Rating: 
Summary: More of a guilt novel than I mystery I think...
Review: ...I was suprised at how much I liked this book. I am not one for Victorian "sensationalists" preferring swashbuckling but Miss Braddon (as she was then called) is a great writer who gives explainations for her character's wild behavior. Considered quite a trashy novelist in her day, her stories are much tamer than what is on network television.Read, enjoy this escapist novel
Rating:
Summary: Collector's Item for Mystery Fans
Review: A "sensation" thriller which was the rage at the time, Lady Audley's Secret is a must read for the genre fans. It is not "Gothic " as it is a mystery. There are no supernatural elements. However, it manages to creat appropriate mood and suspense and builds a web of mystery around its main character. The story is interesting to follow and it is also of interest to note how Braddon comments on the lower and upper classes of England. England of course being the usual location for such mysterious goings-ons! The story was put to the screen on PBS' Mystery Series. Also other good recommendations are The Woman in White and the Wyvern Mystery. Enjoy
Rating: 
Summary: Very readable Victorian mystery
Review: A very readable Victorian mystery, I guess it would qualify in today's market as a cozy. I understand that Braddon was influenced by Wilke Collins, and therefore it is advantageous to also read The Woman in White, a generally more complex novel. In any case, the first half of Lady Audley's Secret is compelling in its set-up of the mystery that follows, and I read it very quickly as it kept calling me back to it. The rest of the book, while still interesting, is spent observing the Lady's nephew (through marriage) as he attempts to discover the circumstances of the disappearance of his good friend which he believes is related to the Lady's "secret." The reader easily guesses much of the circumstance of the novel, although it's not quite as simple as it appears. It is also important to note that Braddon plots rather deftly and she savors the development of the novel's progression. I did have some trouble getting through the last 100 pages of the book, as there was very little left for the reader to do but follow around the nephew's movements as he attempted to prove his theory. And, while Braddon does offer a twist at the end, it is not entirely unexpected, and so is not as effective as it could have been. Still, there is much to like about this book; in contains all the elements of Victorian society and, as such, has several layers within which it serves its audience. Not a must read, but if you're interested in Victorian literature, this is a book which was a sensation during the author's lifetime and may well be worth a look into.
Rating:
Summary: Very readable Victorian mystery
Review: A very readable Victorian mystery, I guess it would qualify in today's market as a cozy. I understand that Braddon was influenced by Wilke Collins, and therefore it is advantageous to also read The Woman in White, a generally more complex novel. In any case, the first half of Lady Audley's Secret is compelling in its set-up of the mystery that follows, and I read it very quickly as it kept calling me back to it. The rest of the book, while still interesting, is spent observing the Lady's nephew (through marriage) as he attempts to discover the circumstances of the disappearance of his good friend which he believes is related to the Lady's "secret." The reader easily guesses much of the circumstance of the novel, although it's not quite as simple as it appears. It is also important to note that Braddon plots rather deftly and she savors the development of the novel's progression. I did have some trouble getting through the last 100 pages of the book, as there was very little left for the reader to do but follow around the nephew's movements as he attempted to prove his theory. And, while Braddon does offer a twist at the end, it is not entirely unexpected, and so is not as effective as it could have been. Still, there is much to like about this book; in contains all the elements of Victorian society and, as such, has several layers within which it serves its audience. Not a must read, but if you're interested in Victorian literature, this is a book which was a sensation during the author's lifetime and may well be worth a look into.
Rating:
Summary: The Case of the Missing Style
Review: During Mary Elizabeth Braddon's lifetime, she was most famous for the convoluted plots she hatched, and she hatched a nestful, publishing more than eighty novels. (She was also famous for living what was then considered a 'scandalous' life, and for having many of the major characters in her books do the same.) But when Thackery said, "If I could plot like Mrs. Braddon, I should be the greatest novelist in the world," I don't think he meant it as a compliment. I think he was saying that she herself would be a great novelist, if only she could WRITE! That's the catch with this book, for example. The characters are memorable, the plot is extravagantly complex, the insights into what makes society tick, or not, are right on the money. But the writing style . . . well, to put it simply, there isn't any. No consistent Point of View. No deft turns of phrase. There isn't a sentence you'd care to quote anywhere in the book. If only there had been a Hollywood in her day! She'd have been a great screenplay writer, where style doesn't matter. That's why the story makes good movies and TV specials, and that's why it has long since dropped out of sight as a book. I sought it and read it because of a recent PBS 'Mystery!' presentation. It seemed so far ahead of its time in dealing with what we now call "Women's Issues" that I assumed-- wrongly, as it turns out-- that its disapearance from literary history was due to a backlash against its view of societal injustice. Well, that view was inserted by the people who wrote the screenplay for the BBC production that became the PBS special. It isn't in the book. The author totally condemns her central character and has no particular sympathy for her at all. It took a modern scriptwriter to discover that the story could be used as a metaphor for the oppression of women. No, I'm afraid that the reason for the book's disappearance from literary history is that it doesn't qualify as literature. Wilkie Collins' famous 'The Woman in White' explores basically the same theme, but does it with verve and style. In comparison, "Lady Audley's Secret" is flat and colorless. Any well-educated eighth grader could have done better. I give the book three stars nevertheless, for its characters and plot-- which are fabulous, in both meanings of that word.
