Author: Barbara Havelocke
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Hera
Book Release Date: 2024
Pages: 451
Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis: You know Miss Havisham.
The world's most famous jilted bride.
This is her daughter's story.
Raised in the darkness of Satis House where the clocks never tick, the beautiful Estella is bred to hate men and to keep her heart cold as the grave.
She knows she doesn't feel things quite like other people do but is this just the result of her strange upbringing?
As she watches the brutal treatment of women around her, hatred hardens into a core of vengeance and when she finds herself married to the abusive Drummle, she is forced to make a deadly choice:
Should she embrace the darkness within her and exact her revenge?
A stunningly original, gripping Gothic read, perfect for fans of Stacey Halls, Madeline Miller and Jessie Burton.
My Review: Estella’s Revenge is a retelling of Great Expectations told from Estella Havisham’s perspective. Estella is best known to be Pip's love interest. She was the adopted daughter of the jilted Miss Havisham. She has been trained since childhood to break men’s hearts. Estella rejects Pip and enters into an abusive marriage with Drummle. Estella vows to get revenge on her husband and find her own agency.
I had never liked Estella from Great Expectations. She is cold and very mean to Pip. In Estella’s Revenge, I found that her character is more fleshed out and is more sympathetic. Estella has been bullied by others. She was trained from a young age to be a weapon of revenge for Miss Havisham. She is a strong woman who has survived a lot of trauma. However, she is vulnerable and broken. Estella spends the whole novel searching for love. Even though she is mean to Pip, she loves him. However, she is afraid to embrace his love because he fears that he will not love who she is truly. She is afraid of Pip because she is afraid that he will destroy her. Pip is Estella’s weakness. Therefore, I found Estella to be a very compelling character, and it changed my mind ini how I viewed her in Great Expectations.
Overall, this book is about choices, love, and self-identity. I found all of the characters to be faithful to Dickens’ portrayal of these characters. There were some scenes that I thought were a bit far-fetched and unconvincing. I also thought that the novel moved at a slow pace. Nevertheless, I thought it was very well-written! Estella Revenge is a solid retelling of Great Expectations! This book will be sure to please Charles Dickens fans! I recommend this book for fans of Havisham, Olivia Twist, and Little Emily!
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Comments
Post a Comment