I absolutely loved this book and finished it quickly. It took a minute to get used to the Victorian style, but that’s because I haven’t read a novel like this since the beginning of the year. However, overall, this was much easier to read than Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. I found Helen and Gilbert sympathetic (though some of Gilbert’s behavior was infuriating and some of Helen’s choices were bewildering), and the contrast among the different relationships was beautifully illustrated. I was constantly amazed that this book was written in the 1840s! It’s radical in so many ways. The best part was that I knew nothing about this novel except that it was referenced in the movie The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, so everything that was happening was a revelation to me. I couldn’t wait to get home to read it.