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Lettice & Victoria
This roman a clef revolves around Victoria, barely twenty, who finds herself acting as amanuensis to Laurence, an elderly man of letters, now blind, who lives in a ravishing house by the sea in northern Italy. Soon after her arrival, she indulges in a heady night of passion with Edgar, a youthful Englishman. Edgar's mother, Lettice, who is jealous and suspicious of Victoria's prettiness and her ability to amuse Lettice's intellectual friends, decides to ensure that Victoria's new life back in England is a misery. Darkly funny and deeply insightful, Lettice & Victoria is not just a love story with a fanciful and flawed female protagonist, but a wonderful portrait of 1950s English society.
180 pages, Hardcover
First published December 4, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 3, 2014
This is the fabulous tale of Victoria, shy with a quick mind and engaging view on life and how her life is shaped by the fanciful Lettice and I struggled to write this review simply because I couldn't find the words to do it justice. The writing brings each colourful character to life with such (I suspect autobiographical) clarity that you connect with them as people and enjoy the fascinating way in which they are pulled together.
The most emotive parts of the story are written stoically and, although strange at first, I found that by not describing the protagonist’s feelings it allowed me to feel the appropriate emotions, thus drawing me in closer.
I feel smarter just for reading this adorable book and Susanna Johnston’s writing style tickles the intellect without being taxing. Lettice & Victoria is the literary equivalent of ‘High Tea’ - indulgent, classy and over far too soon. I want second helpings!
An adorable tale, full of three dimensional characters and a plot that surprises.
The most emotive parts of the story are written stoically and, although strange at first, I found that by not describing the protagonist’s feelings it allowed me to feel the appropriate emotions, thus drawing me in closer.
I feel smarter just for reading this adorable book and Susanna Johnston’s writing style tickles the intellect without being taxing. Lettice & Victoria is the literary equivalent of ‘High Tea’ - indulgent, classy and over far too soon. I want second helpings!
An adorable tale, full of three dimensional characters and a plot that surprises.
July 23, 2016
Also posted on This Chick Reads
* Copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review*
Couple of weeks ago, a very dear friend of mine mentioned on twitter something about experimenting with genres. Most of the readers have a certain comfort zone when it comes to picking books. I do enjoy chick lit and I've been reading nothing but chick lit for quite some time (exceptions were couple of historical fiction titles and few mystery/crime ones). But basically everything is about chick lit these days for me. And I'm not complaining, I'm familiar with the genre, enjoy it greatly and feel quite safe in my chick lits (I do know what to expect from them).
But I agree, stepping out of the comfort zone is challenging and who knows, it might not just broaden your horizons, but also allow you to discover some fantastic literature you would otherwise miss out on.
Reading 'Lettice and Victoria' was quite challenging for me, but at the same time it proved to be a rewording experience. I totally enjoyed this wonderful, little book (in terms of lenght).
While reading it, I couldn't help but feel like I was at high school again, reading all those magnificent classics I used to back in the days. It also reminded me how much I miss those beautiful and deep books, and of the fact I should re-read some of them. Being older, I know I'd appreciate them more and maybe even see a new dimension to them.
But back to 'Lettice and Victoria' now. Honestly, the beautiful writing, the dark humor and the wonderful descriptions in this book make it a little masterpiece.
The plot is centered around Victoria, a young woman who goes to Italy to be a companion to an elderly gentleman, now blind helping him read his favorite books and letters. Soon she's to marry Edgar but fears strongly his mother, Lettice, a sophisticated and quite demanding lady.
This is definitely a lovely, deep and though provoking book. The writing style is beautiful though not easy, so I assume it might not appeal to younger audience. However, those that will have the opportunity to read it and understand the message and the gorgeous writing, will truly appreciate this little gem. It's a rather short read, but the length is just perfect and I really loved the short chapters. It's as if the author knew exactly what is important for the story, there isn't even a single unnecessary page.
