Uninspired historical fiction verging on farce.
The ups and downs of a bold courtesan in Impressionist-era Paris.
In her debut, Finerman melds two historical figures into Victorine Laurent, whose loveless upbringing in the rough care of two aunts in Alsace leads to her being sold at age 13 to the first of a series of male ‘protectors’ in Paris. But all changes in 1862 when Victorine, now 17 and gorgeous, is spotted by the artist Edouard Manet. Soon she is Manet’s muse and the subject of his scandalous modern paintings, but also attracting a much better class of protector, like Baron de Rothschild. Victorine is tough and has no illusions about men, yet she falls in love with promiscuous Manet, and chooses not to sleep with him so he will never tire of her. Ruined after the scandalous exhibition of her nude portrait, she makes an even more successful comeback, attracting the Duke de Lyon, who is close to Emperor Napoleon III and rich enough to give her a mansion and a trust fund. But de Lyon has strict expectations—that she cease posing for Manet, and take on some female espionage work involving Count von Bismarck. Victorine disobeys the former but tolerates the latter—which includes being loaned to the Emperor as well. However, she has made a formidable enemy in the form of Empress Eugenie, who arranges for Victorine’s arrest on charges of treason. Manet helps save her and later stands by her when she falls pregnant by de Lyon, who won’t support her. War, the blockade of Paris and the Commune pass in a flash, and finally Victorine, her son and Manet can frolic together at Deauville.
Uninspired historical fiction verging on farce.Pub Date: July 24, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-307-35283-5
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Three Rivers/Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2007
Well-meant but not very well-written family saga.
A best-selling thriller author turns to down-home melodrama—with mixed results at best.
Louisa May Cardinal (Lou) is only 12 when she and her brother Oz survive a car crash that kills their beloved father and leaves their mother Amanda mute and partially paralyzed. Kindly Great-grandmother Louisa insists that all three come back to the Appalachian homestead that has sheltered so many generations of their poor but honest clan—and they do, having nowhere else to go. The children, who grew up in New York, are bewildered by the strangeness of it all, while a family friend and lawyer, Cotton Longfellow, helps out whenever he can. He patiently reads aloud to the barely responsive Amanda and explains country customs to Lou and Oz. But soon the venerable Louisa suffers a devastating stroke—just as a local schemer comes up with a plot to sell her land to the powerful coal company that has ravaged the beauty of the mountains and left its supposed beneficiaries with nothing but black lung disease, crippling debt, and the certainty of early death. The saintly Cotton battles in court on Louisa’s behalf, but the jury finds for the coal company since the stricken matriarch can’t speak in order to tell her side of the story. All seems lost with Louisa’s death, but—with a snap of the fingers—the silent Amanda springs back into full consciousness and the villains are foiled. Political thrillers may be his strength, but Baldacci (Saving Faith, 1999, etc.) here is somewhere between middling and graceless. Drawing on his own rural Virginia heritage, he attempts various styles—backwoods dialect, homespun philosophizing, small-town courtroom theatrics—but his tin ear for dialogue and cloudy eye for metaphor stand in the way of success.
Well-meant but not very well-written family saga.Pub Date: Oct. 24, 2000
ISBN: 0-446-52716-5
Page Count: 368
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2000
Carefully researched and meticulously crafted historical fiction fused with ho-hum horror.
Demons both literal and figurative torment a Titanic stewardess in this supernatural-tinged suspense novel.
After scandal causes 18-year-old Annie Hebbley to flee her family’s home in Northern Ireland, she decamps to Southampton, England, and takes a job aboard the Titanic. The ship contains every imaginable luxury, but when an otherworldly voice nearly lures the Astors’ young servant over the railing, Annie and several others become convinced that the vessel also harbors evil spirits. Four years later, in 1916, Annie is at Morninggate Asylum, convalescing from a head injury sustained in the Titanic’s sinking, when she receives a letter from fellow former White Star Line employee Violet Jessop. Now a nurse, Violet is about to set sail on the Britannic—a hospital ship that is the Titanic’s twin—and she wants Annie to join her. Annie has misgivings, but her doctor strongly endorses the plan, so despite having no medical training, she signs on. The hope is that the experience will help Annie heal; instead, it unearths painful memories that provide shocking clarity regarding what actually transpired during the Titanic’s fateful crossing. Atmospheric prose and exquisite attention to detail distinguish Katsu’s follow-up to The Hunger (2018). Regrettably, though, while crosscuts between the voyages add tension and a kaleidoscopic narrative adds color and depth, the book ultimately founders beneath the weight of glacial pacing, paltry plotting, and sketchily conceived paranormal elements.
Carefully researched and meticulously crafted historical fiction fused with ho-hum horror.Pub Date: March 10, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-525-53790-8
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Dec. 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2020
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