Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

For a full-length novel, I sure felt like a stranger to the characters by the end of the book. Of course, the fact that I made it to the end is something, because I am quite particular about my books and will NOT waste a minute on something I'm convinced has no potential. Turns out though, the "no potential" thing wasn't fully confirmed till the last page. I found myself quite confused at Mrs. Daisy, our first time author. She is somehow simultaneously an excellent writer and painfully inadequate. Her attention to detail, the flow and rhythm of the book, setting the scene and overall mood were flawless. Unfortunately, the characters had little more depth, diversity or development than a paperback novel (think steamy cover, less than 150 pages and plenty of girly style porn - bleh). Sooooo we have a rich heiress, spoiled and wanting to be free. Ummm yep. That's pretty much all you ever learn about her. She honestly doesn't ever change or develop. She simply responds to what's around her. There is never a moment of introspection, never an added level to her personality. While we hear her thoughts constantly somehow she keeps us at arms length for the whole book - and not in an intriguing, mysterious way, just in a shallow, nope-that's-really-all-there-is-to-her way. Bertha is a cringe-worthy cliché. Steady, smart, flawless... yaaaaawn! When she decides to stay with Cora and not Jim at the end, her reasons are entirely out of character! She has not shown for a fraction of a second that she had any true connection or concern for Cora so it is quite bewildering that she suddenly, inexplicably thinks of her mistress as "her only family". Of course we have two one-dimensional mothers concerned only with themselves and their societies, not their children. The men are, as usual in this type of book, ever revolving around this Rhett-Butler type of cocky indifference and brooding depth. I actually laughed as Ivo - all at once in an entirely uncharacteristic way - gushes out a play by play explanation of himself. Really Mrs. Goodwin?! I'm still not sure if that was supposed to be a twist or if it was just a very sloppy attempt at winding up the book and trying to make us like Ivo better. For me, I never liked Ivo for a heartbeat. Luckily, I was not even slightly attached to the vanilla Cora so I only shrugged when she somehow convinces herself that Ivo is better than Teddy. Charlotte - the foil character! - ever lives up to her cliché. Beautiful, powerful and utterly shallow. Oh and please! don't bother explaining WHY anyone loves each other, least of all Charlotte and Ivo. We'll just, uh, guess about that trivial matter. There were so many moments where I thought something new or interesting was being added to the story - the maid with a crush on Ivo, the hat maker who fainted at Cara's wedding, the double duchesses' affair with Cora's father, the painter's intrigue with Cora - but no, all of them fizzled out or were bluntly abandoned. It really just felt lazy. Mrs. Cash gets burnt but we never understand how this really ties in to anything or how various people change because of it. We hear all about Bertha's mother, anticipating a climax in that relationship only to find her quickly brushed off once she dies. Sybil promises to be a quirky, complex character who can't get a man. But no, she is neatly and without any details is married off at the end. A terrific tension is built between Cora, her mother in law and the household staff... but yet again, nothing ever happens(apparently she forgot to make the scene and fire the head butler). This is just sloppy, thoughtless writing. Next time, Mrs. Daisy, spend less time describing clothing and describe the people beneath! It's really a shame that such good writing skills are combined with such a lack of originality.