The Woman in White by, Wilkie Collins
This is a classic author I have just discovered and after reading this one I will be reading/devouring everything he has written. This was gothic fiction at its best and the story kept you on the edge of your seat all the way through. Every time I thought I had this story figured out the author would throw in another clue/red herring and throw my theory right out the window.
Marion was a great character who seemed ahead of her time she was so strong in a time when women don’t seem to have that kind of strength. I don’t know how Laura would have managed on her own she was a quite weak. Anne seemed actually stronger than Laura even with all she had been through.
Count Fosco was a very interesting character too one of the best written villains ( If that is what he was),he has become one of my favorite villains in literature. He was charming in that slimy kind of way and I do believe showed real affection towards Marion.
I liked the multiple character viewpoints I found it a great way to give the reader the entire story as the different characters saw it unfold. This book is a classic but not your run of the mill classic it is far from boring and is a great mystery. I couldn’t get enough of this book I never wanted to let it go when I had to get something done and for a chunkster that’s saying something. If you are looking for a classic to revitalize your love of classics or to introduce someone to the classics this is the book to choose. I am off to find anything else this man has written!
5 Stars ( )

I'm not a huge mystery reader, but when I do sit down to a who-dunnit, I like my time period to be Victorian, my heroes to be relentless, and my villains to be seemingly unstoppable (care for a Lady Julia Grey mystery anyone?). When hearing that Wilkie Collins' most popular novel The Woman in White basically pioneered this genre, I knew it was one to go to the top of my TBR list and after reading it, I can only kick myself for not coming across it's brilliance previously."This is the story of what a Woman's patience can endure, and of what a Man's resolution can achieve."Thus begins the narrative of Walter Hartright.As Walter is walking home late one evening he comes across a mysterious woman, dressed head to foot in white garments, in desperate need of aid. Walter helps her willingly (ever the gentleman) even though he is plagued by strange impressions of the woman as he continues on his way as he is expected to leave the next day to for his new job as drawing master for two young ladies in the country, Miss Laura Fairlie and her half-sister Miss Marian Halcombe. Even though Laura and Marian are as close as two sisters could possibly be, they are distinctly different: Marian is dark and unattractive and very, very smart while Laura is blond, delicate and extremely beautiful. So guess which sister Walter falls in love with? Of course, he is smitten from the first with Laura but behaves like a gentleman at all times (naturally). Once Marian learns that Laura returns his affection, she feels bound to reveal that Laura has already been promised to another man, Sir Percival Gylde, upon which, Walter leaves heartbroken for an extended journey in Central America.Enter Sir Percival: he's the man Laura's dead father wished her to marry and has been nothing but proper but is now hoping to finally set a date to their marriage. Even though Laura is still heartbroken over Walter's departure, she agrees and the couple is soon married and leaves on their honeymoon to Italy before Marian knows what to think. But when the couple returns, Marian finds Sir Percival to be very different from the man he previously appeared to be - brutish and almost cruel to Laura. Sir Percival has also returned with his good friend Count Fosco and his devoted wife, who happens to be Laura's estranged aunt. It quickly becomes obvious that Sir Percival is experiencing extreme financial difficulties and that the oddly charming yet disturbing Count Fosco has some sort of manipulative sway over the man. Together, they have planned one of the most audacious, most brilliant crimes involving Laura, Marian and even the illusive woman in white encountered by Walter so many months before. Laura and Marian quickly discover that Sir Percival and Fosco will stop at nothing to get what they want and that they have no one to trust but each other and the resourceful Walter Hartright - who is determined to see justice done.Published in 1860, The Woman in White is said to be one of the first mystery novels ever written in the Gothic style - it's success primarily due to having a likable amateur detective as hero, Walter Hartright, matched with a highly unorthodox villain, Count Fosco. Lies, surprising secrets revealed, amnesia, intrigue, and manipulation all combine to make this an engrossing read. Written in a modified epistolary form from the perspective of multiple characters, I wasn't sure I would enjoy a novel written by several different narrators but each separate account combined to create a chilling story where the puzzle pieces slowly fall into perfect place. Each voice was distinct and unique - from Marian's forthright and intelligent account to Mr. Fairlie's openly condescending (yet often hilarious) impressions as the family invalid.I've alluded to this already, but the best part about this novel has to be the characters - and I'm not just talking about Walter and Laura (boo! no one likes a pretty doormat!). On no, there is a full and distinct complement of secondary characters who give background, realism and strength to the story. Let's go over a few of my favorites, shall we?1. Two words: COUNT FOSCO. Count Fosco is everything you could ever want in a villain - the man is creepy, totally smart, can be utterly charming when he needs to be. Perhaps the greatest point in his favor is that he saw past Marian's ugliness and fell in love with her for her MIND unlike everyone else who trailed after the spineless Laura. Add in that the man has confidence in spades, and you've got yourself a winner.2. Marian Halcombe is the ugly, poor half-sister to the lovely Laura but without her, Laura would have never achieved any sort of future or happiness. With limited resources she gets the job done, understands the meaning of subtly and has the memory of an elephant.3. Lastly, in the time-honored tradition of Victorian literature Wilkie Collins presents us with a masterpiece of an invalid in Mr. Frederick Fairlie. Acting as Laura's guardian, he's selfish, despotic and has some of the best lines in the entire novel - usually when he wants people to leave him alone and so begins to wax poetic about some random subject or other. For example, here he is trying to understand why a woman would cry when she is upset:"I distinctly object to tears. Tears are scientifically described as a Secretion. I can understand that a secretion may be healthy or unhealthy, but I cannot see the interest of a secretion from a sentimental point of view."The Woman in White may be full of Victorian language and legal descriptions but it quietly builds into a world class thriller, which left me clutching the book, dying to find out what would happen next. Each storyline is carefully planned out with each individual thread crossing and connecting in multiple directions - it's obvious Wilkie Collins was a master craftsman in his genre.Such storytelling, with some unforgettable characters, I was totally hooked. ( )

