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I jule- og nytårsdagene mødes ti karrierekvinder på et eksklusivt kursted. Da de sner inde og er uden kontakt med omverdenen, fordriver de tiden i jacuzzien, hvor de fortæller hinanden deres livshistorier, som alle rummer minder om kærlighed og sex og svinger fra det bittersøde over det skandaløse til det tragiske
319 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
40 people are currently reading
317 people want to read
About the author
Fay Weldon
159 books397 followersFay Weldon CBE was an English author, essayist and playwright, whose work has been associated with feminism. In her fiction, Weldon typically portrayed contemporary women who find themselves trapped in oppressive situations caused by the patriarchal structure of British society.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fay_Weldon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fay_Weldon
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews
November 12, 2019
I really wanted this book to go somewhere but I was just so incredibly bored. The stories seemed to be written purely for shock value and I found myself wanting the book to be over when I was only 100 pages in. Only gave it 2 stars since I actually finished it - but I lean more towards 1.5 stars overall.
May 3, 2016
Το δεκαήμερο στο σπα βασισμένο στη δομή του δεκαήμερου του Βοκακιου , παίζει με ιστορίες διαφορετικων γυναικών που βρέθηκαν στο ίδιο σπα η καθεμία για το λόγο της . Κάποιες ιστορίες είναι δυνατές , μια εντελώς αδιάφορη και βαρετή και κάποιες μέτριες. Η γραφή πολύ καλή 3,5/5
April 15, 2019
Not for me this one, it felt like I was reading through her notes, just a few ideas for stories but not a book. I really could not get into it or connect to any of the women in the Spa.
March 3, 2014
"Everything seemed suddenly very beautiful and very dangerous."
Comparisons to Thackeray and Dorothy Parker are certainly flattering but don't quite do justice to Weldon's individual sensibility and unique style, which in this book is wicked, observant, and acerbic, the tone warm on one page and unforgiving on the next. Likewise parallels to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales or Boccaccio's Decameron, while they show off the learnedness of the reviewer, don't quite capture what Weldon seems to be doing here. Like those medieval works, the structure and the theme of The Spa have to do with a collection of assorted individuals, cast together in isolation due to external events, who for solace and entertainment band together to tell each other stories. Update Chaucer's inn to the remote and secluded Castle Spa, turn the assorted pilgrims into women taking a ten-day break over the Christmas and New Year's holidays for refuge and refreshment, and the similarities hold, though what Weldon wishes to point out by referencing this classic and oft-taught work of English literature is open for debate. But the narrator here, unlike Chaucer's bumbling and optimistic persona, has a stake in events, due to some troubles in her personal life from which she is attempting to escape, and rather than make up stories for each other's enjoyment, the women are obliged to tell a story about themselves, a narrative of a defining moment, confession of a pressing problem, or simply share their deepest anxieties, harshest fears, worst failures. Like Chaucer's unfinished collection, one of the inferred subjects of the book is British Life in the 21st Century, with all its attendant ills and problems. But unlike Chaucer's collection, in which the pilgrims often spar with or attempt to one-up each other, Weldon's spa-goers find release, support, challenge, and ultimately, often, redemption in the act of self-revelation.
It's to Weldon's credit that the book builds as subtly as it does, though it takes a while to grow accustomed to her style, which at first strikes one as being of the self-consciously effort-to-be-literary variety, as in this early passage: " . . . the streets were quiet. The group soul of the consumer crowd around Christmas is unpredictable. A mass of spending humanity will surge through the street and then suddenly withdraw, like the tide before the tsunami. It had withdrawn now and the pebbles were showing, unnaturally bare and dry, and my instinct was to turn and run--but where, nowadays can one run to?" (3). The narrator, Phoebe Fox, is a literary author of some modest fame, and I always find it annoying when authors make their protagonists writers, too. In fact for a while I harbored the suspicion that Weldon really had gone to a spa, listened to the life stories of other women, wrote them all down with minimal adjustments, and then sold the book for nice royalties simply because of her established reputation, when a lesser-known writer would never be allowed to be so lazy. With the initial tale of a love triangle gone horribly wrong, some narrative throat-clearing while our Phoebe gets to the castle, and the stiff, pretentious, completely unnatural-sounding voices of the first two tale-tellers, I relaxed into the feeling that I was indeed reading fiction, and not life-changing fiction at that. And so Weldon draws one in, weaving her plot, introducing her women, letting the magic of narrative do its work until the reader, like the internal audience of the story, can't wait to hear who will say what next.
