Madam, want to talk about author Mary Stewart? discussion

Discussion for chapters 1 thru 5. Please comment on anything from these chapters, but remember to hide spoilers within a spoiler tag. Please note which chapter a spoiler is from so other readers will know if it is safe to "peek" or not. You do not have to wait until reading all of the chapters to comment, but please restrict your posts to content from chapters 1 thru 5. Enjoy!

Note: I am dividing the read into 5 sections, but I don't have my copy of the book yet. Hopefully, this will work out well. :)

Gavarnie, France:



You know, I never did this kind of thing (look up pictures of the settings of books) until I joined this group. :)

It's beautiful!

Nice picture, Tadiana. I've finished the first chapter and have been introduced to a lovely French Pyrenees setting and naturally (view spoiler)[cigarettes (hide spoiler)] as well! Seems (view spoiler)[the old beau, Stephen, may have lacked a backbone in the past but has figured things out, we'll see (hide spoiler)].

Chapter 1 random comments (this is all in the first few pages so I'm not going to bother with spoiler tags):
- Well, for once it's not insta-love!
- I don't think any of the lovely book covers that we've seen for TotR have paid any attention at all to Jennifer's "straight, pale-gold hair."
- This made me snort: "Miss Moon dug into her trout with the dogged efficiency and artistic appreciation of a bulldog."
- I also liked this line: "Mother and daughter got on very well indeed, with a deep affection founded on almost complete misunderstanding."

Both good lines, especially the mother-daughter one.

Stephen and Jennifer's father both study (or teach) music. I didn't remember this from my prior reads of this book, but all of the chapter titles are musical titles or terms. That's an interesting twist on MS's typical "literary quotes at the beginning of each chapter" approach.

Also, I never noticed this before ... but there ... are an awful lot of ellipses ... in the first couple of chapters.... I don't remember seeing this in MS's other books, and it's a little annoying....

I didn't notice the ellipses... (chuckle)

I loved the conversation between the two British geologists, Miss Moon and Miss Shell-Pratt, especially the "How were they bedded?" [which rang out above Stephan's head], "Horizontally or vertically?" And then, as Jennifer explains that it's about geology, his response of "I suppose they do it at Cambridge". Cracked me up!

Tadiana wrote: "Gavarnie, France:



You know, I never did this kind of thing (look up pictures of the settings of books) until I joined this group. :)"

Well, I'm glad that you're looking them up now and sharing them!

Karlyne wrote: "I didn't notice the ellipses... (chuckle)..."

I missed them somehow, too. I really like Sister Louisa. Are they all supposed to be speaking French, or are they speaking English? She uses the word "aye," which threw me off.

I am not sure what language they are using but I think the aye is maybe from Gillie's Northumberland upbringing?

Helen wrote: "I am not sure what language they are using but I think the aye is maybe from Gillie's Northumberland upbringing?"


Thanks, Helen. It's the nun in the French convent who speaks this way (Stewart seems to have given her some type of English dialect, even though they are probably speaking French?)

I think she's giving her this dialect so that she sounds comfortable and homey and not patrician as Dona Frederica does. As a contrast, in fact.

Thanks, Karlyne. That makes sense.

My book should arrive today....(ellipsis) :)
I'll read fast to catch up.

Judith wrote: "My book should arrive today....(ellipsis) :)
I'll read fast to catch up."

I love ellipses, but I think that's because it's the way I talk... You know...

Karlyne wrote: "I love ellipses, but I think that's because it's the way I talk... You know..."

Lol :D

Too many ellipses just remind me of all the breathless heroines in Barbara Cartland novels. D:

Houston, my book has landed! Catch up evening ahead.

Tadiana wrote: "Too many ellipses just remind me of all the breathless heroines in Barbara Cartland novels. D:"

Oh, dear, I may never use one again. Those rank right up there with heaving bosoms.

Judith wrote: "Houston, my book has landed! Catch up evening ahead."

Have a great evening!

Judith wrote: "Houston, my book has landed! Catch up evening ahead."

Yay! I need to get going again as well. I stalled a couple of days ago. I've got a 12 year old's birthday dinner and cake to cook tonight and some birthday shopping to do, so it'll be very late tonight or tomorrow before I make any real reading progress again. :)

Birthday dinner and cake were a rousing success. The only problem: there's now a chocolate Texas sheet cake sitting in the kitchen, calling my name every so often.

Just to stay on topic: Here are some gentians, since I didn't know before what they look like:

Glad the celebration was a success! I don't think I've ever seen blue gentians -- I always thought they were pink.

The pictures I found in my Google search were almost all blue or purple. No pink at all. A few were white.

There seem to be a lot of varieties, depending on where they are grown. The blue ones in your picture are stunning!

Here you go, Jeannette:



All it took was a search for "pink gentian." :)

:)

Karlyne wrote: "I think she's giving her this dialect so that she sounds comfortable and homey and not patrician as Dona Frederica does. As a contrast, in fact."

I found that a bit odd and nearly forgot they were in France and not in England. Then she called her 'mademoiselle'.

