The Woman in White Review

The Woman in White by Wilkie  Collins is a great novel. Though its long extension and sometimes my lack of interest at some parts I was highly satisfied in the end. Like you will find if you read this book, and  like is usual in mystery books, the end and the unveil of the main or mains secrets are very important as a key of judgement to a brilliant or horrible novel.

 

““There, in the middle of the broad, bright high-road—there, as if it had that moment sprung out of the earth or dropped from the heaven—stood the figure of a solitary Woman, dressed from head to foot in white garments.”

Thus young Walter Hartright first meets the mysterious woman in white in what soon became one of the most popular novels of the nineteenth century. Secrets, mistaken identities, surprise revelations, amnesia, locked rooms and locked asylums, and an unorthodox villain made this mystery thriller an instant success when it first appeared in 1860, and it has continued to enthrall readers ever since. From the hero’s foreboding before his arrival at Limmeridge House to the nefarious plot concerning the beautiful Laura, the breathtaking tension of Collins’s narrative created a new literary genre of suspense fiction, which profoundly shaped the course of English popular writing.” Amazon.com description of Woman in White

 

The book is divided by chapters or parts, each written by a different character and his/her point of view. I found that this helped a lot for the reader to learn and get more familiar with their personalities and also to see the changes in those that are made trough the course of the events and the years. Still I would have liked the length of the pov’s to be smaller and more diverse, because sometimes it just got boring…

We are presented with some unusual characters, still very appropriate to their own time. Even though the story as almost nothing to do with Walter Hartright, a painting teacher is by him that we receive most of the information and developments. He first enters into this world of thriller when he first encounters the Woman in White, also know as Anne Catherick. I liked very much this character and wished that I had seen more of her, since the suspense surrounding her was so page-grabbing. Quite in the other hand was Laura Fairly, a sweet but very fragile young woman, who I was mad at more times that I would want  to. Even though she was naturally naive, she comes as childish sometimes and very dependent, specially on her loyal half-sister, Miss Halcombe, who herself is the image of a strong and fierce woman.

My favorite character even though strange my likeness for him is the evil and very genius Count Fosco, who for me is the most interesting person. Perhaps is his oddness with his pet animals or his fake niceness or even his own admiration for Miss Halcombe. Or more likely all the secrets that he has. He’s just a good character. And I do share his wish for a good life for Marian, and that’s why at some moments I wished that she would end up with Walter. Of course this didn’t happen and in the end she devotes her life to the aid of her sister and husband. In matters of how it ended and the explanations that were given to us, that was the only detail that didn’t work for me. I though that she should have moved on with her life and find someone who would make her happy, but again this is her personality. It wouldn’t make sense any way around.

Overall I give a 6 out of 10 and advice to those who like mystery books to read it.

 

Lots of love,

Paradise of Words