It's a wonderful, thought provoking tale that portrays the English society during the '50s. If you're looking for a fantastic, deep, sophisticated yet funny at times, book - then you have to check this one out.
April 7, 2014
I was sent a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Victoria is a young girl in her early 20s, living in a large Italian villa with an old blind man ‘of letters’ being his eyes as it were. She is desperate for an escape from this life, but also does not want to return home to her alcoholic mother. She sees Edgar, a visitor to the villa, as her escape route.
She soon marries Edgar and moves back to England. This causes new problems as now she has to contend with Lettice, Edgar’s annoying, snobbish mother. As the story develops we see the battle of wills between Lettice and Victoria increase, each time giving the reader more delight.
Lettice is the front runner for the worst mother-in-law prize. She is determined to put Victoria in her place, which is very low down on the list, at every opportunity. However she is equally rude to her neighbours and others whom she deems are on the same social footing as her and her family. To give you an idea of what Lettice is like, one of her offspring prefers boarding school to home and two of them have joined religious ‘communities’ which require them to be cut off from her!
This is a darkly comic book. I didn’t think that Lettice, Victoria or some of the other characters were particularly likeable but that in this instance was the appeal of the book. I found myself looking forward to Lettice’s acerbic missives and put downs and seeing how Victoria and others unlucky enough to face them dealt with such interactions.
The language used was highly effective. Susanna Johnston transported me back to the 1950s. I felt I should have been reading the book dressed in Capri pants and Audrey Hepburn glasses whilst sipping on a Martini.
Speaking about the book on Twitter Margaret Madden, a fellow blogger, said she felt like she was watching theatre when she read this book and I have to agree. Arcadia, the publisher, said it was ‘pure escapism in vintage form’ and again I can only agree.
This a delightful story and should you choose to read it you are in for a treat.
Victoria is a young girl in her early 20s, living in a large Italian villa with an old blind man ‘of letters’ being his eyes as it were. She is desperate for an escape from this life, but also does not want to return home to her alcoholic mother. She sees Edgar, a visitor to the villa, as her escape route.
She soon marries Edgar and moves back to England. This causes new problems as now she has to contend with Lettice, Edgar’s annoying, snobbish mother. As the story develops we see the battle of wills between Lettice and Victoria increase, each time giving the reader more delight.
Lettice is the front runner for the worst mother-in-law prize. She is determined to put Victoria in her place, which is very low down on the list, at every opportunity. However she is equally rude to her neighbours and others whom she deems are on the same social footing as her and her family. To give you an idea of what Lettice is like, one of her offspring prefers boarding school to home and two of them have joined religious ‘communities’ which require them to be cut off from her!
This is a darkly comic book. I didn’t think that Lettice, Victoria or some of the other characters were particularly likeable but that in this instance was the appeal of the book. I found myself looking forward to Lettice’s acerbic missives and put downs and seeing how Victoria and others unlucky enough to face them dealt with such interactions.
The language used was highly effective. Susanna Johnston transported me back to the 1950s. I felt I should have been reading the book dressed in Capri pants and Audrey Hepburn glasses whilst sipping on a Martini.
Speaking about the book on Twitter Margaret Madden, a fellow blogger, said she felt like she was watching theatre when she read this book and I have to agree. Arcadia, the publisher, said it was ‘pure escapism in vintage form’ and again I can only agree.
This a delightful story and should you choose to read it you are in for a treat.
June 9, 2014
I just want to say to Karen at Arcadia, thank you sooo much for sending me this copy to review and I am sorry it has taken me so long to read it… I am trying to catch up on a backlog of books while I was in hospital as well as trying to meet some release dates now… my bad.
Right first of all what can I say, the cover to this book is fabulous!!! I love how it has been drawn and the paper is thick and slightly textured to feel. This really drew me into the book as it stood out.
I found that it was written quite unusually, and that some younger readers may struggle with this style of writing. I loved the level of description for the characters and the setting. It really drew me in and I could picture being in the book transported back to the 1950’s.
