What do you think?
Rate this book
Wideacre #1
Wideacre
Beatrice Lacey, as strong-minded as she is beautiful, refuses to conform to the social customs of her time. Destined to lose her family name and beloved Wideacre estate once she is wed, Beatrice will use any means necessary to protect her ancestral heritage. Seduction, betrayal, even murder -- Beatrice's passion is without apology or conscience. "She is a Lacey of Wideacre," her father warns, "and whatever she does, however she behaves, will always be fitting." Yet even as Beatrice's scheming seems about to yield her dream, she is haunted by the one living person who knows the extent of her plans...and her capacity for evil.
Sumptuously set in Georgian England, Wideacre is intensely gripping, rich in texture, and full of color and authenticity. It is a saga as irresistible in its singular magic as its heroine.
622 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1987
1730 people are currently reading
13792 people want to read
About the author
Philippa Gregory
139 books37.2k followersDR PHILIPPA GREGORY studied history at the University of Sussex and was awarded a PhD by the University of Edinburgh where she is a Regent and was made Alumna of the Year in 2009. She holds an honorary degree from Teesside University, and is a fellow of the Universities of Sussex and Cardiff. Philippa is a member of the Society of Authors and in 2016, was presented with the Outstanding Contribution to Historical Fiction Award by the Historical Writers’ Association. In 2018, she was awarded an Honorary Platinum Award by Neilsen for achieving significant lifetime sales across her entire book output. In 2021, she was awarded a CBE for services to literature and to her charity Gardens for the Gambia. and was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
She welcomes visitors to her site www.PhilippaGregory.com.
Philippa's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/PhilippaGregoryOfficial
She welcomes visitors to her site www.PhilippaGregory.com.
Philippa's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/PhilippaGregoryOfficial
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,342 reviews
September 2, 2007
I absolutely hated this book. I don't know why I finished it, except that I like the way Phillipa Gregory writes, I just don't like what she writes about. The heroine is despicable in every possible way, yet the author clearly expects you to root for her à la Scarlett O'Hara. She commits multiple acts of murder, participates in very creepy incest, and betrays people who love her. I'm not particularly squeamish, but I do require some redeeming qualities in a protagonist if I'm to forgive them all that, and Gregory didn't provide them.
January 28, 2022
3.75
Wild and feral.
Despicable, venomous, but darkly sensual.
A book that elicited the most intense emotion, and one that challenged your tolerance for immorality.
Philippa Gregory knew how to entertain her readers.
Wild and feral.
Despicable, venomous, but darkly sensual.
A book that elicited the most intense emotion, and one that challenged your tolerance for immorality.
Philippa Gregory knew how to entertain her readers.
May 10, 2018
Beatrice Lacey. This girl, later woman, was very hurt, very obsessed, brimming with (deservedly) self-importance and very
very
*ahem* lustful.
That is never a good combination for practially ANTHING.
Deranged, oppressive and god damn near suffocating.
It’s like watching someone so committed to her road to ruin/success and you have to give props to the woman, disagree with her or not, it takes extraordinary strength and courage (and more than a pinch of delusion) to do it with that sort of ownership. It is delicious in its depravity.
That is never a good combination for practially ANTHING.
Deranged, oppressive and god damn near suffocating.
It’s like watching someone so committed to her road to ruin/success and you have to give props to the woman, disagree with her or not, it takes extraordinary strength and courage (and more than a pinch of delusion) to do it with that sort of ownership. It is delicious in its depravity.
May 14, 2009
Oh man. Beatrice Lacy you are one crazy little bitch. It’s not often that you get to read a story through the eyes of the villain, but I loved it! I know a lot of people didn’t care for the book because they found the protagonist hard to stomach. Oh yeah, and the vomit inducing incest probably didn’t help either.
She was perhaps one of the shrewdest, most vile characters I have come across. She had no conscience and took down everything and everyone that stood in her way. Half way through the book I started to feel a little uncomfortable because I actually liked her despite all this. I think this was because although she was despicable, she was strong, crafty, and wickedly smart in a time that women were not supposed to be. I also thought it was interesting how they approached the class issue of the rich verses the poor.
Overall, I found it to be a fascinating read, a definite page turner, and I am looking forward to the next two.
She was perhaps one of the shrewdest, most vile characters I have come across. She had no conscience and took down everything and everyone that stood in her way. Half way through the book I started to feel a little uncomfortable because I actually liked her despite all this. I think this was because although she was despicable, she was strong, crafty, and wickedly smart in a time that women were not supposed to be. I also thought it was interesting how they approached the class issue of the rich verses the poor.
Overall, I found it to be a fascinating read, a definite page turner, and I am looking forward to the next two.
February 25, 2008
Horrible drivel! I had to scrub my brain after reading it. The lengths the heroine goes to for her beloved Wideacre would be semi-interesting if we gave a crap in the first place, but since the author can't even manage to do that well we don't give a crap and so it's a waste of our time and money!
Other books by this author are far, far better. Skip it! Read 'The Other Boleyn Girl' or 'The Boleyn Inheritance'!
