lola425's review against another edition
3.0
You're either a Henry James person or you're not. If you are, you will like this novel. Banville truly commits, you will feel like you are reading a James novel--which is the book's strength and weakness both, depending on what angle you are approaching it from. The pace is glacial and the denouement is underwhelming, particularly as a reward for wading through the tougher parts. So, loved the concept, admire the execution, but can't say I loved the book. Not sorry I read it, but I feel the same way about Henry James so I guess you can call the book a success.
bkish's review against another edition
5.0
If the reader has not read the Henry James masterpiece Portrait of a Lady this book will be meaningless. I firmly adhere to this
For me I studied the book when I was in college and it was a very important read for me. I dont remember all the details and I vividly remember the essence of it. It is a tragedy a tale of a woman Isabel Archer who is american and finds herself in 1800s penniless and accepts offer from her aunt to travel to Europe. She is shallow and I dont know if I realized that when I read it. She also believes that she is a free woman free to make her own decisions and that whatever she decides she will b right. She is a woman who has everything available to her (she believes). It focuses on her choice of a husband and there are at least 3 "suitors". The man she chooses is Gilbert Osmond and what I remember about him is his icy coldness and his reverence for objects. At the end of the book the reader knows she is doomed and yet and yet she had so much potential.
this amazing book by this canadian writer is brilliant. He definitely took off where Henry James left off and it is ? years later (maybe 10+). Her marriage is a sham. She has just learned from her sister in law the truth about her stepdaughter, her husband (Isabels) and the woman who brought them together Mme Merle. She has been living all these years abroad in Rome. This book Mrs Osmond is her trying to right her life and interact with these people from Portrait of A Lady.
I accept the ending that the author created for how Isabel will continue with her life in the face of so much hypocrisy pain and downright denial and ignorance. Her "solution" or the author's solution leaves me perplexed and yet somehow it does fit.
This is an extraordinary book for anyone who knows well Portrait of a Lady by Henry James.
Judy
For me I studied the book when I was in college and it was a very important read for me. I dont remember all the details and I vividly remember the essence of it. It is a tragedy a tale of a woman Isabel Archer who is american and finds herself in 1800s penniless and accepts offer from her aunt to travel to Europe. She is shallow and I dont know if I realized that when I read it. She also believes that she is a free woman free to make her own decisions and that whatever she decides she will b right. She is a woman who has everything available to her (she believes). It focuses on her choice of a husband and there are at least 3 "suitors". The man she chooses is Gilbert Osmond and what I remember about him is his icy coldness and his reverence for objects. At the end of the book the reader knows she is doomed and yet and yet she had so much potential.
this amazing book by this canadian writer is brilliant. He definitely took off where Henry James left off and it is ? years later (maybe 10+). Her marriage is a sham. She has just learned from her sister in law the truth about her stepdaughter, her husband (Isabels) and the woman who brought them together Mme Merle. She has been living all these years abroad in Rome. This book Mrs Osmond is her trying to right her life and interact with these people from Portrait of A Lady.
I accept the ending that the author created for how Isabel will continue with her life in the face of so much hypocrisy pain and downright denial and ignorance. Her "solution" or the author's solution leaves me perplexed and yet somehow it does fit.
This is an extraordinary book for anyone who knows well Portrait of a Lady by Henry James.
Judy
spiderfelt's review against another edition
4.0
Tasked with reading The Portrait of a Lady for my bookclub, I struggled to find any enthusiasm for the tome. By the time I reached the midpoint, I was tempted to put it aside. Instead, I borrowed audiobook of Mrs Osmond from my library and began to enjoy the two in tandem, reading the classic on my lunch hour while listening to the audiobook during my commute. Coincidentally, I finished them at the same time, enjoying both more than I had expected.
This style of writing is a departure from much contemporary writing, focusing on the life of the mind and the subtle interactions of characters instead a complex action-packed narrative. There is so little action, and so little dialogue, the reader is required to slow way down. It took several hundred pages before I was able to adjust my own attention and truly appreciate the work.
Banville does a masterful job of echoing the style and phrasing of Henry James. He reminds the reader of phrases and comments from the earlier novel throughout the text, merging the two harmoniously as if they were written by the same author.
This style of writing is a departure from much contemporary writing, focusing on the life of the mind and the subtle interactions of characters instead a complex action-packed narrative. There is so little action, and so little dialogue, the reader is required to slow way down. It took several hundred pages before I was able to adjust my own attention and truly appreciate the work.
Banville does a masterful job of echoing the style and phrasing of Henry James. He reminds the reader of phrases and comments from the earlier novel throughout the text, merging the two harmoniously as if they were written by the same author.
irena_smith's review against another edition
3.0
Portrait of a Lady this is not. And while no one can out-James James, this felt like not enough and too much at the same time: Osmond a mustache-twirling villain (as verbose as James is, he knows that silences and omissions are just as powerful as words), Isabel both overly self-assured and inexplicably awkward, and Pansy—well, let's just say Pansy's plot line beggars belief. And while I loved Portrait of a Lady because of its masterfully cast shadows, seems to suffer from a surfeit of unforgiving fluorescent light, in which James' nuanced characters are still recognizably themselves, but only just, and definitely not to their advantage.
aineg's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars for the beautiful prose and descriptive passages. The story itself, however, was incredibly slow and not a lot happens over almost 400 pages.
magdon's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the premise, and the style but overall didnt enjoy the book as much as I thought I would.
twistinthetale's review against another edition
2.0
This novel is a follow-on from "Portrait of a lady" by Henry James describing Isabel's reactions upon learning of a series of shocking secrets about her husband. Banville is true to the era and the tone is appropriate. There is a charm to the novel and it was certainly not a disagreeable read - I was just, at times, disinterested and periodically lost focus.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
‘It had been a day of agitations and alarms, of smoke and steam and grit.’
