Review: Enjoyable
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 7, 2012
Disclaimer: I am a Goodreads friend of the author.  I brought the book after Jane Steen commented on a post in my writing section.  I brought the book on the strength of friends' reviews and the fact that Steen said she loved A.S. Byatt.When this book was offered for free on Amazon, I gave it best because the only bit of the blurb I saw was the bit about not revealing who the father of the child was.  It sounded like a romance book, and I don't usually read romance books, unless people I know strongly recommend them.  Just goes to show, you should be very careful what you pass on.This book isn't a romance, and it isn't quite a mystery.  It's close to being a traditional gothic story as well as a coming of age (or coming into self) story. So it's- gothic, mystery, coming of age - but doesn't suffer from the personality disorder you think it would. It's not a perfect novel, true.  At times, especially in the beginning of the book, the conversation between characters seems a little forced.  Not an info dump, but not as smooth as it could be.  (Steen is hardly the only writer to have this problem).  Towards the end of the novel, the pacing goes off a little bit.The basic plot of the novel is deceptively simple.  Nell finds herself pregnant, at a time when a young lady did not do such things, refuses to name the father of her child.  She is sent away to a home to give birth to her child in secret.  While there, she discovers two dead bodies and feels compelled to solve the mystery of the murders.One of the novel's strongest selling points is the character of Nell who admits her faults, changes some of them, grows as a character, and is very human.  Furthermore, while Martin, her childhood friend is mentioned in the blurb, it should be noted that Steen does show female friendships.  This isn't the only perfect female is the narrator type of a book.  (Personally, I like Tess.  Go Tess!).According to Steen's biography/author profile, she was named after Jane Eyre, and this book does seem to be descended from that famous novel.  If anything, the book is a cross between Radcliffe and the Brontes.  A fitting production from a woman named after one of the famous heroines in literature.The book is compelling.  It grabs you from the first sentence.  In some ways, it is like a made for Lifetime movie, except Nell is far stronger than those heroines on the channel for "women in danger being saved by men".