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Florence and Giles

by John Harding (Goodreads Author)

3.69 of 5 stars 3.69 · rating details · 961 ratings · 180 reviews

A gripping, sinister Gothic tale inspired by and in the tradition of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw.

In 1891, in a remote and crumbling New England mansion, 12-year-old orphan Florence and her younger brother areneglected by her guardian uncle. Banned from reading, Florence devours books in secret and talks to herself—and narrates her story—in a unique language of her...more

Hardcover, 272 pages

Published March 4th 2010 by HarperCollins UK

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Aug 06, 2011 Essie Fox rated it 4 of 5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this clever, chilling gothic novel narrated by the uniquely voiced 12 year old Florence.

Many links to The Turn of the Screw, Poe, Wilkie Collins and other classics of the genre - but Harding still manages to create something 'all its own'.

This is enchanting and humorous with wonderfully drawn characters. But, ultimately, it is a very disturbing novel with a ghastly 'turn of the screw'.

6 likes · like · see review

Mar 06, 2012 Zoe Mitchell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a wonderful book – as traditional ghost stories are increasing in popularity again, it brings something new and fresh to the genre. The period detail is vivid, and the characters in the story are really brought to life so that you feel their every fear.
The story is narrated by Florence, who is self-educated and as a result has her own singular use of language which gives the book a beautiful flow. From day to day details to the heights of tension, the language employed gives the book an...more

1 like · like · see review

Dec 03, 2011 Martin Belcher rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Florence and Giles is a very old fashioned chilling tale in the style of "The Turn of the Screw". Our setting is Blithe, a large house in New England during the last years of the 19th Century, Florence and her step brother Giles live at Blithe along with Mrs Grouse, the Housekeeper and the house staff, Mary, John and Meg. Orphaned at an early age, Florence and Giles are neglected by their guardian Uncle, who spends most of his time in New York City. Florence is forbidden to read and instead enco...more Florence and Giles is a very old fashioned chilling tale in the style of "The Turn of the Screw". Our setting is Blithe, a large house in New England during the last years of the 19th Century, Florence and her step brother Giles live at Blithe along with Mrs Grouse, the Housekeeper and the house staff, Mary, John and Meg. Orphaned at an early age, Florence and Giles are neglected by their guardian Uncle, who spends most of his time in New York City. Florence is forbidden to read and instead encouraged to indulge in womanly hobbies such as embroidery, she hates this and spends time covertly in Blithe library reading her way through classic books and Edgar Allan Poe stories.

Their first governess, Miss Whitaker, ends up drowning in a lake on the grounds of the house in a very mysterious way. Florence is very happy to see the back of Miss Whitaker and she can now spend her time doing what she wants to do without constant interruption until quite suddenly a new governess, Miss Taylor arrives at the house with no warning and the house staff know nothing of her arrival either. Miss Taylor is a very strange character and Florence takes an instant dislike to her and believes her intentions towards Giles are evil. One night, Florence discovers Miss Taylor in Giles' bedroom staring at him whilst he is asleep and saying out loud "I could eat you". Matters take a turn for the worse when Florence notices the image of Miss Taylor appearing to follow her through every mirror in the house, is Florence becoming paranoid or is Miss Taylor a malevolent being come to harm them both or even the spirit of the dead Miss Whitaker? The story continues to twist and turn and create a really creepy atmosphere that you just have to read to experience. The climax is unexpected, chilling and quite shocking. I enjoyed this book, sometimes I wasn't really sure where the story was going, but I think that was the whole idea of the author. A good story, creepy and atmospheric, a real winner and highly recommended!(less)

1 like · like · see review

Dec 15, 2011 Zee rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: booksread2011, gothic-horror

This was my hallowe'en read for the year, and I did get rather excited at the prospect of a 'Poe' meets 'The Turn of the Screw', but it really wasn't to be. While the concept is firmly rooted in the Gothic tradition (thanks to it being almost a re-write of the illustrious, aforementioned title by Henry James) it really does lack in the 'scare factor' that it so promises on the back cover.

