The Wonder Worker

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Summary: Howatch reminds us, again, all is not what it seems.
Review: "The Wonder Worker" is a good book. The characters are, for the reader, old friends, or maybe even enemies. Howatch reminds us, as in her other novels, things aren't necessarily what they appear to be. A new theme she emphasizes is we are always on a journey to health-spiritual, emotional and physical. For Nick and his staff at the Healing Centre the journey is fraught with hazards, demonic and otherwise. Make sure you have time to read this one. Although it was a bit over analytical for my taste I had a hard time putting it down.

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Summary: I couldn't put it down.
Review: After reading the other reviews, I am glad this was my first Susan Howatch novel. I found it a fascinating read and I can't wait to read her other books.

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Summary: Howatch provides the best spiritual reading
Review: Again Susan Howatch has provided us with a book that contains a wonderful combination of pyschology and religion. And what respect she has for her characters, too! If a work of literature is judged by how well it "teaches and delights," this work joins the Starbridge novels as a piece that can be judged as very good, indeed.

Even so, I DO miss Starbridge!

Rev. Martin Connell, SJ ([e-mail]), Detroit, MI

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Summary: Great disappointment when one loved the rest of the series
Review: For all the repetitive elements in the other books of the C of E series, the others contained gripping spiritual and psychological insight. These elements, though not completely absent from the Wonder Worker, drown in a sea of stereotypes. Insightful Alice's character is diminished by ridiculous but boring stereotypes of the heavy woman drowning her sorrows in ice cream, for example. Jonathan's psychic and healing gifts take second place to his confusing marital problems. The plot twists keep one reading - but, unlike the others in the series, do not lead one to further insight into life and spirituality.

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Summary: I liked this book, but not as much as others by Howatch
Review: I am a longstanding Howatch fan, and had fun reading this book, but not that much fun. Howatch writes excitingly, and sex and religion are still a potent combination. But overall I felt that the Wonder Worker simply retread the ground of the Starbridge series to less effect. The character of Nick Darrow - crucial to the plot - had lost its clarity and humanity from earlier incarnations. And Alice just annoyed me. I'm sorry I didn't wait for the paperback.

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Summary: Quite possibly the best book I have ever read
Review: I can't believe anyone below gave this book a negative review! It is quite simply the best thing Howatch has ever written and quite likely the best thing I have EVER read. Although some people may be erroneously put off by the Church of England theme that runs though her Starbridge books, they are quite simply the best psychological thrillers on the market.

The book is broken into several parts and told from several people's point of view. It describes the escalating chrisis surrounding Nicholas Darrow as his life spirals out of control on a collision course for disaster of nuclear proportions. Although the first few pages (lets say, 10, maximum) are a wee bit slow and one doesn't quite identify with Alice right away, by the 11th page, the pace begins to pick up (well, early in the book anyway!). From there, it was one headlong race until the unbelievable climax where I audibly gasped and realised that I had been holding my breath for the last 3 pages. It was that gripping and suspenseful! It's a fact, NO book has EVER gripped me that much to the point where the surrounding world completely ceased to exist for me.

As far as I am concerned, everyone who fails to read this book has missed out on one of the finest examples of literature ever written. If you never read another book again, do read this one!

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Summary: Pretty good but not as good as the other novels in the Starb
Review: I could hardly wait to get my hands on this book!! I loved the other Starbridge novels and was especially fascinated by Jon Darrow i.e. Nick Darrow's father. However, I feel that this book has a slightly repetitious feel about it. I felt more could have been done about Venetia (another fascinating character) and I thought Francie's psychic breakdown rather similar to "possession sequences" in the other Starbridge novels. However having said that, overall it was still pretty good. However I look forward to Susan Howatch perhaps taking a whole different direction with her next novel - which I am already looking forward to !

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Summary: Interesting at first, but then it fizzled
Review: I found this book to be somewhat tedious to get through. The characters were superficial, stereotypical and so very self absorbed in their own psychology. Howatch seems to be using the characters to showcase her knowledge of psychological processes. However, her understanding of these complexities seems too text book and theoretical when she attempts to apply it to the experiences and insights of her characters. The result is a very self-conscious storyline that at times seemed greatly overworked with shallow characters that remain self absorbed and narcissic and are never really are enlightened in the end. This is my first Howatch book, I won't purchase another.

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Summary: In UK this book is called " A question of integrity"
Review: I have read all of the "Starbridge" novels and like other reviewers, found this one slightly less compelling. Why is it that I just want to shake Nicholas Darrow's wife, Rosalind and tell here to get the hell out of there? There is not enough interplay of the old families from the previous novels. Only brief encounters with Aysgarths and Ashfords, even Venetia fades in and out of the sub plot without much impact. This is still a good novel, but with the others I carried them round the house reading at every opportunity, this one has stayed firmly beside my bed - not a good sign!

Rating:
Summary: Flawed but fascinating
Review: I wanted to like this book. I'm an Anglican and an anglophile. It was my first Susan Howatch novel. I knew people who liked it. It was imaginative of the author to write in the voices of four different characters. But! The plot was illogical at times. Most of the characters acted as if they needed emergency psychotherapy a lot more than they needed spiritual direction. The psychological lingo was anachronistic (what professional could diagnose "an acute psychotic episode resulting from a nervous breakdown" with a straight face any more?). The only character who made consistent sense was Sister Clare Veronica, Nicholas's spiritual director. Even in the face of all that, though, the book had its strange appeal. After finishing it, I immediately tacked two of the Starbridge novels to see what they were like.