Good New Gothic Novel
Bewertet mit 4 Sternen
In The Quick, Lauren Owen takes us to 19th century England. I particularly like the different moods she creates. The Norburys’ childhood home in Yorkshire has a fairytale-esque touch to it. It’s like seen through a crystal globe. London on the other hand, has its bright and glamorous and its dark, mysterious sides that will become very clear to you.
James and Charlotte Norbury are the main characters of this Gothic novel. James is a well-read young man, but I find Charlotte more interesting than him. Her sweet and caring character develops into a strong-minded and brave woman without losing her original traits.
The Quick is divided in five parts. Each part has its strengths and weaknesses. My favorite part is “Part One”. Something is revealed in this part and could be rather shocking for some of you. What Ms Owen does here is genius. (This isn’t the plot twist I was talking about above). The novel slows down in “Part Two” and only starts to pick up speed during “Part Three” again. Fortunately, the last two parts make up for the dragging middle of the novel. The Quick finishes with an exciting, emotional and fast-paced story. But still, Ms Owen leaves us with some loose ends. One of them is very obvious and I don’t mind it at all, because it’s a good stylistic device. But there is another one concerning a secondary character who did something and whose fate is left unmentioned. It seems like he was forgotten about.
I recommend The Quick to fans of beeep who like to read beeep. Well this doesn’t work. You shouldn’t be thin-skinned for this novel, but don’t be afraid, even someone as easily scared as I am was able to read it. The Quick isn’t a thriller, it isn’t romance either. The Quick is a good novel.