What do You think about The Wheel Of Fortune (1985)?
Wheel of Fortune was a Kindle Daily Deal spuriously (and comically) categorized under “romance,” which meant I might have overlooked it altogether. However, its cover lacked bosom-busting blondes and ripped-shirt Fabios, and the title implied nothing about longing, betrayal, or other typical romance tropes, so I investigated further. Not being able to pass up a well-reviewed book of over a thousand pages, I decided to give it a go.It’s a cliché, but once I picked up the book, I couldn’t stop reading. It struck me as a strange, uncategorizable combination of melodrama, engaging narrative, and psychological insight. The characters are caricatures of themselves, the hyperbole strongly felt from the beginning. The single female first-person protagonist is, stereotypically, always in an emotional “muddle”; certainly, the stereotype for Victorian women is being poked fun at. I began to suspect a joke.Despite being wary the author was toying with her readers—albeit in a friendly way—I couldn’t abandon the story. The characters, drawn with a draftsman’s precision, are illustrated through their own perceptions and the perceptions of those around them, though the reader gets the benefit of only one at a time. The book, if it could be said to be about anything, discusses how much, and yet how little, we know about someone with whom we are supposed to be close. It also talks about family dynamics and the effects of decisions that reverberate through generations. These are all laudable, completely noble bases for a novel of such length. Yet . . . I can’t really settle on the opinion that this book is meant to be a serious piece of literature. The characters get more “crazy” as the book wears on, and I feel that Howatch primes the reader early with slightly sane characters that had horrible things happen to them at surprising (and sometimes hilarious) moments for her final tour de force, locking a third generation of characters in the battle waged less stunningly by their ancestors and laughing behind her hand as the readers, unaware of their prior conditioning, read on.The final clue that this book must be all in good fun is the unfavorable mention of Galsworthy’s The Forsyte Saga. However, if Wheel of Fortune is a joke, it is a joke of high sophistication. I give it high marks for keeping me interested, exercising my vocabulary, dealing out the already-mentioned psychological insight, and presenting the narrative with adept strokes. Could it have ended earlier? Yes. But it is pure entertainment, and I think Howatch’s last laugh (with us, not at us) is getting her readers to stick through the dysfunction, tragedy, family obsessions, and hereditary twitches until the end—all while enjoying themselves. As for the “retelling,” I think that’s another way Howatch pretends the work is supposed to be serious. I would say that, wherever she found her inspiration, she made this story fully her own. I would even venture to say that the idea of this book being a “retelling” is irrelevant except as an unnecessary device to legitimize itself because it’s utterly unbelievable.
—Kerry
Sodomy, adultery, murder, robbery, madness, lust. That's how one of the characters describes his family's antics, and he ain't wrong.Set in the first half of the 20th century, but beautifully paralleling the lives of Edward III, the Black Prince, John of Gaunt, Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V, this is the story of the Godwins, masters of Oxmoon. Each generation is haunted by the sins of the fathers, each of them clinging to the mantra of 'I draw the line' in a desperate attempt to ward off their heavy ghosts. The book is split into six sections each narrated by a different character battling their own set of inner demons, but at its cataclysmic heart are Kester and Harry. Their bitter lifelong rivalry turns to obsession, twisting ever more sinister until their chilling games of cat-and-mouse finally become a horrifying reality where even victory can't bring release.A dark, destructive, delicious tale; I loved it!Thanks Jemidar for another crazy doorstopper of a buddy read :-)
—Anna
More like 4.5 stars.Very clever and detailed 'modern' interpretation of the lives of the English historical figures Edward (AKA The Black Prince), Joan (AKA The Fair Maid of Kent), John of Gaunt, Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V. The cast come alive in this multi-generational saga that encompasses everything from scandal, lust, murder, sodomy, drunkenness, abuse, illegitimacy, jealously, madness and extortion spanning the years 1913 to 1966. I seriously loved how the author wove the historical facts into a riveting story which gave a great psychological and sympathetic insight into the characters. There were no heros or villains just people doing the best they could as the actions of earlier generations echoed down the years. Wonderfully salacious, and satisfyingly dark & dysfunctional.Another great chunkster buddy read with my good friend Anna :-).
—Jemidar
