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I was eager to read this novel since I am a lover of gothic romances such as JANE EYRE and REBECCA, both novels to which THE THIRTEENTH TALE has been compared. Vida has never told the truth about her own background which involves insanity, incest, a burned mansion, two decidedly unusual twins and a couple of secret illegitimate children. Rochester or the narrator of Rebecca's Maxim. She is "haunted" throughout her life by her identical twin. THE THIRTEENTH TALE reminded me a lot of the two novels Australian Kate Morton has recently published in the United States. This twin rather melodramatically died so that she could live according to the plot. Unfortunately this more contemporary book failed to engage me and I struggled to finish it.Margaret, the heroine of THE THIRTEENTH TALE is a shy bookish type. Vida tells her story so slowly that Margaret has to do some sleuthing on her own to unveil the many secrets most of which have all ready been way overused in similar novels.One of the main elements that make most traditional gothic novels so appealing is the appearance of an exciting and somewhat dangerous love interest for the heroine such as Jane Eyre's Mr.
Margaret is emotionally estranged from her mother who has never recovered from the circumstances of her birth and this was one of several facets of the novel that did not seem credible to me. Anyway our part time writer and full time bookstore employee Margaret is suddenly chosen to be the biographer for a famous dying female novelist named Vida Winter. Though a love interest for Margaret does appear near the end of the book he is not particularly interesting and the reader does not learn much about him and certainly not enough to make the heart pound faster. Though Morton's books are far from perfect I prefer either of them to THE THIRTEENTH TALE.
I enjoyed the mystery of the book and the interactions between Margaret and Vida. This story involves an introverted young woman biographer who is chosen by a reclusive well known writer to pen her life story. The tale drew me in and more than once, I wish I could have read Vida's book. The challenge is that Vida, the writer, has never told the same story twice about her life, so Margaret has no idea if they are all lies or if each holds a grain of truth. Margaret journeys to Yorkshire to work with Vida in a very gothic country home. There were many twists and turns, but I found the story to be believable. I thought some of it was a little overwrought, but on the whole it was a good book and a page-turner.
I found this book a really delightful read. I don't think you will be dissapointed. I liked the story line.it never got dull and I did not guess til almost the end what the heck WAS going on. which happens rarely.I felt it read well, good development and flow. My only dissapointment was when I finished it. AND IT CAME IN KINDLE FORMAT.
The delivery was timely and the book is a treasure. From beginning to end this story entwines one into the lives of the characters and always presents an element of surprise and intrigue. This was a fun read and I would recommend this seller without hesitation.
Setterfield did a good job connecting these generations through the realization of the dysfunctionality of Vida Winter's family. When she receives a letter from a famous writer, Vida Winter, Margaret is intrigued. I found the novel too long and too gloomy, but its literary value is nonetheless undeniable. I read the second part of the novel in one gulp, maybe because I started ignoring Margaret's cups of cocoa and maybe because she stopped feeling sorry for herself as much.
Be that as it may, Setterfield's novel is engaging and rather interesting, even if I do dislike a perpetual gloominess and generally chilly atmosphere in any novel.Margaret is a bookworm who spends her life surrounded by her father's old and invaluable books. I do believe in progress and, if I want good old-fashioned writing, I pick up a Hemingway or a Dickens. Winter is a recluse and a most prolific English writer, having written fifty three books during her career. Margaret is introduced to a wealthy English family who slowly fell apart through the devious and violent behavior of Vida's relatives, behavior that led to actions well-hidden and almost forgotten.
As with "Atonement", I gave myself a pep-talk each time I picked the book back up. Ms. Though exceptionally prolific, Ms. Winter is aggressively private and stand-offish, to the chagrin of many a journalist who attempted to write her life story.Ms. "The Thirteenth Tale" is Diane Setterfield's debut novel, much praised for its literary quality and the return to "good old-fashioned writing".
The story has it all: mysterious deaths, runaway children, mental problems, secret children, fires and seduction.It took me a while to read the first part of the book (this also happened to me with "Atonement"), and I persistently fell asleep while trying to push through to a more interesting part. I remember the numerous cups of hot cocoa that Margaret had, as well as her process of sharpening specific pencils. Half-way through the book, the story started to pick up.Most people like a good mystery, and "The Thirteenth Tale" has all the makings of one. It is not about the realism of a story, but the way the story is told. Margaret at first declines, but gets involved in the excellent storytelling of Vida Winter, who takes Margaret on a journey of the life that led to Vida becoming Vida, starting with her grandparents. She is also a writer, finding obscure people and topics to write about. I must admit that Vida Winter's story was irresistible and engaging, once it truly got going.Setterfield seems to be a very promising author, though I would have to prepare myself for another of her books.
Winter surprised Margaret by offering her a commission of writing her official biography. Appealing to Margaret's own private ghosts, Vida weaves her final story on her own terms - meaning no questions allowed. While I understand that many readers love this style of writing, I am not one of them, and this is merely my opinion.All in all, "The Thirteenth Tale" is a relatively good mystery novel, with a good plot that spans five generations in all. Recommended.
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