Rating: 
Summary: Solidly Satisfying
Review: I highly recommend this book. It was solidly satisfying and well written, filled with realistically ambiguous characters evolving under the confluence of past experience, present action, societal norms, and random fate. The author portrays every character, even the most lowly, with compassion and understanding. Virtually every character is both hero and villain, saint and sinner, free will and destiny. A unique read.
Rating:
Summary: Superb!
Review: Michel Faber is a magnificent writer who fully deserves a prize for this magnificent piece of work. The Crimson Petal and the White is a gripping and finely crafted tale of a prostitute during the late 1800s London. The characterization and story development are magnificent. The political undertones in the novel -- the sexual situations among Victorians -- have caused a great deal of controversy. There's no doubt that the Victorians would be shocked and repulsed with this novel, which is why the Crimson is so brilliant. Not a shallow read, but one that endures. I adore this author, and cannot fathom the one star reviews here. I would have given it six stars or one hundred, but five will suffice.
Rating: 
Summary: well, it started off amazing
Review: when i started reading the crimson petal and the white i was so excited! i couldn't wait to get home and read it. it was a new approach to storytelling. but the approach kind of stopped midway through the book. and then suddenly came back on the last page of the book. the writing was good throughout, but the method of storytelling just wasn't consistent. the characters were strong and interesting, and i wanted to keep reading about them even when the book was over. i didn't mind the length at all; all part of the victorian novel experience in my mind.
Rating:
Summary: Recommended with some reservations
Review: I had mixed feelings about this one. It opens on a high note and develops slowly but surely into an intriguing piece of post-modern victoriana, but then... Faber's concept seems to be try to write a dickensian epic with contemporary sensibility regarding limitations (or not) of content and language. He suceeds only in part, for his cast of characters is far from the rich brew of the 19th century novelists and his plot, as you find out eventually, isn't leading anywhere at all. While Sugar, the lead lady in this melodrama of steam, dung and other bodily fluids, is a great creation, her story advances through hundreds of pages until Mr. Faber simply stops in the middle of no-resolution country. After such a long journey, the reader is left with a sense of emptiness and a suspicion of having been misled by an author who was at the wheel of a wandering vehicle. Despite this, the novel is well worth reading and has plenty of engrossing scenes and characters. If only the author had known how to end his story, this would have been a great novel. As it is, is a wonderful experiment to be enjoyed but ultimately mourned.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing ending
Review: Thoroughly enjoyed the book....but hated the ending. I do not like to be left hanging. The book was creatively written...but Mr. Faber, were you in a hurry to meet your deadline?
Rating: 
Summary: GRAND IN SCOPE AND SIZE
Review: Set in Victorian London, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE focuses on the life of Sugar, a nineteen-year-old prostitute forced into her trade by her ruthless mother and Madame, Mrs. Castaway. Sugar, like many other women inhabiting her station in society, dreams of elevating herself and becoming a respectable lady. The lure of Sugar is known throughout London as it is rumored that she will 'do anything' to please a gentleman and it is this lure which initially attracts William Rackham to her. After one evening with Sugar, William is determined to have her for himself and scoffs at the thought of another man spoiling her. The next day he pays off Mrs. Castaway and sets Sugar up in a house far from the seedy and dirty streets where she originated. Realizing that it is now in her best interests to keep William satisfied and willing, Sugar is determined to know everything about him and his family and she begins to take an active role in his perfume company and follows his wife throughout London during the Season.The prose is spectacular and the details of Victorian life are so well-drawn that one can easily imagine standing on the dirty cobblestone streets in London hearing the calls of street vendors, seeing the prostitutes standing in the doorways, and smelling the fresh horse dung. Michel Faber should be commended for all his years of research as he successfully bought this segment of history to vivid life for the reader. With that said, this is undoubtedly a large book of over 800 pages. It took me longer to finish than previously believed, as the plot became more 'heavy' as time progressed. After a while I began to feel weighed down by all the details. Although I enjoyed reading this book, I can't help to feel that it could have been trimmed down several hundred pages without running the risk of losing anything substantial. There was also a lack of what I will term 'smooth character transformation'. When the characters of Sugar or William change their motivations it is never portrayed or explained to the reader. Instead it just...happens. From one chapter to the next William goes from being a loafer to becoming the head of a large perfume company and Sugar quickly changes from despising Agnes to trying to help to escape her torment. Regardless of these apparent flaws, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE is well worth the effort and I certainly don't regret the time I've spent. Enjoy
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Detailed Story( though at times a bit TOO )
Review: In this tome about a young,fiercely intelligent prostitute named Sugar,her relationship with Henry Rackham,heir to a perfume company and his almost surreal-in-it's-dysfunction family,the author has truly re-created 1870's London,from it's squalid slums on up to the social elite. It's a great historical chronicile that at times,outdoes the story itself,which at 800 pages,is a bit long,but overall very engrossing.Also,considering it's length,it's surprisingly easy to follow as the author wisely chose not to over-populate the book with too many charactors,and,in addition to it's heroine,I really cared about them and their various fates. Now,the downside: I know the author is trying to make this a "unVictorian" Victorian story but he does get rather repetitive with his descriptions of bodily functions,and the ending? Well,it's a bold move(sequel anyone?) In conclusion,a very good(and at times) great read.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent prose and story
Review: I love this book, though I was intimated by the number of pages. After starting it, I couldn't put it down. I'm a slow reader, but the story didn't slow my interest at all. The imagery was very vivid when I read this book. I love the way the book describes the sexual encounters because it wasn't like the glamourized, hollywood sexual scenes from a movie, it's more of what actually what happends when it actually happens. I definitely recommend this book. If you're not a romantic, you might still find this book a good read. Excellent Story; new and fresh.
Rating: 
Summary: The Crimson Petal and the White
Review: Michel Faber is a wonderful writer who was out of his element with this book. Much as I wanted to like it, I found myself working to get throught it. The character development was shallow, and midstream he changes all the characters' traits 180 degrees. Faber seems to have little insight into human motivation, especially women's, and unfortunately his main character is a woman, so a lot of his descriptions of her don't ring true; this actually applies to the majority of the characters as the book wears on. Also, he never explains how Sugar, a low-born prostitute with no schooling, becomes educated and mannered enough to pass herself off as a lady, and how Sophie Rackham is able, at age six, to read difficult books and memorize facts suited to much older children -- and this after he goes to great lengths to show us how Victorian women were educated in social arts rather than the 3 Rs. Additionally, the sex scenes were not titallating in the least, in my view (and that's one of the reasons I wanted to read the book, frankly), most of the characters seem to have problems with incontinence, and Faber seems overly obsessed with baser human functions. Overall, my opinion is that Michel Faber is a great writer, but the plot was ill conceived and unbelievable. I hope that his next book is based on his own first-hand experience rather than random facts gleaned from inaccurate sources.
Rating:
Summary: Makes you feel
Review: I really enjoyed this book. Very well written, keeps your interest and makes you feel what the characters feel. A great read, I recommend!
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