The Spell

El reino de Angria #2

by Charlotte Brontë, Nicola Barker (Foreword)

An ingenious, highly imaginative early novella, The Spell— a remarkable tale of love and jealousy, rivalry and thwarted ambition—is a testimony to Charlotte Brontë's craft as a writer. When the infant Marquis of Almeida is pronounced dead, the kingdoms of Wellingtonsland and Angria are deprived of their heir. Anxious to secure the nations’ future security, King Zamorna’s advisers entreat him to name his successor—and when Zamorna himself succumbs to a mysterious, life-threatening sickness, the need becomes more urgent still. Yet Zamorna remains strangely unperturbed. Confusion turns to political intrigue as those closest to him wonder exactly what it is he knows and who, precisely, are the mysterious characters surrounding him. English novelist Charlotte Brontë is best remembered for her perennially popular novel, Jane Eyre­.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, British Literature, Fantasy, Victorian, Romance, Gothic

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1830

About the author

Charlotte Brontë was an English novelist, the eldest out of the three famous Brontë sisters whose novels have become standards of English literature. See also Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë.

Charlotte Brontë was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, England, the third of six children, to Patrick Brontë (formerly "Patrick Brunty"), an Irish Anglican clergyman, and his wife, Maria Branwell. In April 1820 the family moved a few miles to Haworth, a remote town on the Yorkshire moors, where Patrick had been appointed Perpetual Curate. This is where the Brontë children would spend most of their lives. Maria Branwell Brontë died from what was thought to be cancer on 15 September 1821, leaving five daughters and a son to the care of her spinster sister Elizabeth Branwell, who moved to Yorkshire to help the family.

In August 1824 Charlotte, along with her sisters Emily, Maria, and Elizabeth, was sent to the Clergy Daughters' School at Cowan Bridge in Lancashire, a new school for the daughters of poor clergyman (which she would describe as Lowood School in Jane Eyre). The school was a horrific experience for the girls and conditions were appalling. They were regularly deprived of food, beaten by teachers and humiliated for the slightest error. The school was unheated and the pupils slept two to a bed for warmth. Seven pupils died in a typhus epidemic that swept the school and all four of the Brontë girls became very ill - Maria and Elizabeth dying of tuberculosis in 1825. Her experiences at the school deeply affected Brontë - her health never recovered and she immortalised the cruel and brutal treatment in her novel, Jane Eyre. Following the tragedy, their father withdrew his daughters from the school.

At home in Haworth Parsonage, Charlotte and the other surviving children — Branwell, Emily, and Anne — continued their ad-hoc education. In 1826 her father returned home with a box of toy soldiers for Branwell. They would prove the catalyst for the sisters' extraordinary creative development as they immediately set to creating lives and characters for the soldiers, inventing a world for them which the siblings called 'Angria'. The siblings became addicted to writing, creating stories, poetry and plays. Brontë later said that the reason for this burst of creativity was that:

'We were wholly dependent on ourselves and each other, on books and study, for the enjoyments and occupations of life. The highest stimulus, as well as the liveliest pleasure we had known from childhood upwards, lay in attempts at literary composition.'

After her father began to suffer from a lung disorder, Charlotte was again sent to school to complete her education at Roe Head school in Mirfield from 1831 to 1832, where she met her lifelong friends and correspondents, Ellen Nussey and Mary Taylor. During this period (1833), she wrote her novella The Green Dwarf under the name of Wellesley. The school was extremely small with only ten pupils meaning the top floor was completely unused and believed to be supposedly haunted by the ghost of a young lady dressed in silk. This story fascinated Brontë and inspired the figure of Mrs Rochester in Jane Eyre.

Brontë left the school after a few years, however she swiftly returned in 1835 to take up a position as a teacher, and used her wages to pay for Emily and Anne to be taught at the school. Teaching did not appeal to Brontë and in 1838 she left Roe Head to become a governess to the Sidgewick family -- partly from a sense of adventure and a desire to see the world, and partly from financial necessity.

