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A Spell of Winter
 
 
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A Spell of Winter (Paperback)

by Helen Dunmore (Author) "It is winter in the house ..." (more)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New edition edition (5 Sep 1996)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0140248811
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140248814
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 2.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 139,340 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #16 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > D > Dunmore, Helen

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Product Description

Product Description

This is a novel set just before, during and after World War I. It is the story of a brother and sister whose mother deserts them and whose father goes mad. Incarcerated in an enormous house in the country, their intense emotional relationship becomes a sexual one.


From the Back Cover

'A marvellous novel about forbidden passions' Daily Mail

'An intensely gripping book...written so seductively that some passages
sing out from the page, like music for the eyes' Sunday Times

'A hugely involving story which often stops you in your tracks with the
beauty of its writing' Observer

'An electrifying and original talent, a writer whose style is characterized
by a lyrical, dreamy intensity' Guardian --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
It is winter in the house. Read the first page
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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A Spell of Winter
60% buy the item featured on this page:
A Spell of Winter 4.2 out of 5 stars (8)
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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A lyrical and unjudgemental morality tale, 15 Jun 2000
By A Customer
A haunting evocation of young souls left to develop alone in a large house full of emotional and financial disintegration. A brother and sister's isolation and loneliness lends their love for each other a new and dangerous bent. Without guidance or boundaries they struggle with the moral and physical implications before one (perhaps) finds redemption and hope.

This novel confronts parental abandonment, mental illness, incest, love and the tragedy of war with the lightest and most effective touch. The natural world and a strongly developed host of supporting characters provide a strong framework for a deeply personal tale.

At times the insights into a young girl's soul (it is written in the first person)seem almost pornographic in their intimacy but they render this work compelling.

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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Read, 15 Jun 2002
By K. L. Stone "K S" (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
The is a well contructed love story told in a graceful and captivating style. The author has been quite brave, yet obviously careful, in her portrayal of an intense sibling relationship turned too far inward to escape the youthful urges of sexuality. The individual's sense of seclusion during harsh and powerful winters is expertly conveyed. However, if your sense of morality is easily threatened, read something else; because, this is a complicated work that teases out taboos in a way in which the reader will never forget.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and haunting..., 11 Jan 2007
By S. Barnes (UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
This author's novels win prizes for good reason. There's not a part of this novel that appears out of place. Each and every word fits beautifully into an intricately woven and sorrowfully haunting tale.

A brother and sister are left parentless at an early age. They are brought up in a very sheltered way by a troubled grandfather, and the housemaid (not much older than themselves), in a large and deteriorating country manor. Set around the time of the First World War, this duo are caught up in a period of social hierarchy with high societal moral values. As a result, they find out early on that they have to work together to keep family secrets deeply hidden in the past. Effectively isolated from those around them, they increasingly turn to one another for comfort and their relationship develops into something more...

Take the time to get involved as a reader, right from the very start, and you will be rewarded with an intensely involved story of discovering love and adulthood, learning right and wrong. At times disturbing, challenging the boundaries of sibling love, the simple naivety of the leading character and story-teller, Catherine, encourages an empathetic understanding and sympathy for her plight. Although dark and moving, a glimmer of sunshine and redemption can be found towards the end.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling tale of dangerous emotions
"How silently the wondrous gift is given", words that perfectly capture Dunmore's subliminal skill in delivering a story that you suddenly realise has gripped you unmercifully... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Mick Read

4.0 out of 5 stars Well written and absorbing
This is a well balanced, interesting novel which is lyrically written and even quite gripping. Characters are well drawn and complex, and the plot held my attention from the... Read more
Published 16 months ago by BookWorm

5.0 out of 5 stars Darkly haunting
This is a dark, disturbing novel, but strangely haunting. I read it when it was first published, and re-read it more recently. Read more
Published on 15 Jun 2007 by Suzie

4.0 out of 5 stars Haunting and intense
This is possibly Dunmore's saddest book. Of course, none of her books are bursting with happiness, but they usually have flashes of joy. Here, there is almost no joy. Read more
Published on 11 Dec 2005 by Star_Sea

3.0 out of 5 stars I wouldn't rush to read another
There is no doubt that Helen Dunmore is a talented writer, but I found this tale of sibling incest distasteful and uncomfortable to read, not because of the subject matter but... Read more
Published on 30 Jan 2001

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