REVIEW: OCTAVIA by BERYL KINGSTON
Great things are expected of young Octavia Smith, the much-loved only child of Professor J.J. Smith and his wife, Amy. Brought up to believe that she could do anything she sets her mind to, Octavia turns her back on the conventions of the time, which dictate that women should dedicate themselves to the ladylike pursuits of marriage and motherhood, and sets out to make her mark on the world and to prove to everyone that she’s not a typical upper class Victorian young woman, solely concerned with catching a husband, but that she’s the equal of any man.
Whilst her best friend and cousin Emmeline extols the virtue of marriage, Octavia begins to apply herself diligently to her studies and starts hoping that through her academic achievement she can prove to the world that she’s not a silly woman who cares only for frippery. But when one day Octavia hears of a new movement that hopes to enable women to obtain the right to vote, she finally realizes that she’s finally found the cause through which she can change the world and prove her value as a woman and thus she joins the suffragette movement with her good friend, Betty, and begins to give her utmost to this cause.
But being a suffragette is anything but easy. Octavia has to endure the scorn, the prejudice and the hatred of many who think that the cause which she is so passionate about is in fact a huge waste of time and effort. However, Octavia is not to be deterred – until she is imprisoned and tortured.
On her release, Octavia is a changed woman, and although she decides to continue supporting the cause, she decides to do something else with her time and begins teaching. Surprisingly, Octavia begins to enjoy her work, and when the man she’s been in love with for years, Tommy Meriton, proposes marriage to her, life begins to take a conventional route for Octavia.
But when the clouds of World War One begin to gather, Octavia realizes that nothing can stay the same, and the resolute young woman soon realizes that she has to choose where her heart and her destiny truly lie…
Beryl Kingston’s outstanding storytelling prowess will keep her legion of readers spellbound with this heartrending and heartwrenching tale spanning forty years. Seamlessly intertwining historical fact with fiction, Octavia is a superbly written and powerfully told story of love, ambition, power and determination written by an exceptional writer of historical fiction.
Like
Filed
Under:
|
About the
Book:
Genre: historical ISBN: 978-0749080617 Page Count: 489 Pages Price: $ £19.99 Reviewer: Julie Bonello |
|
Print This Post |
|
|
Sensuality Rating:
Sweet Star Rating: 4 Stars Author's Website: http://www.berylkingston.co.uk/ |
|
Recent Comments