There is a definite theme of predatory and manipulative women throughout these tales; scarcely one goes by that doesn't feature some variation of a conniving female. In fact there's a whole analysis to be done on the themes of sexual jealousy, violence, and (un)dead children that surface throughout, and I hope to have such an analysis posted soon at my blog, Femmeliterate. The narrator herself notes that, among these presumably well-off and accomplished women, the stories are so much about heartbreak over their personal relationships: "I thought how strange it was, and how often it happened, that such seemingly strong, cheerful, independent women . . . should so often end up in this sorry masochistic state, crumbled crying on a bed" (282). But there is equally a redemptive message about sisterhood, the power of narrative, and the work of tale-telling in the human psyche and the world at large, with all its overwhelming woes. Weldon does a good job of creating a captivating, dreamy, almost suffocating atmosphere in the isolated refuge of the Spa's Jacuzzi room: "All the fears and angers of the world were massed outside the walls--just a shove and they'd have given" (256). But Weldon's narration also reflects how, in the face of larger worries such as disease epidemics, climate change, and the large fractures within British society, the real concern of each woman is the state and safety of her own heart. "But how do we manage to live at all, attend to our own small lives with such passion, in the face of so many dangers? That's the marvel" (257). With its individual stories that shock, dismay, downright scare, and at other times quietly satisfy the reader, Weldon's sly, satiric, thoughtful book is a marvel, too.
Comparisons to Thackeray and Dorothy Parker are certainly flattering but don't quite do justice to Weldon's individual sensibility and unique style, which in this book is wicked, observant, and acerbic, the tone warm on one page and unforgiving on the next. Likewise parallels to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales or Boccaccio's Decameron, while they show off the learnedness of the reviewer, don't quite capture what Weldon seems to be doing here. Like those medieval works, the structure and the theme of The Spa have to do with a collection of assorted individuals, cast together in isolation due to external events, who for solace and entertainment band together to tell each other stories. Update Chaucer's inn to the remote and secluded Castle Spa, turn the assorted pilgrims into women taking a ten-day break over the Christmas and New Year's holidays for refuge and refreshment, and the similarities hold, though what Weldon wishes to point out by referencing this classic and oft-taught work of English literature is open for debate. But the narrator here, unlike Chaucer's bumbling and optimistic persona, has a stake in events, due to some troubles in her personal life from which she is attempting to escape, and rather than make up stories for each other's enjoyment, the women are obliged to tell a story about themselves, a narrative of a defining moment, confession of a pressing problem, or simply share their deepest anxieties, harshest fears, worst failures. Like Chaucer's unfinished collection, one of the inferred subjects of the book is British Life in the 21st Century, with all its attendant ills and problems. But unlike Chaucer's collection, in which the pilgrims often spar with or attempt to one-up each other, Weldon's spa-goers find release, support, challenge, and ultimately, often, redemption in the act of self-revelation.
It's to Weldon's credit that the book builds as subtly as it does, though it takes a while to grow accustomed to her style, which at first strikes one as being of the self-consciously effort-to-be-literary variety, as in this early passage: " . . . the streets were quiet. The group soul of the consumer crowd around Christmas is unpredictable. A mass of spending humanity will surge through the street and then suddenly withdraw, like the tide before the tsunami. It had withdrawn now and the pebbles were showing, unnaturally bare and dry, and my instinct was to turn and run--but where, nowadays can one run to?" (3). The narrator, Phoebe Fox, is a literary author of some modest fame, and I always find it annoying when authors make their protagonists writers, too. In fact for a while I harbored the suspicion that Weldon really had gone to a spa, listened to the life stories of other women, wrote them all down with minimal adjustments, and then sold the book for nice royalties simply because of her established reputation, when a lesser-known writer would never be allowed to be so lazy. With the initial tale of a love triangle gone horribly wrong, some narrative throat-clearing while our Phoebe gets to the castle, and the stiff, pretentious, completely unnatural-sounding voices of the first two tale-tellers, I relaxed into the feeling that I was indeed reading fiction, and not life-changing fiction at that. And so Weldon draws one in, weaving her plot, introducing her women, letting the magic of narrative do its work until the reader, like the internal audience of the story, can't wait to hear who will say what next.
