R. D. BlackmoreKirja-arvosteluja

Gift card in the front from the Aunties in England

I enjoyed, Sarah might like it when a bit older.

Whilst I enjoyed this historical fiction romance, I felt at times that I was reading two separate books that had been merged into one - the romance and the depiction of a farmer's life in the late 1600s. I think that both halves would make a good book one their own (and of a shorter length!), but the romance in particular would be an exciting tale on its own. However, abridging this novel would be like cutting the Mona Lisa out of her background - sure, the famous portrait of the woman is still there but it has lost some of its power by being taken out of its proper context. John Ridd, despite his love story and adventures, is fundamentally a yeoman farmer and delights in the land and the beauties of nature. If you cut all of that away, he would become unconvincing as the hero (especially as a hero who takes such a long time to "get the girl"!).

By using Ridd as the narrator, Blackmore manages to immerse the reader in the late seventeenth century. John, with his wealthy shop owner uncle and his freehold farm, is in the middle of society - not a nobleman nor a peasant or labourer, but able to mix with both. This allows Blackmore to show us a wider range of life than many historical fiction novels manage to do, and the introduction of Jeremy Stickles brings the political picture into the story as well. I was a little disappointed that the Monmouth Rebellion played such a small part in the plot, but upon reflection, it was consistent with John's character.

I had some difficulties with reading some of the characters' dialect - this is a problem I have encountered before in other books (both British and American). I am coming to believe that the way of speech being depicted may not be worth preserving in this manner... A decent audiobook edition might be the way to go - unfortunately, the Librivox recording is one of the collaborative recordings. As with all of the collaborative efforts I have listened to from Librivox, the quality of the narrators and the recordings is uneven. I found some of them excellent, but for some chapters I preferred to read rather than listen to the narration.

sweet tale - intersting glimpse into times long ago

A very wordy story of the good John Ridd and his lady love. I enjoyed the MC and his exploits.

192817671

Táto kniha je romancou, kde sa prelína fikcia s prvkami autobiografie. Autor čerpá zo svojich spomienok z detstva - z rozprávania o zbojníkoch...

Fair, "A Merry Christmas from George and Mary, December 25, 1893"

Another book from childhood. Read it sitting in the woods by a river. Every day, took it outside and read with my feet in the water. 12? 13? like that. To this day, I remember the odd union of the virtual landscape so vividly evoked and the actual one around me.

I thought Lorna Doone was a wonderful, moving book when I was a teenager. It was one of those "best books ever!" type of book for me. I loved the drama, I loved the characters, it got a hold of me in a way a lot of books did not.

I miss being a teenager sometimes with those raw emotions and being able to be so moved by literature that your life could be changed by one paragraph.

I plan on re-reading this again at some point, but I don't want to be disappointed. That happens sometimes, but the review will stay 4 stars because that's the feeling I get when I see the cover.

When I realized that this was a nineteenth-century work set in the seventeenth century, I thought, "Well, this is either going to be grueling or delightful." It turned out to be just the right blend of delights to win my heart. The beautiful descriptions of Devonshire and Somerset, the homely likeability of John Ridd, the charmingly anthropomorphized descriptions of animals (!), an ample dash of political and religious history adding texture to the setting, with a good balance of dry humor and melancholy that wasn't too heavy-handed. It's too soon to tell if this is the sort of novel I'd reread more than once a decade, but I'm certainly glad I didn't wait longer to pull it out of the to-read queue.

This was a slog. Very much from a male perspective, in the most boring way.

John Ridd’s life as he narrates his story is as large as he is. The Hercules of Exmoor, as his author describes his strength, is as gigantic as the near seven-foot yeoman himself. He has been the sole male support of his family since he was schoolboy when his father’s death at the hands of the Doones, the aristocratic outlaws of his region of southwest England, placed him in this position. A champion wrestler at county fairs, he must, as an adult, tackle the wiles of the lawyers and court of King James II, as well as the outlaws of Bagworthy Forest, and the labors of the harvest and fields. Ironically, his only true love, Lorna Doone, is a member of the clan of his enemies.

Blackmore’s romance, a he terms his most popular book, is more than a seventeenth century Romeo and Juliet. In addition to John’s striving for a match above his station in life, there are Blackmore’s expert characterizations of John, his family, friends and rivals. The countryside and its seasons are described so vividly and actively that it’s more an active character than background or setting. There are also episodes of court intrigue, religious contention between Catholics and Protestants, several pitched assaults and battles, secret business deals, open rebellion, multiple near escapes, and even hints of supernatural doings. It’s a bit of something for every reader formula that still works for best sellers today as it did in 1869 when Lorna Doone was first published.