This is the story of Florence and Giles, two orphaned children living with their estranged uncle in a vast,...more This was my hallowe'en read for the year, and I did get rather excited at the prospect of a 'Poe' meets 'The Turn of the Screw', but it really wasn't to be. While the concept is firmly rooted in the Gothic tradition (thanks to it being almost a re-write of the illustrious, aforementioned title by Henry James) it really does lack in the 'scare factor' that it so promises on the back cover.

This is the story of Florence and Giles, two orphaned children living with their estranged uncle in a vast, sprawling estate known as Blithe House. However, the name of the house is grossly misleading as nothing about the place is 'blithe'. It is a cold, forbidding mansion with ancient turrets and a dark history. Florence is our precocious little narrator, and guides us through the ghostly happenings of the place and the strange people who live there.

Besides her quiet, rather innocent brother (who needs protecting most of the time) there is her uncle, a pedantic odd sort of man who much to Florence's annoyance, forbids her to read. Despite her uncle's stern request Florence does read and her midnight sojourns to the crumbling library were the most enjoyable parts of the book. A bit of a childhood fantasy come true for me! Another endearing aspect to Florence's personality is her affection for Shakespeare, which she admires so much that she adopts his 'word-forgery'. As a result she develops her own take on English, splicing words together to make them seem more dramatic. In some aspects she is uncannily like her uncle, and as the novel progresses is further strengthened to suggest a far closer blood-bond.

However when it comes to the accidental death of the old governess, and the appointment of the new one, I find things get a bit tedious. I could clearly see that the new governess was supposed to be a very scary witch-like character, possibly even a revenant, and Harding almost DID pull it off in a particularly hair-raising sequence, but it was never followed up after that.

Instead there is a 'twist', in that we realise that our narrator may not be as reliable as we first thought. For me, the turn of events served to kill the story rather than improve it.

It is a good novel for gothic fiction fans, but those looking fora bit more oomph needn't bother. If you want something like Poe, read Poe. There are really no substitutes for them in my opinion, but having said that I do commend Harding for having a go at it. (less)

1 like · like · see review

May 06, 2011 Sally rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Sally by: Manuela

Shelves: 1800s, creepy

Manu recommended this to me, and brought it with her during her visit so that I could actually read it. At first I wasn't sure if I would like it, it starts off a bit slow... but then that slowness becomes cosy and kind of sucks you in, and suddenly it's all gripping and you're on the edge of your seat and SO sucked in you can't put the book down!

I haven't read The Turn of the Screw but I have seen The Innocents, though that was maybe 15 years ago and I don't remember much in any case. So to me...more

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Aug 23, 2010 Maria rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own

Florence é inteligente, solitária e amante de livros. Giles, seu meio-irmão, é ingénuo, influenciável e muito imaturo. Estas duas crianças estão sozinhas, praticamente abandonadas à sua sorte e cuidadas por criados que pouco conhecem a história da sua família.
A única ordem que os criados têm é de não ensinar Florence a ler, pedido esse feito pelo seu tutor, um tio que a criança nunca conheceu.
No entanto, a curiosidade da jovem Florence pelo conhecimento leva-a a descobrir a biblioteca existente...more

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Nov 03, 2011 Debora rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ceduti-venduti

Sinceramente, cosa c'è di peggio di un libro brutto? Semplice, un bel libro rovinato dall'inettitudine dell'autore e da una campagna pubblicitaria completamente forviante.

In genere, nelle recensioni, parto sempre dall'analisi del testo/trama per poi passare a copertina, prezzo e tutti gli altri elementi puramente fisici e collaterali. In questo caso, diversamente, partirò dall'esterno del romanzo per poi addentrarmi nella trama affinchè possiate comprendere perché giudico questo romanzo compless...more

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May 01, 2013 Hanna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I would have marked 5 stars if only for giving me a book to read myself into the way I used to when I was about 10. It brought back times when I "just had to finish" regardless of time, school, food and other trivialities and yet I was afraid to turn another page, too terrified to find out what happened.

You have to love the heroine if you ever read anything in bed hiding the flashlight so no adult interrupts. Oh it brings you to appreciate your lighted Kindle even more. The travails of the hero...more

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Jan 02, 2013 Russell Smith rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Times quote is proudly ensconced on the front page of the paperback edition of this interesting retro-Gothic attempt: "Image The Turn of the Screw reworked by Edgar Allan Poe."