Another one that went up on Bookmooch right away, and surprisingly was snapped right up. That poor, poor soul! I gladly paid the postage to mail it away! Out damned spot!
:D
Other books by this author are far, far better. Skip it! Read 'The Other Boleyn Girl' or 'The Boleyn Inheritance'!
Another one that went up on Bookmooch right away, and surprisingly was snapped right up. That poor, poor soul! I gladly paid the postage to mail it away! Out damned spot!
:D
November 30, 2007
Didn't even finish reading this one. The characters are put into neat little boxes: Beatrice is evil, Harry is simpleminded, Celia is demure and kind, etc. The incest was disturbing, but it wasn't the incest that it caused me to stop reading the book. I just reached a point where I realized that I had already read 400+ pages of a book I didn't like and was only 2/3 of the way through. I felt like my time would be better spent doing just about anything other than reading this ridiculous book.
I've enjoyed the other PG books centered around Tudor England, but I have no intention of even attempting to read the other two books in this trilogy.
I've enjoyed the other PG books centered around Tudor England, but I have no intention of even attempting to read the other two books in this trilogy.
August 8, 2007
Even though it is at times grossly sexual (and I mean gross as in disgusting), the Wideacre trilogy is one of my favorite stories of all time. For me, it really captures the essence of the era, and I loved it so much that I read the entire trilogy (easily 1,500 pages) in about two weeks. If you're not uncomfortable with incest, rape and sodomy, it truly is a wonderful, entertaining read, if for no other reason than to show what lengths people will go to get what they think they want. Highly recommended.
April 3, 2022
People seem to either love this book or hate it with a passion. Is it ok that I'm just meh/bored with it?
This is a "historical fiction" novel (I put it in quotes because the only historical things thus far were petticoats and carriages driven by horses.), a story of Scarlett O'Hara/Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil type of protagonist who is a) horny, b) loves her land and c) is a manipulative psychopath.
This is my first Philippa Gregory and it's her debut which is interesting. I love debuts by established genre fiction writers because even if they can become formulaic later on in their careers, debut is often creative and shows their passions.
In her introduction she said that she wrote this when she was finishing her phd and read a lot of sexy books of the 19th century and decided to write a pastiche, so that's why she used incest as a big plot point of the story. And I agree with her, I've noticed myself that for 19th century folks incest was a popular naughty kink. Is it because young people were isolated in their homes? I don't really know.
And that's where my problem lies with this book. It's a trashy book with murders and incest and it's not trashy enough! For crying out loud, there's The Monk written by a young adult man long ago and it's more fun and ridiculous than anything Philippa Gregory is doing here. There's victorian erotica on project gutenberg that's more crazy than this.
So I'm too bored, I've read/skimmed 200+ pages and stopped when she got pregnant with her brother's child and his young bride said she will raise it as her own (she doesn't know who's the father).
Then I tried to give it one more chance half a year later after seeing good reviews, and I have exactly the same quibbles with it that I had the first time. The writing is not atrocious but it's very self-indulgent and repetitious, page after page we get her monologues how much she loves her land and will do whatever to keep it (it's a first person narration). It's not beautiful or immersive, I was noticing I was skimming passages so I don't have to read her another passionate pledge to her land. So I failed again. But then I went to wikipedia to read the plot summary and it goes exactly the way I expected it to. And that's just the amount of attention and effort this book deserves.
This is a "historical fiction" novel (I put it in quotes because the only historical things thus far were petticoats and carriages driven by horses.), a story of Scarlett O'Hara/Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil type of protagonist who is a) horny, b) loves her land and c) is a manipulative psychopath.
This is my first Philippa Gregory and it's her debut which is interesting. I love debuts by established genre fiction writers because even if they can become formulaic later on in their careers, debut is often creative and shows their passions.
In her introduction she said that she wrote this when she was finishing her phd and read a lot of sexy books of the 19th century and decided to write a pastiche, so that's why she used incest as a big plot point of the story. And I agree with her, I've noticed myself that for 19th century folks incest was a popular naughty kink. Is it because young people were isolated in their homes? I don't really know.
And that's where my problem lies with this book. It's a trashy book with murders and incest and it's not trashy enough! For crying out loud, there's The Monk written by a young adult man long ago and it's more fun and ridiculous than anything Philippa Gregory is doing here. There's victorian erotica on project gutenberg that's more crazy than this.
So I'm too bored, I've read/skimmed 200+ pages and stopped when she got pregnant with her brother's child and his young bride said she will raise it as her own (she doesn't know who's the father).
Then I tried to give it one more chance half a year later after seeing good reviews, and I have exactly the same quibbles with it that I had the first time. The writing is not atrocious but it's very self-indulgent and repetitious, page after page we get her monologues how much she loves her land and will do whatever to keep it (it's a first person narration). It's not beautiful or immersive, I was noticing I was skimming passages so I don't have to read her another passionate pledge to her land. So I failed again. But then I went to wikipedia to read the plot summary and it goes exactly the way I expected it to. And that's just the amount of attention and effort this book deserves.
August 14, 2019
I couldn't STAND the main character, Beatrice Lacey! What a heartless B***H! Scarlett O'Hara was no angel either, but she had spunk that I had to root for! Two thumbs down!
