Girl in a Blue Dress, Gaynor Arnold
Girl in a Blue Dress, Gaynor Arnold
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Girl in a Blue Dress
A Novel Inspired by the Life and Marriage of Charles Dickens

Author: Gaynor Arnold

Narrator: Jennifer M. Dixon

Unabridged: 16 hr 54 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 02/20/2018

Synopsis

Girl in a Blue Dress opens on the day of Alfred's funeral. Dorothea is not among the throngs in attendance when The One and Only is laid to rest. Her mourning must take place within the walls of her modest apartment, a parting gift from Alfred as he ushered her out of their shared home and his life more than a decade earlier. Even her own children, save her outspoken daughter Kitty, are not there to offer her comfort—they were poisoned against her when Alfred publicly declared her an unfit wife and mother. Though she refuses to don the proper mourning attire, Dodo cannot bring herself to demonize her late husband, something that comes all too easily to Kitty.

Instead, she reflects on their time together: their clandestine and passionate courtship, when he was a force of nature and she a willing follower; and the salad days of their marriage, before too many children sapped her vitality and his interest. She uncovers the frighteningly hypnotic power of the celebrity author she married. Now liberated from his hold on her, Dodo finds the courage to face her adult children, the sister who betrayed her, and the charming actress who claimed her husband's love and left her heart aching.

About Gaynor Arnold

Gaynor Arnold was born and brought up in Cardiff, Wales. She read English at St. Hilda's College, Oxford, where she acted in many plays, notably at the Edinburgh Festival and in a tour of the U.S. She has two grown children and lives in Birmingham. Girl in a Blue Dress is her first novel.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Tea

Iako obožavam Čarlsa Dikensa ova knjiga me je ostavila potpuno ravnodušnom... I ne vidim razlog što je uopšte ušla u širi izbor za Bukera.........more

Goodreads review by Doreen

I was surprised by how complex this book is. Much like Paula McLain's The Paris Wife, this novel takes the breakdown of a famous writer's marriage and transcends the tawdrier qualities to present a moving, realistic portrayal of personalities and emotions abruptly whipsawn by circumstances. Gaynor A......more

Goodreads review by Sterlingcindysu

3.5 rounded down. A great debut novel! So, okay, this is a story based on Dicken's marriage but all the characters are fiction. (So if you're wondering if there's countless references to Dicken's work, the answer is no. Arnold makes up new titles and mentions some references to basic items, such as......more

Goodreads review by Nancy

As the story (set squarely in the Victorian era) opens, a woman is sitting at home, unable to go to her husband's funeral. Thousands of other people went, but she is at home in a small apartment. She can only hear the details from her daughter. The woman in question is Dorothea, nicknamed Dodo; the......more

Goodreads review by pinkgal

Liked reading it, but not sure whether I could recommend it. Yes, there seemed to be a conclusion and yes, Catherine's voice is strong in here. But really. WHAT WAS THE POINT? We never got a satisfying conclusion; the confrontation with her sister and with the 'mistress' gave me no sense of closure.......more

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