Review: Gorgeous, but could have been spectacular
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 25, 2012
I picked up this book free during an Amazon giveaway. Listings and descriptions of various old castles and manor houses in Great Britain, from the house where "Downton Abbey" is filmed, to fabulous Blenheim, ruined Nymans, and working Wimpole Estate.A bit of a sales pitch, as the authors emphasize restaurants, hotels, and places available to rent for weddings and conferences, and contact information is provided for all sites. But the history is intriguing and the photos are gorgeous on my K4PC. In fact, my major criticism is that there should have been more photos. The book only covers 24 manors, with 2-3 photos per location, and could easily have included more photos. Particularly irritating is a description of an especially noteworthy place, such as "the awe-inspiring views from the Temple of Apollo" at Stourhead or "rambling alongside the Montgomery Canal" at Powis, and then not have a photo to go along with the description! This book is unquestionably gorgeous, but more photos would have made it spectacular.