April 29, 2018
PG likes incest a lot more than I do.
July 16, 2015
I've never read any of Ms Gregory's Tudor novels. The Tudor era doesn't particularly interest me (though I'm not opposed to the period if a novel has elements I enjoy), so I was intrigued by this trilogy for three reasons: 1) the Georgian setting; 2) her earlier (supposedly less-romantic) work; 3) the negative reviews due to an antagonistic & incestuous heroine.
I agree the incest is gross. It's definitely not the sort that draws a reader's sympathy (like, say, Flowers in the Attic). But once Beatrice's initial romanticism has passed, said incest becomes another facet of her anti-heroine status. She is an unreliable narrator -- and, as such, she is the only choice to relay this kind of story. If Celia was the primary POV, Beatrice would be nothing but a villain...which is unfair, even for a character who does such vile things. Nobody can deny Beatrice impacts, warps, & (frequently) ruins everything around her. But the root of her negativity -- her terrors of homelessness, of lacking security, of leaving her childhood home without a ripple of effect on the land she holds dear -- are sympathetic. She craves knowledge that she is loved, & in that she's a tragic character more than anything else. She's a combination of Victoria & Aurora Floyd & Scarlett O'Hara.
So while Beatrice definitely isn't a good person, her villainy has understandable roots. Her defeat is inevitable; in that she's unlike Scarlett O'Hara, who had enough goodness to prevent total downfall. But I'm sad that so many readers don't look past the grotesque plot points & enjoy the heart of the novel -- a sprawling, semi-gothic epic of a twisted family & its relationship with the land. Who is the true parasite -- the family or the land they live upon? It's a romance in the old-fashioned sense -- a tale of warped standards, a la Zofloya -- and that sort of romance doesn't need a moral paragon to narrate.
4.5 stars, but this time I rounded up.
...Take that, one-star reviews. ;)
I agree the incest is gross. It's definitely not the sort that draws a reader's sympathy (like, say, Flowers in the Attic). But once Beatrice's initial romanticism has passed, said incest becomes another facet of her anti-heroine status. She is an unreliable narrator -- and, as such, she is the only choice to relay this kind of story. If Celia was the primary POV, Beatrice would be nothing but a villain...which is unfair, even for a character who does such vile things. Nobody can deny Beatrice impacts, warps, & (frequently) ruins everything around her. But the root of her negativity -- her terrors of homelessness, of lacking security, of leaving her childhood home without a ripple of effect on the land she holds dear -- are sympathetic. She craves knowledge that she is loved, & in that she's a tragic character more than anything else. She's a combination of Victoria & Aurora Floyd & Scarlett O'Hara.
So while Beatrice definitely isn't a good person, her villainy has understandable roots. Her defeat is inevitable; in that she's unlike Scarlett O'Hara, who had enough goodness to prevent total downfall. But I'm sad that so many readers don't look past the grotesque plot points & enjoy the heart of the novel -- a sprawling, semi-gothic epic of a twisted family & its relationship with the land. Who is the true parasite -- the family or the land they live upon? It's a romance in the old-fashioned sense -- a tale of warped standards, a la Zofloya -- and that sort of romance doesn't need a moral paragon to narrate.
4.5 stars, but this time I rounded up.
...Take that, one-star reviews. ;)
March 14, 2018
This book was something else! I LOVED it! Beatrice is the most insane, deranged, evil?, main character I’ve ever come across in historical fiction. I mean seriously badass! The book was also shocking in many ways all involving the deeds and plans of Beatrice Lacey. She is like a ramped up Scarlett O Hara.
All the while I was reading this my own ‘inner reading voice’ was making me laugh!: No, she didn’t just do that! She can’t do that ! What is wrong with this woman? What a bitch! Say, what now?
No one is safe. I mean no one!
This is quite a salacious read in parts so although I am strongly recommending this book, don’t read it if you’re easily offended!
I nearly shut this review down before mentioning the history. I had never really thought about the consequences of enclosure and what that meant for rural villagers. Commons were where the poor could catch rabbits, gather free firewood and once the commons were enclosed and turned into fields for crops, this was no longer an option. Combine this with rich landowners sending their crops in their entirety to London, keeping prices high, villagers no longer had access to affordable grain. I’m interested to see in the next in the series how this situation improves or worsens.
All the while I was reading this my own ‘inner reading voice’ was making me laugh!: No, she didn’t just do that! She can’t do that ! What is wrong with this woman? What a bitch! Say, what now?
No one is safe. I mean no one!
This is quite a salacious read in parts so although I am strongly recommending this book, don’t read it if you’re easily offended!
I nearly shut this review down before mentioning the history. I had never really thought about the consequences of enclosure and what that meant for rural villagers. Commons were where the poor could catch rabbits, gather free firewood and once the commons were enclosed and turned into fields for crops, this was no longer an option. Combine this with rich landowners sending their crops in their entirety to London, keeping prices high, villagers no longer had access to affordable grain. I’m interested to see in the next in the series how this situation improves or worsens.