I first read The Woman in White in 2006 – it was the first Wilkie Collins book I ever read and the one that turned me into a huge fan of his work. I just wish I had discovered him sooner!

So what is it about? I won't go into the plot in too much detail, as I don't want to spoil the fun for those of you who haven't read it yet. The story begins with drawing master Walter Hartright's meeting on a lonely London road with a mysterious woman dressed all in white who has escaped from an Asylum. The next day Walter takes up a teaching position at Limmeridge House in Cumberland where he finds that one of his students, Laura Fairlie, bears a striking resemblance to the woman in white…

The novel follows an epistolary style, meaning it is narrated by several different characters in turn. I love the way Collins gives each of his narrators a unique 'voice' - he really makes the characters come alive. Another thing I love about Wilkie Collins' writing is his sense of humour…some of the scenes involving Laura's hypochondriac uncle Mr Fairlie are hilarious!

Marian Halcombe, Laura Fairlie's sister, is one of my favourite female characters in literature. Contrary to the usual portrayal of 19th century women, she is a brave, intelligent, courageous person who on several occasions puts herself in danger in order to protect her sister Laura. Another great character is Count Fosco. One of the most unusual and memorable villains I've ever encountered in any book, he's an old, fat, opera-loving Italian completely devoted to his pet canaries and white mice.

The Woman in White is an example of the genre known as sensation fiction - including elements such as forgery, identity theft and insanity. Although it was written in the 19th century it's as exciting and gripping as a modern day thriller - even when reading the book for the second time and knowing what was going to happen! It's a long book but there's enough tension and suspense to keep the reader interested right through to the end. There are some classics that are a struggle to read but you persevere with them simply because they're classics and you feel as if you should. The Woman in White does not fall into that category - yes, it's a classic but it's also one of the most readable and enjoyable books I've ever read. ( )

Pressed upon me by my sister, recommended to me by my father, and doubly praised by my mother, The Woman in White, a classic of 19th century fiction, was deemed by T.S. Eliot to be "the first, the longest, and the best of modern English detective novels." It's a fairly fat book (648 pages, small type). At first it took some work to get into the slower-paced rhythms of this book. But I stuck with it. And even though the happenings seemed to be few and far between, this book consistently held my interest. Somewhere around the halfway point I found myself looking forward to picking up the book for further reading. Then, about two-thirds of the way in, events kicked into high gear and the suspense was sustained through to the finish. The plot behind The Woman in White concerns the fates of two sisters, a true love, a despicable husband, a conniving, corpulent Count and various other personages. Much of the fun in reading this book is trying to guess at the connections and motives of the various characters and wondering where certain events are leading. Mysteries encountered earlier in the story are explained later and the result is a satisfying, if somewhat long-winded read. Published in 1860, The Woman in White was a sensation in its day and the author was as well known as his friend Charles Dickens. Collins himself was an interesting character who "braved Victorian morals by living with one mistress and maintaining another in a separate establishment." He died in 1889. I was in the mood for a classic work and The Woman in White was an agreeable choice. The events in this story bring to mind the kind of evil, gloomy atmosphere that is reminiscent of the writings and drawings of Edward Gorey and his fanciful depictions of Victorian characters committing dastardly deeds by dark of night. ( )

Walter Hartright is a drawing teacher whose friend suggests a position for him out in Cumberland, teaching two young ladies. On the road home one night, he suddenly encounters a young woman who is dressed all in white. She asks him the way to London, and he points it out to her. After she leaves, he discovers that she was escaping from an insane asylum. Soon afterward, he meets his pupils, Miss Halcombe and Miss Fairlie. But the mystery surrounding the "woman in white" are numerous. Who was she? Is she really insane? Why was she so afraid that Walter might know a certain man of property?

This story is complicated and impossible to summarize fully without giving away numerous spoilers. As the footnotes doing so were one of the disappointments for me reading, I've tried to avoid doing so here. The format of the book is interesting: several people's accounts tell the events in a semi-chronological order. I enjoyed it at times, but was often frustrated with how very long the narrator (particularly when it was Hartright) took to tell me something very simple. Identity is a major theme in the novel: Who is the woman in white? Who is Sir Percival or Count Fosco? And once someone's identity is stolen, how can it be restored? I liked Marian Halcombe, but Hartright struck me as very like young David Copperfield and less aware of his own melodramatic tendencies. Laura Fairlie was very childlike and never seemed very real to me. The Moonstone was more to my taste. ( )