This book I managed to read in one sitting, it only has just over 160 pages and I found it a refreshing read in between a heavier book.
This is about a young woman, Victoria. She goes to Italy to be a companion for an elderly gentleman who is blind. She is there to be his eyes and read him his favourite books. Victoria meets Edgar and has a night of passion with him. She is soon introduced to Lettice is his mother and she doesn’t seem to like the effect Victoria is having on Edgar. Victoria ends up marrying Edgar, and although it would seem the story should be a love story, to me it came across more as a marriage of convenience.
There were moments of humour in the book, but to be honest I did expect it to be more humorous than it was. I enjoyed that there were short chapters in the book too; it made it very convenient for breaks. (I like to get to the end of a chapter for a cup of tea or to go to sleep etc).
I did enjoy this book and I think one thing that made it most enjoyable is that it was a little different and I found it to be a breath of fresh air. I was a little disappointed by the lack of humour in it but the way it was written was so beautiful that I will forgive that.
If you are looking for something a little different, be sure to give this a try.
Right first of all what can I say, the cover to this book is fabulous!!! I love how it has been drawn and the paper is thick and slightly textured to feel. This really drew me into the book as it stood out.
I found that it was written quite unusually, and that some younger readers may struggle with this style of writing. I loved the level of description for the characters and the setting. It really drew me in and I could picture being in the book transported back to the 1950’s.
This book I managed to read in one sitting, it only has just over 160 pages and I found it a refreshing read in between a heavier book.
This is about a young woman, Victoria. She goes to Italy to be a companion for an elderly gentleman who is blind. She is there to be his eyes and read him his favourite books. Victoria meets Edgar and has a night of passion with him. She is soon introduced to Lettice is his mother and she doesn’t seem to like the effect Victoria is having on Edgar. Victoria ends up marrying Edgar, and although it would seem the story should be a love story, to me it came across more as a marriage of convenience.
There were moments of humour in the book, but to be honest I did expect it to be more humorous than it was. I enjoyed that there were short chapters in the book too; it made it very convenient for breaks. (I like to get to the end of a chapter for a cup of tea or to go to sleep etc).
I did enjoy this book and I think one thing that made it most enjoyable is that it was a little different and I found it to be a breath of fresh air. I was a little disappointed by the lack of humour in it but the way it was written was so beautiful that I will forgive that.
If you are looking for something a little different, be sure to give this a try.
November 25, 2013
Review from BleachHouseLibrary.Blogspot.ie
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.
Victoria is a young woman who, due to financial difficulties, takes a job as a companion to an elderly academic in Northern Italy. Isolated in the countryside, she becomes her master's eyes as she reads the blind man's correspondence to him as well as reading passages from his favourite books. She also enjoys the visitors to the villa and even manages to fall for one particular guest, Edgar, an Englishman.
Although Victoria is hesitant to leave her employer and begin married life in England, she does not see any alternative.
She is thrown into her her new husband's life in England and most particularly, his eccentric and highly strung Mother, Lettice. She is a difficult woman, demanding, interfering and protective of her family and friends. Victoria is out of her depth at first and avoids her Mother-in-law at all costs. However, a change in her circumstances mean that the two women are thrust even closer in proximity and cracks begin to show in both of their veneers.
Lettice becomes enraged at Victoria's friendship with Archie, an old aquantence and she tries to keep them seperated at all costs.
This wonderful little book is more like a clever, character driven, play. Darkly humorous, cleverly written and extremely observational, this is a welcome change in contemporary literature, reading as something more along the lines of classic fiction. It has a feel of The Royal Tenenbaums about it and for anyone who has ever felt the wrath of their Mother-in-law, is a perfect short novel with lots of snide comments and witty retorts.
Definitely ideal for readers who love a book steeped with strong, individual, quirky characters!
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes.