December 3, 2008
Beatrice is one of my favorite characters of all times. She is confident, self-assured, unyielding, and maybe one of the biggest bitches in literature. With all the books out there that negate women's power and authority (uh hm...TWILIGHT), Gregory knows how to create a character that uses her strong feminine prowess and works the system. "The system" being the 18th century society in which women had very few rights and entitlement. What I think redeems Beatrice is her connection with the land and it's through this that ties her and her family together.
It's dark, historical fiction at its best.
It's dark, historical fiction at its best.
November 14, 2007
I loved the first half of this book. Beatrice Lacey is by far the most horrible, hateful, despicable narrator I've ever read, but I found myself rooting for her throughout all her scandalous deeds- the conspired murder, the attempted murder, the committed murder, the incest, the hidden pregnancies, and on and on the list goes. I even found myself disliking sweet little Celia, as wonderful a woman as she was, simply because she was Beatrice's enemy. That, I think, is the mark of a truly wonderful author. In any other case, I would despise a woman like Beatrice, but while reading this book, I couldn't help but be on her side.
So naturally, when the second part of the book came, and Beatrice's downfall seemed inevitable, I found it hard to get through. Everything was working against her and I lost the initial connection I'd felt with her as a narrator. Her desires didn't make as much sense to me anymore. No longer able to root for the narrator, and watching the world around her fall apart, I found it a difficult book to finish.
Because I loved the beginning and disliked the end, I give "Wideacre" three stars. Not a bad read and I do intend to read the next two books in the series.
Find more book reviews at A Quick Red Fox.
So naturally, when the second part of the book came, and Beatrice's downfall seemed inevitable, I found it hard to get through. Everything was working against her and I lost the initial connection I'd felt with her as a narrator. Her desires didn't make as much sense to me anymore. No longer able to root for the narrator, and watching the world around her fall apart, I found it a difficult book to finish.
Because I loved the beginning and disliked the end, I give "Wideacre" three stars. Not a bad read and I do intend to read the next two books in the series.
Find more book reviews at A Quick Red Fox.
July 8, 2018
Very strong social message in this book.
October 1, 2020
Not nearly as good as some of Gregory's other books.
And not nearly as good as Virgin Earth, which featured some of the same characters.
Never a good sign when you find yourself skimming through the descriptions of the english garden in search of more drama.
And not nearly as good as Virgin Earth, which featured some of the same characters.
Never a good sign when you find yourself skimming through the descriptions of the english garden in search of more drama.
May 12, 2016
This book was crazy.
It was trashy, entertaining, and scandalous.
Beatrice was an unlikable character but I LOVED her. She was shameless, and it was oddly refreshing to not have her (really) angst about her moral failings.
This was, to date, the most entertaining book Gregory has ever written.
Beatrice reminded me a lot of Scarlett, but like the bad girl version.
Also some V.C. Andrews thrown in with the incest and gothic feels.
Not for the faint of heart tho.
It was trashy, entertaining, and scandalous.
Beatrice was an unlikable character but I LOVED her. She was shameless, and it was oddly refreshing to not have her (really) angst about her moral failings.
This was, to date, the most entertaining book Gregory has ever written.
Beatrice reminded me a lot of Scarlett, but like the bad girl version.
Also some V.C. Andrews thrown in with the incest and gothic feels.
Not for the faint of heart tho.
January 22, 2008
The only reason I gave this book a star is because the darn system wouldn't let me give less. Now, I'm not a prude who doesn't like my book to contain a bit of a steamy scene once in a while. In fact, bring it on. JUST NOT WITH YOUR BROTHER. I loved the time period of this book, and initially I was impressed with the strength of the heroine. However...she lost me when she started thinking up ways to seduce her brother. And chucked a darling hubby out the window (Not literally). What was that about? This was one that I seriously threw in the garbage half way through...I didn't want to subject another poor person to a book full of nasty shmasty incest.
February 17, 2008
I'm a pretty big fan of Philippa Gregory, but I found this one to be very disturbing! I almost liked the fact that the main character was so scandalous and cold-hearted because it made the "heroine" of the story be the person you wanted to see lose which made it different from most of the books I've read. But I don't think I've ever been so grossed out by a book before.. the sex scenes in the book wouldn't really have bothered me - except that she was sleeping with her BROTHER! And I don't mean adopted brother either; he was her actual brother. And they were raised together so it's not like you can forgive her for not knowing. I thought about not reading any further but I kept going solely because I don't like to leave things unfinished.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 1, 2008
I really wonder what Philippa Gregory was going for in this novel, because she certainly didn't give us a likable heroine in the slightest. Beatrice Lacey is one of the most horrible, nasty protagonists I've read...and honestly I enjoyed her scandalous behavior. I went into this novel knowing that she was a universally disliked character, and I think that really helped my overall enjoyment of this.
I did find myself actually wishing Beatrice would get her way during parts of the novel, which surprised me. While she is such a hateful creature, I felt Gregory did a really good job of making her someone I could root for. The more the story progressed, the less I felt that way, but there were times when I totally could get behind her.
This is definitely not a novel for people that are easily disgusted by very, very scandalous behavior--not only does Beatrice help out in having people murdered, but she has an incestuous relationship that is really foul and disgusting. She will do anything necessary to keep Wideacre under her control....anything.
