Start reading The Sealed Letter on your Kindle in under a minute. Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

 
 
 

Try it free

Sample the beginning of this book for free

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

Read books on your computer or other mobile devices with our FREE Kindle Reading Apps.
The Sealed Letter
 
 
Share your own customer images

The Sealed Letter [Kindle Edition]

Emma Donoghue (Author)
3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
Print List Price: £7.99
Kindle Price: £2.79 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
You Save: £5.20 (65%)
* Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition £2.79   -- --
Hardcover £10.87   -- --
Paperback £5.14   -- --
Audio Download, Unabridged £14.24 or Free with Audible.co.uk 30-day free trial

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Product Description

Review

Praise for THE SEALED LETTER: "Donoghue weaves an engrossing and... quite funny melodrama about a bad, bad girl who bursts the seams of this corseted world... part "Forever Amber" and part clockwork courtroom drama, with bawdy undercurrents of forbidden love thrown in for good measure. All in all, a deliciously wicked little romp, complete with a clever twist at the end." -- "The Seattle Times"

"Emma Donoghue's triangle of real-life protagonists presents us with a quintessentially Victorian tableau...mid-Victorian London feels so real you can almost taste it." -- "Washington Post Book World""A fascinating tour de force, a brilliant unraveling of closely held secrets and brutal betrayals...A case of Dangerous Liaisons with yet another layer of Victorian outrage." -curledupwithagoodbook.com

"Donoghue blends a true case and period detail into an intriguing tale of mystery and passion."--"The Oregonian"

"Donoghue recreates grim 19th-century London -- relieved by whiffs of exotic M

Review

Praise for THE SEALED LETTER: "Donoghue weaves an engrossing and... quite funny melodrama about a bad, bad girl who bursts the seams of this corseted world... part "Forever Amber" and part clockwork courtroom drama, with bawdy undercurrents of forbidden love thrown in for good measure. All in all, a deliciously wicked little romp, complete with a clever twist at the end." -- "The Seattle Times"

"Emma Donoghue's triangle of real-life protagonists presents us with a quintessentially Victorian tableau...mid-Victorian London feels so real you can almost taste it." -- "Washington Post Book World""A fascinating tour de force, a brilliant unraveling of closely held secrets and brutal betrayals...A case of Dangerous Liaisons with yet another layer of Victorian outrage." -curledupwithagoodbook.com

"Donoghue blends a true case and period detail into an intriguing tale of mystery and passion."--"The Oregonian"

"Donoghue recreates grim 19th-century London -- relieved by whiffs of exotic M

See all Product Description

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 624 KB
  • Print Length: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Picador (13 Oct 2011)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1447205979
  • ISBN-13: 978-1447205975
  • ASIN: B005I3P9FA
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray: Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #3,394 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

    •  Would you like to give feedback on images?

More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Emma Donoghue Page
Emma Donoghue
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?

› Explore similar items

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
52 of 54 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning, beautifully written novel 25 Sep 2008
By K. Huff
Format:Hardcover
The Sealed Letter is one of those books I just couldn't put down--and then felt bereft when I finally finished it. Set in London in 1864, the novel is loosely based on a scandalous divorce case, and features facts stranger than fiction: a stained dress (sound familiar?), fabricated evidence, and scandal more scandalous than the sensationalist novels of the period. It's a novel in which supposed friends turn against one another, in which servants even turn against those they serve.

Helen Codrington is a wife and mother, born and bred abroad, who craves some excitement in her life. Never thinking of what might happen, she embarks on an affair with Captain David Anderson. Late in the summer of 1864, Helen runs into her old friend Emily "Fido" Faithfull, a crusader for women's rights, who's surprisingly... conventional, all things considered. When Harry Codrington finds out about Helen's affair, however, the lives of these three characters change drastically. The novel's point of view vacillates between Helen, Fido, and Harry.

It's a stunning, well-written book, which explores the way in which lies affect the lives of each of these characters. It's also a fair representation of mid-Victorian mores; although it's tough for us today to understand, divorce was much, much more scandalous and socially crippling in an era that placed a focus on the family and the woman's role in that family. It's strange, too, to a modern reader, the laws that governed divorce in the 19th century (for example, the two primaries were prohibited from testifying). Each of the characters is well-written, and Donoghue gets into the minds of each of the main characters with ease. She never tries to infuse this book with a modern sensibility. It's a compelling book that I couldn't stop thinking about between sittings and after I'd finished.

My only problem with this otherwise superb novel is the fact that the letters are all written in a cursive script that's hard to read. But that's only a technicality.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Victorian scandal 20 Mar 2012
By purpleheart TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
'The last day of August, and the sky is the colour of hot ash. Something rancid wafts on the air from Smithfield Market; the air glitters with stone dust.'

The novel opens with Fido meeting an old friend, long missed, on Farringdon Street, near her place of work, for she is a modern, financially independent woman. They seem an unlikely pair - one a blue stocking, the other a bored and somewhat reckless married woman - but we learn they were once intimates and their friendship resumes as Fido in drawn into her friend's romantic affairs. Before long we are drawn into a scandalous court case for adultery, in which Fido is a key witness.