Finally reached the end of Chapter 5. This one is true to Mary Stewart's gift for description. The 2nd sentence, 'Beyond the palisade of trees shading its front courtyard runs the road from Lourdes..." There's a rhythm to that sentence that make me feel as though I'm on a curvy road. I do love how she described Dona Francisca. I see her looking like a dour, Spanish painting.

Dona Francisca, pure Spanish Gothic. Hate the woman already.

Jennifer doesn't seem like one of MS's strongest heroine's...maybe she'll improve as the book progresses.

As always, her settings are impeccablly described.

I am so behind. We are getting new carpets put in...my house is a wreck!

Yay! for new carpets -- Boo! for the mess.

Texas sheet cake, Tadiana! One of our favorites. Wouldn't that make a nice Easter cake...? (had to throw in the ...)

Judith, I remember (I hope!) Mary Stewart saying that she'd only written one novel in the third person and that it wasn't a success. I find myself speaking for Jenny as though I were writing it in the first person. Weird.

What I meant to say there is that I think you're right about Jenny not being a particularly strong heroine, because she seems to not know herself very well.

Maybe that's it, Karlyne, the third person is not working for me. I'm going very slowly!!

UGGG! the carpet guys came yesterday, it was the wrong color and density. Took it all back. We are now living in chaos, all small furniture plus lamps, books and knick knacks from 3 bedrooms and the study are in the living room. New carpet must be re ordered. Don't know how much reading I can get done.

I feel for you, Judith! We replaced our carpet last year and it's such an upheaval. I can't imagine dealing with the "wrong carpet" scenario on top of that. :P

Judith wrote: "Maybe that's it, Karlyne, the third person is not working for me. I'm going very slowly!!

UGGG! the carpet guys came yesterday, it was the wrong color and density. Took it all back. We are now l..."

Oh, no! Especially having to have it re-ordered! That is truly a pain, and as someone who hates clutter, I feel for you!

I'm behind in reading this one (re-reading, as with all the MS suspense novels).

I love how the atmosphere builds as Jennifer is walking to the convent, with the dramatic incident of the boy with the three horses heightening the Gothic feel until she tells herself not to be ridiculous. How much of her feelings about the convent results from her apparent dislike of cloistered orders and her determination to stop Gillian from becoming a nun?

Even taking this into account, Doña Francisca's behaviour is odd. She may be sensitive about not being a nun herself, as she would like, but even so she was deliberately misleading. The contrast with Sister Louisa was marked.

I did find myself remembering Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, with the heroine's tendency to see something sinister in everything. Nevertheless, Jennifer is right to feel that there is something wrong about Gillian's supposed death; her logic is excellent and it is that which makes her certain, rather just a "feeling".

I love how the atmosphere of the garden, including the area with the graves, contrasts with the coolness and the feeling of foreboding within the convent building. The heat and sounds of Bordeaux, with the plants and the bees, are so evocative.

Hj wrote: "I'm behind in reading this one (re-reading, as with all the MS suspense novels).

I love how the atmosphere builds as Jennifer is walking to the convent, with the dramatic incident of the boy with ..."

I like all of the weather detail, too, Hj. The book was well named.

Jeannette wrote: "Helen wrote: "I am not sure what language they are using but I think the aye is maybe from Gillie's Northumberland upbringing?"


Thanks, Helen. It's the nun in the French convent who speaks this ..."

Oops, I need to re-read that part, thanks for the correction!

Good idea! Let's all re-read it. (heeheehee!)

Karlyne wrote: "Good idea! Let's all re-read it. (heeheehee!)"

You must have really enjoyed this one, Karlyne! :)

Any excuse to read a Mary Stewart! Except that I really do have a pile of to-reads I ought to get to first... (those ellipses are out of hand, again!)

.....

I'm afraid if I were a writer, I would be guilty of all kinds of ellipses crimes...'cause I love using them...all the time when I post...here on GR and all over the internet....sigh...

Hannah wrote: "I'm afraid if I were a writer, I would be guilty of all kinds of ellipses crimes...'cause I love using them...all the time when I post...here on GR and all over the internet....sigh..."

They just make everything sound like a real conversation! I also over use exclamation marks...

My personal downfall is parentheses--I use them way too often. It seems to be locked into the way my brain thinks. Sometimes I'll go back and edit what I've written before I post or send it, just to take out unnecessary parentheses.

I like to use "--" but lately I've picked up my use of parentheses.

When is this story supposed to be happening. The hero is mentioned as having seen war action in Korea? Got to brush up my history. When were the British in Korea?

Good question! This book was published in 1957, but I'm reading in the first chapter and we can be more exact. Jennifer was 7 when Gillian came to live with her family soon after the WWII air raids began in Britain. That would be 1940. Jennifer is now 22, so it's now (pauses to calculate) 1955.

The Korean War was 1950-53, and the British participated, though I'm not sure if they were there the entire time. ETA: it looks like they were there the whole time, as part of the U.S.-led UN forces.