It's one of those books a reader should go into expecting to be shocked and entertained by outrageous behavior. It seems a lot of readers have gone into it expecting something along the lines of Gregory's newer novels and finding something much more gritty and scandalous. It's a long, sordid tale that is definitely not for the faint-of-heart.
I did find myself actually wishing Beatrice would get her way during parts of the novel, which surprised me. While she is such a hateful creature, I felt Gregory did a really good job of making her someone I could root for. The more the story progressed, the less I felt that way, but there were times when I totally could get behind her.
This is definitely not a novel for people that are easily disgusted by very, very scandalous behavior--not only does Beatrice help out in having people murdered, but she has an incestuous relationship that is really foul and disgusting. She will do anything necessary to keep Wideacre under her control....anything.
It's one of those books a reader should go into expecting to be shocked and entertained by outrageous behavior. It seems a lot of readers have gone into it expecting something along the lines of Gregory's newer novels and finding something much more gritty and scandalous. It's a long, sordid tale that is definitely not for the faint-of-heart.
January 10, 2015
Dark, disturbing and downright demented family sagas are my thing, and the Lacey's of Wideacre definitely fit that bill. Our 'heroine' is daughter of the house, Beatrice, for whom incest, murder, scheming and wrecking is a day well spent. Batshit crazy for her is child's play; this sick bitch is the real deal and I loved her for it. Being inside her warped head with all its twisted reasonings had me sympathising with her to a point; I hated what she did, but I understood why she did it, and the further she descended into madness, the more I wanted her to sink to the very murkiest of depths to see which depraved plot she'd come up with next. And as for the finale, oh my, such glorious gothic insanity.
This would have been a 5 star read for me had the pace kept up throughout, but I'm knocking it down to 4 as - finale aside - the crazy peaked before the 70% mark and then the story went right off the boil. I get why this quieter section was important but it dragged on way too long, completely spoiling the intensity and the fun; I wanted more bonkers Beatrice, not the villagers' woes and her sister-in-law's do-goodings to right her many magnificent wrongs. A disappointing end to a brilliant beginning.
Buddy read with Jemidar and Joanne :-)
This would have been a 5 star read for me had the pace kept up throughout, but I'm knocking it down to 4 as - finale aside - the crazy peaked before the 70% mark and then the story went right off the boil. I get why this quieter section was important but it dragged on way too long, completely spoiling the intensity and the fun; I wanted more bonkers Beatrice, not the villagers' woes and her sister-in-law's do-goodings to right her many magnificent wrongs. A disappointing end to a brilliant beginning.
Buddy read with Jemidar and Joanne :-)
June 13, 2008
I’m going to disagree with the majority of reviews here and say that I loved the book. I couldn’t put it down so much that I had read over half of it on the first day of purchase. I really liked the style of writing, the way you felt every emotion, good or bad that Beatrice was going through. The incestuous theme seems to have caused quite a stir here but for me the lead up to it was so intense that I found myself rooting for it to happen! Yes Beatrice is evil, and yes she is certainly vile but overall she is a fantastic character and makes Wideacre a definite must read.
June 5, 2007
I have never read a book where I detested the protagonist more than I did in this one. I have read other of Phillipa Gregory's books and always liked the main character but this one is a dozzy. She is selfish, she betrays almost everyone in her life all in the need to own the house and property where she grew up, Wideacre. She even has well I don't want to spoil the plot, so I will only say that I couldn't wait for her to get what she deserved. I just couldn't like her but there are other nice characters to keep your interest.
April 27, 2012
Where I got the book: my local library, because the one that was on my bookshelf disappeared years ago.
Ah, Philippa Gregory. One of the most read, and most reviled, of living historical novelists. Brickbats mostly take the form of stabs at her loose writing and her historical inaccuracies, although I can't say much about the latter as I'm no historian and as long as writers get things more or less in the right era, I'm usually OK.
I tend towards liking PG's books more than hating them, even though I've felt there's a phoned-in quality to some of her more recent Tudor and Cousins' War efforts. I keep reading the dang things, and am known to say "well, she CAN write, you know. Wideacre, for example."
So I decided to re-read Wideacre, 20 years after the original reading that turned me into a PG fan (if a rather critical one). My task: to judge whether PG really is, in my opinion of course, or ever was a good writer.
The story: Beatrice Lacey is passionately fond of the Wideacre estate where she has grown up and of which her father is Squire. So fond of it that she commits incest, murder and fraud to ensure that she stays on the land rather than let ownership pass to her brother Harry. Fortunately for Beatrice Harry is a blubber-butt bundle of appetites and perverted passions, and therefore easily handled, although Beatrice's husband and sister-in-law prove a bit harder to fool. In attempting to secure Wideacre for her son, Beatrice overreaches herself and effectively ruins the land she loves, bringing starvation to the villagers who once adored her. But they have a champion in Ralph, the gamekeeper's son whom Beatrice has loved and maimed, and who is now known as the Culler and is coming to get his revenge...