Charlotte became pregnant soon after her wedding, but her health declined rapidly and, according to biographer Elizabeth Gaskell, she was attacked by "sensations of perpetual nausea and ever-recurring faintness." She died, with her unborn child, on 31 March 1855.

Reviews

[Fátima Linhares · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quando comprei este livro bastou-me ver o nome da autora para achar que era uma obra magnífica. Afinal é de Charlotte Bronte o meu livro favorito, Jane Eyre. Redondo engano. Este livro é uma obra estranha. Mistura personagens reais com personagens imaginárias e primeiro que eu percebesse o que estava a ler, e mesmo assim acho que não percebi grande coisa do que ali se passou. Não foi uma leitura entusiasmante. A história é um pouco confusa e tem para lá muitas personagens e às vezes tronava-se difícil perceber de quem estavam a falar. Não ficará na memória.

No final da leitura, ao ler a informação das páginas de guarda, é que percebi que isto era uma história criada por Charlotte e por seu irmão, Branwell. Era um jogo literário a que se dedicavam quando eram miúdos. E parece que eram admiradores do Duque de Welligton.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Booktubathon book #3
- read a book with yellow on the cover
- read a book by one of your favourite authors
- read a book older than you

I was really plesently surprised by this novella, it doesn't feel like something an 18 year old could be able to write. The style of writing is very similar to Jane Eyre, and I can't wait to read more of Bronte's juvenilia.
The story is told through a mix of letters, diary entries and the main characters' younger brothers' pov. It starts with the King of Angria (Bronte's made up land) burying his infant son, two strangers turn up at the funeral. The story tells the tale of how these two strangers turn everybodies lives upside down.

[Smiley III · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brontë's "juevenalia" novella, written at age 14, contains so many points-of-view and shifting-perspective devices as to rival Mary Shelley's The Last Man — lazy it is not, and, given how much informed-conjecture about back-room societies and class-struggles amongst the titled class that one has to wonder: What were those kids reading? (Which, admittedly, may be as simple a question — from today's vantage-point, mind — as asking: "What were they putting in Blackwood's?")

A great read! You won't be disappointed!

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was so strange. I enjoyed it, while having almost not idea what was going on. It's postmodern before its time, people have way too many names and titles, and finishing the book did not answer many of my questions. Still, I see how her talent as a writer was being honed so that she could write master works later on.

[Elsa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The imaginative world of Charlotte Brontë is intricate...

[Eleanor Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5⭐️ for the book itself the overall experience is 5/5 but that doesn’t really make sense unless you read my review or love Charlotte Bronte lol

My discovery of this book is why I love random small used book stores because I think I would have gone my entire life without reading this if it wasn’t randomly in one. Until 4 hours ago I literally had no clue this story even existed and based on the goodreads seemingly nobody else does either. However since finishing I have looked up the novel and discovered that this is for good reason because this story was never published and was written as a work of juvenilia, having been devised when Brontë was only 18 years old.

While this story by no means matches the quality of Brontes more well known work in any realm, I really do think this is essential reading if you enjoyed Jane Eyre. So many of the plot elements are incredibly reminiscent of what can only be early ideas of later full fledged plot elements found within her magnum opus and many names also reappear.

The writing of this novel is also incredibly interesting when compared to her other works because this reads far more like Wuthering Heights by her sister Emily Bronte, than it does of Jane Eyre. Zamorna speaks nearly identical to Heathcliff at times even if at his core he is far more like Rochester. The way the story was told structurally was also far more reminiscent of Wuthering Heights than anything else at times . That being said there were many moments where I was compelled to highlight beautiful and detailed descriptions of seemingly irrelevant things that ended up bringing so much to the story’s quality and that just screamed Charlotte through and through.

The plot itself was decent considering that this was such a youthful and unpublished work. The story was straightforward but compelling to the point that I finished it within 4 or so hours when I had no intention except to start it today. It feels far more reminiscent of literary eras that preceded the Brontë sisters and that was really great to read because it shows how much people back then were inspired by their peers just like we are now. The story itself was more explicitly magical and less layered than her other works but it was still shockingly enjoyable and relatable. I would love a classic Hollywood film of this story, I think it would be just so wonderful because that’s how this book reads. The forward said the novel is more theatre than prose and I would absolutely concur with that point.

