Anglo-Irish society, woman turned sour by lack of beauty

"The real Charlotte had seldom been nearer the surface than at this moment and Mrs Lambert cowered before the manifestation", 8 Jun. 2016

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This review is from: The Real Charlotte (Kindle Edition)
When pretty, charming orphan Francie Fitzpatrick is sent to live with her plain middle aged cousin Charlotte Mullen, she awakens a hornet's nest of feelings. From the quiet and studious aristocrat Christopher Dysart to the considerably lower class Mr Hawkins, a man with a past.
And most vitally there is Roddy Lambert - a man who has married for money, but for whom Charlotte has strong feelings nonetheless. How will she handle his developing feelings for the lovely Francie?
A really compelling read which brings to life late 19th century life in Ireland. The authors have a great skill for bringing to life the characters through dialogue and accent, from the servants to their 'betters.' ( )

This is a relatively obscure Irish novel written in 1894 by cousins Edith Somerville and Violet Martin. It sets up an interesting contrast between two cousins - the 40-something, unattractive, scheming, and bitter Charlotte vs. the 20-something flirtatious, naive, and beautiful Francie. The novel revolves around Francie's three love interests and Charlotte's jealousy of one of these in particular. The characters are well-drawn and complex and I wasn't sure where [[Somerville and Ross]] were going with some of them, especially Charlotte. The rather abrupt and unsatisfying ending of the book was the only low point for me. Otherwise, I found it interesting and readable with memorable characters.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes writers from this era (Trollope, the Brontes, Gaskell, etc.). ( )

There's not a better moment for a book lover than discovering a novel of this quality, in among the dregs of Koontz and King, on a Salvation Army book shelf. I knew from nothing the names Somerville and Ross. I thought I was picking up a biography of Charlotte Bronte.

And so I suppose, the authors made a clever choice in naming the book The Real Charlotte. It's not like a Charlotte Bronte fan, upon closer inspection, would put the book down. But I think a better title would have been "And truly, Francine?"

The two cousins, Charlotte Mullen and Francine Fitzpatrick, one a Machiavelli and the other a minx, fight a genteel then deadly cage match in this Irish "comedy" of manners. It's surprising how very modern this novel feels. The three males and two females who are the principal actors are all flawed by both vanity and greed - our contemporaries, to be sure - and yet endowed with traits that induce understanding and sympathy. Charlotte is a calculating woman with an eye to the bottom line, but with a very human eye and heart for Lambert. Francine is half an innocent and half a coquette - with each wrestling within herself to find her a place among the men in her life. Lambert has good instincts for a comfortable blend of city and country life, but lacks self-discipline and knows it. Christopher Dysart is morally impeccable but almost as equally ineffectual. Hawkins is all dash and damn it, but with a creamy Romantic nougat core.

The novel has an apt and perfect ending, but not one that lends itself to the Hollywood touch. I almost wished for an ending like the diner scene in the Sopranos. But like the Soprano family, this mix of a compromised but charming company of neighbors, set in the tapestry of an Irish countryside, will long linger in your memory. ( )