There is a definite theme of predatory and manipulative women throughout these tales; scarcely one goes by that doesn't feature some variation of a conniving female. In fact there's a whole analysis to be done on the themes of sexual jealousy, violence, and (un)dead children that surface throughout, and I hope to have such an analysis posted soon at my blog, Femmeliterate. The narrator herself notes that, among these presumably well-off and accomplished women, the stories are so much about heartbreak over their personal relationships: "I thought how strange it was, and how often it happened, that such seemingly strong, cheerful, independent women . . . should so often end up in this sorry masochistic state, crumbled crying on a bed" (282). But there is equally a redemptive message about sisterhood, the power of narrative, and the work of tale-telling in the human psyche and the world at large, with all its overwhelming woes. Weldon does a good job of creating a captivating, dreamy, almost suffocating atmosphere in the isolated refuge of the Spa's Jacuzzi room: "All the fears and angers of the world were massed outside the walls--just a shove and they'd have given" (256). But Weldon's narration also reflects how, in the face of larger worries such as disease epidemics, climate change, and the large fractures within British society, the real concern of each woman is the state and safety of her own heart. "But how do we manage to live at all, attend to our own small lives with such passion, in the face of so many dangers? That's the marvel" (257). With its individual stories that shock, dismay, downright scare, and at other times quietly satisfy the reader, Weldon's sly, satiric, thoughtful book is a marvel, too.
May 5, 2015
Kaasahaarav jutukas - sobib spaasse kaasa võtmiseks :D Päris Dekameroniga on pistmist nii palju, et toimub lugude jutustamine oma elust ja toimunud seikadest. Ja õnneks on raamat ka oluliselt õhem kui Dekameron :D
Aga ühest jutustusest teen küll paar väljavõtet:
"Kui ma saaksin seadusega keelata naise abielu mehega, kellel on juba lapsed, siis ma teeksin seda," ütles ta.
... isa unustab väga kiiresti naise, kes tal kunagi oli, ükskõik kas ta hülgab naise tolle puuduste pärast, või naine sureb. Naine, kes tal parasjagu voodis on ja köögis toimetab, varustades teda seksi ja toiduga, on ainus, keda mees märkab. Samuti saab mehe noorim laps, see, kes on tal otse nina all, tema jäägitu kaitseinstinkti osaliseks...
Aga ühest jutustusest teen küll paar väljavõtet:
"Kui ma saaksin seadusega keelata naise abielu mehega, kellel on juba lapsed, siis ma teeksin seda," ütles ta.
... isa unustab väga kiiresti naise, kes tal kunagi oli, ükskõik kas ta hülgab naise tolle puuduste pärast, või naine sureb. Naine, kes tal parasjagu voodis on ja köögis toimetab, varustades teda seksi ja toiduga, on ainus, keda mees märkab. Samuti saab mehe noorim laps, see, kes on tal otse nina all, tema jäägitu kaitseinstinkti osaliseks...
September 25, 2020
Bogen fortjener måske næsten 3,5 :)
Fortællingen om kurbadsopholdet, der udvikler sig til en kvindebasisgruppe, er ret chamerende.
Overklassekvinders fortællinger - som alle kredser omkring begær, sex, kærlighed, kvindeliv - er ret vilde. Som en feministisk gang Desperate Housewives.
Fortællingen om kurbadsopholdet, der udvikler sig til en kvindebasisgruppe, er ret chamerende.
Overklassekvinders fortællinger - som alle kredser omkring begær, sex, kærlighed, kvindeliv - er ret vilde. Som en feministisk gang Desperate Housewives.
February 21, 2024
I am a sucker for anything ridiculous and this book has an amount of ridiculousness that feels effortless. This books follows a "stories within a story" structure in which we follow Phoebe's - a writer - Christmas excursion to a spa, where she and the other spa customers eventually have story sharing sessions at the jacuzzi. All the stories have their own sense of individuality. The framing story of Phoebe's spa experience contains events that are mildly absurd. There is so much to unpack from this book - particularly relating to women's experience - but it also does not take itself too seriously; rather, much of the book feels flippant, avoiding the trap of being too heavy-handed.
March 26, 2023
Weldon writes well, and this novel does not disappoint. A light holiday read, based on the premise of a group of women being isolated in Castle Spa over Christmas and New Year. Each woman tells her story.