This story is also clearly connected to other stories a young Brontë must have written but I have not read/ they do not still exist so it definitely felt like I was dropped into the middle of something. Due to that I utilized the notes at the back of this novel and the Dramatis Personae more than I have ever before. Honestly that made that a more exciting experience, I liked learning about the lost Easter eggs and seeing how vast Charlotte’a worlds were.

The Charlotte Bronte who wrote this novel seems to have been a very different one than that who wrote Jane Eyre and I think that’s part of the beauty of Juvenilia works. If you know anything about the Bronte sisters you know they went through so much and there is something bitter sweet to see a clear reference to how that impacted them.

If you aren’t a fan of classics or the Bronte sisters in general I probably wouldn’t recommend this book, but if you do love them I highly suggest you pick up this quick lost gem. It truly gave me a deeper appreciation of Charlotte as a person, if not her as a writer.

Update: it’s been like an hour and I am still giddy over this book

[Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting glimpse into the early work of a writer destined for greatness. Though short, THE SPELL isn't always as compelling or readable as Bronte's later work, and there are so many characters (many with multiple names) crammed into such a brief tale that it's hard to tell them apart or keep most of them straight. Still, there are fantastic glimmers of brilliance- like when a four year old boy proposes marriage to his governess, or when a young wife tells off her husband's mistress- that make the blood leap excitedly in that classic Bronte fashion. An early scene between the Byronic anti-hero and his shadow-self is bewitching in a fashion I wish the whole book upheld, but such is not the case. Still, worth a glance (you can read the whole book in about three hours) if you're a Bronte fan or take delight in the precocious work of a young genius discovering her talent and just beginning to hone her skills.

[Tita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Comprei este livro na Feira do Livro de Lisboa o ano passado, a preço de saldo, pois queria ler mais obras das irmãs Brontë.
Quanto ao livro em si, achei-o confuso, com muitas personagens, em que tenho que dizer que me ia perdendo sobre quem era quem. Vamos tendo também uma alternância de narradores, que também me fez sentir perdida, pois parecia que tão depressa era uma personagem feminina, como depois era uma masculina (isto no mesmo capitulo).
Quanto à história, também não achei nada de especial, pois basicamente são-nos relatados episódios onde podemos ir verificando as alterações de humor e de personalidade da personagem. Sendo que no final nos é desvendado o mistério, mas que achei algo previsível pois ao meio descobri o dito cujo.
Talvez por ter sido um livro que Charlotte escreveu ainda na adolescência, ainda não nota grande profundidade na escrita.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charlotte Bronte would probably be horrified that this early novella is published. It is obviously written when she was young and I thoroughly enjoyed it for that. But it is extremely melodramatic and fantastic (not meaning great, but unbelievable). Plus she changed her point of view a couple of times. And I'm still not sure how old the narrator was. Was he a child or an adult?

[Ana Pereira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charlotte, Charlotte… só mesmo a tenra idade explica este conto… demasiadas referências bíblicas e à mitologia grega, demasiada ansiedade de partilhar a sua cultura e educação literária, provando os conhecimentos adquiridos na leitura dos clássicos. Mesmo para quem está familiarizado com os termos e referências, torna a leitura pretensiosa e altiva. Felizmente Charlotte cresceu e amadureceu. Assumiu-se, assumiu a sua escrita e a individualidade do seu trabalho sem necessitar de demasiada arrogância na escrita ( Villette tem demasiados trechos em francês, ainda assim…).
Só mesmo o conhecimento de trabalhos posteriores de Charlotte Bronte permite viajar até ao fim deste conto, perdoando a narrativa e as personagens pela imaturidade da escritora.

