Heathcliff

by Jeffrey Caine

HEATHCLIFF REVEALEDIn a novel alight with brilliance and mischief, Heathcliff's life during the time he was mysteriously absent from Wuthering Heights is here unfolded. Where was he? What happened following that desperate moment when he fled from his adopted home-humiliated, defeated, outraged-up to the day, three years later, when he returned strong, rich, the master of his passions? The enthralling answer is Heathcliff by a gifted writer whose novel is both splendid entertainment and a masterly novel of suspense.

245 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 1977

About the author

Jeffrey Caine (born 1944) is a British writer and actor.

Reviews

[Misfit · Rating 2 out of 5]

Author Jeffrey Caine attempts the unenviable task of telling the reader what *might* have happened during Heathcliff's absence from Wuthering Heights. But, therein lies the problem - throughout this 252 page novel there's a whole lot of telling and not very much showing. Not a whole lot of interesting story either.

The book begins in 1803 as Mr. Lockwood receives a lengthy missive from Mrs. Dean with a long-lost (and incredibly long) letter written by Heathcliff and intended for Cathy. The POV switches to that of Heathcliff's as he recounts his journey from Wuthering Heights to London and eventually hooking up with the Durrants - the husband who appears to be a respectable landlord whilst truly dealing with the criminal elements along with his wife Elizabeth who wants his money but would rather be in another man's bed. Could Heathcliff soon fall victim to Elizabeth's charms? Do we care?

No, we do not. Or at least I didn't. The latter third is then told from Elizabeth's POV as Lockwood locates her and she recounts the latter part of the story, thus giving the reader another heavy dose of oh-so-boring info dumps. I know, I know that Heathcliff is not a likeable fellow but still I found nothing and no one to care about and what was happening bored me to tears and I skimmed a great deal just to end the pain of it all.

Recommended for die-hard fans of Wuthering Heights who must know *the rest of the story*.

[Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

omg this is a terrible book it doesn't do Heathcliff justice please please please don't read it

[Veronica B · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up a copy of Heathcliff at my local library book sale because the premise of a sequel to Wuthering Heights intrigued me. I didn't expect much from the novel, but I was pleasantly surprised with it.

Jeffrey Caine manages to deliver an adventurous story about Heathcliff's missing years while staying true to the original novel and its characters. Mr. Lockwood returns as the narrator, having received a letter from Nelly Dean who has discovered Heathcliff's written account of his absence. The novel has to answer so many questions that remained a mystery in Wuthering Heights - Where did Heathcliff go? How did he come into his fortune? Where did he learn to become a gentleman? Why did he come back to Yorkshire? Heathcliff provides an answer to all of these, while giving readers an understanding of how he turned into such a cruel and vengeful man.

While Wuthering Heights takes place on the gloomy Yorkshire moors, Heathcliff brings readers to the seedy underbelly of London in the 1780's. I found the novel to be more action-packed than its predecessor, with riots, crime, scandal, and a grand tour of Europe to boot. This book is not a feel-good romance, and does not have the happy ending that some people were apparently expecting, but I think that stays true to Heathcliff's storyline in Wuthering Heights.

I would recommend people read (or re-read) Wuthering Heights before starting this book. While in theory it could be a stand-alone novel, there is a lot to gain by knowing the original source material.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This took me far too long to read.