She is young, beautiful, and desperately in love with a man who cannot return her affections without arousing suspicion. And so they meet in secret-embracing in stairwells and castle turrets, murmuring each other's names in hushed voices, reaching passionately for each other under the cover of darkness. His name is Hamlet; her name is Ophelia. And if you think you know their story, think again. Because when bloody deeds turn the court of Elsinore into a place of treachery and madness, the young lovers will devise a plan for ...
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She is young, beautiful, and desperately in love with a man who cannot return her affections without arousing suspicion. And so they meet in secret-embracing in stairwells and castle turrets, murmuring each other's names in hushed voices, reaching passionately for each other under the cover of darkness. His name is Hamlet; her name is Ophelia. And if you think you know their story, think again. Because when bloody deeds turn the court of Elsinore into a place of treachery and madness, the young lovers will devise a plan for revenge-and for escape. Part of their plan calls for Ophelia to cast herself into dark waters. But instead of drowning, she will flee with nothing more than the clothes on her back...and one very dangerous secret. What if Ophelia, the tragic young waif of Shakespeare's Hamlet, didn't die? Using this tantalizing premise as her leaping off point, Lisa Klein's gorgeous reimagining of the bard's great tragedy places the ephemeral Ophelia at its centerpiece. At once revisionist and true to its origins, her story offers readers a spellbinding page-turner with twists so startling it will leave them wanting more long after the final, heart-rending page is reached.
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Very good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
This book lives up to its cover hype, unfolding the layered, behind-the-play story of Ophelia's life and view on the happenings at the court of Elsinore. It opens with scenes from her childhood, her family relationships, and how she is introduced to the notice of the royal family. Klein paints an interesting picture of the royal family, both pre- and post-Claudius. Their characteristics and manners lead naturally into the well-known actions of Shakespeare's play. Like Tom Stoppard and John Updike, Klein weaves her scenes in and out and in-between those written by Shakespeare, providing the view from Ophelia's vantage-point. Klein also uses stage language in her dialogue and descriptions, with Ophelia remarking that she feels as though she's on stage, or has a scene to play.
I liked Ophelia through the entire story. She is smart and spunky--and what's more, she is not an anachronistic Mary Sue stalking through the Bard's world, chewing scenery and taking names. Ophelia learns from mistakes -- hers and other people's -- and doesn't disregard the help of others, even when it comes from unlikely (or even scary) quarters. She just wants to be loved (is that so wrong?), but isn't a whiner. She takes her lumps and shifts for something better when she can. She learns to see others clearly, taking the good and bad together to make the whole.
This is very well worth the time to read it--for lovers of Shakespeare, lovers of dramatic realism, lovers of historical fiction, lovers of young female heroines, lovers of a well-told tale.
