I found this book at a used-book store, which is kind of regrettable
in a way. That’s because at that time, I
wasn’t aware that it was the first of a trilogy of books, and the other two of
the series were nowhere to be seen then.
If I knew it then, I would not have bought this book – because it’s
excruciating to think that I might not be able to find the other two anytime
soon! This was such a good read, and the
ending, though it did provide enough resolution, left me sorely hanging and
hoping against hope that I might find the other two in the series just as
cheaply someday. Searching for them at
used-book stores would be similar to the proverbial needle in a haystack.
(You must understand: new books here in my country do not come
cheap, and only the very rich have the luxury to put in special orders and
such. Having books readily available to
you at any time is as much a dream for a lot of people as is, let’s say, winning the lottery.)
The story is set in Victorian times and centers on Gemma
Doyle, a 16-year-old English girl who was born and raised in India. Her mother refuses to let her go to London to
have a “season” but doesn’t give any good reason for her refusal either. Now Gemma, being too headstrong and stubborn
for a Victorian girl, argues openly with her mother and runs away from her and
into an Indian marketplace. As she roams
around lost, a vision comes to her – she sees her mother’s suicide – a choice
to take her own life rather than end up a victim to a monstrous, dark and
malevolent creature. As Gemma recovers
from her vision, she finds that it was not just a dream. Her mother’s death marks the beginning of her
“adventures” as she finally is sent to a finishing school in England, makes new
friends and enemies, begins to discover the range of hidden ability she
possesses, and uncovers more and more of the horrible truths that her mother
tried so hard to hide from her.
I loved the character development the most. Each of the characters’ personalities was
revealed subtly, gradually, and they were all portrayed in such a way that no
one was a stereotype, or a flat character.
And you felt that such people could have really existed in such a time
and place, and still do exist even now. The
characters were the zeitgeist of their era, facing the conflicts that the times
presented, and their interactions with each other and with their environment, their
struggles with the demands and “norms” of the society that they lived in, molded
them and made them distinct, recognizable, and believable. Gemma, is of course, central to the
story. She is depicted as a girl who
rejects the stifling standards set for girls during those times when girls are
meant to be groomed to be wives to the wealthiest husband they could manage to
catch. She even entertains an attraction
to the mysterious Indian boy who has an important connection to the inexplicable
things that are happening around her – unthinkable in Victorian England!
The novel plays on themes of friendship, bullying, feminism,
coming-of-age, the first stirrings of sexual awareness, and the repressive and
elitist standards of society in general.
These universal themes give the whole story the feeling of timelessness,
no matter that it may be set in a time and place long gone.
The pacing of the novel was also well-rendered – nothing had
been revealed too quickly or too slowly. It will carry you on a sustained
eagerness to know what happens next until the very last page. I also very much appreciated the author’s
ability to create good imagery. You
could almost see the somber faces of the girls in the annual class pictures,
could almost hear the susurration of corset and crinoline, could almost smell
the candle smoke. Add to that a heavy
dose of magic, murder mysteries, and alternate realms, and you have a winner of
a book.
I highly recommend this book to
everyone but most especially to teen-age girls.
They should be reading such rich and relevant material and not the
current trend of popular literature that could only be best described as vapid
and shallow. This book is well-worth
reading, and I can only hope I can manage to find the two others in the series,
“Rebel Angels” and “The Sweet Far Thing.” Check it out: http://www.randomhouse.com/teens/gemmadoyle/
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