Reviews

Basil by Wilkie Collins

gelainmariaelena's review against another edition

adventurous tense fast-paced

3.5

krobart's review against another edition

2.0

See my review here:

http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2016/09/16/day-971-basil/

izlevine's review against another edition

2.0

Pretty disappointed honestly. Love all of the other books I've read by Collins but I found this one slow and predictable and frustrating. I felt the ending was lazy and quite flat and there was not the usual tense atmosphere of Collins' other works. I also felt very little for the characters and thought the way it was looking back was quite frustrating. 

mcfade28's review against another edition

4.0

This is my 2nd Wilkie Collins novel after The Woman in White. I loved both books, and I think Wilkie Collins may be one of the most readable of the classical authors. He may just be the king of the sensationalist novel. In this book, we follow Basil, the son of a wealthy, snobbish gentleman. Basil falls in love at first sight on a bus one day and decides he must marry the girl, despite the fact she comes from a poor background and his father would never accept it. What follows is a twisting turning tale of deception.

The writing style felt very modern and was easily understood without referring to any of the footnotes. Collins was a close friend of Charles Dickens, but in my mind he is a far more entertaining option.

pdonovan's review

adventurous dark mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

coriandercake's review against another edition

3.0

3.25

The first 70 pages were quite boring and the overall message was a bit too pro-aristocracy for my taste but the last half was quite riveting.

ronne's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

3.0

I read this as a Wilkie Collins completist and you can see the early traces of some of his style in the way the story is told. The first half of the book is slow and tedious but it picks up pace once the dastardly plot is revealed! It certainly isn't the best introduction to his work and I can't recommend it but I'm glad I read it.

seltella's review against another edition

3.0

3,5
Początek trochę przy długi i trochę nudny. Jednak niektóre rzeczy mnie zaskoczyły potem. Ogólnie całkiem spoko jeśli chodzi o całość.

sashshearman's review against another edition

4.0

Basil is the younger son of an old, aristocratic English family. His father's family pride is the paramount consideration in his life. Basil falls in love at first sight with the exotic looking daughter of a successful draper and this premise sets the scene for an engaging story.

Unlike Woman in White and The Moonstone, both of which employ different narrators throughout the book, Basil is written from the perspective of one man. The novel also differs from Collin's more famous works in that there is little humour.

The characters are interesting if not subtle and Collins descriptions of nouveau riche London will be fascinating for anyone interested in the Victorian period.

I really enjoyed this novel. It was fast-paced and further enhanced my impression of Collins as the pre-cursor to the modern day thriller writer. I was expecting a straight-forward tale of star-crossed love in Victorian England and was pleasantly surprised as the story unfolded.

If you are a fan of Woman in White and The Moonstone, I think you will enjoy reading Basil.

heathssm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.0