Rating:
Summary: The Case of the Missing Style
Review: During Mary Elizabeth Braddon's lifetime, she was most famous for the convoluted plots she hatched, and she hatched a nestful, publishing more than eighty novels. (She was also famous for living what was then considered a 'scandalous' life, and for having many of the major characters in her books do the same.) But when Thackery said, "If I could plot like Mrs. Braddon, I should be the greatest novelist in the world," I don't think he meant it as a compliment. I think he was saying that she herself would be a great novelist, if only she could WRITE! That's the catch with this book, for example. The characters are memorable, the plot is extravagantly complex, the insights into what makes society tick, or not, are right on the money. But the writing style . . . well, to put it simply, there isn't any. No consistent Point of View. No deft turns of phrase. There isn't a sentence you'd care to quote anywhere in the book. If only there had been a Hollywood in her day! She'd have been a great screenplay writer, where style doesn't matter. That's why the story makes good movies and TV specials, and that's why it has long since dropped out of sight as a book. I sought it and read it because of a recent PBS 'Mystery!' presentation. It seemed so far ahead of its time in dealing with what we now call "Women's Issues" that I assumed-- wrongly, as it turns out-- that its disapearance from literary history was due to a backlash against its view of societal injustice. Well, that view was inserted by the people who wrote the screenplay for the BBC production that became the PBS special. It isn't in the book. The author totally condemns her central character and has no particular sympathy for her at all. It took a modern scriptwriter to discover that the story could be used as a metaphor for the oppression of women. No, I'm afraid that the reason for the book's disappearance from literary history is that it doesn't qualify as literature. Wilkie Collins' famous 'The Woman in White' explores basically the same theme, but does it with verve and style. In comparison, "Lady Audley's Secret" is flat and colorless. Any well-educated eighth grader could have done better. I give the book three stars nevertheless, for its characters and plot-- which are fabulous, in both meanings of that word.
Rating: 
Summary: What a nice suprise!
Review: I had to read tis book for a Victorian Lit. class and was not looking forward to it, however, to my suprise I ended up reading two thirds of it a t one sitting. Not only is it a great mystery novel, and a romance, it subtly undermines Victorian societal conventions, and questions the authority of gender roles. Truly a great read, I reccomend it for woman who like romance novels.
Rating:
Summary: Review the novel, or the edition?
Review: I read this for a Victorian literature class, and sandwiched as it was between the imposing density of Middlemarch and Dickens, it was a real holiday. "Lady Audley" was written for pure narrative pleasure, and it delivers big-time. I had no idea Victorian literature could be this tantalizing. It's really kind of trashy, falling into the sensational genre, but don't let that deter you - it'll keep you up at night AND provide the romantic bygone otherness of say, a Jane Austen novel. It's also an interesting window into Victorian femininity, undermining as it does the ideal of the passive angel in the house, and replacing her with a kind of femme fatale anti-heroine. (Everyone in my class enjoyed it, even the whingers who typically bemoan everything on the reading list.) A really good read.
Rating:
Summary: Hugely enjoyable
Review: I read this for a Victorian literature class, and sandwiched as it was between the imposing density of Middlemarch and Dickens, it was a real holiday. "Lady Audley" was written for pure narrative pleasure, and it delivers big-time. I had no idea Victorian literature could be this tantalizing. It's really kind of trashy, falling into the sensational genre, but don't let that deter you - it'll keep you up at night AND provide the romantic bygone otherness of say, a Jane Austen novel. It's also an interesting window into Victorian femininity, undermining as it does the ideal of the passive angel in the house, and replacing her with a kind of femme fatale anti-heroine. (Everyone in my class enjoyed it, even the whingers who typically bemoan everything on the reading list.) A really good read.
Rating:
Summary: worth considering
Review: I spent over a year convincing myself that i needed to read this book (like someone else, i was supposed to read it in class, but we didn't get to it). Finally, I read it and I am very glad i did. Although you can figure the secret out pretty far in advance, the fact that the narrator/investigator spends the time trying to PROVE his solution to himself shows what a marvelous work this is. He doesn't go wildly off into the night telling anyone, he tries to get the lady to tell her husband of her own will. the slight touch of romance, and deep sense of justice and mystery lend this book to a long weekend's worth of reading.
| 