The Turn of the Screw = Governess to 2 children + a blurring of what is real and what is imagined in the text.

Edgar Allan Poe pops up in some of the macabre elements. Florence actually reads a lot of Poe throughout this story. It has an effect on her repressed childhood, where reading is a forbidden activity, which sh...more

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Dec 21, 2012 Blablabla Aleatório rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nubia

Quando li sobre este livro a primeira vez, devido ao título do mesmo, pensei que o foco da história seria na relação de Florence, a protagonista, com os livros… mas, é como digo, as traduções dos títulos muitaz vezes deixam a desejar e podem nos levar à conclusões errôneas. Qual a lógica em traduzir o título original Florence and Giles para A Menina Que Não Sabia Ler? Sim, há a relação de Florence com os livros e isso de certa forma influencia a história, mas mais do que isso o livro é um romanc...more

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Sep 28, 2012 Valentina rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Se si guardasse un libro a partire dalla copertina o dalla sinossi, questo libro sarebbe perfetto: con un certo richiamo ai classici, una storia che potrebbe essere benissimo stata scritta da un grande autore. Ma non è il caso de "La biblioteca dei libri proibiti".
Lo stile è accattivante, devo ammetterlo, ma poco realistico. Ci sono molte questioni irrisolte ed incomprensibili per il lettore, ad esempio non si riesce ad intendere come una bambina di dodici anni non istruita possa imparare a leg...more Se si guardasse un libro a partire dalla copertina o dalla sinossi, questo libro sarebbe perfetto: con un certo richiamo ai classici, una storia che potrebbe essere benissimo stata scritta da un grande autore. Ma non è il caso de "La biblioteca dei libri proibiti".
Lo stile è accattivante, devo ammetterlo, ma poco realistico. Ci sono molte questioni irrisolte ed incomprensibili per il lettore, ad esempio non si riesce ad intendere come una bambina di dodici anni non istruita possa imparare a leggere e a scrivere dall'oggi al domani senza che alcuno la segua insegnandole grammatica e grafia. Questo l'autore lo schiva sapientemente aggirando l'ostacolo, e buttando qua e là neologismi che disturbano la fluidità della narrazione e la rendono fastidiosa.
I protagonisti della storia sono in realtà due bambini, Florence (che inoltre è l'io narrante) e Giles, che vivono a Blithe in casa del loro zio sempre assente, insieme alla loro governante. Florence ha un'istruzione fai da te, visto che lo zio ritiene che le donne non debbano studiare, perché questo comporta che diventino autonome nel pensiero e abbiano potere decisionale sulla propria vita, mentre Giles può andare in collegio, ma per il suo animo docile e fragile viene preso di mira dai bulli, costringendo la famiglia ad un’istruzione casalinga. Giunge così a Blithe Miss Whitacker, un’istitutrice la cui storia viene liquidata esattamente in un capitolo, con una fine non proprio gloriosa, poi sostituita da un’inquietante Miss Taylor, sulla quale Florence tesserà una trama di terribili intenti.
Nonostante questo piccolo specchio della trama che potrebbe sembrare interessante, il volume risulta ridondante, eccessivamente pretenzioso e poco realistico. L’autore è rimasto sospeso tra la volontà di emulare i grandi della letteratura, senza però riuscirci, a discapito di una trama che avrebbe potuto essere davvero interessante, e la spinta verso il genere gotico che, purtroppo, non riesce proprio a far suo. Il risultato è un libro molto interessante nei capitoli centrali, in corrispondenza con una momentanea rinuncia dell’io narrante all’utilizzo di termini strani. Inoltre manca di suspense, visto che il lettore apprende il finale prima che questo vada a compimento. Anche nel finale, d’altro canto, l’autore lascia afferrare al lettore qualcosa che già era chiaro da metà libro e che, tuttavia, non svela.
Non volendo dilungarmi oltre, credo che un punto a parte vada fatto per il titolo, poiché ritengo sia davvero poco consono al libro, in quanto la storia non verte su un’impossibilità di Florence di accedere alla biblioteca, o almeno così è all’inizio, ma poi la biblioteca non ha più importanza ai fini della storia. Sarebbe stato più coerente lasciare il titolo originale (“Florence & Giles”), anche se risulta comunque non idoneo.
Che dire… mi sarei aspettata di meglio da qualcuno che veniva accumunato stilisticamente ad Harry James.(less)

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Jan 11, 2012 Fini rated it 5 of 5 stars

A very intriguing and chilling novel! This is totally new to me and I love every part of it.