Victoria is a young woman who, due to financial difficulties, takes a job as a companion to an elderly academic in Northern Italy. Isolated in the countryside, she becomes her master's eyes as she reads the blind man's correspondence to him as well as reading passages from his favourite books. She also enjoys the visitors to the villa and even manages to fall for one particular guest, Edgar, an Englishman.
Although Victoria is hesitant to leave her employer and begin married life in England, she does not see any alternative.
She is thrown into her her new husband's life in England and most particularly, his eccentric and highly strung Mother, Lettice. She is a difficult woman, demanding, interfering and protective of her family and friends. Victoria is out of her depth at first and avoids her Mother-in-law at all costs. However, a change in her circumstances mean that the two women are thrust even closer in proximity and cracks begin to show in both of their veneers.
Lettice becomes enraged at Victoria's friendship with Archie, an old aquantence and she tries to keep them seperated at all costs.
This wonderful little book is more like a clever, character driven, play. Darkly humorous, cleverly written and extremely observational, this is a welcome change in contemporary literature, reading as something more along the lines of classic fiction. It has a feel of The Royal Tenenbaums about it and for anyone who has ever felt the wrath of their Mother-in-law, is a perfect short novel with lots of snide comments and witty retorts.
Definitely ideal for readers who love a book steeped with strong, individual, quirky characters!
February 24, 2014
Originally posted on: http://lauraslittlebookblog.blogspot....
I love the cover of Lettice and Victoria. When I received some books from Arcadia, this one was the book that stood out the most for me.
The story's main focus is on Victoria who at twenty finds herself in Italy, working for an elderly gentleman who is known as the man of letters, who now blind has Victoria writing his letters for him. She soon finds herself marrying Edgar after a night of passion and encounters his jealous Mother Lettice. Whilst Victoria struggles to adapt to this new world of class and superiority, Lettice tries as hard as she can to make sure Victoria does not fit in. But then Archie meets Victoria, Lettice finds her best efforts thwarted and a scandal ensues which threatens to destroy her reputation.
I was a little confused when I first started reading as the writing style was unlike what I am used but, but I soon got into it and what ensued was quite an amusing story. I was reminded of Wodehouse's stories, which I have not read, but have seen the series Blandings on TV, so I thought it was quite funny in places. Not funny as in laugh out loud, but as I have heard it described by others, it was darkly funny in places.
I did manage to read this quite quickly, but because of the unusual writing style and the minimal character development, I could never really get into it. I did like Lettice though despite her mean intentions towards Victoria as some of the things she comes out with were quite ridiculous.
Quite a nice read, but sadly didn't manage to keep my interest throughout.
I love the cover of Lettice and Victoria. When I received some books from Arcadia, this one was the book that stood out the most for me.
The story's main focus is on Victoria who at twenty finds herself in Italy, working for an elderly gentleman who is known as the man of letters, who now blind has Victoria writing his letters for him. She soon finds herself marrying Edgar after a night of passion and encounters his jealous Mother Lettice. Whilst Victoria struggles to adapt to this new world of class and superiority, Lettice tries as hard as she can to make sure Victoria does not fit in. But then Archie meets Victoria, Lettice finds her best efforts thwarted and a scandal ensues which threatens to destroy her reputation.
I was a little confused when I first started reading as the writing style was unlike what I am used but, but I soon got into it and what ensued was quite an amusing story. I was reminded of Wodehouse's stories, which I have not read, but have seen the series Blandings on TV, so I thought it was quite funny in places. Not funny as in laugh out loud, but as I have heard it described by others, it was darkly funny in places.
I did manage to read this quite quickly, but because of the unusual writing style and the minimal character development, I could never really get into it. I did like Lettice though despite her mean intentions towards Victoria as some of the things she comes out with were quite ridiculous.
Quite a nice read, but sadly didn't manage to keep my interest throughout.
July 18, 2015
Dreadful.....a ridiculous plot and arch writing that I think was meant to be amusing.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews