Fascinating and well structured, enjoyable reading too. Packed with expertly crafted characters.
The new heir to Stancy Castle, Paula Power (such a name resonates as a present day character, but we are in fact set deep in Victorian England, approximately 1881), find herself caught between two lovers, and being a Laodicean, her prevaricating sets up all sorts of problems.
Notably, her two suitors are a bit dim, one an architect who happens to be passing at the same time as Paula has redevelopment plans for the castle, and the other a listless sort of military officer (De Stancy) who is from the ancient family whose castle is now in her hands, a result of his father's bankruptcy.
There is one vile character, a colonial criminal whose devilish scheming creates so much of the second guessing and chaotic action for both suitors and heiress.
Much of the action is Wessex based still, but Paula's wild pursuit of her architect also takes her to Western Europe.
Hardy introduces the telegraph into the story; his characters are fully used to reliable train services both locally and abroad. Is Hardy the first writer to describe the hum of a telegraph wire in the breeze (1881) on Page 20?
Hardy, one of the best!

HIGHLY disappointed that Hardy didn’t give that trifling, troublesome, self-satisified little girl what she had coming. The ending rather spoiled what was otherwise a great novel. The only other complaint is how long and tedious and repetitive were the scenes of De Stancy’s inability to take “No” for an answer. Come to think of it, none of the principle players were altogether likeable: Paula was a coquette, De Stancy a boor, and Somerset clingy and needy. I suppose it was only Hardy’s writing that saved the thing. This is the first time I can remember any scene in Hardy’s novels taking place outside of England. I wonder if there are any other such scenes in his works?

Edit: Well, on a second reading, some four years later, I find myself having much more sympathy for Paula, bullied and bothered as she was by the various men who pursued her. I wonder if there were enough changes in the Wessex edition by Hardy from the original serialized version to change my opinion. I still couldn't enjoy the continental scenes at all; they've nothing at all to do with what Hardy is best at. This must be my least favorite of Hardy's novels, but even so it's enjoyable merely by being Hardy's writing. ( )

My immediate thoughts: why was this was so intricately prolonged? and then, I similarly enjoyed it because it was Hardy -- complicated relationships: convoluted and extensive, mixed up and tricky; and award-winning story telling. I gave him four stars, though A Laodicean will probably be my least favorite of the Hardys I have read. This is a good story for Hardy fans who adore his narratives about relationships and people and don't mind being bogged down in long-winded details about every day life. Be prepared for a longer than usual read. ( )

I love the odd books that LIbriVox turns up. I really enjoy this reader and have been seeking out his books that are mostly English Victorians. This was an unknown to me Thomas Hardy, not typical of what I usually think of as Hardy but quote enjoyable. Mainly a love story with devious characters and side plots and deceptions and a rather totally unexepected ending.

I don’t consider “A Laodicean” as a Hardy classic, but it does feature some quality scenes. In short, it’s entertaining in parts, but average on the whole. ( )