While reading this, a lot of questions nagged me at the back of my mind which leads to many disturbing speculations. At first I really thought that Florence's actions and reactions towards all the events around her are purely driven by her protective instinct for her little brother. However, her overprotectiveness has a suspicious edge to it up until a point where I have already doubted her true intenti...more

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Nov 07, 2011 ––––•(-•The Insomniac Book Hoarder•- rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: library-borrowed-list

The story is narrated by a 12 year old closeted bibliophile named Florence. We see; feel and take in everything from Florence's perspective. She is intelligent, imaginative, intuitive and above all, a loyal caretaker of her brother Giles- a sister who would do anything for the security and health of her brother.

The events starts out slow, somehow establishing the basic descriptions of Florence's surroundings as well as her relationships with others. It was later on that I realised and begin to...more

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Sep 13, 2011 Lya06 added it · review of another edition

Qui la recensione completa: http://bookland89.blogspot.com/2011/0...

La protagonista del romanzo, Florence, è un’orfana che vive con il suo fratellastro ,Gils, e la servitú in una grande ed antica casa, isolata dal mondo, il cui unico passatempo è leggere tutto quello che le capita in mano nella grande biblioteca scoperta casualmente, in uno dei giochi quotidiani con il fratello.
Mentre tutte le altre ragazze della sua età , spinte dai genitori, venivano istruite, a Florence è capitata la sfortun...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Nesa Sivagnanam rated it 5 of 5 stars

The narrator is 12-year-old Florence. At the start of the novel, Florence lives a life of solitary contentment. Her brother is away at school, her guardian is in New York, and there is an indulgent housekeeper, Mrs Grouse. Florence spends most of her time in the library or an abandoned tower of the house where she creates her own small and secure world. Her only friend is Theo Van Hoosier, a boy from a nearby estate.

This world is threatened when Giles returns home and a new governess, Miss Taylo...more

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Dec 04, 2010 Jane rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: borrowed

Florence and Giles?

Now doesn’t that sound like Flora and Miles?

Is it a coincidence, or are the two pairs of names connected?

Well no, it isn’t a coincidence. And yes, the names are connected. But not as you may think.

If one is a true story then the other would be a variation on that story far from the truth as it has been told, misheard, distorted, embellished so many times.

Or, I like to think, neither is a whole truth. Both are distortions of another story that has never been told.

John Harding’s...more

4 likes · like · see review

Mar 24, 2013 Donna rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, kindle-read

This book is set in 1891, and is about two children sent to live in their uncle's house when they are orphaned. The uncle does not live in the house however, so they are looked after by the household staff. The boy, Giles, is sent away to school but returns after a term or so due to his delicate nature and the fact he is being bullied, but this means that a governess has to be employed to school him. The older girl, Florence, receives no education but sneakily teaches herself to read in the hous...more

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Jan 30, 2011 Nilo Di Stefano rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Traduzione perfetta ma libro anonimo
Prima di qualsiasi pensiero sul romanzo, vanno fatti i complimenti al traduttore il cui lavoro non deve essere stato affatto facile vista la quantità di verbi e avverbi inventati del tipo "blibliotecare" o "rapelonzolare". Nonostante questa ottima traduzione il libro risulta anonimo. Non bastano le buone intuizioni, il racconto scorre a singhiozzo con fiammate improvvise e frenate eccessive. Trama e ambientazioni sono al limite della superficialità. La locatio...more

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Oct 24, 2012 Valentina rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a wonderful gothic novel, with all the requisite atmosphere and mystery, and with a protagonist who is wholly original.
I adore gothic novels and unreliable narrators and, in this book, we get both. The mood takes over the reader from the very beginning, weaving its spell until we are right there in the 1890s. Florence, our protagonist is a fabulous creation, with a vocabulary all her own and a way of narrating that makes for really fun reading. At first, her sentence structure was a bit...more

