Sarah Waters sure does love her some old timey lesbians and the English class system.
Frances Wray is a sourish spinster who had dreams, but those dreams were dashed by WWI, the death of both of her brothers and her father. When her father dies, Frances and her mother learn the true state of affairs of the family finances and they're not good. Poor and servantless, it's now Frances' duty to keep up a home and care for her mother as well. In order to stave off their creditors and complete humiliation they turn a suite of rooms into guest lodgings. Enter Lillian and Leonard Barber.
The Barbers are of the clerk class, if that's not bad enough they've had elocution lessons own tacky furniture and oh the tchotchkes, so many ugly tchotchkes! Leonard's a lech and a creep and Lillian dresses like a carefree spirited gypsy in colorful dresses but deep down she's sad gypsy in colorful dresses. They couldn't be more different from Frances and her mother.
Frances becomes fascinated with Lillian and the more she gets to know Leonard the more creeped out she gets by him. Frances and Lillian fall in love and carry on an affair underneath Mrs. Wray and Leonard's noses and when Leonard finds out tragedy strikes and it will change everything, including the new dreams Frances has made for herself.
This book is too long, just like Tipping the Velvet but at least it's not the hot wet sticky mess that Tipping the Velvet was. There wasn't one likable character in the whole book, wait I take that back, Frances' neighbor Mrs. Playfair had two Siamese cats, they were likable. Frances and Lillian are actually a little evil and I was rooting against them. But then again I was rooting against everyone in this book.
So far I've only read three of Sarah Waters' novels and I hated two of them, but I know I'll keep reading her. After all she is one hell of a writer and I'd rather read something that is well written and bad than something that is poorly written and bad.
Frances Wray is a sourish spinster who had dreams, but those dreams were dashed by WWI, the death of both of her brothers and her father. When her father dies, Frances and her mother learn the true state of affairs of the family finances and they're not good. Poor and servantless, it's now Frances' duty to keep up a home and care for her mother as well. In order to stave off their creditors and complete humiliation they turn a suite of rooms into guest lodgings. Enter Lillian and Leonard Barber.
The Barbers are of the clerk class, if that's not bad enough they've had elocution lessons own tacky furniture and oh the tchotchkes, so many ugly tchotchkes! Leonard's a lech and a creep and Lillian dresses like a carefree spirited gypsy in colorful dresses but deep down she's sad gypsy in colorful dresses. They couldn't be more different from Frances and her mother.
Frances becomes fascinated with Lillian and the more she gets to know Leonard the more creeped out she gets by him. Frances and Lillian fall in love and carry on an affair underneath Mrs. Wray and Leonard's noses and when Leonard finds out tragedy strikes and it will change everything, including the new dreams Frances has made for herself.
This book is too long, just like Tipping the Velvet but at least it's not the hot wet sticky mess that Tipping the Velvet was. There wasn't one likable character in the whole book, wait I take that back, Frances' neighbor Mrs. Playfair had two Siamese cats, they were likable. Frances and Lillian are actually a little evil and I was rooting against them. But then again I was rooting against everyone in this book.
So far I've only read three of Sarah Waters' novels and I hated two of them, but I know I'll keep reading her. After all she is one hell of a writer and I'd rather read something that is well written and bad than something that is poorly written and bad.
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