[Julia · Rating 1 out of 5]

*barf*
Драма, драма, излишни и префърцунени лирични словоизлияния, които само обременяват читателя и отегчават и предизвикват главоболие.
На няколко момента изглеждаше, сякаш разказът се води от няколко различни души??...
Ужасно... вече съм 99% убедена че освен Джейн Еър, Бронте не е написала нищо друго с грам стойност. И каква е тази мания по властни, строги господари които да ти дават нареждания постоянно, а "любимата" ака съпругата-робиня да умира от радост при възможността да задоволява всяка прищявка? Jesus Crust end my misery now *dramatically ends life*.

[Elala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bella edizione stampata su carta grossa e liscia e con comode alette per tenere il segno nella pagina delle Dramatis personae, overo l'elenco dei personaggi con i loro mille nomi e titoli, e nella pagina delle note. La difficoltà dell'ingresso in questo mondo sta nel seguire le relazioni tra i personaggi che per la Bronte sono invece ben note. La non conoscenza del background della storia, però, aiuta a sentirsi effettivamente presi da un incantesimo e buttati in mezzo ad una cerchia di persone con un loro passato, che tu, nuovo arrivato, non puoi conoscere e vai scoprendo man mano. Enchanting.

Favourite quote:

"So long as Zamorna's love was yours, what mattered if it was not wholly yours?"
[Chapter four]

[Jane Fudger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novella is not one of Charlotte Bronte's best known novels It is a story that does not conform to the usual Bronte work in that it explores the supernatural along with the usual theme of love. I found the work haunting yet enchanting. the two main protagonists Emily and William are well defined characters and between them they explore the complexities of love and how it changes their personalities and the consequences that result from their actions.
An interesting read.

[Donal Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably not for everyone. A very complex little novelette , but one i loved so much. As a huge Charlotte Bronte fan, Villetee is my favourite book of all time , i would definitely recommend this to newcomers to the bronte fiction collection.

[Christopher · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is not very interesting in itself, but it is still worth reading for the insights into mature works such as Jane Eyre.

[Kyle Pennekamp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic. What a vibe.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

O Feitiço é um romance escrito por Charlotte Brontë, uma das irmãs Brontë mundialmente famosas pelas suas obras literárias muito típicas do século XIX. Sendo Jane Eyre o seu romance mais famoso.
Este não é o primeiro livro que leio desta autora. Li Jane Eyre e gostei muito dessa obra, contudo tal como está tem um inicio que custa a entrar.
O Feitiço foi um dos primeiros livros escrito por Charlotte, tinha apenas 18 anos quando o escreveu. Este livro tem uma indissolúvel ligação aos jogos literários de adolescência e infância em que Charlotte e os irmãos se entretinham, escrevendo histórias dentro de mundos imaginários criados em conjunto. Como tal, para a autora o mundo criado não é novidade, no entanto para o leitor, que começa o livro, cai num mundo que desconhece e ao qual não é apresentado, sendo um pouco estranho. Somente a meio do livro, o leitor começar a interligar as personagens aos locais do mesmo, mas tal facto torna-o com um difícil começo.
As personagens também não nos são apresentadas como estamos habituados. Existem muitas interligações entre elas que só na parte final do livro nos são explicadas. A grande personagem deste livro é Zarmona, monarca de Ângria e Wellingtonsland, filho do Duque de Wellington. Neste pequeno livro é-nos descrito parte da história do mesmo, durante uma época de doenças e mortes na região. Ao mesmo tempo, começam a existir acontecimentos estranhos, levando à confusão e intriga política, pois um dos herdeiros faleceu e o duque encontra-se adoecido.
O Duque de Wellington é uma personagem muito habitual nas histórias de Charlotte, era a sua personagem romanesca, pois quando era mais nova foi fortemente influenciada pelo que lia nos jornais acerca do mesmo.
Contudo o livro não deixa de ser uma boa obra, que entretêm. E para os fãs destas romancistas inglesas, é uma boa aposta. Não aconselho este livro como a primeira leitura desta autora. Quero continuar a ler as sua obras, sobretudo as que escreveu já em adulta.

