Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining, but covers familiar ground
Review: "Slammerkin" is definitely a fun read, but I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was reading "Moll Flanders" all over again. Even the names of the characters sound alike. I was the most satisfied when I learned the characters were based on actual people. This reminds me that both Donoghue and Defoe weren't reaching so far outside the truth.
Rating: 
Summary: Slammerkin
Review: Very compelling and thought provoking. I compare Ms. Donoghue to Sarah Waters writings. I was hoping the main character, Mary Saunders, would get a reprive, but not so, which left me literally tearful. I would recommend Ms. Donoghue's works to everyone. An awesome story! Deserves 10 stars!!Was this review helpful to you? Yes No
Rating: 
Summary: Great period fiction
Review: Perfectly balanced and expertly paced, this is one of the finest novels I've read in a long time. Mary Saunders is a character that the reader cannot help but love. Donoghue has created a cast of characters with great care, richly complex and full of emotion. She balances the novel so well, with a multitude of comparisons and contrasts. Consider the dichotomy between the seedy, gritty life of London and the simple, traditional life of the Welsh countryside. Consider the numerous characters that serve as foils to Mary, serving to enhance the readers understanding of her character. There's not a single character missing, nor a single character that's superfluous. And Donoghue knows just when to slow down the narrative, pausing to let the reader absorb the period with all five senses, and she knows just when to speed it up, spicing it with drama, suspense, and unabashed ribaldry. Great writing.
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Summary: What is a slammerkin?
Review: I was intrigued by the title. I thoroughly enjoy historical fiction and this was no disappointment. The book depicted the 1600's in London as it was - a difficult and "unfair" time for women. The lead character is easily believable. Every so often you question whether she would really go so far as she does, and then remember how very young she is. It is a story that you will think about long after you finish the book. Very worth while reading. I look forward to another novel by this author.
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Summary: A thought provoking book
Review: Though the times are different, many of the themes presented in this book also apply today. Mary Saunders is thirteen when she first turns to prostitution, wishing for more material wealth. Ms Donoghue's book does not glamourize her life; she shows prostitution for what it really is, right down to loneliness and addiction. The historical content is right on the money too. This novel is very well done and highly readable, in part due to the great descriptions. Although at times slightly graphic, I think "Slammerkin" is a book readers of all ages can enjoy. I look forward to reading another of Ms. Donoghue's books.
Rating:
Summary: Destined to be a Classic
Review: Ms. Donoghue has crafted a work in the same class as the best of Charles Dickens. Its theme dates to the Garden of Eden. Ambition blinds us to the treasures we have and causes us to see only those we have not. Are pride and ambition the original sin, or are we right to risk even our souls to rise above our lot from birth? Are street whores, housewives, and maids all prostitutes in the same sense? Each reader will find his own answers, along with historic detail, filial love, pornography, and tragedy.
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Summary: this book is simply amazing.
Review: Slammerkin draws one in from the prologue. the writting is magnificent. the main character, mary, is sympathetic yet strong. the fact that she is a prostitue is not disgusting or alarming but shows one what life in 1740 in her postition would have been like. it is a wonderful book which i throughly enjoyed.
Rating: 
Summary: Eeeew! Good read, but prepare yourself
Review: The good news is, it's a quick and absorbing read. I came to it after "Year of Wonders," and found it about as readable. But wow - the stuff that's colorful and picaresque and interesting in the early chapters sure starts to wear and get uglier as the book goes on. This is one brutish, nasty, and short novel. YoW I find myself thinking about still. This one I find myself wondering why I read it. Don't mean to trash the author - I think I'll check out another one of Donoghue's books - just not wild about this one - unlikeable protagonist meets ugly end.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting Reading with a Surprise Ending
Review: I enjoyed this book, even though I didn't end up liking the protagonist, Mary Saunders. The ending was quite shocking, as I didn't see it coming to that at all! I would also recommend "The Crimson Petal and the White" by Michael Faber.
Rating:
Summary: Snoozerkin
Review: After a promising beginning, in which Mary culls her "cullies" and shoots to jaderdom in the time it takes today's mall girls to choose lipgloss, the author trots through the tedium of 18th century west of England social history. Lots of sewing, lots of sycophantic culchies. Donaghue deserves much praise for creating an historically accurate setting, but as with many Irish authors, the story gets short shrift. Mary's not compelling enough to drive a bandwagon; she's inconsequential, caustic without a cause, a lightweight frockladite. When she goes off to the Welsh border, you can see the sheep lightly leaping the fence. The zzzz's follow.
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