Wheel of Fortune

Rating:
Summary: Awesome!
Review: As you'll see below from the many positive reviews, they don't publish fiction like this anymore. If you're in search of one of the finest sagas of recent years, this book is full of every emotion, plot line and fight you could think of, and frankly, there is no finer novel on this green earth. Kudos to Ms. Howatch. I hope to see you around again very soon (the Church series is equally wonderful)! I've been a devoted reader of Ms. Howatch since the early 70s (when she wrote those wonderfully wicked romatic suspense novels). Hope she'll get back to the days of the multi-character single novels (six books at $16-25 each gets a bit costly...).

Rating:
Summary: 10
Review: Astonishing! At over 1100 pages long, I couldn't put this novel down. The many characters all were mesmerizing. With superb deft, the author weaves a spell around her readers who will find it impossible to forget any of the complex charac- ters of this intense drama. Her device of using the Godwin family as a parallel to a past Royal family is simply ingenius. Weaving an entertaining story within a strong moral tone lends a depth to this novel that is all too often lacking in today's bestsellers. Ms. Howatch's novels should not only be read but also studied. Bravo!

Rating:
Summary: A serious must read!!!
Review: I first read this book when I was 14 and I have read it more than 10 times since then. I am actually reading it again as I write this. Susan's wonderful use of adjectives and descriptive writing is exeptional. The plot is intensely intriguing....this book is just unputdownable. You have to read it to believe it. Thanks for another classic Susan!

Rating:
Summary: abolutely stunning
Review: I have read this book over 15 times over the last 10 yeas and am on my 6th copy. It is familiar and yet always better. Robert comes to us a pompous chauvenist yet you begin to sympathize with his steeley yet romantic nature. I think Julie hit that when explaining to Kester the true essance of his parents' struggle. Gnevra was the type of woman whom I loved with her scheming to hide things from Robert and her down to earth attitude in realizing her short comings. The way Ms.Howatch wrote the incredibly complex nature of the relationship between Harry and Kester was brilliant. And the downfall of Harry made me feel for him. Margaret was an old battleaxe but she was softened once the history of her life was revealed. John was complicated and pompous but redeemed by his inner self once he allowe it to show and he became a quiet hero trying to do the right thing after he realized his ways. But the best character for me was Bronwen. Struggling hard to fit into a society that was not about to let her in.(I, as an Ameircan engaged to a Hindu straight from India could absolutely relate) Overall this was the most entertaining and turn the page book I have read out of thousands. You really do not want it to end, even after 1171 pages. I missed them all This shoud be turned into mini-series wtih each character narrating certian parts describing theirthougts along with thier performances. Maybe I could play Bronwen! I have also read almost all of her other books and each was brilliant also. But this one stands out as the bets for me.Thanks Susan!

Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: I just finished this book last night, and all I can say is, Wow! I loved the complexities of the plot(s), the development of the characters, the English/Welsh setting, and, most importantly, the multiple viewpoints, which gave the book so much depth. The fact that it's based on an historical premise makes Susan Howatch's achievement even more impressive. This is the first book of hers I've read aside from the Church of England series, and I was a little nervous because everyone says that series is her best work, but I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I'm still reeling!

Rating:
Summary: Continuation of Cashelmara with another family ...
Review: I love English history and I love historical novels, so I adore Susan Howatch's books, and The Wheel of Fortune is my favorite. The only thing to add to the overwhelmingly positive reviews written before me is to answer the question in the first review: the book is a continuation of the story told in Cashelmara, recast with a different family. Cashelmara is based on the story of Edward I, Edward II, and Edward III, ending as Edward III overthrows his mother's lover and claims the throne as his own. The Wheel of Fortune picks up the same story about half way through Edward III's life (he is now Bobby Godwin), and follows the story through the life of his sons Edward The Black Prince (Robert), John (John of Gaunt) and Thomas (Thomas of Woodstock), his grandsons Kester (Richard II) and Harry (Henry IV), and his great grandson Henry V (Hal).

