The Woman in White in Reading the Chunksters

Mar 19, 2014 Cindy Newton rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-books, b-n-classic, to-read-in-2016

I want to say upfront that I am a fan of Victorian writing. Wordy, in the right hands, works for me. And Wilkie Collins and Charles Dickens have the right hands! Their words unfurl like the petals of a flower, and at the heart you are presented with a gem: an exquisite observation about humanity, or a marvelous witticism. They were true wordsmiths, and I would hotly contest any need to "edit" their works.

Once we passed the exposition and started climbing plot graph mountain toward the climax, I I want to say upfront that I am a fan of Victorian writing. Wordy, in the right hands, works for me. And Wilkie Collins and Charles Dickens have the right hands! Their words unfurl like the petals of a flower, and at the heart you are presented with a gem: an exquisite observation about humanity, or a marvelous witticism. They were true wordsmiths, and I would hotly contest any need to "edit" their works.

Once we passed the exposition and started climbing plot graph mountain toward the climax, I was hooked. This is the second Collins' I have read, and both times I experienced moments when I feared that the plot was going to devolve into simple Gothic melodrama, laughable by our modern standards of mystery. Each time, I was wrong. Sure, the dated nature of the novel is evident in the behavior of some of the characters. They are so innocent--and by innocent, I mean gullible! They are so trusting, and accept everyone at their word; but then, what choice did they really have? How would you go about checking someone's credentials back then, especially on a moment's notice? There were times, though, when I did roll my eyes--the villain assures a character that he is nice, so the character smiles and relaxes. Surely he must be nice if he says he is! This happens several times. Also, a character discovers, through a slip by the villain, that vital evidence is hidden in a location, and the character retires to the inn for the night, planning to search the location the next day. I want to yell, "Go there tonight! Don't give them time to retrieve the information before you!" Of course, he doesn't listen to me. Aside from these few flaws, I found the plot line intriguing and unpredictable.

There are two unforgettable characters--Count Fosco and Marian Holcombe, or "the magnificent Marian," as the Count refers to her. This is one point on which the Count and I agree. Intelligent, resourceful, courageous, quick-witted--she is a force to be reckoned with. Despite all this and a rocking hot bod, she is plain (ugly is the word that is used), so apparently matrimony is out of the question. Victorian men are not too bright, evidently. Marian is content to devote her life to her younger sister, Laura, who is the antithesis of her sister: one of those pallid, trembly, whispery creatures who flinches at every noise and never has an original thought. She is, however, quite pretty. When the attractive young drawing master arrives at Limmeridge, guess who he falls in love with? Of course, Laura never does or says anything to merit this, while Marian is being charming and vivacious all over the place. I was afraid, for awhile, that Laura was the Collins equivalent of Lucie Manette, and she would be weeping and fainting for the entirety of the book. In the middle of the book, she does grow a backbone and actually defies her husband several times. Later, however, (view spoiler) I guess the flower of womanhood were really like flowers back then--delicate hothouse flowers.

This is where I really had a problem with Walter. (view spoiler)

Count Fosco is a superb villain--witty, urbane, and keenly intelligent. He alone has the great good sense to recognize the "sublime" qualities of "the magnificent Marian." This alone endears him to me. He is ruthless and self-serving, but immensely likable, all the same. Underneath his charm, he has the soul of a cobra. The cobra has a weakness, though, and it is his admiration for Marion. Despite the fact that he knows what a formidable opponent she is and that she could actually succeed in foiling his plans, he cannot bring himself to allow any harm to come to her. (view spoiler) Dickens is famed for his memorable characters, but with these two characters, Collins has created two people--complex individuals who will remain with his readers long after they have finished the book.

All in all, this is an engrossing read with some superbly drawn characters. I highly recommend for anyone who doesn't turn pale and tremble like a Victorian heroine at the sight of a book over 300 pages!

*** 12/04/17 Update ***
Just finished leading a group discussion over this book with the Victorians. It was so much fun! I greatly enjoyed sharing the reading experience with my group. This second reading didn't really change any of my previous opinions, but rather, reinforced them. I still have a fondness for Count Fosco and still think Walter is a schmuck for not choosing Marian over Laura, but it remains a great read! ...more

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Aug 11, 2008 MichelleCH rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, 1001, mystery, suspense, group-reads, victorian, favorites, listening-to-the-audio-version, kindle

Ok. Amazing.

I must confess that initially I had thought that this would be a ghost story. The title is very mysterious and the cover made the woman in white appear ethereal. Generally I try to not read too much about a book before I begin. I like to just let it unfold as I read.

Anyway, despite my initial misconception, I loved this book. It had a great build-up, amazing characterizations, and the "just right" ending.

It is told in pieces from varying viewpoints which give it the flavor of indiv Ok. Amazing.

I must confess that initially I had thought that this would be a ghost story. The title is very mysterious and the cover made the woman in white appear ethereal. Generally I try to not read too much about a book before I begin. I like to just let it unfold as I read.

Anyway, despite my initial misconception, I loved this book. It had a great build-up, amazing characterizations, and the "just right" ending.