February 26, 2014
Το βιβλίο ''Δεκαήμερο στο Σπα'' εστιάζει σε μια γυναίκα , τη Φοίβη ,συγγραφέα η οποία μετά από μια πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα χρονιά , αποφασίζει να πάει σε ένα Σπα για τα Χριστούγεννα.
Η Φοίβη περνά κρίσης ταυτότητας και αμφισβητεί όλη της τη ζωή. Έχει αρχίσει να αισθάνεται την ηλικία της και αυτό την καταβάλλει.Ο σύζυγός της την έχει αφήσει μόνη της για τις διακοπές αφού έχει να φροντίσει τους ηλικιωμένους γονείς του , οι οποίοι δεν τη συμπαθούν ιδιαίτερα.Τα παιδιά της , που ζουν στις Ηνωμένες Πολιτείες , έχουν τις δικές τους οικογένειες τώρα και θέλουν να παραμείνουν στο σπίτι για τις διακοπές ετσι δεν θα μπορέσουν να την επισκεφτούν στην Αγγλία και αυτό το έτος.
Κατά την επίσκεψη της κομμωτήριο βλέπει ένα φυλλάδιο για ένα πακέτο διακοπών σε Σπα για τη διάρκεια των Χριστουγέννων.Μετά την παρότρυνση της κομμώτριας της κλείνει τη προσφορά για τον εαυτό της. Δυστυχώς , το Castle Spa περνά και αυτό μερικές δύσκολες στιγμές. Οι εργαζόμενοι έχουν αρχίσει να αναχωρούν, η ποσότητα των θεραπειών έχει αλλάξει , ο αριθμός των επισκεπτών έχει μειωθεί δραματικά , και δεν είναι καν σίγουρο ότι πρόκειται να είναι αρκετά τα τρόφιμα για το επόμενο γεύμα .
Οι γυναίκες στο σπα όμως δεν πρόκειται να υποχωρήσουν τόσο εύκολα και να αποχωρήσουν , αποφασίζουν ότι θα κάνουν το καλύτερο δυνατόν με ότι έχουν και δεν θα το βάλλουν στα πόδια με την πρώτη δυσκολία. Έτσι κάθε βράδυ μαζεύονται γύρω από το τζακούζι και μοιράζονται τις ιστορίες της ζωής τους . Ακούμε ιστορίες από όλα τα κοινωνικά στρώματα , μια δημοσιογράφο ανταποκριτή στο εξωτερικό , μια σύζυγο τρόπαιο , μια δικαστή , μια πρώην σύζυγό εφημέριου , και πολλά άλλα.
Έτσι, η Φοίβη πηγαίνει σε αυτό που φαίνεται , σαν ένα εντελώς διαφορετικό και πρωτοποριακό σπα , και αντί να λαμβάνει παγκόσμιας κλάσης θεραπείες , όπως της είχαν υποσχεθεί ακούει ιστορίες από τους άλλους επισκέπτες . Ιστορίες αγάπης , δολοφονίας , συγχώρεσης , και σεξ . Κάθε ιστορία διαφορετική , αλλά όλες συνδέονται μεταξύ τους .
Τα κεφάλαια του βιβλίου χωρίζονται , ένα μας παρουσιάζει τι συμβαίνει στο σπα , ένα μας διηγείται την ιστορία ενός προσώπου , ξανά τα γεγονότα στο σπα , και μετά πάλι μια ιστορία , και έτσι συνεχίζει. Μέρη του βιβλίου τα ένιωσα , πραγματικά , να κυλούν αργά για μένα. Μερικές από τις ιστορί��ς ήταν λιγότερο ενδιαφέρουσες συγκριτικά με άλλες. Αλλά συνολικά ήταν ένα ευχάριστο ανάγνωσμα. Επίσης πιστεύω πως αν ήμουν σε μεγαλύτερη ηλικία θα μπορούσα να έχω απολαύσει περισσότερο αυτή την ιστορία.
Σε γενικές γραμμές μου άρεσε το ‘’Δεκαήμερο στο Σπα’’. Θα το λατρέψουν αναγνώστες που τους αρέσει να έχουν πολλές διαφορετικές ιστορίες σε ένα βιβλίο , αλλά την ίδια στιγμή υπάρχει ένας κύριος χαρακτήρας για να συμπάσχουν και μια κύρια πλοκή γύρω απο αυτόν. Ειδικά όταν η βασική πλοκή δεν είναι διόλου άσχημη .
