Mar
22

The Dressmaker

The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham is said to be a gothic novel. I’m not sure what that means but I did enjoy this rather uncomfortable read. I loved Tilly, the main character, and her calm acceptance and way with her nutty mother. Some truly torrid and horrid characters live within the pages who left me desperate on seeing their comeuppance. The Dressmaker is a dark tale of the clique, small-mindedness of some small country towns and a fascinating look behind closed doors of what I hope were some exaggerated personalities.

When Tilly Dunnage returns to Dungatar and her “mad old” mother, the locals maintain the rage that banished Tilly decades earlier. They think nothing of using her skills as a talented dressmaker though and for a time it seems Tilly may have been accepted back into the fold. Deliciously wicked, but I’m not so sure the ending was entirely credible. I recommend The Dressmaker as a good read that never lets you get complacent and keeps you reading with some excellent, sometimes heartbreaking, plot twists.

Book 9

The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham 2000

Duffy & Snellgrove ISBN: 1875989706

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Green Mama" alt="Green Mama">

Green Mama

I loved this book but yes gave me the cold sweats, just like being in a country town!

March 24, 2012 at 8:51 am
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Corinne Fenton" alt="Corinne Fenton">

Corinne Fenton

A great summary Chris, but probably not my sort of reading. I’m a ‘wimp’ when it comes to all that sort of stuff. Thanks for posting though.

March 27, 2012 at 12:33 pm
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christinemareebell" alt="christinemareebell">

christinemareebell

Thank goodness we all have different reading tastes, Corinne. It means there are lots of different readers out there for lots of different writers.

🙂

Chris

March 27, 2012 at 4:58 pm
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Categories: Book Reviews Books Year of Reading 2012

Tags: Year of Reading

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