This a wonderful story of a lady's maid who follows her ill mistress to her preferred climate in Egypt, how they reinvent themselves, and how their relationship changes. There was a part of the book that made me so anxious I could barely read it,(I think I could use a good dose of bibliotherapy), but very glad i stuck with this . It's different enough to make this be a stand out book to take notice of. Wonderful book. Sensual exotic story based on true events. Lovely sense of time and place: Victorian England and Egypt; novel evokes a 'you are there' feeling:The narrator, a lady's maid explains -"The conditions, on their own, were not too terrible; there was an awe-inspiring intensity to the heat to which we surrendered, giving ourselves up to the awkward luxury of doing nothing. But then the sandstorms began, when full days and parts of weeks were lost as the simoom whipped up the desert and deposited great swathes of it on the village."She continues -"The simoom brought nothing with it that resembled a cooling breeze, only dust and sand filtering through the shutters and under the doors, and yet more heat, and some days everything we ate, everything we drank, was full of it. I forgot what it was like not to feel grit in my mouth, between my teeth, under my tongue, all the time."Beautiful diction and story-telling. Told with compassion but not overly-sentimental. I enjoyed this award-winning novel, immensely!
What do You think about Mistress Of Nothing (2009)?
Enjoyed this story and the writing about an English lady and her maid and their life in Egypt
—Read
poor character development of supporting characters. Disappointing for being an award winner.
—rob
