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Die Sehnsuchtsvolle (2012)

by Eve Edwards(Favorite Author)

3.92 of 5 Votes: 1

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Klopp

series

The Lacey Chronicles

review 1: This book fits into an odd little sub-genre that I'm quite willing to like, in theory. It combines elements of YA, romance, and historical in a way that I've not encountered before, which predisposes me to like it. But the reason I'm not raving is that it does them all fairly well, but none of them so well that I'm bouncing in my seat.The historical is significantly more present in this novel than in most YA fiction or YA romance. In this book and its successors, the author takes on not only the more common plot elements such as Elizabeth I's reign (which you know 80% of YA authors who write about don't do any research above and beyond reading 5 other YA authors who wrote handmaidens to Elizabeth) and the nobility in the 16th century, but far more complex and darker iss... moreues such as the persecution of Catholics, common social attitudes toward and mistreatment of ethnic minorities, women's powerlessness, social injustice, the dark side of Manifest Destiny, and mental illness. I think that's admirable, but Edwards does it just enough that the book ends up in a nether realm between pure romance (because there's so much darkness and historical detail relative to other books that would casually be listed alongside it) and Serious Historical fiction, which makes it hard to identify a target readership.Then there's the romantic element, which is very PG-13. That's fine by me, but anyone who feels like it's just a fact that even teenagers have passionate affairs and that sexual content is desirable in a book depicting a great romance will be disappointed with the relative chastity of this book. It's also just not the focus of the book even approaching a percentage of the time that Romance novels tend to achieve. Ellie spends a lot of time dealing with her fiscally disastrous and arguably insane father and with the dangers of being branded anything from a witch to a Catholic (either of which would end in torture or even death), and Will spends a great deal of his time engaged to someone else because he has to marry for money to save his family from the ruin in which his father landed them by giving all his money to an alchemist.And, ultimately, that's where the third genre ambiguity comes it -- this doesn't feel properly like YA because the characters don't perceive themselves as adolescent. They are responsible for households, engaged in politics, and perceived by society as ready to marry and procreate, not just date. They may be technically teenagers, but that meant something different in 1600 than it means now, and by being historically accurate about 16 years olds, Edwards has effectively NOT written a YA novel.All that said, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it for a nice quiet afternoon read. But I'm hard pressed to figure out whose favorite book it's going to be or who has to drop everything and read it NOW.
review 2: It surpassed my expectations. It was well written and the author did a magnificent job of bringing the Elizabethan Era to life. I was surprised by how well she delved into that era and the detail she used. Even though this is a teen fictional romance, she made the characters seem so real through their everyday life. I wouldn't declare this as my favorite novel ever but it's definitely worth re-reading and worth recommending! less

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