The Thirteenth Tale
by Diane Setterfield
|
List Price: Our Price: $2.25 You Save: $23.75 (91%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Thirteenth Tale
Book Review: Thoroughly Absorbing
Summary: 5 Stars
It is so nice to pick up a novel and find that within a page or two you have become completely entranced. There are some authors who just seem to have a natural-born talent for this. (And way too many that don't). They take you into their world and before you know it, you find that nothing else in your life really matters. Ms. Setterfield has surely accomplished this with this clever, absorbing tale.
It is written in the first person and narrated by Margaret, a contemporary Englishwoman, a sketcher of biographies, and a part-time bookseller in her father's store. Before going any further, it should be mentioned that this novel is a perfect example of the effective use of the first person narrative. Margaret immediately takes us into her confidence, giving us her innermost thoughts, sharing with us her firmly-held opinions, and perhaps most importantly, freely disclosing her vulnerabilities. Unfortunately, too many contemporary authors don't seem understand this concept, carelessly using the first-person in narratives that are utterly lacking in intimacy. Ms. Setterfield clearly does understand the concept, and as mentioned above, she has the reader wrapped around her finger in about two pages.
The story has to do with an eccentric, popular and critically-acclaimed English author--Vida Winter--who has plucked Margaret out of obscurity to write her biography. Margaret finds her task greatly complicated by the fact that several attempts at this biography have been made by other would-be authors, and all ended disastrously when it became apparent that Ms. Winter was not going to relate anything even remotely approximating the truth. She is a storyteller, you see. But the strong-willed Margaret is not to be trifled with. She is insistent that Ms. Winter be straight with her and she is insistent on her right to verify the facts. The somewhat disdainful Ms. Winter agrees, and then proceeds to tell Margaret about the looniest story one could possibly imagine.
It is, to say the least, a lot of fun. First of all, there are the conversations between these two very intelligent, determined women, filled with wit, word-play and confrontation; then there is the emerging story of Ms. Winter's childhood--the biography written by Margaret--her feral upbringing, her insane parents, the decaying, Gothic mansion; finally there is the story of Margaret herself, her lonely life, her scholarly father, her psychotic mother, and her independent investigation. All of these wind among each other seamlessly and are alternately engrossing and suspenseful.
If there is a flaw here, it is that the ultimate resolution of Winter's fanciful story is almost too much to believe. It's a bit of a stretch, don't you know, but on second thought, perhaps not. Ms. Setterfield is a storyteller, you see.
Book Review: A Tale of Twin Biddies
Summary: 3 Stars
THE THIRTEENTH TALE is an ambitious first novel by Diane Setterfield. It comprises a pair of interwoven tales ostensibly about the special relationship between twins, and further poses the question as to the true nature of a person's complete or whole identity. The gothic twin tales, if you will, are set about a hundred to sixty years apart, in England. The more-or-less contemporary tale (the actual era is left vague, it could be anytime in the last fifty years), about a young, bookish woman, Margaret, who keeps a secret past, is a ghost story of sorts; far more creepy and diabolical is the older tale, with its themes of incest, sadomasochism, violence, and alienation.
The novel aims also to be a mystery, with Margaret trying to crack the puzzle of a famous writer's past. It's the mystery plot that keeps the momentum of the story moving. The astute reader might figure out key parts of the mystery on the way, and will find that the resolution of other pieces of the mystery are only suggested and not necessarily spelled out. One also has to be willing to suspend one's disbelief a few more times than one would like. It's unfortunate, in a way, because the characters aren't so well fleshed out or even so very appealing that one feels much empathy for them. Since you don't care much about them then, you want the mystery, at least, to be stronger to make up for it.
It's not clear what Setterfield is trying to do with this novel. We don't really get insight into the nature of the special relationship between twins (at least, not beyond what one might discover in popular psychology); it almost seems the idea of twins is just the McGuffin to drive the plot. (Indeed, it would be interesting to see what Hitchcock would have done with the story; in any case, it seems ready-made for the screen.) At times, it comes off as a tad pretentious, what with the repeated references to JANE EYRE and the recurrent images, laden with portentous significance (I think), such as the tapping of rain on the windows. The overall mood is heavy and sad; sparing and deftly used humor, actually, might have helped the story. The creepy relationship between the brother and sister in the older tale has moments that verge on Tarantino-style humor, but if it was her intent to be ghoulishly funny, it didn't really work for me.
Overall, I would recommend this novel despite its many shortcomings. The twin tales, albeit bizarre and disturbing, are nonetheless compelling. The writing style is a step up from your supermarket pulp fiction. There is some promise in this new novelist, and one hopes to see better work in her next outing.
Book Review: Not a modern classic, but not bad either.
Summary: 3 Stars
I am in the middle about this book. Because I work in the industry, my copy was free, and that's--sadly--about what I'd pay for it, having read it.
The short version: Main character is clearly a self-insertion (author substitute) who has a melodramatic life, history, and way of seeing the world. She is summoned by a dying, equally melodramatic author who wishes (supposedly) to tell the truth about her hidden past. Then, we are treated to all manner of lies, incest, bisexuality, molestation, and general ickyness that does nothing whatsoever to further the plot. In fact, reaching the end, I was left with more despair than hope--for, if, in fact, this legacy is to continue, then I pity her family members because so far the score's not too good in terms of sanity levels.