Pretty turgid plot, huh? And matched by prose that generally stays within the limits of "vivid" and "compelling," although it does occasionally tip over into "purple." Quite a few sex scenes, although I was less EWWWW about them than usual as I really didn't find them gratuitous. They fit into the themes of fertility/fecundity, of power and control, and made me think of folklore icons such as the Cerne Abbas Giant. And the whole brother/sister sex thing reaches right back into ancient mythologies.
While Beatrice was in the ascendant I found the book to be a real page-turner. So much wickedness carried out with daring and assurance; I was loving to hate Beatrice throughout. The turning point, I think, comes when she marries John; ironically, it could be argued that her biggest mistake stems from her first genuine good relationship. After this point I found the action dragged somewhat as things started to go against Beatrice and the incredible life-force that seems to sustain her started to erode. The Ralph/Culler plot line never entirely worked for me somehow.
I can't help feeling that this book contains the germs of much of PG's later work, and perhaps that's why more recent books feel increasingly watered-down. But I really appreciated the absence of the white magic elements that PG so often incorporates into her books; using magic to push the plot along seems like cheating. If there is any "magic" in Wideacre it is shown as the beliefs of the country people and as a kind of natural force that Beatrice may momentarily embody but can never control.
I noticed a repetitiveness in the writing at times, especially toward the end where I think I read about 300 times that Beatrice's heart had grown cold. Way to belabor a point, PG. And the characters all tended to talk in the same rather melodramatic fashion at times of crisis. But, on the whole, it was a heck of a story and I've read much, much worse in histfic. My feeling is that PG should return to plumbing her imagination for fresh stories in historical settings, instead of handing us fictionalized history where she's constrained by those inconvenient things called facts.
Ah, Philippa Gregory. One of the most read, and most reviled, of living historical novelists. Brickbats mostly take the form of stabs at her loose writing and her historical inaccuracies, although I can't say much about the latter as I'm no historian and as long as writers get things more or less in the right era, I'm usually OK.
I tend towards liking PG's books more than hating them, even though I've felt there's a phoned-in quality to some of her more recent Tudor and Cousins' War efforts. I keep reading the dang things, and am known to say "well, she CAN write, you know. Wideacre, for example."
So I decided to re-read Wideacre, 20 years after the original reading that turned me into a PG fan (if a rather critical one). My task: to judge whether PG really is, in my opinion of course, or ever was a good writer.
The story: Beatrice Lacey is passionately fond of the Wideacre estate where she has grown up and of which her father is Squire. So fond of it that she commits incest, murder and fraud to ensure that she stays on the land rather than let ownership pass to her brother Harry. Fortunately for Beatrice Harry is a blubber-butt bundle of appetites and perverted passions, and therefore easily handled, although Beatrice's husband and sister-in-law prove a bit harder to fool. In attempting to secure Wideacre for her son, Beatrice overreaches herself and effectively ruins the land she loves, bringing starvation to the villagers who once adored her. But they have a champion in Ralph, the gamekeeper's son whom Beatrice has loved and maimed, and who is now known as the Culler and is coming to get his revenge...
Pretty turgid plot, huh? And matched by prose that generally stays within the limits of "vivid" and "compelling," although it does occasionally tip over into "purple." Quite a few sex scenes, although I was less EWWWW about them than usual as I really didn't find them gratuitous. They fit into the themes of fertility/fecundity, of power and control, and made me think of folklore icons such as the Cerne Abbas Giant. And the whole brother/sister sex thing reaches right back into ancient mythologies.
While Beatrice was in the ascendant I found the book to be a real page-turner. So much wickedness carried out with daring and assurance; I was loving to hate Beatrice throughout. The turning point, I think, comes when she marries John; ironically, it could be argued that her biggest mistake stems from her first genuine good relationship. After this point I found the action dragged somewhat as things started to go against Beatrice and the incredible life-force that seems to sustain her started to erode. The Ralph/Culler plot line never entirely worked for me somehow.
I can't help feeling that this book contains the germs of much of PG's later work, and perhaps that's why more recent books feel increasingly watered-down. But I really appreciated the absence of the white magic elements that PG so often incorporates into her books; using magic to push the plot along seems like cheating. If there is any "magic" in Wideacre it is shown as the beliefs of the country people and as a kind of natural force that Beatrice may momentarily embody but can never control.
I noticed a repetitiveness in the writing at times, especially toward the end where I think I read about 300 times that Beatrice's heart had grown cold. Way to belabor a point, PG. And the characters all tended to talk in the same rather melodramatic fashion at times of crisis. But, on the whole, it was a heck of a story and I've read much, much worse in histfic. My feeling is that PG should return to plumbing her imagination for fresh stories in historical settings, instead of handing us fictionalized history where she's constrained by those inconvenient things called facts.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 9, 2013
This book is seriously trash. We see events through Beatrice, our main character and villian. She is so terribly bad with no redeeming quality, it is ridiculous. This is the first in a triliogy, and I won't be reading another. I actually really like Gregory's historical fiction, but I think she must be better when she is left in the confines of real events and people. When she allows her own imagination to run wild, it goes really wild, to the laughable. How did you feel about the movie Show Girls? Did you love it in that it is a hilarious trainwreck kind of a way? If you did and you can get that same vibe going while reading this, you might have a good time. Or if you love V.C. Andrews (better and more gloriously trashy fun than this), you might like this drivel. However, if you are looking for historical fiction, try one of Gregory's other books first.
