The Thirteenth Tale
CDN$ 16.06
A great story! - What a fantastic story this was! Well written and very detailed. The story keeps you guessing but the ending is completely satisfying!
A Good First Novel - I just finished reading The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. According to the dust jacket this was Ms. Setterfield s first novel. And as first novels go, this one was pretty good. Without giving too much away, the premise of the novel is this.Ms. Vida Winter, a famous novelist, has never told the truth about her past. Realizing that the end of her days is nearing, she approaches an unknown biographer to write her life story. The biographer, one Margaret Lea, has her on life story too. One which she has never confronted herself. As Ms. Winter starts to tell her tale, Margaret Lea begins to unravel the story of her past as well.The book part ghost story, part mystery, and on some level, part romance novel. Overall though, the book is well written with characters whom I was able to connect with. The story wasn t so hokey that I was left thinking yeah, right and the plot was good enough that I didn t want to abandon the story at any one point.In short, I enjoyed this book. And I hope you will too.
Courtesy of Teens Read Too - This is a fascinating and rich Gothic mystery about a young Englishwoman who is hired to write the biography of a famous, dying author. The author has always kept her past a secret from her millions of fans, and the biographer is about to find out why. The young woman moves into the old author s home in the remote English countryside, and spends the ensuing weeks compiling details of the author s bizarre and disturbing early years. As the dying author tells that one final tale, her biographer finds herself working through some of her own demons. Interestingly, the biographer s demons at times bear an uncomfortable resemblance to the ones she is writing about for her employer.THE THIRTEENTH TALE is a modern-day story, but it is written in an old-fashioned, Gothic style that takes its time to reveal its many secrets. It includes all the elements of a classic Gothic novel: a crumbling haunted house, English moors, dense fog, and a young heroine who finds herself in a potentially dangerous situation. It is gripping, at times frightening, and always interesting. I was kept guessing about how the story would eventually be resolved, and was pleased by how skillfully the author pulled all of the pieces together.My biggest complaint about THE THIRTEENTH TALE is that the main character felt somewhat one-dimensional. It is possible, however, that the characterization might have been intentional. The main character has been damaged by her own past, so maybe this was demonstrated by making her seem less-than-complete. In any case, that is a minor complaint for the book because many of the other characters are so well drawn.This is an excellent book for readers who like a good, unusual mystery. There was even a happy ending for those characters who were capable of enjoying happy endings. Be warned, though, that this novel is written for adults. Its dreaded adult themes include (vague, not graphic) references to incest, sex, and children born out of wedlock, as well as (explicit) mental illness. But if you re willing to overlook those issues, this is a great story and a fascinating mystery for older readers.Reviewed by: K. Osborn Sullivan
A STUNNING DEBUT NOVEL... - This is a brilliant, elegantly written debut novel. Although it seemed to start off a little slowly, before I knew it, I found myself reading through the night, loathe to put the book down, so engrossed was I by the story. Somewhat gothic in feel, the plot will draw the reader in, like a spider to the fly.Margaret Lea, a young bookish woman with a secret that haunts her and a penchant for writing biographies of obscure literary figures, is commissioned by beloved, popular author Vida Winter to be her authorized biographer. Ms. Winter, who has never before said anything about her life that was truthful, now wishes to set her story straight for posterity. While Ms. Lea is initially suspect at the author s request, upon meeting Ms. Winter she feels a connection and agrees to the commission.Thus, Ms. Lea is led into a labyrinth of mystery, secrets, and a most unusual cast of characters. For her it is a journey that will prove most cathartic and will unlock her own closely held secret. With well-developed, interesting characters and a plot that is simply ingenious, I was riveted by this beautifully written book. Bravo!
Great mystery, well written - I picked up this book after reading many of the 5 star reviews online here at Amazon. When I see such a well reviewed book, I always feel like I m disappointed when I read them and they never live up to the hype. Well this book is the exception. The reviews are bang-on and I loved this book. Great mystery, characters, setting, well written and surprising to the very end. I really enjoyed the writing style and the author has a great way of pacing the story. Looking forward to her next book.