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Girl In A Blue Dress (2008)

by Gaynor Arnold(Favorite Author)

3.53 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0955647614 (ISBN13: 9780955647611)

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

Tindal Street Press

review 1: Arnold has created novel in which the story reflects the life of Charles Dickens. The main characters are Alfred Gibson and his wife, Dorothea. The story begins with their courtship, and proceeds through their marriage with the birth of many children, and the eventual marriage collapse. The magnetism of Gibson’s personality and the popularity of his books continued to draw adulation from his fans. The story illustrates the strictness of the Victorian era and how a marriage break-up and separation would impact the participants in that society. There is also the theme of how women were generally viewed at that time, not only by men but by society in general. The characters are well drawn making the story an interesting read. However, in the conclusion, it is a ... morebit difficult to accept the sudden transformation of Dorothea as she escapes her self-imposed exile. Unfortunately, readers cannot consult the author’s sources as Arnold did not include a bibliography. It would be interesting to see how closely the book reflects the life of Dickens.
review 2: I liked, but did not love this book. Arnold writes well, and this is a solid first novel. However, I found that the story sagged near the middle, and many of the internal emotional scenes of the protagonist were repeated, causing them to lose effectiveness. Overall Arnold's semi-biographical account of the intricacies of loving a "universally adored man" is an interesting read, especially for lovers of Dickens. less

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