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Nov 08, 2011 Victoria Watson rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's 1891 and Florence is neglected by her guardian uncle. She's left in a decrepit New England mansion, miles from anywhere, and is banned from reading. Left alone in the house with her younger brother Giles and a group of servants, Florence teaches herself to read against her uncle's wishes and talks to herself. During the night, Florence sleepwalks and is worried about a dream in which Giles is threatened. Sometimes, Florence fakes her sleepwalking in order to find more out about her shadowy...more

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May 01, 2012 Nikki rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

This was the first gothic novel I'd read and was so excited when I started reading; I'd found a whole new genre that I loved! The rich setting and character description set the scene for a disturbing and eerie story. You feel Florence's isolation and understand, even if not fully accept her actions. Her nighttime adventures were gripping and tense. I would say it was a five star book until about two thirds of the way through.

However, the ending completely let the book down. Too many questions we...more

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Oct 13, 2012 Rhiannon rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: gothic

I really liked this! Florence's narration was really engaging and I rather enjoyed that there were things which went unexlained, or were just hinted at throughout the book (I was reading this on a night shift so I'm sure there are a few bits which I missed/skimmed). I thought the ending was a little bit rushed, but otherwise it was a superb read.

1 like · like · see review

Aug 08, 2010 Mandy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-lit, weird-but-i-liked-it

I loved this book! It was fast-paced, suspenseful and definitely creepy. I was holding my breath along with Florence at times!

Florence had such a unique style of narration. At first I did think that it was a little annoying/confusing, but after awhile I got into it; it didn't bother me at all, and I could easily understand what she was talking about.

I loved the way that Florence handled things on her own, there were no adults around that she could totally rely on (or convince to believe her stor...more

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May 16, 2010 Teresa rated it 5 of 5 stars

I gave up smoking on 8th December 2008 and I must admit that I occasionally miss that nicotine kick but every now and then a great book comes along which replicates that surge to the brain! Indeed, Florence and Giles is such a book - I heard about it by chance via Twitter, saw the cover, heard the words gothic, Henry James, Poe and I was off like a shot.

Imagine, if you will, an old mansion in New England. It is 1891 and Blithe House's sole inhabitants are young orphans, 12 year old Florence and...more I gave up smoking on 8th December 2008 and I must admit that I occasionally miss that nicotine kick but every now and then a great book comes along which replicates that surge to the brain! Indeed, Florence and Giles is such a book - I heard about it by chance via Twitter, saw the cover, heard the words gothic, Henry James, Poe and I was off like a shot.

Imagine, if you will, an old mansion in New England. It is 1891 and Blithe House's sole inhabitants are young orphans, 12 year old Florence and her younger brother Giles plus the small group of servants entrusted by their absentee uncle to look after them - an uncle who adds insult to injury by insisting that Florence is kept illiterate whilst her brother Giles is sent off to boarding school - well, we all know how females who read too much ended up in lunatic asylums until relatively recently! Fortunately Florence succeeds in teaching herself to read and, when Giles returns from an unsuccessful sojourn at boarding school, she greedily sucks up the crumbs of learning provided by the governesses enlisted to home tutor him. The feisty Florence narrates this chilling tale including the coming and goings of not one, but two governesses.

So far, so Henry James, you may very well think - swap Flora and Miles from The Turn of the Screw for Florence and Giles here, Bly House for Blithe House, Mrs Grose for Mrs Grouse etc etc - but you don't have to have read The Turn of the Screw to fully appreciate Florence and Giles. Whilst it indubitably pays homage to James, this clever, gothic chiller has its own distinct merits. First and foremost of these is Florence's idiosyncratic use of language as she transposes verbs with nouns and vice versa - you need a taster to demonstrate, look at this wonderful description of the neglected library -

"No maid ever ventures here; the floors are left unbroomed, for unfootfalled as they are, what would be the point? The shelves go unfingerprinted, the wheeled ladders to the upper ones unmoved, the books upon them yearning for an opening, the whole place a dustery of disregard."

Now, I have a distinct feeling that you will either love Florence or hate her and as she is the narrator, your liking or disliking of her peculiar turn of phrase will make or break this novel for you.

As the tale progresses, events take an even more sinister turn and the arrival of a new governess, Miss Taylor, following the unfortunate demise of her predecessor, Miss Whitaker, seems to unleash malevolent forces which propel the reader along with the characters towards an inevitably calamitous ending. Don't expect subtlety but also, don't expect predictability and be on your guard - who knows what's around the corner in this macabre realm?