Oh well.
Honestly? The book took me four hours to read. I breezed through it, rolling my eyes at the cliched language, the overwrought emotion, the first-time author's oft-fumbling attempts to MAKE A POINT, often feeling that this was like writing a book version of a Lifetime-esque film--it had all the strange, family drama and utterly predictable plot twists.
And, it gives us a strange message about truth. We aren't even given the chance to get inside the characters' heads, not even our plucky protagonist. We are served facts with all the grace of ice-cream-scoop mashed potatoes in a lunch line, not allowed to question them, and then she moves on. This is truly a plot-driven book, and that's fine, but the characters' oddities can't get in the way of the plot for this technique to work. Generally, they don't. But some elements, especially the stereotypical portrayal of twins, really stand out. None of the characters are logical; that's ok too, but we need to at least see the path of logic before it runs away and we're left holding the broken leash.
One good thing stands out; I really got the sense that the author did justice to the true "Thirteenth Tale." That was what I was waiting for all along, and, rather than a sigh of relief, I felt just a sense of, "so what?"
So, I'd reccomend this to friends who wanted to be mildly amused, but the constant name-dropping of classic novels does nothing to further this author's talent. She's a good writer, but she needs to mature and learn how to write an average character--one free of tragic, twisted pasts and stilted dialogue.
A brave attempt, and I await her next work.
Book Review: WAY over-hyped. Slight SPOILER included below.
Summary: 1 Stars
"Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter, and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life."
That's what the book jacket says. Don't believe it - clearly the copywriter was not reading the same text. While this isn't the most horrible book I've read this year (though definitely in the bottom five), it has been WAY over-hyped, most especially by Barnes n' Noble.
The Thirteenth Tale and I started on the wrong foot -- having been compared to Jane Eyre and having stolen from Jane Eyre (you know, fire-ravaged house, crazy relative locked away, and an innocent entering that world), I expected more. And when the book didn't deliver, then I just found the device to be pretentious. I mean, who compares their own book to Jane Eyre, for god's sake?
A better choice would have been Flowers in the Attic. Every character has some freakish story (evil twin, dead conjoined twin, abandoned baby, etc) and every character is unlikeable for one reason or another (evil being the central affliction, along with boring, naive or too one-dimensional). Add to that a healthy helping of incest and abuse, and you have Flowers in the Attic for the erudite.
The biggest problem with the novel is that the premise is unconvinving, and a novel cannot survive that. We are introduced to Vida Winter, England's most famous living novelist, who has invited our dull and mousy protagonist to write her life story. In short order, we learn that her uncle has an unhealthy (to put it mildly) fixation on her mother, and their coupling produces two very disturbed children, twin girls, Adeline and Emmeline. I won't ruin the story for those who are still interested by detailing it, except to say that Adeline (who has been presented as Vida Winter, pre name change) is an evil child who delights in beating her twin mercilessly and destroying whatever she is able to get her hands on. That's fine (we're back to Flowers in the Attic again), but it is entirely unbelievable that this child has grown up into a productive adult, ie Vida Winter. So, at the end of the novel, when the big "shocking" plot turn rolls around to work this out, it's not all that shocking. It just takes 300+ pages to get to the explanation of what was obvious from the beginning. 300 VERY long pages.
With so many great books out there, don't waste your time with this one.
Book Review: Reading a book is like engaging in a love affair...
Summary: 5 Stars
You might finish a great book or a series and feel there is nothing left. It takes time to get over it, as with any relationship. Some rebound quickly and move on to the next great thing. Some are forced into a new partnership by means of assignments or peer pressure. But some take some time off - time to reflect, time to rejuvinate, time to focus on other projects - because it's not always easy to jump right back in the saddle. And instead of making an attempt on an unworthy subject, one might just rather be alone and wait patiently for the right book to come along. That book is one that piques your interest and encourages you to begin a new relationship. It's glossy cover seduces you, beckons you to pick it up, and when you open to the first page and begin to read you are immediately entranced. Soon, you are no longer reading the words, but living them out in your mind. You become part of the story, and that other world - those projects that kept you busy while you waited - no longer exists.
This book, for me, was The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield.
The novel begins near the end. A solitary young woman named Margaret Lea lives in a flat above her father's antiquarian bookshop in which she also works. In her free time she pens biographies of dead authors, taking no interest in the living.
One day she receives a summons from a famously reclusive and mysterious author, Vida Winter. Miss Winter has decided that after decades of telling fabricated tales of her background, she is finally ready to tell the truth, and she desires Margaret to document her life story.
Margaret is drawn in to the fantastically eerie, nearly unbelievable truth of Miss Winter's origins, making discoveries that lead her to an unfathomable conclusion. And at the same time she is forced to deal with her own dark past, her own ghosts.
The Thirteenth Tale is a contemporary novel that reads like a classic. If you have ever read or seen a film version of Jane Eyre, Rebecca or Great Expectations, The Thirteenth Tale's haunting account rivals as well as pays homage to these gothic classics. It is beautifully written and utterly captivating. Above all, it is unpredictable - and I do not make this claim lightly, for I am generally very good at figuring out the ending long before it occurs. I would recommend it to anyone who has a passion for stories and a love of old books.