September 6, 2007
I had heard soooo much about Philippa Gregory's novels. I had initially wanted to read "The Other Boleyn Girl" first, but it was unavailable, so I picked up Wideacre first and cracked it open with anticipation....I think I had read 4 chapters before I threw it against the wall. I think there has only been a couple of times where I just can't finish a book, usually I'll plod through just because I feel guilty for not finishing! But with this book, I just absolutely hated the characters! Ugh! I'll most likely give "The Other Boleyn Girl" a shot...but ugh...I really hope it doesn't suck like this one!
June 13, 2022
Oh my God. That was such a compelling debut novel. I'm so glad Philippa Gregory is an author and that this got published. I wish I had the sequel on hand with me right now, and I'm glad I had the foresight to order it from the library while still in the middle of this one.
648 pages but I was never bored or wanted the book to end. In fact, I wouldn't have minded it being longer 😂😂😂 Most books I just want to end around the 300-page mark. This book was so hard to put down, and I stayed up very late, till 3 am or 3:30 just reading it. I was also super excited to read this book, and I guess I had some premonition that it would be gripping.
I don't think I've ever read a book where a character was so consumed by their home and lands (though Bess in "The Other Queen" also by Philippa Gregory comes close) that they would do absolutely anything for them. This was the case with Beatrice Lacey, the main character, protagonist & antagonist of Wideacre. I know a lot of people hate Beatrice, but I liked her 😂. (Though obviously, I didn't approve of everything she did.) She was a master at manipulation; I was impressed. By the end of the novel, when her age was revealed to be 20, I was so surprised. She seemed to be at least 23. The burdens of all the debts weighed heavily on her, and she was described as having slight wrinkles already. (Though she was outside in the sun a lot, so that couldn't have helped.) Also, 20 seemed too young to be that business-savvy.
What was so frustrating to me was that had Celia accepted Beatrice's offer to provide her with another son (as Beatrice had fallen pregnant with her brother's child a second time), then Wideacre wouldn't have been ruined to raise money to make both Richard and Julia heirs of Wideacre. Richard would have been the sole heir if he had been raised as Harry's son (which he was actually). I had been wondering what would happen next because maybe the first half of the book, Beatrice was doing everything she could to keep living on Wideacre. The blurb made it seem like Beatrice was going to be married off and kicked out of Wideacre. However, that threat wasn't so imminent. Then it seemed she had gotten what she wanted, and I was like well, what's next for this book? What was next was Beatrice trying to set up a legacy for her children to inherit Wideacre.
It also really annoyed me that Celia was so proprietary of Julia when Julia was really Beatrice's daughter!
I was shocked when I read
I told my dad the plot of this story and he was like wtf, this sounds crazy! If we took all the parts from this book, the plot does seem OTT (over the top). But Philippa Gregory writes so masterfully that the story doesn't read like drama for the sake of drama. The whole book also has a touch of Gothic horror to it with Celia & the mom having a sense of there being corruption in the house (from the incest of Beatrice & Harry).
I know I wasn't the only one who got Scarlett O'Hara vibes from this book... I feel like my review doesn't do justice to this book, and I'm sorry for that. This book was a masterpiece that I'm sure will stay with me for a while after finishing this book. This is my 1,400 book read on Goodreads. I'm so glad that a five-star read made that milestone for me. A good omen hopefully.
648 pages but I was never bored or wanted the book to end. In fact, I wouldn't have minded it being longer 😂😂😂 Most books I just want to end around the 300-page mark. This book was so hard to put down, and I stayed up very late, till 3 am or 3:30 just reading it. I was also super excited to read this book, and I guess I had some premonition that it would be gripping.
I don't think I've ever read a book where a character was so consumed by their home and lands (though Bess in "The Other Queen" also by Philippa Gregory comes close) that they would do absolutely anything for them. This was the case with Beatrice Lacey, the main character, protagonist & antagonist of Wideacre. I know a lot of people hate Beatrice, but I liked her 😂. (Though obviously, I didn't approve of everything she did.) She was a master at manipulation; I was impressed. By the end of the novel, when her age was revealed to be 20, I was so surprised. She seemed to be at least 23. The burdens of all the debts weighed heavily on her, and she was described as having slight wrinkles already. (Though she was outside in the sun a lot, so that couldn't have helped.) Also, 20 seemed too young to be that business-savvy.
What was so frustrating to me was that had Celia accepted Beatrice's offer to provide her with another son (as Beatrice had fallen pregnant with her brother's child a second time), then Wideacre wouldn't have been ruined to raise money to make both Richard and Julia heirs of Wideacre. Richard would have been the sole heir if he had been raised as Harry's son (which he was actually). I had been wondering what would happen next because maybe the first half of the book, Beatrice was doing everything she could to keep living on Wideacre. The blurb made it seem like Beatrice was going to be married off and kicked out of Wideacre. However, that threat wasn't so imminent. Then it seemed she had gotten what she wanted, and I was like well, what's next for this book? What was next was Beatrice trying to set up a legacy for her children to inherit Wideacre.