Ιδιαίτερα καλογραμμένο και προσεγμένο κείμενο. Η συγγραφέας σε κερδίζει με το στυλ γραφής της. Κάτι που μπόρεσαν να διατηρήσουν οι εκδόσεις Κέδρος με την εξαιρετική δουλειά που έχουν κάνει σε σχέση με τη μετάφραση και επιμέλεια του κειμένου. Κάτι που πραγματικά αξίζει να αναφέρουμε.
Η Φοίβη περνά κρίσης ταυτότητας και αμφισβητεί όλη της τη ζωή. Έχει αρχίσει να αισθάνεται την ηλικία της και αυτό την καταβάλλει.Ο σύζυγός της την έχει αφήσει μόνη της για τις διακοπές αφού έχει να φροντίσει τους ηλικιωμένους γονείς του , οι οποίοι δεν τη συμπαθούν ιδιαίτερα.Τα παιδιά της , που ζουν στις Ηνωμένες Πολιτείες , έχουν τις δικές τους οικογένειες τώρα και θέλουν να παραμείνουν στο σπίτι για τις διακοπές ετσι δεν θα μπορέσουν να την επισκεφτούν στην Αγγλία και αυτό το έτος.
Κατά την επίσκεψη της κομμωτήριο βλέπει ένα φυλλάδιο για ένα πακέτο διακοπών σε Σπα για τη διάρκεια των Χριστουγέννων.Μετά την παρότρυνση της κομμώτριας της κλείνει τη προσφορά για τον εαυτό της. Δυστυχώς , το Castle Spa περνά και αυτό μερικές δύσκολες στιγμές. Οι εργαζόμενοι έχουν αρχίσει να αναχωρούν, η ποσότητα των θεραπειών έχει αλλάξει , ο αριθμός των επισκεπτών έχει μειωθεί δραματικά , και δεν είναι καν σίγουρο ότι πρόκειται να είναι αρκετά τα τρόφιμα για το επόμενο γεύμα .
Οι γυναίκες στο σπα όμως δεν πρόκειται να υποχωρήσουν τόσο εύκολα και να αποχωρήσουν , αποφασίζουν ότι θα κάνουν το καλύτερο δυνατόν με ότι έχουν και δεν θα το βάλλουν στα πόδια με την πρώτη δυσκολία. Έτσι κάθε βράδυ μαζεύονται γύρω από το τζακούζι και μοιράζονται τις ιστορίες της ζωής τους . Ακούμε ιστορίες από όλα τα κοινωνικά στρώματα , μια δημοσιογράφο ανταποκριτή στο εξωτερικό , μια σύζυγο τρόπαιο , μια δικαστή , μια πρώην σύζυγό εφημέριου , και πολλά άλλα.
Έτσι, η Φοίβη πηγαίνει σε αυτό που φαίνεται , σαν ένα εντελώς διαφορετικό και πρωτοποριακό σπα , και αντί να λαμβάνει παγκόσμιας κλάσης θεραπείες , όπως της είχαν υποσχεθεί ακούει ιστορίες από τους άλλους επισκέπτες . Ιστορίες αγάπης , δολοφονίας , συγχώρεσης , και σεξ . Κάθε ιστορία διαφορετική , αλλά όλες συνδέονται μεταξύ τους .
Τα κεφάλαια του βιβλίου χωρίζονται , ένα μας παρουσιάζει τι συμβαίνει στο σπα , ένα μας διηγείται την ιστορία ενός προσώπου , ξανά τα γεγονότα στο σπα , και μετά πάλι μια ιστορία , και έτσι συνεχίζει. Μέρη του βιβλίου τα ένιωσα , πραγματικά , να κυλούν αργά για μένα. Μερικές από τις ιστορί��ς ήταν λιγότερο ενδιαφέρουσες συγκριτικά με άλλες. Αλλά συνολικά ήταν ένα ευχάριστο ανάγνωσμα. Επίσης πιστεύω πως αν ήμουν σε μεγαλύτερη ηλικία θα μπορούσα να έχω απολαύσει περισσότερο αυτή την ιστορία.
Σε γενικές γραμμές μου άρεσε το ‘’Δεκαήμερο στο Σπα’’. Θα το λατρέψουν αναγνώστες που τους αρέσει να έχουν πολλές διαφορετικές ιστορίες σε ένα βιβλίο , αλλά την ίδια στιγμή υπάρχει ένας κύριος χαρακτήρας για να συμπάσχουν και μια κύρια πλοκή γύρω απο αυτόν. Ειδικά όταν η βασική πλοκή δεν είναι διόλου άσχημη .
Ιδιαίτερα καλογραμμένο και προσεγμένο κείμενο. Η συγγραφέας σε κερδίζει με το στυλ γραφής της. Κάτι που μπόρεσαν να διατηρήσουν οι εκδόσεις Κέδρος με την εξαιρετική δουλειά που έχουν κάνει σε σχέση με τη μετάφραση και επιμέλεια του κειμένου. Κάτι που πραγματικά αξίζει να αναφέρουμε.
October 14, 2010
Following the lead of Chaucer and Boccaccio, Fay Weldon has set up a situation where 12 ladies are trapped and isolated at a dysfunctional spa over Christmas; with plenty of time on their hands, they share their stories around the jacuzzi. There is a definite feminist slant to the stories, and their reception, as men and other fools are skewered by Weldon's sharp satire and wit.
May 23, 2009
I was giving this book a shot but then I got to one of the chapters and it was dropping lots of F bombs and other foul language. The whole chapter was vulgar and by the end I had no interest in finishing the book.
March 8, 2017
I'm... not sure how I feel about this book. I suppose that the best way to describe it is to say that I was sufficiently interested in the story and the characters to finish it, but the writing style itself was just not my cup of tea.
October 8, 2017
I am a fan of Fay Weldon as a writer and a person and inclined to like what she has to say. Having said that I didn't feel inclined to be sympathetic towards women spoiled enough to spend five grand to stay in a Spa over Christmas but there's always more to it than that: why are the women there? All, in their own way, have difficulties, which they share, a story at a time. Some of the stories are more gripping than others, and the over arching narrative, in which things fall apart at the Spa and the main narrator confronts her own demons, seems at times to serve almost as an interruption (much as in Boccaccio's original Decamerone), reminding the reader that each story is a tale within a tale and that all narrators are more or less unreliable.
I did enjoy reading this in conjunction with Fay Weldon's autobiography Auto da Fay (great title) - some of the characteristics shared between different narrators here are taken from life.
I did enjoy reading this in conjunction with Fay Weldon's autobiography Auto da Fay (great title) - some of the characteristics shared between different narrators here are taken from life.
Read
May 13, 2024Picked up an ARC of this some time ago and thought it seemed interesting if likely light; I take spa type trips and I work with Quercus, the publisher, so why not? But when I finally picked this up, I learned the why not of it ... structured in what can only be described as Decameron or Canterbury tales style (thank god another review also says this, because apart from the tale telling of these strangers to one another to pass the time there can be no comparison), it never builds to anything, and it feels like a failed idea not quite executed. I would rather have read the novel about the messy series of affairs our narrator learns of at her hairdresser's to start the book off (also, rather curious what's going on with her and her husband, separated for #reasons this holiday season).
May 31, 2020
AN ABSOLUTE WASTE OF TIME. I wanted to take back all the weeks I have wasted on this horrible book. It's utterly scattered and the stories are way out of proportion. It honestly started out well enough, then there were too many boring parts in the middle. I wanted it to end so bad, but I hate to just leave a book unfinished so I pushed through with it. There wasn't even a saving grace for the protagonist. I mean what the hell happened with Phoebe in the end? *SIGH* One of the WORST books I have read. I'd have given it zero stars, but lucky I gave it a one star. DISAPPOINTED.
December 29, 2017
1 and a half stars. The half towards 'ok' was due to the 20-30 pages about the Conspiracy Theorist. The only bit I liked. The rest was pretentious with bad typos and spelling. The word 'because' should be spelled the same, correct way, always. There were quite a few different ways I saw the word 'because' in this edition. Early Weldon was great. This was sadly NOT. I'd like my $6.95 NZ dollars back, but considering it came from mass market remaindered stock, I'm thinking that won't happen LOL.
December 7, 2018
A non-literary fiction book, this was just okay--light reading. A spa out in the sticks of northern England offers a discounted rate for 10 days over the Xmas holiday. This group of bourgie women gather at this place and bond around the jacuzzi, telling their life stories, almost all of them about men who have done them wrong.
