I started this book, but couldn't finish it. The heroine wasn't likable at all, and came across rather stupid. I just couldn't get into this book. ( )

It is effectively the account of Bessy, a young Irish girl with a shady past who happens upon a country estate while running away from Glasgow. She meets the mysterious lady of the house and there unfolds a story of friendship, redemption, mystery and tragedy.

3.5*

Scotland, 1863. An Irish young woman with a dubious past is unexpectedly taken on as a maid at a Scottish estate. The lady of the house has haunting secrets of her own, secrets whose consequences could lead to tragedy...

Sounds like the typical “Neo-Victorian” novel which has become so popular since the likes of [a:Sarah Waters|25334|Sarah Waters|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1409248454p2/25334.jpg] and [a:Michel Faber|16272|Michel Faber|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1417041854p2/16272.jpg] burst on the scene. And in my ways it is. But unlike lesser imitations of Waters, Jane Harris' The Observations has a defining characteristic which singles it out in a crowded market – the fresh, streetwise, slangy narrative voice of its feisty protagonist “Bessy”. By turns comic and touching, the strength of this novel is the way in which Bessy’s tale takes us in.

It is not the plot which does the trick – although it has enough twists and turns to keep one hooked, it is ultimately no match for, say, Waters’ [b:Fingersmith|8913370|Fingersmith|Sarah Waters|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348622459s/8913370.jpg|1014113] or the original sensation novels of [a:Wilkie Collins|4012|Wilkie Collins|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1192222099p2/4012.jpg] or [a:Mary Elizabeth Braddon|45896|Mary Elizabeth Braddon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1202597702p2/45896.jpg]. However, in her remarkable storyteller Bessy, Harris has created one of the more likeable and memorable characters of recent fiction. ( )

3.5*

Scotland, 1863. An Irish young woman with a dubious past is unexpectedly taken on as a maid at a Scottish estate. The lady of the house has haunting secrets of her own, secrets whose consequences could lead to tragedy...

Sounds like the typical “Neo-Victorian” novel which has become so popular since the likes of [a:Sarah Waters|25334|Sarah Waters|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1409248454p2/25334.jpg] and [a:Michel Faber|16272|Michel Faber|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1417041854p2/16272.jpg] burst on the scene. And in my ways it is. But unlike lesser imitations of Waters, Jane Harris' The Observations has a defining characteristic which singles it out in a crowded market – the fresh, streetwise, slangy narrative voice of its feisty protagonist “Bessy”. By turns comic and touching, the strength of this novel is the way in which Bessy’s tale takes us in.

It is not the plot which does the trick – although it has enough twists and turns to keep one hooked, it is ultimately no match for, say, Waters’ [b:Fingersmith|8913370|Fingersmith|Sarah Waters|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348622459s/8913370.jpg|1014113] or the original sensation novels of [a:Wilkie Collins|4012|Wilkie Collins|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1192222099p2/4012.jpg] or [a:Mary Elizabeth Braddon|45896|Mary Elizabeth Braddon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1202597702p2/45896.jpg]. However, in her remarkable storyteller Bessy, Harris has created one of the more likeable and memorable characters of recent fiction. ( )

Accidental reread from 2007. I had forgotten everything about the plot, though, so I enjoyed it again anyway. ( )