The Sealed Letter

Good, not Great

12 months ago

The book was an easy read, however I found it could have been a bit more exciting (given the events that occur in the story). None of the characters were particulary likeable. I enjoyed the historical references, but felt the story was a bit boring. 6 out of 10.

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Very rich, interesting

13 months ago

I read this off the Giller long list and was amazed..shouldn't have been since Emma Donoghue is fabulous - but I was. The story was well written, the character were rich and well developed. The story of a victorian era divorce was facinating! I am disappointed that it didn't make the short list. Either was an excellent, engrossing read!

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Interesting Story from an Interesting Time

15 months ago

I read this book on the recommendation from Betty (see her review below) and I found it very interesting.It is the story of a divorce case in England in 1862 and a female friend who gets caught in the middle. Did she help the wife have an affair? Was she improperly involved with the wife? Will the woman's movement be forever harmed by Fido's involvement in this case? I did sort of have to slog through some of it - the writing was okay for me but didn't totally pull me in. It was a great mix of… + read more

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Great book! I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

2 years ago

Great book! I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I feel like I’ve been let in on a bunch of gossip that’s turned out to be mostly true. Emma Donoghue has written a story around a historic Victorian era divorce case. This is no ordinary lightweight frivolity, this is full-bodied passion. Ms. Donoghue has done a great deal of research into the case, which smacks of realism and is in fact often closely worded to the actual trial. But her research does not direct itself exclusively to the trial and… + read more

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