Reviews

This is my first foray into Anne Brontë’s novels. I found the experience quite pleasurable. Perhaps it was the audiobook which made getting on with the story quite easy.

The story is told via letters and diary entries from Gilbert Markham to his friend. A young widow, Helen Graham, moves into a dilapidated manor, and Gilbert and his peers are naturally very curious about the mysterious tenant. As the story progresses, Gilbert finds himself fascinated by Helen and eventually learns more about her.

There’s a lot of historical nuance about the characters that a modern reader has a hard time understanding. The male characters come off as unpleasant and selfish, while the women, especially Helen, come off as passive and demure. A lot is said between the lines, so Audrey’s guide helps to catch those hints better than reading the book without such aid would.

The narrative shifts when Gilbert finally learns Helen’s secrets via her diary. The audiobook had previously been narrated by a man, and these sections are narrated by a woman. And that’s not all: the relationship between Gilbert and Helen is put on hold, and now we journey into Helen’s past. I’m not sure whether I liked the way this section was told; it sort of kicked me out of the main story and into a new one.

All in all, this book had subtlety that is hard to achieve and perhaps also hard for modern readers to understand. If I compare this classic to some others I’ve read, this experience has been quite pleasurable, even though I think you need to be in a certain kind of mood to thoroughly enjoy this novel.

Content Warnings

agrippinaes's review against another edition

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4.0

As a disclaimer, I generally struggle with classic novels, particularly Victorian ones; I’ve never managed more than a few chapters of Jane Eyre, and no more than a few pages of Wuthering Heights. An acquaintance of mine suggested I try Anne Bronte instead, seeing as I struggle with the work of Charlotte and Emily, so I tried this.

I found it wholly different to other Victorian novels I’ve read, or tried to read. The writing is far less dense and far more readable; aside from a few long-winded passages and sentences here and there, on the whole I felt more like I was reading a newer, more recent novel. The content, too, took me by surprise. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from it, but some of the content and ideas on display in this book felt very modern. Helen was a really interesting and, for me, admirable character for her choices and her bravery in making the decision she took.

I thoroughly enjoyed a lot of this book, and ultimately I found it really fascinating to read; it’s odd thinking that the plot and ideas in this book are actually not new to me as a modern reader - some of the plot points and ideas are now quite common in fiction and, reading it, aspects of it felt quite predictable - except, of course, it was published in 1848.

I can’t say I didn’t struggle with it at points - it can feel a bit dry as there are long stretches where not a lot happens - and the subject is, by its nature, quite bleak. But I’m really glad I took my acquaintance’s advice and took a chance on reading it, because I found it a very interesting and enjoyable experience.

Content Notes:

Warnings:

Spoiler

Domestic abuse, violence, emotional abuse, controlling behaviour, alcoholism, opium addiction, death of a parent, death of a spouse, serious illness.

aloe_v's review against another edition

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dark sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

It was a brilliant adaptation, although with such a sorrowful tale, I found it quite a miserable and frustrating read, hence the low rating. It was almost unbearable listening to how her husband spoke to her, made all the more real by hearing it.

aeliz's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

platkovskayaa's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

5.0

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