I would be very surprised if this doesn't make it into my Top Ten Reads for this year - who needs nicotine, eh??? ;-)
(less)

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Apr 03, 2013 Cecily rated it 3 of 5 stars

Yes, it was the cover got me. Confusingly to us Europeans who know there are no actual rooks in New England, those are the only corvids mentioned in the book (presumably it's dialect adaptation to a lack of the Old World fauna, like calling turkey vultures "buzzards", and the crow depicted is what's being referred to). Anyway, this is pretty hilarious, and much better and more logical than the average "children dealing with dangers the adults don't believe" story.

Florence is a smart if intermitt...more

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Apr 06, 2013 Morganna The Hungry Wolf rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Fate così. Togliete la sovracoperta al libro, qualche giorno prima di cominciarlo, se possibile settimane prima.
Dimenticatevi come era la copertina (mi sono permessa di omettervela), quale era la traduzione del titolo in italiano (vi basti ricordarvi Florence and Giles) e cosa dicevano i commenti, sia quelli esterni che quelli del risvolto interno. Dimenticatevi anche la trama. Letto in questo modo Florence e Giles è un libro gradevolissimo, altrimenti, fidandovi di quel che è "l'involucro" rima...more Fate così. Togliete la sovracoperta al libro, qualche giorno prima di cominciarlo, se possibile settimane prima.
Dimenticatevi come era la copertina (mi sono permessa di omettervela), quale era la traduzione del titolo in italiano (vi basti ricordarvi Florence and Giles) e cosa dicevano i commenti, sia quelli esterni che quelli del risvolto interno. Dimenticatevi anche la trama. Letto in questo modo Florence e Giles è un libro gradevolissimo, altrimenti, fidandovi di quel che è "l'involucro" rimarrete amaramente delusi perché niente di quello che voi vi aspettereste dalle premesse date al lettore italiano effettivamente corrisponde al contenuto.
Questo è un libro che risulterà immediatamente familiare a chi è appassionato di romanzo ottocentesco e gotico. Perché i cliché di questa tipo narrativo ci sono. Tutti quanti.
A cominciare dai bambini orfani ed ignari dei genitori abbandonati e liberi in una grande magione,mantenuti dallo zio ricco ma assente e ambivalente, che nessuno ha visto e che tiene anche la poca servitù - stupidotta ma fedele- nel mistero, la bambinaia ambigua, due bambinaie in realtà (la prima muore misteriosamente e dove se non nel lago) i fantasmi, la torre, i corvi, la neve, l'amicizia-quasi-amore con il bambino vicino di casa, che guardaunpò è malato, la biblioteca ed il divieto di leggere e la passione però smodata per la lettura, il giardino, il sonnabulismo, il rimorso, i divieti, i segreti, le foto con le teste tagliate... davvero quanti romanzi vi sono venuti in mente leggendo questi pochi spunti? Jane Eyre, Il giardino segreto, Cime Tempestose, Il corvo, I misteri di Udolpho, Il giro di vite... Potrei andare avanti collegamento su collegamento. E devo dire che è stato bello e piacevole immergersi in questa storia. Ma dovete, come già premesso, scordarvi cosa vi era stato promesso per godervi a pieno quello che vi è stato dato.
Florence and Giles è effettivamente un romanzo gotico, e, fra tutti i richiami alla letteratura gotica/ottocentesca (che l'autore deve per forza conoscere bene, visto i rimandi anche di piccoli dettagli) forse il più palese è proprio al Giro di vite di Henry James, che a sua volta si rimandava agli autori suoi precedenti.
La vicenda della istitutrice contattata "al buio" da un uomo "che non si deve disturbare" per accudire dei fratelli, un maschio ed una femmina (ed il maschio tornato a casa da scuola) in una grande casa rurale, dopo la morte misteriosa della prima istitutrice e che da lì si apra una storia di segreti e fantasmi ci è nota.
La storia ci viene raccontata però, in questo caso, da una bambina, Florence, e non mancano nella sua narrazione parole nuove da lei inventate, questa cosa ha dato fastidio a qualche lettore, ma superate le prime pagine non si ci fa più caso ed anzi la cosa diventa piacevole (vabbé, lo ammetto, anche io inventavo ed invento un sacco di parole nuove...) perché, se non altro, sono molto evocative. Flo è pervicacemente legata al fratellino Giles (la maggiore è lei - a differenza dal Giro di vite) nonostante abbiano due madri diverse, e vuole difendere in maniera ostinata e quasi morbosa il loro equilibrio all'interno della magione. Flo non vuole crescere, è arrogante, presuntuosa ed acculturata nonostante abbia ricevuto il divieto di leggere. A tratti ci appare proprio capricciosa ed antipatica, con il suo continuo sfoggio di saperi misti ad offese verso gli altri ed alla saccenza verso il fratellino e Theo (il vicino di casa, ragazzino), però la comprendiamo, perché è infinitamente terrorizzata e sola, e si aggrappa a quel poco che ha. Il fratello, i libri. Non ha niente in più Florence. Ed anche se al lettore resterà sempre il dubbio su quali siano le verità (non ci verranno dette) di ciò che è accaduto, è certo che la nostra piccola protagonista, resa molto bene dall'autore, sprofonda sempre più nel terrore che le cose possano cambiare... e vi si aggrappa.
Una piccola notazione, il fratello di Henry James, William era un bravo psicologo dell'infanzia, e sicuramente Harding ha voluto, in questa sorta di riscrittura del suo racconto, pagare un tributo anche a questo aspetto.
Dubito che Florence e Giles sia un libro adatto a tutti, ed infatti pur essendo spaparazzato abbastanza ha anche recensioni poco entusiaste, proprio perché fa presa infatti sul gotico e sulla sottile psicologia dell'ambiguo che ci sta sotto piuttosto che sugli eventi o sulle rivelazioni e colpi di scena del romanzo moderno, ma per me è stato come una bella cioccolata, che sai che sapore ha, ma ne vai pazza lo stesso!(less)

