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5.0 out of 5 stars
unique among james's novels, April 11 2004
I don't think this is one of his very best works and prefer The Ambassadors and The Portrait of a Lady, but it is interesting and enjoyable nonetheless. None of the characters are very reasonable (the main characters are, perhaps, not even agreeable), and the reader is torn between taking sides with Olive, Verena, or Basil, even though James has a slight bias for Basil, a reactionary. The structure of the novel seems excentric when compared with James's other novels: Basil, the hero, is absent for long stretches, and the finale includes a bit of comedy with a policeman. This scene verges on slap-stick and comes as a shock, in an otherwise intense and somber love story. The prose, however, is beautiful throughout and easier to read than that of his later novels.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent characterization, timely satire, May 20 2003
This is the first James novel I've read, so my high ranking doesn't take into account the relative merits of his novels. That having been said, this novel impressed me with its excellent character development, amusing satire, and spot-on portraits of certain types of oh-so-serious New England crusaders for whom an ironic outlook is alien. The development of the southerner Basil seemed a little weak to me, but James knows his Bostonians and his sketches remain fresh.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
A different kind of novel than I'm used to, April 13 2003
I finished reading this book only a few weeks ago for a college class I'm in. It certainly wasn't the kind of book I'd pick up just on my own, but I wouldn't say I didn't like it.The story is set primarily in Boston and somewhat in New York during the 1880's. At the request of his cousin Olive Chancellor, southern lawyer Basil Ransom comes to visit. He accompanies her to a meeting where the young Verena Tarrant speaks wonderfully on women's rights. Olive is so impressed with Verena, she starts what's debatably a lesbian relationship with her, but Ransom is taken with Verena as well and so a struggle begins between the two for Verena's affections. I think Henry James does an excellent job of giving complete descriptions of each character and you really get a sense of who they are. Olive comes across as rigid and passionate, Verena as young, full of life and curious and Basil as sexist and determined. Basil uses all his ability to wrench Verena from Olive. As I mentioned, the relationship between Verena and Olive is debatable. There are no sex scenes in this novel, but the implication is there. Additionally, I've learned in the class for which I read this novel that many women during this time period engaged in very intense romantic relationships which may or may not be described as sexual. There are of course other characters such as Verena's parents and other women's rights activists, but the whole focus of the novel is on this struggle for Verena. It wouldn't be completely unfair to say that in some ways nothing much happens in this novel. It's truly a character driven story. There aren't really antagonists and protagonists in the story, but more just people whom all have faults and are just trying to make the right decisions. Although my description of Basil above may sound like a bad guy and although he's unapologetically sexist, he perhaps is no worse than Olive who sometimes seems to be using Verena, a young woman whose thoughts and feelings are maleable. At its heart, the novel is still a love story. Overall, I'd say this is probably worth reading if you like novels about this time period, about love or if you like this author. I wouldn't go so far as to say I'd read another novel by James, but I don't regret reading this.
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