It also really annoyed me that Celia was so proprietary of Julia when Julia was really Beatrice's daughter!
I was shocked when I read
I told my dad the plot of this story and he was like wtf, this sounds crazy! If we took all the parts from this book, the plot does seem OTT (over the top). But Philippa Gregory writes so masterfully that the story doesn't read like drama for the sake of drama. The whole book also has a touch of Gothic horror to it with Celia & the mom having a sense of there being corruption in the house (from the incest of Beatrice & Harry).
I know I wasn't the only one who got Scarlett O'Hara vibes from this book... I feel like my review doesn't do justice to this book, and I'm sorry for that. This book was a masterpiece that I'm sure will stay with me for a while after finishing this book. This is my 1,400 book read on Goodreads. I'm so glad that a five-star read made that milestone for me. A good omen hopefully.
August 13, 2007
Though I loved The Other Boleyn Girl by P. Gregory, I did not enjoy this one. The main character was a complete witch and didn't deserve any sympathy. I only kept reading it so that she would get her cumupins, which she rightly deserved. There was one particular aspect of the book that made my skin crawl and I felt dirty for just reading it. I have really no desire to read the other books in the trilogy if all of them are like this.
February 22, 2022
I finished this book a couple of days ago, and I'm still thinking of the last line of it. A book that can get that response deserves five stars.
This book, in addition to that, also did the very difficult job of telling a story that was compelling and moving while at the same time starring and unlikeable character. Beatrice Lacey is a young woman with her while life ahead of her and only one thing she wants: her father's land, Wideacre. As this is a story set in the eighteen hundreds, Beatrice comes to realise very early that this land she loves, this land that's a big part of who she is, will be handed to her uncaring, sickly and largely absent brother, Harry. This sets off a chain of events that, in my humble opinion seemed, at least in the beginning, reasonable.
The story is so much in Beatrice's head that I at least couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards her ongoing plights, though she definitely causes the worst of them later on. However I've read many negative reviews of this novel and so I know this isn't the case for everybody.
One of the reviews I read early on pointed out how this story could not have been written from Celia's, or indeed any other characters's, point of view other than that of Beatrice. The beauty of this book for me was in seeing the layers of character that made up Beatrice, her decisions, her conflicts with herself over her actions, how she backed herself into a corner. Writing this story from anyone else's view would have been to lessen Beatrice's character and flatten the entire narrative. It is the thought behind the action all the way through that kept this story alive for me.
Notable character mention in this book goes to John MacAndrew, the character who I expected to be most bland who had the most interesting turn around. I screamed out and cried at some of the things that happened between him and Beatrice. As for the invariably mentioned incest between Beatrice and Harry, I think it is a well positioned part of the story that's handled without sensationalism and is there simply because the story needed it.
I bought this whole series unseen on just the strength of Philippa's Tudor writing, and now I'm glad because my local library doesn't have a copy, but I do.
~
Similar to: The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein
This book, in addition to that, also did the very difficult job of telling a story that was compelling and moving while at the same time starring and unlikeable character. Beatrice Lacey is a young woman with her while life ahead of her and only one thing she wants: her father's land, Wideacre. As this is a story set in the eighteen hundreds, Beatrice comes to realise very early that this land she loves, this land that's a big part of who she is, will be handed to her uncaring, sickly and largely absent brother, Harry. This sets off a chain of events that, in my humble opinion seemed, at least in the beginning, reasonable.
The story is so much in Beatrice's head that I at least couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards her ongoing plights, though she definitely causes the worst of them later on. However I've read many negative reviews of this novel and so I know this isn't the case for everybody.
One of the reviews I read early on pointed out how this story could not have been written from Celia's, or indeed any other characters's, point of view other than that of Beatrice. The beauty of this book for me was in seeing the layers of character that made up Beatrice, her decisions, her conflicts with herself over her actions, how she backed herself into a corner. Writing this story from anyone else's view would have been to lessen Beatrice's character and flatten the entire narrative. It is the thought behind the action all the way through that kept this story alive for me.
Notable character mention in this book goes to John MacAndrew, the character who I expected to be most bland who had the most interesting turn around. I screamed out and cried at some of the things that happened between him and Beatrice. As for the invariably mentioned incest between Beatrice and Harry, I think it is a well positioned part of the story that's handled without sensationalism and is there simply because the story needed it.
I bought this whole series unseen on just the strength of Philippa's Tudor writing, and now I'm glad because my local library doesn't have a copy, but I do.
~
Similar to: The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein
January 19, 2022
A brilliantly written descent into complete oblivion and a fully fleshed out (please forgive the pun which you'll get when you read it) and slow progression into evil. Disturbing and captivating enough to be hard to put down in spite of wanting to do so. I kept reading because I hoped that something would change for Beatrice.
And yes, a powerful, societal message about the way the world works that is relevant to this day.
And yes, a powerful, societal message about the way the world works that is relevant to this day.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,342 reviews