Rating:
Summary: THIS is her Best!
Review: I've read this book over and over. I don't even know how many times! Luckily mine is the hard-backed edition! Truly mesmerizing...I love the way Ms. Howatch tends to write from many character's points of view and her transitions are brilliance! She takes the climatic situation and just as the main character is stunned into silence the next phase begins at just that point with the newest lead taking over. Imagine knowing what everybody is thinking all the time! That's what you realize at the end of the book, you knew what everyone thought of each situation! I cannot praise this one enough! Just Read it!

Rating:
Summary: let the music begin! The Blue Danube!
Review: If I had to name a favourite author, it would have to be Susan Howatch; her novels never fail to delight me and nourish my need for stories that do more than entertain. And if I had to choose a favourite Susan Howatch novel, it would have to be the Wheel of Fortune. This sumptuous novel drew me in from the very first page and soon I was lost in richness, following the drama of the Godwin family and living their lives with them in their fabulous Welsh estate, Oxmoon.
As in all of the Howatch family sagas which precede it, The Wheel of Fortune is written through a multiple third-person perspective, a structure which Howatch has mastered to perfection. Thus she leads us through the story by allowing us to identify first with one character and then with another, each time forcing us to rectify the opinions we have already formed on each indivual in turn. It's as if we move around each character, seeing him or her from a multitude of aspects, from the inside and the outside, and thus gain insight into the whole personality.

While reading Howatch I often felt that this is perhaps her way of showing her readers the necessity for compassion and understanding in our lives, for she whips away our prejudices and preconceptions about her characters simply by switching perspectives. For me this happened in the Wheel of Fortune with the character of Kester, who first appears as a thoroughly unlikeable, spoiled child, a misfit who never failed to exasperate those around him - and of course the reader. The moment Kester himself was allowed to speak, however, and I saw the situation through his viewpoint, he became my favourite character and I could identify with him completely, and appreciate him as the creative genius he is.

Then there is Robert Godwin, the personification of male chauvinism, an uptight London barrister who takes leave of all his senses when he falls for his cousin Ginevra. Ginevra herself is at first rather silly and self-absorbed, but as she grows in depth and self-esteem she develops into a warm, strong, well-rounded personality and a driving force in the novel. John Godwin is the epitome of good upbringing: his motto is "Here I have my standards, and here I draw the line!"; but then he meets Bronwen, a lower class Welshwoman who embodies the passion and mysticism that is simmering just beneath the surface of John's own consciousness, and John throws caution to the wind. Finally there is Harry, Kester's nemesis and greatest rival, the perfect public school boy . It's the rivalry between Kester and Harry, both of whom seem to mirror each other, each one having what the other most desires, rising and sinking on opposite sides of the Wheel of Fortune, which provides the foundation for this wonderful story.

Last but not least there is Oxmoon itself, their home; fabulous, haunting, living, Oxmoon: the orchestra playing the Blue Danube in its grand hall while the dancers dance beneath the glittering chandeliers. The magical atmosphere which pervades this wonderful story and draws us into the wonderful world teeming with rounded, living, breathing, characters we feel we have known all our lives.

Rating:
Summary: Wheel of Fortune follows what historical family?
Review: In Penmarric, Susan Howatch mirrors the lives of King Henry II, Eleanor of Acquitaine and their sons. Cashelmara reflects the lives of Kings Edward I and Edward II. The Rich Are Different and Sins of the Fathers echo Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Marc Antony and Augustus Caesar. So my question is: What historical family does The Wheel of Fortune reflect? Does anyone have any ideas. E-mail me at [e-mail] or [e-mail].

Rating:
Summary: Wheel of Fortune follows what historical family?
Review: In Penmarric, Susan Howatch mirrors the lives of King Henry II, Eleanor of Acquitaine and their sons. Cashelmara reflects the lives of Kings Edward I and Edward II. The Rich Are Different and Sins of the Fathers echo Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Marc Antony and Augustus Caesar. So my question is: What historical family does The Wheel of Fortune reflect? Does anyone have any ideas. E-mail me at [e-mail] or [e-mail].