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The Image and the Dream
paperbound historical romance
412 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1980
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 11, 2019
If you're considering this book, be aware of some important caveats:
1) It contains plot elements that squick many modern readers, i.e. child marriage, loveless/unbalanced marriage, & a bitter, vindictive heroine.
2) There's no HEA. Lots of death happens.
3) It's not a romance, even by bodice-shredding standards. Instead it's about Marie's life & her mission for revenge & how she succeeds against (or softens toward) those who wronged her. And she does succeed, but not without mercenary marriage & a conspicuous lack of maternal instinct. If that breed of MC bothers you, don't bother with this one.
4) Adultery & prostitution are prominent themes. Also, some girls were married or turned into "professionals" around 13 yrs old. We consider it gross today, but this was an unpleasant truth up until the 19th-20th centuries. SORRY. Deal with it.
The first 75% was brilliant, & I was prepared to bust out an ultra-rare 5 star rating (yeah, I'm a tough grader)...but the final section was a mess. Everything was rushed as years & years & years sped along like newspaper reels in old-timey movies, & the next generation -- while interesting in & of themselves -- was blasted through with no real goal except to kill people off. It felt like the author was caught between formats; either she should've cropped away most all of the last quarter & kept things tightly focused on Marie, or she should've gone full throttle with an 800-pg family saga doorstopper.
Overall, though, I still enjoyed it. The MCs were all rounded & interesting (though Edmund was a milksop who needed an asskicking :P), particularly Marie & her madam/mentor Céline. Céline recognizes & polishes Marie's practicality, rough edges, & bitchitude into finely-hewn tools for survival, though she still makes some unwise choices due to inexperience. But IMO there aren't enough historical heroines who recognize the importance of life's material necessities, particularly in an era when women were considered little more than chattel. Most modern HR doesn't want to deal with that issue because it "offends" contemporary eyes, but it's a sad fact -- plenty of past-era women (or girls) would have jumped at Marie's opportunity.
1) It contains plot elements that squick many modern readers, i.e. child marriage, loveless/unbalanced marriage, & a bitter, vindictive heroine.
2) There's no HEA. Lots of death happens.
3) It's not a romance, even by bodice-shredding standards. Instead it's about Marie's life & her mission for revenge & how she succeeds against (or softens toward) those who wronged her. And she does succeed, but not without mercenary marriage & a conspicuous lack of maternal instinct. If that breed of MC bothers you, don't bother with this one.
4) Adultery & prostitution are prominent themes. Also, some girls were married or turned into "professionals" around 13 yrs old. We consider it gross today, but this was an unpleasant truth up until the 19th-20th centuries. SORRY. Deal with it.
The first 75% was brilliant, & I was prepared to bust out an ultra-rare 5 star rating (yeah, I'm a tough grader)...but the final section was a mess. Everything was rushed as years & years & years sped along like newspaper reels in old-timey movies, & the next generation -- while interesting in & of themselves -- was blasted through with no real goal except to kill people off. It felt like the author was caught between formats; either she should've cropped away most all of the last quarter & kept things tightly focused on Marie, or she should've gone full throttle with an 800-pg family saga doorstopper.
Overall, though, I still enjoyed it. The MCs were all rounded & interesting (though Edmund was a milksop who needed an asskicking :P), particularly Marie & her madam/mentor Céline. Céline recognizes & polishes Marie's practicality, rough edges, & bitchitude into finely-hewn tools for survival, though she still makes some unwise choices due to inexperience. But IMO there aren't enough historical heroines who recognize the importance of life's material necessities, particularly in an era when women were considered little more than chattel. Most modern HR doesn't want to deal with that issue because it "offends" contemporary eyes, but it's a sad fact -- plenty of past-era women (or girls) would have jumped at Marie's opportunity.
October 11, 2014
it was ok
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews