My pending-review books are now stacked by size and not by when I read them because the stack was starting to wobble (yikes!) so my apologies if my thoughts in any upcoming posts are a bit scattered or, most likely, sparse. I think Affinity was the first book I finished this year. There was a lot to like about it and then there were things that just didn't work for me. What I liked the most was the familiarity of Sarah Waters' characters. I would never be able to tell you what it is about them but I could recognize one of her women anywhere. Waters really has a distinct voice and a certain way of writing her leads. I also really liked the descriptions of the Victorian women's prison. I don't think this is something that gets talked about very much so it was quite fascinating (and heartbreaking, of course). What I didn't really like in this story was the plot. I didn't hate it but it just didn't do much for me. I think by never finding out what this novel was about before reading it, I got my expectations too high for a ripping good ghost story. Instead, it's a tale about belief and kindness and the human condition.
So, because this didn't become my new favorite Waters' novel, I'll have to keep The Little Stranger in the number one spot. In fact, if I get a chance, I wouldn't mind re-reading it later this year!
(If you would like a more thorough discussion of this book, Kelly and Marg just posted about it yesterday and had some great thoughts about it.)
Waiting for the next offering,
K