Emma Donoghue has made this type of historical fiction her own. The court scenes are gripping, her sensory descriptions transport us into her imagined London and her research is worn lightly. I found the novel very readable and fascinating on the early women's movement and the court case with it sealed letter is completely gripping.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
37 of 43 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Astounding exercise in control ... 19 Oct 2011
By pablo666
Format:Hardcover
I loved 'Room' for the unique way in which Donaghue managed to convey the enclosed world of its victims, and their eventual escape, with such aplomb, but felt it was a novel of two halves, flagging somewhat in its second section. Not so with 'The Sealed Letter', written before 'Room' I believe and published in Canada, a number of years ago. This is, in my opinion, the more accomplished of the two recent releases by the author, and, like 'Room' is based on real-life, actual events, this time drawn from a scandalous court case of the Victorian era. The characters and setting are brought to life with such assuredness, I found myself drawn into the intriguing tale from the outset and could not rest until the novel reached its impeccably-handled conclusion. Most effective of all is the way in which Donaghue elicits sympathy for all three of her central protagonists, using the third person to present each competing perspective on the matters and particulars of the trial itself. Cannot recommend this tome highly enough.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars Slow to start with; not a book I would recommend enthuiastically to...
I am always interested in a book based on fact, but I foun d the beginning of the book slow, and much more interesting as soon as Henry had filed his petition for divorce. Read more
Published 29 days ago by Elizabeth Prince
4.0 out of 5 stars 4 star read
Enjoyed this book, makes you realise what we take for granted these days as women, working and making our own choices!
Published 1 month ago by Sam
4.0 out of 5 stars a novel with a certain truth about it
a story which held the interest and had an ending that was quite worth waiting for. probably better read as a book because on a kindle there is no indication of the notes at the... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ms. G. M. Roe
1.0 out of 5 stars Not great....
Oh dear, I really wanted to like this book. I kept reading, thinking it would turn a corner but in the end I had to abandon it (and I NEVER do that)! Read more
Published 2 months ago by MaisyP
3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
Big fan of Emma Donoghue but found this to be a bit of a letdown. It is well written but the story itself was at times implausible and too slow moving.
Published 2 months ago by CNC
2.0 out of 5 stars Struggled to finish this
This was the first Emma Donoghue novel I had read and I really didn't enjoy it.
The story was slow and I did not feel engaged with any of the characters.
Published 2 months ago by Jane P
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
Interesting read, well written. I will certainly look for more books by this author. The plot was well developed and the characters intriguing.
Published 2 months ago by j v allen
2.0 out of 5 stars Too slow
I very, very rarely give up on a book but I only got 35% of the way through this one. I almost gave up after 20% but plodded along with it out of hope - much like it reads. Read more
Published 3 months ago by RachelR
4.0 out of 5 stars Very different from Room, a good take on a true story
I bought this after reading Room which was very different. I didn't realise that this was an interpretation of a true story. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Clair
2.0 out of 5 stars The Sealed Letter
Could not get into the book at all, a bit to complicated, it was nothing like the snynopis, tried and tried but no sorry not my type of book.
Published 3 months ago by Rose Bunting
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Popular Highlights

 (What's this?)
&quote;
If women could shed their husbands without risk of losing their children too, it’s feared that an alarming proportion of them would do so!” &quote;
Highlighted by 3 Kindle users
&quote;
gentleman is always a gentleman unless a lady forgets to be a lady.) &quote;
Highlighted by 3 Kindle users

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Discussion Replies Latest Post
fiction discussion forum
What are you reading now? 		8036 1 minute ago
fiction discussion forum
Great Authors who are ignored probably because they haven't been on a reality show 		35 4 minutes ago
fiction discussion forum
The non author mosty harmless book club. 		1601 28 minutes ago
fiction discussion forum
Self-published books: pain or gain? 		5990 52 minutes ago
fiction discussion forum
Books that publicly embarrassed you 		242 2 hours ago
fiction discussion forum
Please keep self promo for the Meet Our Authors Forum! 		425 2 hours ago
historical fiction discussion forum
Fiction set in Ancient Greece - any recommendations? 		9 6 hours ago
historical fiction discussion forum
Run out of favourite authors - looking for some new historical fiction. Recommendations please. 		492 21 hours ago
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums

Customers Who Highlighted This Item Also Highlighted

Back
Next

Look for similar items by category


There's a problem loading this menu at the moment.

Learn more about Amazon Prime.

    Your Shopping Basket is empty.

    Give it purpose -- fill it with books, DVDs, clothes, electronics and more.

    If you already have an account, sign in.

    There's a problem previewing your shopping basket at the moment.

    Check your Internet connection and go to your cart, or try again.

    View Shopping Basket (0 items)
      Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Privacy Statement Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Delivery Information Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Returns & Exchanges