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May 13, 2012 Chris rated it 2 of 5 stars

...Seriously?!...

I picked this one up b/c it was on my "recommended" list and the description sounded like it would be fun. Not so much. one of the big selling points for me was Florence's secret language, a concept that I have always found intriguing. Possibly I was expecting something more like the Mitfords' Boudledidge or the aphasic twin-talk from the movie "Nell". However, the narrator -Florence- simply doesn't speak properly, using words like `unbroomed' instead. This became twee before I...more

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Aug 20, 2012 Aditi rated it 3 of 5 stars

The Times wrote of the book, “it has real atmosphere in spades” and while that is certainly true, sometimes the story line takes a back seat to the “atmosphere”. Gothic novels leave much to the imagination and interpretation which is one of the best things about them, but not everything can be left suspended in some sort of dark limbo. Is the malevolent threat represented by the new governess real or the sinister and dramatic imaginings of a disturbed mind? Who are we really meant to fear? Defin...more

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Jun 21, 2011 Yongling rated it 4 of 5 stars

I finished Florence and Giles on one of my work trips. Florence, the protagonist was a 12-year-old child living in a mansion with her younger stepbrother, both orphaned with only the house staff for company.

The author spent quite some time building up the story momentum and drawing us to bond with Florence through her narratives of her daily life. The ending was a surprising twist of events. It was indeed chilling.

Made me wonder about how we each have our own perspectives and at times may becom...more

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Apr 26, 2012 Camilla rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ho letto questo libro tutto d'un fiato, mi ha subito colpito ed era da parecchio che non mi succedeva.
So che il titolo originale è un semplicissimo "Florence and Giles" mentre quello italiano può benissimo trarre in inganno, ed in effetti è così. Ci si aspetta chissà quali avventure in questa biblioteca, chissà quali libri contiene... e niente, la biblioteca ha un certo ruolo solo nella prima parte, poi di proibito c'è ben poco.
Proprio nella seconda parte le vicende si fanno interessanti (prima...more

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“But, Mrs Van Hoosier, if I may make so bold-'

'You may not,' She inserted another cake into her mouth and chewed it so angrily I all but felt sorry for it. When it was finally dead she turned and fixed me a look, as though she were a scientist and I some kind of bug she was microscoping.” — 1 person liked it

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