My D.E. Stevenson fan group just finished our group reading & discussion of "Fletchers End," the sequel to "Bel Lamington," which we read together earlier this year (my reviews of that one here and here). I read through the book earlier on my own, and my initial review can be found here.
The book opens as Bel is busy with preparations for her wedding to her former boss, Ellis Brownlee, and hunting for the perfect house where they can begin their life together. Her friend Louise Armstrong discovers Fletchers End, an old home now for sale, conveniently near her own. The house has been sadly neglected, but the seller is "motivated" (as realtors say today) and the price is right. They buy the house, hire the current housekeeper/caretaker, and plunge into renovations -- but a visit from the previous owner, Roy Lestrange, casts an uneasy shadow over their happiness...
"Fletchers End" includes many of the elements of a typical D.E. Stevenson novel. There's really not a whole lot that happens, and the story meanders from one episode/crisis point to another (with a happy ending practically a guarantee), but there are some lovely descriptive passages, gentle humour and well-drawn characters (although I still find Bel's friend Louise rather annoying!). This includes, of course, the house itself! (apparently based on a real house that Stevenson's son lived in). :) And, as usual, our group discussion added to my appreciation of the book.
(Annoying thing/Pronatalism alert: The one caveat to that last sentence: near the end of the book, after receiving some shocking news, Bel faints. I had to roll my eyes when one member of the group asked whether anyone else -- besides herself -- thought Bel fainted because she was pregnant. Many people agreed with her -- despite no other evidence that this was the case -- and were excited by the prospect of a pregnancy for Bel. Sigh...)(Pregnancy was, of course, how many books of the day about newlyweds ended, and fainting as a precursor to a pregnancy announcement was certainly a trope of the time, but...!)
Content warning: Casual use of a racist expression in Chapter 10 that would be considered highly taboo today.
My original rating -- 3 stars on Goodreads & StoryGraph -- still stands.
Coming up next on our group's reading agenda: "Miss Buncle’s Book," first published in 1934, considered a minor classic by some today. (Start date TBA.)
This was Book #25 read to date in 2024 (and Book #1 finished in September), bringing me to 56% of my 2024 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 6 (!) books behind schedule to meet my goal. :( You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2024 tagged as "2024 books."
No comments:
Post a Comment