It is told in pieces from varying viewpoints which give it the flavor of individual perception. As in real life we all 'think' we know what we saw but is it really what occured? I enjoyed being in the shoes of different observers as I tried to piece together what was happening. Also, I must say that when I read a passage written in the diary of one of the main characters by an outide person, I got tremendous goosebumps.

The novel begins with an art teacher, Walter Hartright who comes to the home of a Ms. Fairlie to instruct her in drawing techniques. This Ms. Fairlie is pretty darn fair so there is love in the air; but unfortunately she is to be wed to a Sir Percival. Her half-sister Marian is there to watch the flame between the two grow but advises that the proper course must be taken and Mr. Hartright is soon sent on his way. After his departure things become complicated. Sir Percival is too good to be true and has some Jerry Springerish things lurking in his closet. Hartright goes into the deepest darkest locations to try and forget his true love and we meet one of the best characters ever, Count Fosco.

For the longest time I couldn't tell if Fosco was the good or bad guy. But that in my opinion is what makes a good story. Fosco was such an oxymoron and very complex. He truly made most of the story and it was a worthwhile endeavor getting to know him.

I love how Collins sneaks in bits that are subtle but say a whole heck of a lot. I don't need everything spelled out for me and I enjoy a writer who can trust his readers to interpret as they wish.

Another observation is how delicate women were percieved to be at the time. The smallest emotional discomfort could set your health back for weeks. Thankfully Marian, for the most part, broke that mold. She was strong and smart!

Collins is the master of mystery in this book. I read the book and also listened to it on Librovox. This is the first time I have tried this approach with a book and I must say that it really worked in terms of getting a more complete experience of Collin's writing. A great experience and I enjoyed every page. ...more

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Sep 05, 2012 Alana rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, foreign-culture, classics, thriller-horror, boxall-s-1001-books

October 2017
I enjoyed this re-read just as much as the first time through. This time I listened to a professional recording instead of Librivox, but the content, of course, is the same. Most of the characters are somewhat dynamic, although not the primary ones (Hartright and Laura, in particular, are very boring), but rather Marion and the villains and their cohorts.

While Collins' treatment of women is probably the standard of the time, it's still grating to modern sensibilities (so frustrating October 2017
I enjoyed this re-read just as much as the first time through. This time I listened to a professional recording instead of Librivox, but the content, of course, is the same. Most of the characters are somewhat dynamic, although not the primary ones (Hartright and Laura, in particular, are very boring), but rather Marion and the villains and their cohorts.

While Collins' treatment of women is probably the standard of the time, it's still grating to modern sensibilities (so frustrating to hear the phrase "only a woman" on multiple occasions, many of them actually uttered by a woman) to see them as more or less helpless creatures at the whim of the influential (or not, in the case of Mr. Fairlie) in their lives.

The conspiracy and the hunting down of the mysteries and evidence move along at a good pace and despite the novel's several hundred pages, the story never lagged for me. I will probably re-read it again at some point.

4/5 for fun, (the minus one being for lack of realistic circumstances and for a few undeveloped characters).

October 2012

I listened to this novel via Librovox. Most of the narration was good, although some of the tracks did not have as good of audio quality and it was not edited as well as other recordings I have heard. Nevertheless, the narrators did a good job on each of their characters. I particularly enjoyed Mr. Fairlie's section, as it was as dry and pathetic as I imagine him to be.

I knew nothing about this story when I started and was very pleasantly surprised at how much of a thriller/mystery/suspense it turned out to be. The danger elements were potent and the mystery intriguing throughout. I truly did not know how Mr. Hartwright was going to work it out all out in the end.

The narrative style, with each characters' perspective, was interesting, never being sure how accurate the memory or presentation of each person was. Interestingly, we never hear a first person account of the supposed heroine in the novel, Laura. We only learn about her through others. We also never hear from Ann. Arguably, though, the real heroine, who does much more planning and implementing than Laura, is her sister Marian, and we DO hear from her throughout a large portion of the story.

The novel is wordy at times, but it does not feel like it is bogging down the storyline, as in some of Dickens' works. It's a complex mystery that carries those elements of fear anyone can relate to: what if everyone thought I was crazy but I would only look crazy if I tried to prove otherwise?

5/5 ...more

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Jun 01, 2011 Nina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: united-kingdom, chunksters, favourites, bbc-book-challenge, victoriana-and-regency

Oh, how to review this, how to review this…

My copy of this book (thanks, Lisa!) is 619 pages long. It did’t feel that long. Collins grabbed my attention right from the get-go (the midnight meeting between Hartright and the woman in white – great!) and held it right until the very end. The plot is rich and layered and masterfully constructed, and the change of narrators funcions really well – it often feels as if you are reading evidences by witnesses in a courtroom (of course intentionally on Co ...more

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Sep 20, 2011 Ellen Librarian rated it really liked it

I thought this would be some long, gothic ghost story but it's more like a Victorian detective novel. Unlike most Victorian novels, this one has no long, boring parts. There's always something of interest going on, always a new twist or turn.

I did get a little lost on the details as I read this book over a very long period of time but it almost doesn't matter. ...more

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