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

De todos os livros que li da Charlotte Bronte, este foi o que mais me desgostou. Sim, sei que ela tinha apenas dezoito anos e ainda não atingira a perfeição de escrita que podemos ver em, por exemplo, 'Jane Eyre'; E não posso dizer que este livro esteja mal escrito porque não está. O que o torna algo desinteressante e até maçante é o emaranhado de personagens que não são devidamente introduzidas na história, o que torna a história difícil de entender. Também as suas relações são mal percebidas e incapacitam o interesse que uma obra desta importância tem para uma fã de Charlotte Bronte. Felizmente, a autora melhorou a sua capacidade de escrita com o passar dos anos.

No entanto, cá estamos de volta aos reinos de Verdopólis e de Angria e aos duques de Wellington, de Zamorna, Lady Zenobia e tantos outros personagens que já conhecíamos de 'O segredo' e que povoaram toda a infância e juventude dos irmãos Bronte. Tudo começa quando o Infante Marquês de Almeida morre, deixando os reinos de Angria e Wellingtonsland sem herdeiro. Pouco depois, também o rei adoece sem parecer muito preocupado com a sucessão ao seu trono. E é a partir desta situação que se desenvolve uma história recheada de intrigas políticas, onde as misteriosas personagens que rodeiam o monarca são colocadas em causa e os que lhe são mais próximos se interrogam sobre o que ele realmente sabe acerca dos mistérios do seu reino e de algumas personagens.

[David Proffitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Spell is an early work and does show some signs of what is to come but there is very little in the way of plot or real story. The characters are well described, but at the same time, shallow and ill-defined. This is Charlotte honing her craft, but lacks the clarity and drive of her later work.

As the story begins to unfold there are hints of the supernatural. How can one man be in two places at once? The answer was all too obvious far too early, but then, I have seen this type of plot before, but at the time it was written I suppose it was a less common theme.

Did I enjoy the book? Yes I did, but it didn’t hold my attention and I had to work on it. I also found the irrelevant references to mythology and other literary works to be a distraction. At times I felt that Charlotte was more interested in showing off her classical education than in taking the reader with her on a journey.

For what it is, an early work by a well-respected author, it is enjoyable enough, but hardly a classic in its own right. Something for the fans. If you really want to read a classic by this woman, stick to Jane Eyre.

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Outro livro que tinha para ler há algum tempo. Gosto sempre de ler os livros das irmãs Brontë, pois têm sempre enredos fortes, boas descrições e personagens cheias de carisma. Neste livro encontrei isso, mas também encontrei alguma confusão.

Confesso que não gostei muito da história e as personagens pareceram-me muito alteradas. No entanto, a história é forte, cheia de emoção, romance e vingança.

Todas as personagens, e são bastantes, têm um traço distinto, o que lhes confere o carisma habitual das suas histórias. A escrita é muito boa, repleta de boas metáforas e com um vocabulário muito rico. O contexto podia estar melhor definido, tal como a história em si.

No entanto, foi uma leitura leve e de rápida.

Recomendo a todos os que gostam das histórias das irmãs Brontë.

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A jump inside the youthful literary mind of Charlotte Bronte. It's actually NOT impossible to follow, granted that her intended audience was her own siblings and no one else. They created families and kingdoms with intricate names and relationships. A helpful soul printed a Cast of Characters prior to the novella's beginning.

The ending is supposed to be a surprise, I think. But to informed readers, it won't much be. Main theme throughout is tragic love, with scandal mixed in.

[Joana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Achei a estória pouco interessante e a escrita um bocado confusa. Foi um dos primeiros trabalhos de Charlotte Bronte, não chega nem aos calcanhares de "Jane Eyre". Vou tentar ler os restantes por ordem para conhecer melhor esta espantosa evolução.

[Brendan]

I haven't read this book, but am using this as a placeholder to mark my reading of a friend's novel manuscript in my book count.

[Jessica Felton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very different to all her properly published novels. This early work is strange and fantastical and not at all like her other beautifully worded and well thought out works.

[Dani Dimitrova · Rating 3 out of 5]

Всички тези имена отначалото направо ме уплашиха... Книгата ми хареса , но краят леко ме разочарова . Написан абсолютно по детски .

[Urvi Trivedi · Rating 5 out of 5]

good