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Vicky R. (Cumming, GA)
Juliet
I love to read about this era. I really wanted to like this book...and I did like it....but that is all. I didn't like it a lot. I thought the story line kick started well but then began to drag and it limped along until the end. I think there is only so much you can say about someone's wet nurse before the story becomes stale. The characters were slightly interesting but I never developed much of a bond with any of them. It won't keep me from reading a future book by this author.
Susan B. (Rutledge, MO)
interesting and fairly well-written
This was not a mind-blowingly amazing read, but neither was it bad. I found it interesting, enjoyable, and fairly well-written. The main character was mostly sympathetic, other than possessing what seemed to be a huge blind spot concerning how her charge felt about her. Perhaps that was intended, but it made for some uncomfortable reading moments. If you like Romeo and Juliet, or are interested in historical fiction or 1400's Veronese culture, this is certainly worth your time.
Katherine P. ( A small town, Vermont)
A Tale of Obsession
At the outset, let me say that the premise of this book is excellent and that overall it is interesting. There are, in my opinion, some shortcomings. The bawdiness of the Nurse ( Angelica ) is probably more historically accurate than I realize but still at times it seemed rather jarring. In many instances I found the repetitiveness of the grief for the loss of her sons, of her many lustful romps with her husband , of her interactions with the Franciscan priest very irritating. Enough so in Part I that I almost stopped reading the book. Part II, once Juliet was grown and had more impact on the story than suckling Honey Nurse's breast, was far more interesting. Though, here too, the rhythm of the story would once more get bogged down in the repetitiveness of the earlier themes. In Part I a slight uneasiness with the obsession of the Nurse with Juliet arose but in Part II it caused actual distaste when the relationship became so intense that it felt almost incestuous. This closeness was less stressed once Tybalt's anger and Juliet's aroused interest in young men began to influence the story.
The strength of the story lay in the glimpses of the young Mercutio and Tybalt, in the development of the character of Paris, and in the wonderful character of Angela's husband, Pietro. The ongoing thread of the beekeeper theme carried the story from the early days of their marriage and his gifts of honey comfits, through the tragedy of Juliet's death, to the final days of Angela, alone.
Anyone who loves Shakespeare's play will enjoy Angela's story and though it slumped at times, over all I'm glad to have read it and would surely recommend it to others, whether or not they've read the original. I think it would incline those readers to go to the play as it encourages me to return to it.
Doris_K
Juliet's Nurse
This book is based on an interesting concept, bringing characters from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet into a more in depth story. I didn't think the people were developed in enough depth to captivate the reader.
Historical fiction is the area I read often and I did learn more about the ways people lived in the 1300's.
The strength of the Catholic Church is evident throughout the story not always in a positive form.
Because this was a difficult time for many people the whole book was very depressing and not enjoyable to read.
However, book clubs would find many areas of discussion : the choices made by the ruling people, the priest and the poor would make a great discussion. Overall I can't give this more than a 3 star rating.
Sue J. (Wauwatosa, WI)
Juliet's Nurse
This is a novel with a new twist on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet that is told from the perspective of Juliet's wet-nurse. It had a good beginning, but then the story became bogged down and I started skimming pages. The ending turned into a page turner with a lot of action in the last couple of chapters. If they had a half star rating, I would of rated this a 3 1/2.
Maggie S. (Durango, CO)
Juliet's Nurse
Lois Laveen's novel "Juliet's Nurse" had an intriguing premise. What came before the fateful day Juliet met her Romeo? Unfortunately I had difficult time staying with the story. It seemed to go on and on without anything happening. I did not like Angelica, the nurse, who's story this was really about. That was a disappointment for me. She was a bit too coarse, in my opinion and she had very little depth. I really wished there would have been much more development of all of the characters and plot line, because I thought the idea for this novel was worth it.
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