Victoria Woolf’s first novel is a Victorian-era romantic drama. I chose it for a read to try to broaden my horizons and get into some turn-of-the-century English literature.
From the preface, it was indicated that many of the characters represented aspects of real-life members of Virginia Woolf’s family circle. I can see the beauty and value of the novel, but I found it somewhat hard going. The story described a young English woman coming of age on a long holiday voyage to a fictitious place in South America. Much of the narrative was hand-wringing analysis of the inner thoughts and feelings of the protagonists. There seemed also to be some plot inconsistencies and omissions. For example, it was never really explained why a married couple left their children behind when embarking on a long holiday. There was also a dragged-out description of a serious illness which was probably a bit over-cooked. In general, I found the style of the book challenging to read. Not for me this one.