Does no one read Lorna Doone anymore? Only ~2400 copies are listed at LibraryThing, less than 10% of what I would have expected. I loved this work as a boy and teen, and read it at least twice. Those were days in which I loved classic novels such as The Three Musketeers, The Prisoner of Zenda, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and The Thirty-Nine Steps. I do not remember details of the plot of Lorna Doone, but do remember thrilling to the powerful combination of passionate romance, danger, intrigue, and deep family secrets, all told against the backdrop of rural, western England. Then there's the unforgettable climax, when Carver Doone shoots Lorna during her wedding to John Ridd, is chased down by John, and meets his end sinking into the bog. (In fact, I carried that image with me for years -- Carver deep in the quicksand, with one lone hand extended above, as he sank out of sight).

Coming across this title in my collection makes me want to experience it again, and to wish other readers to seek it out as well.

Should have read this as a child, although I enjoyed the writing style.

Classic adventure and romance in seventeenth-century England, with plenty of drama, atmosphere, character, and rich description, and not without meaningful reflection. They don't make 'em like this any more.

I read this book because I loved the movie version that A and E showed starring Richard Coyle and Amelia Warner. I liked the story version too, but not as much as the movie (for once). My main disappointment with the book version was that R.D. Blackmore went on and on about meaningless events, but rushed through the important events. I would have liked more detail about the Doones vs. the Ridds. I didn't need as much detail about John Fry following Uncle Reuben through the forest. Especially since John Fry never even found out where Uncle Reuben was going. Of course, the main storyline was wonderful and I enjoyed the read even though it dragged on at times.

A good historical fiction, but too long with many battle scenes and little dialogue throughout the book. Much archaic language or dialect; not sure which! Precursor of the Hatfields and McCoys!½

3.5 ★
Lorna Doone (A Romance of Exmoor) is a novel by English author Richard Doddridge Blackmore, ((1825-1900),
Published in 1869, it is set in the 17th century...

Lorna Doone is not historical fiction; but, we are given an adequate societal snapshot.
It is a romance , with emphasis on traditional Victorian values, albeit unusual circumstances.
There are sensational moments peppered through out the story.
And, (just what I needed), there is a happy ending.

Lorna Doone is a rather complicated love story that keeps your interested from the beginning to the end.

Overall I liked this book but I found the phonetic spelling for Somerset accents to be really challenging as I don't know the accent very well. Because of that I did find myself put the book down and reading a different book or two before being called back into the book.

If your into classic English books then I would suggest this, just don't expect to have an easy read.

This is one of those books that needs a re-make for children and hopefully then it would be able to make the cut. What makes this particular type of book so dull and irritating is that unless you don't mind not knowing what you are reading then you will need to be glued to a dictionary that has the archaic meanings from the English language.

The characters aren't that strongly developed although there is a small depth to them than some others. Basically you are given a character stereotype for that particular creature while a bit of this or that may be thrown in along the way. And it seems that the worse of the traits are the ones that are worked upon the most.

There is plenty of action when the story decides to provide it but otherwise it is a slow plodding along of the story. Basically if you enjoy Classics this may be a book to please you, especially if you are into older works....

I have just re-read this after many many years. It has stood the test of time wonderfully, and comes up once again in bright fresh colours. You have to accept the long descriptions and explanations; the nature descriptions may be flowery, but they are also very accurate and detailed. Accept also the 17th/19th C view of the sexes; the characterisations are still wonderful. I enjoyed Tom Faggus, John Fry, Betty Muxworthy, Ruth Huckaback and all, all over again. And it is, despite its length and detail, an exciting tale, constantly switching from comic incidents (the rescue of the drake) to stirring ones (Winnie's mad gallop with young John), all through the book and right to the (very exciting) end.

This book is almost forgotten today. I listened to it on the Audible.com edition. The reader explains at the beginning how he had to go through hoops to get the accents right.

The book has some flowery language but otherwise is written in superlative beautiful Victorian English. It is an unusual story that is well worth the effort to listen to it or read it.

It is so well written that I got to the end despite its length and was a bit sorry when it ended.

I hovered between 3 and 4 stars for this classic historical fiction. It is tempting to say that it would be better abridged - shorter and more to the point - and certainly the main love story has plenty of excitement to be a worthy book on its own. However, the more I thought about that, the more I realized that Blackmore, by writing this as he did, is making a statement about life in that time (late 1600's) just as much as he did with the plot. John Ridd is a farmer, and for the survival of his family and their dependents, taking care of the farm had to take precedence no matter how much he might want to be following his love or having adventures (not that John ever wanted adventures!). By breaking up the action with bucolic scenes, it is a reminder that this is what truly matters, not the adventure. You couldn't get that message with an abridged version.½

A romance based on a group of historical characters and set in the late 17th Century in Devon and Somerset.