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A Christmas Journey (2003)

A Christmas Journey (2003)

Book Info

Author
Rating
3.4 of 5 Votes: 5
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ISBN
034546673X (ISBN13: 9780345466730)
Language
English
Publisher
ballantine books

About book A Christmas Journey (2003)

Mlle Alice, pouvez-vous nous raconter votre rencontre avec La Disparue de Noël? "Voilà quelques temps maintenant que je dévore tout ce que je peux lire de la plume d'Anne Perry. Malheureusement, lorsque je l'ai connue, on ne trouvait déjà plus certains de ses récits de Noël. Quand j'ai trouvé celui-ci d'occasion mais en parfait état, j'ai sauté sur l'opportunité et je l'ai dévoré en terrasse, vue sur Notre-Dame de Paris."Dites-nous en un peu plus sur son histoire... "Lorsque la jeune veuve, Gwendolen Kilmuir, se suicide, tout le monde garde en mémoire l'altércation qu'elle a eut la veille avec Isobel Alvie et s'empresse de juger cette dernière coupable, la mettant au ban de la bonne société. Mais c'est sans compter sur la jeune Lady Vespasia qui va aider Isobel à entreprendre un voyage expiatoire."Mais que s'est-il exactement passé entre vous? "On retrouve ici un personnage cher à mon coeur: Lady Vespasia, et dans sa jeunesse qui plus est. On ne peut que se réjouir d'en apprendre plus sur elle et de constater à quel point elle a toujours été une grande dame. Anne Perry profite aussi de cette nouvelle, comme c'est souvent le cas, pour nous faire découvrir autre chose que Londres, et si possible des contrées très reculées, et c'est toujours un enchantement. En fait, le point le plus faible ici reste l'enquête qui semble résolue dès le départ, mais elle nous réserve tout de même quelques surprises."Et comment cela s'est-il fini? "Ces contes de Noël sont toujours des petites friandises supplémentaires que nous offre l'auteur sur ses différents personnages et c'est toujours un régal! Il ne me reste plus qu'à trouver également les autres opus qu'il me manque!"http://booksaremywonderland.hautetfor...

I found this book a really interesting read.It is set as usual in the Victorian period. Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould attends a house Party with some friends, there is some gossip and some less than friendly emotions going round and when one of the guests - Isobel Alvie - makes a cruel remark to another, that will apparently lead to the suicide of the latter.As Isobel is shunned and condemned by all except Vespasia the owner of the house as the idea of proposing an expiation journey for Isobel - to take the dead woman's last letter to her mother who leaves in the highland of Scotland - and if she is sucessful everyone will abide by a pact of silence of not speaking of it again nor condemning her socially.I found the idea of the expiation of a crime very interesting and found myself wanting to know more about it. As Vespasia and Isobel start their journey to find Gwendolen's mother not only is the journey dangerous but is also an emotional dificult one as Isobel will have to tell her part in the tragic events. Vespasia is the character we get to know better, she is a sensible and kind woman (sometimes a bit too kind to be real) of her time who will gain a better knowledge of herself with this journey. And as the journey progresses not only is Isobel's behaviour analysed but they also start suspecting that more things may have been tormenting Guendolen.If I have a complaint about this story is how short it was, a bigger story would have allowed for more analysis on the character's feelings and the burden of guilt that most of them seem to carry.Grade: B+

Do You like book A Christmas Journey (2003)?

Lady Vispasia, aunt of Charlotte Pitt, in a story from her youth. While at a house party, a cruel remark to a young widow causes her to commit suicide by drowning herself. The group present will never mention this again if the offending speaker, Isabel, takes the dead woman's final letter to her mother. Vispasia agrees to travel with her, as they need to go to Inverness in Northern Scotland in December. When they finally arrive at the lady's home, they learn she has not lived there for a year and a half, and have to travel to the other side of Scotland, this time by boat and then on horseback. After another cold journey, they meet the lady and tell her what had happened. Then the three return to London and return to the house where the suicide took place, in time for Christmas Eve dinner.
—Lorraine

I am still scratching my head after reading this one. I read it in an evening. It is a story about a group of “high Society” English people who are spending the holidays at an estate. IT definitely shows the snobby side of the English back in the days when you can hear a lady coming by the sound of her skirts dragging on the floor behind her. Vespasia, a character from one of Perry’s series, is in the midst of a tragedy at the estate when one of the women jumps off a bridge into a pond. Everyone thinks Gwendoline was driven to suicide after Isobel made a comment about her intentions towards this gentlemen she was involved with. The group of people present at the estate decide to do a pilgrimage of expatiation. If Isobel takes the suicide note that was left by gwendoline to her mother and accompanies the mother back to the estate, then all is forgiven and not a word will be spoken about it. So, Isobel is convinced to take the trip especially since Vespasia agrees to go with her. The story is definitely not a Christmas story. It drags out and I was left puzzled at the end. Would not recommend this and hesitate to continue to read books by Perry as a result.
—Kellie

This was a book club selection, chosen because of the Christmas theme for our December meeting. The story took place during the Christmas season, but it really didn't have much to do with Christmas. The book read more like a short story than a novel to me. There were parts where another author might go into much more detail, but in this case, less detail did not hamper the story. I also understood this to be a suspense novel, but I didn't find it very suspenseful. All that aside, it was a nice little book.The main character is Lady Vespasia, which I learned is a character mentioned in other Anne Perry books. The story takes place in England, I can't remember if it was the turn of the century (1900), but sometime way back then, and the setting is an elegant party where one guest insults another guest and there is a death, sort of a who-dun-it situation. The guests decide one particular lady is mostly to blame, and they come up with the idea that if she will go tell the deceased's mother about it, they will all keep the circumstances a secret. Lady Vespasia decided to accompany the "criminal", and they set out on the Christmas Journey. Really this story is more about friendship than anything, and that aspect of the novel was expertly woven into the book by Perry.
—Karen

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