2007-05-28 Incredible insight into society and human nature of times past and present

The blurb of this book is misleading as the focus of this book isn't as it suggests the two love stories development and intertwinement but rather what society expects of us in different cultures and periods with the last two hundred years. The relationships explored in this book are beautiful in many different ways and Emma Darwin portrays realistic damaged characters with such integrity that a reader feels they are their best friend. The book is a very philosophical and fascinating look at what love really is and does not always present what the reader would want or expect. However, the book takes a long time to draw the reader in and long chapters swapping in first person between two main characters can be confusing at first and tiresome. I would thoroughly recommend this book but do not be mislead into believing you are going to get a wonderfully gothic romantic period novel. Also the book leaves several loose ends which I believe the author has encouraged the reader to make their own assumptions about but this can be annoying.