An exceptionally long time ago, I read ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ by Henry James. I loved the writing, was frustrated by Isabel’s choice, and wondered ‘what if...’.
In this novel, John Banville gives Isabel an alternate path. A path that I find much more satisfying.
In this story (as in ‘The Portrait of a Lady’) Isabel disobeys her husband Gilbert by travelling from Italy to London to be with her cousin Ralph Touchett on his deathbed. This will become the first step in her quest for freedom. She meets with old friends and tells (some of them) of her husband’s betrayal. She also withdraws a large sum of money from the bank and thinks about the future.
‘The world, our world, takes from people what it wishes to have of them—company, amusement, diversion—and blithely ignores the rest.’
After a couple of months away, Isabel returns to Italy via Paris. Will she return to Gilbert, to their farcical marriage or not? And if not, what will she do? A woman in her situation is not meant to make choices: polite society will be outraged. But John Banville’s Isabel has a confidence that Henry James’s Isabel did not:
‘Isabel rose to her feet. ‘You married me for my money,’ she said, making of it no more than a matter of fact. ‘Now our marriage is at an end, and I am taking the money back.’
Brava, Isabel! But there is more to it than this. Isabel’s newly practiced confidence enables her to make other decisions. Still, as her sister-in-law reminds her:
‘None of us can escape what we inherit, not even you.’
And so, I finished the novel satisfied, but wondering what Isabel might do next with her newly found freedom and confidence.
This is a beautifully written novel. While I don’t think you need to have read ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ to enjoy and make sense of it, you might want to.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
An exceptionally long time ago, I read ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ by Henry James. I loved the writing, was frustrated by Isabel’s choice, and wondered ‘what if...’.
In this novel, John Banville gives Isabel an alternate path. A path that I find much more satisfying.
In this story (as in ‘The Portrait of a Lady’) Isabel disobeys her husband Gilbert by travelling from Italy to London to be with her cousin Ralph Touchett on his deathbed. This will become the first step in her quest for freedom. She meets with old friends and tells (some of them) of her husband’s betrayal. She also withdraws a large sum of money from the bank and thinks about the future.
‘The world, our world, takes from people what it wishes to have of them—company, amusement, diversion—and blithely ignores the rest.’
After a couple of months away, Isabel returns to Italy via Paris. Will she return to Gilbert, to their farcical marriage or not? And if not, what will she do? A woman in her situation is not meant to make choices: polite society will be outraged. But John Banville’s Isabel has a confidence that Henry James’s Isabel did not:
‘Isabel rose to her feet. ‘You married me for my money,’ she said, making of it no more than a matter of fact. ‘Now our marriage is at an end, and I am taking the money back.’
Brava, Isabel! But there is more to it than this. Isabel’s newly practiced confidence enables her to make other decisions. Still, as her sister-in-law reminds her:
‘None of us can escape what we inherit, not even you.’
And so, I finished the novel satisfied, but wondering what Isabel might do next with her newly found freedom and confidence.
This is a beautifully written novel. While I don’t think you need to have read ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ to enjoy and make sense of it, you might want to.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
hanneke22's review against another edition
challenging
slow-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
2.25
I’m not a DNF’ing kind of gal, but oh my god did I want to DNF this book! The writing is nice but soooo descriptive. The story is slow and the characters sometimes confusing.
I was annoyed by the fact that Isabel would be in Rome one day and the next she would be back in London, with no description of how long and difficult a journey that would be in those days!
So, yeah. Rant over. 2,25 ⭐️
I was annoyed by the fact that Isabel would be in Rome one day and the next she would be back in London, with no description of how long and difficult a journey that would be in those days!
So, yeah. Rant over. 2,25 ⭐️
paging_snidget's review against another edition
5.0
I came across this book quite by chance at my local library and I am so glad I did! I think I may have found a new favourite author.
It is the story of one woman’s quest for freedom. The writing style is wonderful. The characters were fantastically realised and beautifully nuanced. Banville has a marvellous way with words when writing physical descriptions of characters. I think he is right up there with Dickens in that regard.
This is definitely not a plot driven novel, it is all character based. This is a story of conversations and introspection. It was all handled masterfully, though. I loved it from start to finish. Will definitely be seeking out more from this author.
It is the story of one woman’s quest for freedom. The writing style is wonderful. The characters were fantastically realised and beautifully nuanced. Banville has a marvellous way with words when writing physical descriptions of characters. I think he is right up there with Dickens in that regard.
This is definitely not a plot driven novel, it is all character based. This is a story of conversations and introspection. It was all handled masterfully, though. I loved it from start to finish. Will definitely be seeking out more from this author.