O Juliet [Paperback]

I suppose that anyone from a Shakespeare buff to one only slightly acquainted with Romeo and Juliet will find this a highly entertaining book. Robin Maxwell is quite creative in weaving together many a thread, not only from the familiar play but various other customs and well-known figures from the period. It is a very pleasant, fun, and slightly naughty (though totally inoffensive) romp, which has the added flair of getting to know far more about characters who seem to be old friends.

Students must be cautioned not to use this book as a cheat sheet! :) Part of its charm, and indeed much of its great wit, comes from Robin Maxwell's integrating details of the Capulet/Montague feud and relationships with such figures as Lucrezia Borgia - the fun is the 'tie in,' which often has no relation to the actual play. Our heroine, Juliet, is a deliciously fun character, and captures well an era when freedom to marry whom one wishes was an intricate (if at all possible) intrigue.

There is no real theme and no attempt at huge insight - it's a thoroughly fun book where one's knowledge of Shakespeare and history only increases the potential for laughter. The author does not shield the reader from the dark side of the historical period, yet that does not dominate the action.

I'd highly recommend this book as first-rate entertainment. Those who are not especially familiar with the setting may also benefit from a vivid picture of quite realistic circumstances - even if not everyone was pal to Lucrezia Borgia.

I have been chomping at the bit to post my review of this marvelous book since I read it a couple months ago!

Maxwell's newest novel is a fascinating look at Romeo and Juliet's story without the Shakespearean language. Let me say first that this is NOT a retelling of Shakespeare's play but rather a look at what really "might have been." The basic storyline is the same but everything else is told in much more detail with some slight changes to help the story along. As Shakespeare based his famous play off several Medieval love stories, Maxwell also used those in her research for this novel. There is a wonderful blend of the familiar story mixed with marvelous details of the time period which I feel really help immerse the reader in the story. Maxwell fills in all the details that Shakespeare's play leaves out: customs, traditions, business practices, treatment and status of women, etc. These details really help separate this novel from the play. Where as the play is really just the love story between two teenagers Maxwell's novel is really a look at the lives of these two young adults and the events in the world around them.

There are recognizable characters though some may have different names and different personalities (for instance the rather quiet, meek Paris becomes Jacapo Strozzi, a truly malicious and despicable man). I really enjoyed the characterization of Romeo and Juliet in this novel. Romeo is portrayed as a sensitive but energetic young man who loves Juliet not just for her beauty but for her intellect and passions as well. Juliet is a feisty young woman who is educated, has a sense of adventure, and is quite determined to go after what she wants. It was wonderful to see the two as individual people with other issues in their lives rather than a pair of moon-struck teenagers. Our two protagonists are also in their late teens here which makes their feelings for each other seem much more real and staying, rather than a teenage crush. Maxwell really outdid herself with her portrayals of these two famous characters.

Besides familiar characters, there are familiar events in the novel, though the way they come about or the outcome may be different. I really enjoyed the way Juliet managed to get away in order to marry Romeo. We get a better look at why there is a feud between the Capelletti and the Monticecco and Romeo is even able to negotiate a truce between the two. It was wonderful to see that a relationship between the two could have been possible at this point, as the two families were able to "make friends." Jacapo, Juliet's betrothed, is really the catalyst that causes all the friction and problems between the two families. He really is a loathsome creature. It is his influence that really puts pressure on the couple as the story nears its climax and I was eager to see what Maxwell's resolution to the situation would be. I will not give away the ending but it was quite emotional.

This is a very fun, entertaining, and fast read. Shakespeare's basic story is really embellished and filled out with wonderful detail. It will really hold your attention! I would recommend this to anyone: Shakespeare buffs, romance fans, general readers.

O Juliet by Robin Maxwell

Rewriting Romeo and Juliet is no easy task, not only because Shakespeare was a master but also because effusive proclamations of love by two infatuated teenagers can easily seem trite and melodramatic today. But in O Juliet, Robin Maxwell does an admirable job of retelling the classic story, while introducing an original subplot and additional characters.

Three of her characters, Jacopo Strozzi, Lucrezia Tornabuoni and Cosimo de'Medici are based upon actual historical figures of Renaissance Italy. Her version of the story, after all, takes place in 15th century Florence, not Shakespeare's Verona. But Maxwell's Florentine setting is not entirely her own invention. In her Readers' Guide, she mentions that several versions of Romeo and Juliet predated Shakespeare, and that one was set in Florence.

In O Juliet, we have no nurse and no Mercutio. But we do have Juliet's confidante Lucrezia, cousin Marco, helpful servants, and many of the characters and plot points we read in Shakespeare - a family feud, a masked Romeo, mutual infatuation, secret meetings, a secret marriage, arranged betrothals, an accidental slaying, a friar, a vial, Romeo in exile. Juliet, however, is 18, not 14, and she and Romeo bond through their love of romantic poetry, especially Dante's La Vita Nuova.

In Shakespeare, Juliet's family, the Capulets, betroth her to Paris. In Maxwell, Juliet's father, a Capeletti, is a silk merchant whose economic difficulties can only be resolved by entering into business partnership with the malevolent Jacopo Strozzi, and giving his daughter to Strozzi in marriage. Strozzi becomes a central figure in Maxwell's plot, further intensifying the conflict between the feuding families, which Maxwell explains became enemies due to a violation of honor in an earlier generation.

From the beginning, the novel engages the reader, drawing us into Juliet's feelings and perspective while visually evoking the setting Later, we enter Romeo's experience. The first meeting between the two is delightful, conveying the delicacy of young infatuation without becoming cloying. The poetry connection (reminiscent of Keats and Fanny Brawn) adds some substance to what would otherwise appear only to be physical attraction. Their meetings are heartfelt, their conversations believable, their later struggles with fear and doubt understandable. Maxwell's Strozzi plot contributes to the escalating tension of the story, tightening the noose around the lovers in such a manner that even we who know Shakespeare's story are eager to discover Maxwell's resolution.

The novel, however, is not without flaws, some of them striking. Jacopo Strozzi is too stereotypically an evil and despicable villain. The ending is strained - Maxwell's attempt to tie not only all Shakespeare's but also her own story lines together appears forced, and is unsatisfying. We might also question: Is Juliet too bold and sexually free for a noble daughter of her time period? Are the friar's actions believable? Are the differences between the Montececco and Capeletti settled too easily?

Despite its flaws, O Juliet is a highly readable and enjoyable novel. Few writers would dare to retell Shakespeare. Maxwell dares, and to a large extent succeeds. I give her four stars.

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