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Midnight Queen
A dramatic tale of terror by Canada's first best-selling novelist. Fleming has written a fantastic tale brimming with suspense and surprising twists. The aura of mystery, rich descriptions and understated humour make this tale unforgettable. Enthralling!
560 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1876
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 22, 2018
In order to give you some idea of just how deliciously dreadful this novel is, would it suffice to inform you that one of the two male leads falls in love with a woman whose face he has never seen, while the other falls in love with a woman who has just died of the plague!
Fear not, the second lady recovered from her seemingly incurable illness in time for some romance, and the first lady did eventually deign to show her lover her face, though it did nothing for their relationship. By and large, plague-ridden London of 1665 was not a good place for lovers.
Other lurid delights in a frankly barmy plot included a decapitation as spectator sport, the shrieking laughter of a malignant dwarf called Prince Caliban, and a beautiful queen gratuitously squishing a rat under her heal, repeatedly.
It took me a few chapters to work out if all this was entirely tongue-in-cheek or merelyy inept.
It was certainly the latter, but who cares with entertainment this unconcerned with such storyteller's trifles as logic or sense.
I rarely do this, but I felt compelled to give the rest of this review over to quotes from the book, so richly do they deserve to be shared and enjoyed. They all relate to our resurrected heroine Leonine, who suffered such am emotional roller coaster ride that:
'she walked up and down, worrying her pretty little head with all sorts of anxieties, until it was a perfect miracle that softening of the brain did not ensue.'
A miracle indeed! Mind you, perhaps some softening did ensue, how else explain this reasoning towards an unwonted suitor?:
"You haunted me continually; you gave me no peace at all; and I would just have married you to get rid of you."
OK, so she's not the brightest lass. Luckily she's a stunner (despite a touch of the plague), with an unusually clever face as well as a beautiful one:
'in Leoline's face there was a kind of childlike simplicity; a look half shy, half fearless, half solemn in her wonderful eyes'
A woman of three halves!? Picasso could have captured that look perfectly. And this quot was my personal favorite:
'Everything was perfect, from the wreath and veil to the tiny sandaled feet and lying there in her mute repose she looked more like some exquisite piece of sculpture than anything that had ever lived and moved in this groveling world of ours.'
This 'groveling' world! Priceless!
Yes, The Midnight Queen is so bad it's good.
But it's also so bad it's just plain bad.
Glad I read it, though.
Fear not, the second lady recovered from her seemingly incurable illness in time for some romance, and the first lady did eventually deign to show her lover her face, though it did nothing for their relationship. By and large, plague-ridden London of 1665 was not a good place for lovers.
Other lurid delights in a frankly barmy plot included a decapitation as spectator sport, the shrieking laughter of a malignant dwarf called Prince Caliban, and a beautiful queen gratuitously squishing a rat under her heal, repeatedly.
It took me a few chapters to work out if all this was entirely tongue-in-cheek or merelyy inept.
It was certainly the latter, but who cares with entertainment this unconcerned with such storyteller's trifles as logic or sense.
I rarely do this, but I felt compelled to give the rest of this review over to quotes from the book, so richly do they deserve to be shared and enjoyed. They all relate to our resurrected heroine Leonine, who suffered such am emotional roller coaster ride that:
'she walked up and down, worrying her pretty little head with all sorts of anxieties, until it was a perfect miracle that softening of the brain did not ensue.'
A miracle indeed! Mind you, perhaps some softening did ensue, how else explain this reasoning towards an unwonted suitor?:
"You haunted me continually; you gave me no peace at all; and I would just have married you to get rid of you."
OK, so she's not the brightest lass. Luckily she's a stunner (despite a touch of the plague), with an unusually clever face as well as a beautiful one:
'in Leoline's face there was a kind of childlike simplicity; a look half shy, half fearless, half solemn in her wonderful eyes'
A woman of three halves!? Picasso could have captured that look perfectly. And this quot was my personal favorite:
'Everything was perfect, from the wreath and veil to the tiny sandaled feet and lying there in her mute repose she looked more like some exquisite piece of sculpture than anything that had ever lived and moved in this groveling world of ours.'
This 'groveling' world! Priceless!
Yes, The Midnight Queen is so bad it's good.
But it's also so bad it's just plain bad.
Glad I read it, though.
February 17, 2022
Funtastic. Barmy. Loved it.
19th century Monty Phython.
19th century Monty Phython.
September 29, 2013
This tale set at the time of the great plague of London in 1665 is a tad bit drawn out. The plot is alright, its rather interesting actually, but maybe it should have been a bit shorter.
The fantasy/occult/historical fiction tale starts with Sir Norman Kingsley being told about a mystique La Masque, he ends up visiting her and soon certain visions experienced whilst in her presence come to life...
But how can a woman assumed dead come to life, and how can such a dead one suddenly disappear...
The fantasy/occult/historical fiction tale starts with Sir Norman Kingsley being told about a mystique La Masque, he ends up visiting her and soon certain visions experienced whilst in her presence come to life...
But how can a woman assumed dead come to life, and how can such a dead one suddenly disappear...
May 15, 2014
I totally found this by accident but I'm so glad I did, what a weird little gem of a story :)
August 13, 2012
This book is weird. The strangest characters. I think it's historical romance, but reads as a grotesque fantasy set in time of th great plague! YUK
Read
December 23, 2011A ripping yarn!
November 3, 2015
Great gothic novel. Very enjoyable.
October 4, 2017
I was listening to this online, but once I got access to Overdrive audios that have a much larger selection, I haven't been back to it. This is another one of those that I feel I really need to finish. I should make that a priority once things slow down a bit more.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews