Helpful Score: 8
I-- like so many others-- loved Diane Setterfield's first book, The Thirteenth Tale; however, do not make the mistake of reading Bellman & Black expecting it to be more of the same. It most decidedly is not. If you're the type of reader who wants "something to happen" on a regular basis throughout the story, this may not be the book for you. Also, in some places online I've seen this book subtitled "A Ghost Story." The ghosts in this book are not ones we've come to expect from stories with this label. At the rate that I'm throwing up caution signs, you're going to think that I didn't enjoy the book. You would be wrong. It all boils down to a matter of reader expectations. The fewer you have, the more likely you are to enjoy this book. What were mine? I expected to read a very special story, and I did.
Bellman & Black is firmly rooted in Victorian England. As William's responsibilities grow at the textile mill, Setterfield makes us right at home in that world. Through William's knack for business, engineering, and innovation, we see the burgeoning power of an industrial nation. When he completely switches gears and turns his talents to the retail trade, we see how a nation concerns itself with death and all its trappings. The author's research gives us a very firm foundation upon which to view her main character's world.
And into this world of success is woven fairy tale-like elements of unease. Of something not being right. Of someone, or some thing, always looking over William Bellman's shoulder. Rooks-- those English cousins of American crows-- figure into the story from the very first page. Their appearance, their behavior, how they've played a role in the stories man has told throughout the millennia. They come to represent thoughts that William does not want to think, to represent memories that William wants to forget. The ghosts in this story are not moaning specters carrying clanking chains, although Bellman is caught in his own hellish version of A Christmas Carol. They are the ghosts of regret and pain and fear... all the nasty things that happen to us that we want to shove in a closet and keep there.
I rapidly became immersed in this quiet story. The world Setterfield creates is a very Dickensian one, and I felt at home in the language and the visual feast she put before me. William Bellman is a complicated man, but throughout his somewhat misguided life, I cared what happened to him. Throughout the book, time flows in its own pattern. A year can take chapters, or in the space of two pages, several years can pass. Floating along in the gentle current of the narrative, I was never thrown to shore. Bellman & Black has a much narrower field of vision than Setterfield's first book, but in its own way, it is every bit as powerful.
Bellman & Black is firmly rooted in Victorian England. As William's responsibilities grow at the textile mill, Setterfield makes us right at home in that world. Through William's knack for business, engineering, and innovation, we see the burgeoning power of an industrial nation. When he completely switches gears and turns his talents to the retail trade, we see how a nation concerns itself with death and all its trappings. The author's research gives us a very firm foundation upon which to view her main character's world.
And into this world of success is woven fairy tale-like elements of unease. Of something not being right. Of someone, or some thing, always looking over William Bellman's shoulder. Rooks-- those English cousins of American crows-- figure into the story from the very first page. Their appearance, their behavior, how they've played a role in the stories man has told throughout the millennia. They come to represent thoughts that William does not want to think, to represent memories that William wants to forget. The ghosts in this story are not moaning specters carrying clanking chains, although Bellman is caught in his own hellish version of A Christmas Carol. They are the ghosts of regret and pain and fear... all the nasty things that happen to us that we want to shove in a closet and keep there.
I rapidly became immersed in this quiet story. The world Setterfield creates is a very Dickensian one, and I felt at home in the language and the visual feast she put before me. William Bellman is a complicated man, but throughout his somewhat misguided life, I cared what happened to him. Throughout the book, time flows in its own pattern. A year can take chapters, or in the space of two pages, several years can pass. Floating along in the gentle current of the narrative, I was never thrown to shore. Bellman & Black has a much narrower field of vision than Setterfield's first book, but in its own way, it is every bit as powerful.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved The Thirteenth Tale and highly recommend it every chance I get. This one falls short of that experience. I agree that it isn't exactly a ghost story at all but the ghost of an action that comes to haunt William Bellman all his life. It is atmospheric and somewhat macabre but doesn't qualify as horror or even really ghostly. I did enjoy it but would much rather tell someone about The Thirteenth Tale. Maybe next time....
Helpful Score: 1
This is the sort of novel that left me saying hmm at the end, but in a good way. We meet William Bellman on the day of the event the killing of the rook. And then we follow him through most of the rest of his life.
William is a driven man, smart and interested in improving things at the family mill, which he ultimately takes over after the untimely death of his Uncle Paul. As various tragedies come through his life, William begins to notice a man dressed in all black who attends the funerals of everyone he knows. Desperate to find out who this man is, William starts to go a little mad in some ways, eventually believing he has struck some sort of deal with this maneven though he doesnt really know what that deal is...
To read the rest of my review, please click here.
William is a driven man, smart and interested in improving things at the family mill, which he ultimately takes over after the untimely death of his Uncle Paul. As various tragedies come through his life, William begins to notice a man dressed in all black who attends the funerals of everyone he knows. Desperate to find out who this man is, William starts to go a little mad in some ways, eventually believing he has struck some sort of deal with this maneven though he doesnt really know what that deal is...
To read the rest of my review, please click here.
After having read The 13th Tale and loving it, I was excited to give this one a try. And even though it's described as a ghost story, I'd be hard pressed to call it one. I thought it was well written but I didn't like it at all and struggled to finish it. I wondered if the same author had written both books.
