Thumbs up (provisionally) for I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. Romance.
A Jane Austen “one of us had better marry for money, and damn soon, or we’re all going to starve” story set in the thirties, narrated in diary format by a young woman who wants to be a writer. I have a problematic relationship with this book. I first read it years ago – pre- or early teens. There were parts that I loved – enough to keep it on my shelf over the years – but when I thought back on it as a whole I also remembered a deep dissatisfaction and even dislike of other parts. I chalked that down to the fact that at the time, I had no interest in romantic fiction of any kind. Now I am older, and have more appreciation for romance: and I hereby apologize to my younger self. I still hate the last third of this book. Once the heroine falls in love, the joyful reading experience of the first two-thirds is sapped away. If there was a satisfying ending I might forgive it, but it ends so inconclusively it’s as if it’s leading into a sequel – and there isn’t one. So my review is in two parts. First two-thirds: magnificent. Witty and engrossing. Austen fans should not miss. Last third: stop after the first two-thirds.
Miss Marcy shot her a quick glance and Topaz gave her the very faintest nod. I nearly laughed – they were so different, Miss Marcy like a rosy little bird and Topaz tall and pale, like a slightly dead goddess, but just that second they so much resembled each other in their absolute lust to marry Rose off.
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