mensurbojda

This was an enjoyable novel -- a combination romantic mystery and psychological look at war and the individual. The story takes place in 1924, but centers on the first world war as the frightening widespread destructive force of the characters’ lives. As the story begins, Evelyn Gifford is deeply haunted by the war death of her brother, her only sibling. As the story progresses, each additional character reveals the damage they continue to endure from that war as well. The character of Evelyn is captivating and well-written. When her brother did not return from war, her genteel family relented in their traditional thinking by allowing her to study law and take brother James’ place professionally in a sense. In ways, this fact has added to her guilt and coping with his loss. What makes Evelyn’s character so effective is that while she is driven to succeed in this early era of women in the professions, she also is shown to be vulnerable and fully aware of the need to fill the emptiness in her heart. She discovers very immediate passions and love, and in this story, the immediacy is believable and it works. The Crimson Rooms speaks well for its genre, offering weighty characters, realistic inner thoughts and believable dialog in the conversations. It is a very affecting story of proof that the flow of pain and happiness, struggle and success, love and doubt is never steady or certain.

2023-01-28 18:01