Bellman Black has a Gothic atmosphere coupled with a beautiful writing style. The Victorian novel begins with a introduction predicting future events. As an adult he falls in love, marries and has children, a perfect life. However, when several deaths occur he sees at each funeral, a stranger in black which brings to his mind a childhood incident.
The forgotten event, killing of a rook when he was eleven, is recalled and he finally encounters the mysterious man in black. By this point, he has lost all his family members but one who is dying. To save her, he makes a compact with the man in black. His new career, based on death, is amazingly successful but always at the back of his mind he wonders when the man in black will collect. Even as he devotes his energies to work, he is lonely and his life devoid of personal relations. It's a good, good read amidst Gothic elements.
The forgotten event, killing of a rook when he was eleven, is recalled and he finally encounters the mysterious man in black. By this point, he has lost all his family members but one who is dying. To save her, he makes a compact with the man in black. His new career, based on death, is amazingly successful but always at the back of his mind he wonders when the man in black will collect. Even as he devotes his energies to work, he is lonely and his life devoid of personal relations. It's a good, good read amidst Gothic elements.
I was eagerly anticipating this book, having loved Diane Setterfield's previous book, The Thirteenth Tale so much. I found this book, however, very disappointing. The story felt almost perfunctory, as if Setterfield was writing simply to put something on the page. The characters were hollow and boring, with little personality, and the story, of which there was very little, simply sat. It felt more akin to reading an extended, dry summary of events than a story.
Lovely, lyrical language, but the plot was a bit unsatisfying. I enjoyed the book overall but not nearly as much as The Thirteenth Tale.
Review first posted on my blog: http://memoriesfrombooks.blogspot.com/2013/10/bellman-black.html
The short description of this books says that it is the story of William
Bellman and how one action in his childhood has ramifications throughout his life. The subtitle of the book is "A Ghost Story." The book does not live up to that description and ends up in an entirely different place.
As a young man, William kills a rook with a slingshot. The reference to rooks appears throughout the book as a symbol in or commentary on the direction of William's life. As William grows up, his business sense leads to great wealth and great power. His personal life begins on a positive note. He is young, smart, and handsome. Life brings him love and success.
Tragedy falls and brings with it a bargain between William and a man named Black. That bargain leads to a new business and even greater professional success. Yet, what of his personal life? As William's success grows, what is the parallel impact on his person and his personal life?
To me, this entire book just simmers and never truly finds its grip. The anticipation of a big moment exists throughout the book; yet, the moment never comes. The book is called a ghost story, but it is not quite that. The book is based on the ramifications of a cruel childhood action, but the impact seems exaggerated. The book is about a mysterious bargain in a desperate moment, but that does not end up where you expect. The book in some descriptions is classified as horror, but it is not that other than the macabre business that William Bellman ends up in. The book in some descriptions is classified as historical fiction, but it not that either other than the descriptions that evoke a time and place. In other words, the book could have been a lot of things, but it never quite gets there.
The descriptions even the extensive ones about the Bellman business are enjoyable to read, and the dark somber atmosphere is created well and held through the bulk of the book. Thus, what saves the book is Diane Setterfield's writing.
*** Reviewed based on a publisher's galley received through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ***
The short description of this books says that it is the story of William
Bellman and how one action in his childhood has ramifications throughout his life. The subtitle of the book is "A Ghost Story." The book does not live up to that description and ends up in an entirely different place.
As a young man, William kills a rook with a slingshot. The reference to rooks appears throughout the book as a symbol in or commentary on the direction of William's life. As William grows up, his business sense leads to great wealth and great power. His personal life begins on a positive note. He is young, smart, and handsome. Life brings him love and success.
Tragedy falls and brings with it a bargain between William and a man named Black. That bargain leads to a new business and even greater professional success. Yet, what of his personal life? As William's success grows, what is the parallel impact on his person and his personal life?
To me, this entire book just simmers and never truly finds its grip. The anticipation of a big moment exists throughout the book; yet, the moment never comes. The book is called a ghost story, but it is not quite that. The book is based on the ramifications of a cruel childhood action, but the impact seems exaggerated. The book is about a mysterious bargain in a desperate moment, but that does not end up where you expect. The book in some descriptions is classified as horror, but it is not that other than the macabre business that William Bellman ends up in. The book in some descriptions is classified as historical fiction, but it not that either other than the descriptions that evoke a time and place. In other words, the book could have been a lot of things, but it never quite gets there.
The descriptions even the extensive ones about the Bellman business are enjoyable to read, and the dark somber atmosphere is created well and held through the bulk of the book. Thus, what saves the book is Diane Setterfield's writing.
*** Reviewed based on a publisher's galley received through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ***
I am in the group of people that loved The Thirteenth Tale and hate Bellman & Black.
The first page reels you in and gets you in the mood for a good story, but the book flops after that. You keep reading hoping the next page will be better. By page 260, I couldn't take it anymore and skipped ahead and found the part I needed to end the story. There is no plot to this book and the ending is disappointing. The book lacked cohesive writing.
The book is all about a man's life from childhood to death.
The first page reels you in and gets you in the mood for a good story, but the book flops after that. You keep reading hoping the next page will be better. By page 260, I couldn't take it anymore and skipped ahead and found the part I needed to end the story. There is no plot to this book and the ending is disappointing. The book lacked cohesive writing.
The book is all about a man's life from childhood to death.
The book is sold as a ghost story. It's not really.
Very strange tale.
