Greygallows

Rating:
Summary: Greygallows
Review: I felt the same way as ladytls. This is my first book I have read by Barbara Michaels and I kept waiting for a different ending. What a surprise! Now I will have to read another one by her.

Rating:
Summary: Not Her Best
Review: This story has an excellent premise and does a good job of illustrating just how helpless a woman really was in terms of rights in the 19th century. However, it is very preachy, most of the characters are two dimensional, and I found myself skipping large portions of the text without feeling I was missing out. (I later went back and re-read it, and discovered my initial impression was correct.) The hero especially is a pale shadow of the irascable yet tender man that Michaels usually writes so well.

If you are a Barbara Michaels fan already, you will probably like this book. I am, and I did. However, if you are trying her for the first time, I recommend "Shattered Silk" or "The Wizard's Daughter," both of which are superior in terms of writing quality and suspense. I suspect Ms. Michaels was hard at work on her Elizabeth Peters books when she took time out to write this novel.

Rating:
Summary: Slow, but interesting...
Review: This was my first Barbara Michaels book. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the "historical romance" I thought I'd purchased turned out to be something different. ...What is this Gothic? Nonetheless, I continued to listen and I'm glad I did.

Although the pace of this book is a tad slow, the book isn't filled with action, and it was on the "dark" side, I did find the portrayal of a woman's life during the 19th century to be rather interesting. I also enjoyed the plot. In addition, the book provides a very good feel for how dependent a woman of that time's life was upon her husband's desire and ability to take care of her, and how helpless she is if he decides not to do so. A dreary prospect at best. The scenes are described in sufficient detail to allow you to visualize the time, place, and events. And while Lucy got on my nerves with some of her simpering weaknesses, I nonetheless liked her.

I had most of the mystery figured out before the end, but I'm pleased to report that the author did throw in a little information here and there that had me questioning my conclusions. The ending, appropriately, wrapped up all of the details tying everything together and filling in gaps on my conclusion.

I must admit, I might not have finished the book if it hadn't been on audiotape. That's primarily because of it's slow pace. On the other hand, I'd still recommend it if (1)you like Gothic novels (with good plots) that flow at a "leisurely" pace, or (2) if you want to try something different on tape. On tape, it is worth listening to. (Just don't buy hardback.)

Rating:
Summary: Good author, plodding book
Review: This was my first time reading a book by Barbara Michaels. I thought the basic story was good, however the book read very slowly. I certainly wasn't kept in suspense. The characters really didn't flesh out well until very far into the book, just past the half way through point. Once the seemingly endless process of getting Lucy married off is over and the story focuses on Greygallows, the pace picks up and the plot of the story takes form. I will give the author another try, but wouldn't recommend buying this book. It was just ok, nothing special.

Rating:
Summary: Not Her Best - But Not Bad
Review: This was not one of Mrs. Michael's best works, but it still wasn't half bad. I enjoyed it, even though it was a slow read. I found it interesting, but didn't have any trouble putting it down. The ending was very climactic, but after the slow pace set in the previous pages the ending felt way too rushed.