It's such a fabulous book and I'd have never heard of it if it wasn’t for your recommendation, so thank you :)
*spoiler alert*
I wonder if Donoghue regrets not making Anne's the main POV. Of all the main characters Anne is the one with the most interesting arc. We get to see the intimate journey to becoming her true self, whereas with Eliza it didn’t quite feel that way. I mean, is it wrong to feel frustrated by a real person's actions and find them lacking? It’s not the writing itself that failed to convince me of Eliza's intentions, but odd as it may sound it's the real person's actions that I struggle with. Eliza had good reasons to do as we did; I just felt she wanted something else. I can’t really fault her, but the contrast to Anne is so strong it hurts more, you know? To think of what could have been. Anne got to become her true self despite everything, but Eliza became a part.
ETA: Just saw your edit, and god, I know. It's such a strange feeling to finish a 600-odd page book and immediately want more, but that's absolutely what it was for me. I could easily read another 600 pages of Donoghue writing about Anne.
Right? Give me 600+ pages of Anne sculpting at Strawberry Hill now. Anne and Mary together in the Strawberry Hill gardens. Anne and Mary learning to swim together. Anne meeting Napoleon!
[Is it wrong that I kept thinking of how Lord John would fit in this version of London?]
My main problem with John and Jamie is that, as we've discussed, we never know exactly why John falls in love with Jamie. I can see John wanting Jamie, becoming his friend, but this lifelong love? Not so much. And yet I have no problem believing John still loves Hector. Gabaldon can be such a frustrating writer sometimes. There is a lot of material for AUs, but the text itself can be baffling sometimes.
no subject
*spoiler alert*
I wonder if Donoghue regrets not making Anne's the main POV. Of all the main characters Anne is the one with the most interesting arc. We get to see the intimate journey to becoming her true self, whereas with Eliza it didn’t quite feel that way. I mean, is it wrong to feel frustrated by a real person's actions and find them lacking? It’s not the writing itself that failed to convince me of Eliza's intentions, but odd as it may sound it's the real person's actions that I struggle with. Eliza had good reasons to do as we did; I just felt she wanted something else. I can’t really fault her, but the contrast to Anne is so strong it hurts more, you know? To think of what could have been. Anne got to become her true self despite everything, but Eliza became a part.
ETA: Just saw your edit, and god, I know. It's such a strange feeling to finish a 600-odd page book and immediately want more, but that's absolutely what it was for me. I could easily read another 600 pages of Donoghue writing about Anne.
Right? Give me 600+ pages of Anne sculpting at Strawberry Hill now. Anne and Mary together in the Strawberry Hill gardens. Anne and Mary learning to swim together. Anne meeting Napoleon!
[Is it wrong that I kept thinking of how Lord John would fit in this version of London?]
My main problem with John and Jamie is that, as we've discussed, we never know exactly why John falls in love with Jamie. I can see John wanting Jamie, becoming his friend, but this lifelong love? Not so much. And yet I have no problem believing John still loves Hector. Gabaldon can be such a frustrating writer sometimes. There is a lot of material for AUs, but the text itself can be baffling sometimes.