from one another. It is a mostly character-driven story, they're just not the best drivers. Criticisms aside, I did find the novel to be a great experience and I'm glad I read it. If you're a fan of detective fiction or multi-narrator stories, I'd say give this one a shot.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Racism
fourfootedbeasts's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Colonisation, and Religious bigotry
tmickey's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Death of parent
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Chronic illness
bookreadingelf's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Addiction
Moderate: Racism