Reviews with content warning for Domestic abuse - Tipping the Velvet

Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

19 reviews

midnightsharkist's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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ziamammamia's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

***********

This was so, so close to a 5-star read for me, even with the wild turn that part two takes. Because, while the plot sometimes felt too much or extreme, it still made me care about these characters. Nancy is not a great person by the time the book ends, but you can start to see glimmers of her trying to be a good one. You can feel her finally - finally - take a breath and start to heal. Even if the end felt…too neat…. It was lovely.

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novella42's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book made a huge impression on me when I read it in college. I didn't have words yet for "omnisexual" or how different kinds of gender expression made me feel SO MANY feelings. The thrill this book gave me was like lighting up a circuit with a bolt of lightning, when it had only received little jolts from a AA battery before. All the wiring was there, had always been there, but I didn't have any way to explore or describe it before reading these scenes with Nancy and having revelation after revelation.

I picked it up again this year in the delicious audiobook format, savoring it slowly to really appreciate the lyrical writing and elaborate plotline.

I described to my friends what an impact it had made on me and a friend of mine who is trans said he had had his own epiphanies with it, too. We both agreed we were very glad to have stumbled onto it when we did.

The historical aspects of the book are written with such rich attention to detail, especially the nuances of fashion, gender, and sexuality. It's made me want to set my own current WIP at the same time period. I just want to immerse myself in it again and again.

Also, this might be a strange thing to appreciate, but (mild spoilers about the protagonist's personality)

I am honestly impressed that Waters managed to write a very likeable character even while making her more than a little selfish, impulsive, and not particularly bright. It took a second reading at age 39 to notice, I don't think it registered at all when I was in my 20s just like Nancy. But Nancy herself is compelling even when she does something selfish or impulsive, and has a kind of genderqueer himbo energy that I found almost irresistible. It gives her more depth than the typical clever, altruistic heroines we usually see in books like this.

Well done, Waters!

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stellahadz's review against another edition

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emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I'm not usually a big historical fiction reader, but this was my book club's pick of the month and I'm always down to expand my literary horizons.

The pacing of the book was slower than I would have liked; it took me almost 200 pages to really get into the story. I think there's also something about the Victorian-esque writing style that doesn't totally resonate with me -- I didn't feel like I could fully connect with any of the characters, and most of them were just downright unlikeable. (My copy was the 20th anniversary edition with an afterword by the author, and I'll just say I agree with what she has to say about Nancy!)

I can see why this book is popular; it's well-written (I especially liked the setting descriptions and worldbuilding) and explores aspects of Victorian life that aren't always included in the literary canon. However, I think the genre and writing style simply weren't for me.

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amina_writes_books's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A perfect mix of Victorian, classical British literature style writing. The author is extremely clever with words. An endowing read for anyone who is struggling with coming out of just being comfortable with queerness. Excellent narrative style, and just when you think the plot could do it drag, it picks up again!

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sersi's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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liliakwolf's review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

what a book mein gott! took me on a rollercoaster. i really thought that it was going to be a book based on one romance but by a quarter of the way through i saw that was not the case lol. i saw people being upset at how the book ended but i really liked it and it felt like a good closing for the character that wasnt unrealistic but still happy. the middle portion of the book def made me uncomfortable and i wish there was more delving into the dark side of that, especially after it was all done. it felt like the emotional trauma was just forgotten about. loved the socialist turn at the end, espcially the line "my god! can we not enjoy even a socialist rally without your wretched past turning up to haunt us!" and the "hallo, comrade" to the baby which, even as many times as its done in socialist circles still makes me laugh. dont know quite how to rate this but it def was enjoyable!

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katewhite77's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A Steamy Coming Of Age Novel 19th Century Style

Our heroine tells her own story form the age of 19 to 25. She starts out as a sheltered music hall fan, working in the family oyster business. She ends up at a socialist convention in Golders Green.

The tale between those two points is a captivating 19 hour listen but it is definitely not one for small ears. As always Waters writing is amazing she really brings the 19th century to life using all five senses. She really made me route for Nancy even though at times I wanted to scream Have A Word With Yourself at her.

I consider this a classic of my life time and can't believe it has taken me this long to get to, but now I have and I loved it.

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ranbara's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

oh.. this is the book of all time. to be a tom from whitstable in 1888..

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flowersforfroggo's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

All cards on the table, I picked up this book purely because it was on a list of must read spicy sapphic novels and, as the true smut goblin I am, I wanted a fix.

Tipping the Velvet is a genuinely good read and I was hooked and along for the ride from the moment Nan was sitting in her little corner booth in the theatre longing for Kitty to throw the flower to her.

I devoured this book, annotating along the way, and while I happily tagged many a page blue for spicy scenes, by the time I read the final line the whole book was filled with rainbow sticky strips to mark bits and pieces of writing that sung beautifully.

Sarah Waters has such a way of capturing the excitement of first love and the first flickers of desire and we see these moments of sapphic love play out so vividly on the page. So much so, that there is an element of cringe early in the book with Nan expressing her inner thoughts about Kitty that took me right back to being sixteen, when everything was bright and new and just a little spiky. Fellow smut goblins will rejoice at the tasty sex scenes scattered through the book. Not overly explicit, but delicious enough to keep things interesting.

Overall, Nan does not have an easy life and she comes across as selfish and careless with those she loves, but I still rooted for her every step of the way and I loved to see her identity evolve. She is so alone in her world, even surrounded by the other characters and what struck me was that she is constantly being given an identity to perform for others. Nan’s relationships in the book are all in one way or another controlling and it made me sad to see that she doesn’t ever really get the space to settle into herself and be seen.

“Oh! I feel like I’ve been repeating other people’s speeches all my life. Now when I want to make a speech of my own, I find I hardly know how.”

Girl, tell me about it.

It’s only towards the end of the book that she finds her fit and realises there are other girls like her who present the same way. We can’t be who we don’t see. It’s rare to want more from a book but I would have loved to have followed her journey of self expression and gender identity a little more.

Nan is not a perfect character and it is certainly not a perfect love story but it is gritty, messy and so very enjoyable. Tipping the Velvet is absolutely worth the random pick up and has earned its place on the spicy sapphic list. Would read again.

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