March 20, 2019
well done but almost too long story of women who share their life stories sitting around a bubbling jacuzzi. Strong independent women but always there is a man present or somewhere or even in one case, before the transition. Tales of betrayal either by others or by themselves, tales of wealth, of children wanted or not, lifestyles real or imagined. Enjoyable to a point.
January 29, 2022
It’s a brave new world where books deemed ‘chick-lit’ no longer exist and that term is condemned to the histories, and we all fly in the sky dancing ballet as equals.
Not just a book for the airport and the beach as the cover would suggest, worth a read and gave me introduction to the Decameron itself.
Not just a book for the airport and the beach as the cover would suggest, worth a read and gave me introduction to the Decameron itself.
January 2, 2024
Fay Weldon was my favorite author in the 80s and early 90s. I hadn't read any of her books since then so decided to give this one a go. The premise was interesting but for me didn't follow through. This read like a confusing list of life events that each character described with no real point or purpose. So much so that I wish I hadn't finished it. Very disappointing.
September 18, 2019
Delicious and wicked. Weldon's stark observation of every way women can transgress is almost singular. I loved the Chaucerian feel of telling each character's story in turn, and I'm sure Geoffrey would have been delighted by the depravity and irreverent humour displayed throughout.
January 12, 2021
I enjoyed the different character stories at the beginning of this book but halfway through my interest waned and by the time I got to the screenwriter chapter I wasn’t interested at all, my concentration had run out and I had to give the book up. Just too much hard work for me.
May 28, 2019
Tahaks rõõmust ruiata ja ülivõrdeid kasutada, nii hea raamat!
February 15, 2020
Saai boek
January 12, 2021
Great concept but ultimately a little tone-deaf, and didn’t push quite as far as I might’ve liked.
Read
January 23, 2023Een boek van Fay Weldon is als een glas champagne
July 17, 2024
Actually dnf. Not my cup of tea
May 23, 2025
Did not finish - couldn’t get past page 40.
July 3, 2025
Definitely skip this one. Canterbury Tales for rich entitled women. Blah.
October 16, 2009
I choose this book because I just saw it at the library when I was looking for something to read. It looked kind of interesting and different so I checked it out. It was an ok book to read once, but probably not something I would go back to again.
In the book a writer is going though a bit of a identity crisis and questioning her life. She is starting to feel her age, her husband has left her alone over the holidays to go attend to his aging parents, and her children all have families of their own now and want to stay home for the holidays. While visiting her hairdresser she sees an add for a spa package for over the holidays and at her hairdresser's suggestions checks herself in. Unfortunately, Castle Spa is going through some hard times of it's own. The employees are leaving, the number of treatments the guests get are going down, and they aren't even sure there is going to be food around for the next meal. The women at the spa are not going to give in and just leave though, they are going to make the best of it and not be scared off. Nightly, they gather around the Jacuzzi and take turn sharing their life stories. We hear stories from all sorts of walks of life, a foreign correspondent journalist, a trophy wife, a judge, a vicars ex wife, and more.
The chapters in the book are broken up, setting what is happening at the spa, a story, happenings at the spa, story, and on. Parks of the book felt really slow to me, some of the stories were less interesting then others. Overall, maybe if I was older I might have enjoyed this story more, but right now it didn't thrill me. Not sure I would recommend it unless someone was looking for short stories with in a novel setting.
In the book a writer is going though a bit of a identity crisis and questioning her life. She is starting to feel her age, her husband has left her alone over the holidays to go attend to his aging parents, and her children all have families of their own now and want to stay home for the holidays. While visiting her hairdresser she sees an add for a spa package for over the holidays and at her hairdresser's suggestions checks herself in. Unfortunately, Castle Spa is going through some hard times of it's own. The employees are leaving, the number of treatments the guests get are going down, and they aren't even sure there is going to be food around for the next meal. The women at the spa are not going to give in and just leave though, they are going to make the best of it and not be scared off. Nightly, they gather around the Jacuzzi and take turn sharing their life stories. We hear stories from all sorts of walks of life, a foreign correspondent journalist, a trophy wife, a judge, a vicars ex wife, and more.
The chapters in the book are broken up, setting what is happening at the spa, a story, happenings at the spa, story, and on. Parks of the book felt really slow to me, some of the stories were less interesting then others. Overall, maybe if I was older I might have enjoyed this story more, but right now it didn't thrill me. Not sure I would recommend it unless someone was looking for short stories with in a novel setting.
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