Wideacre - Philippa Gregory

Set in the English countryside in the 18th century, Wideacre, the first in a trilogy of books focusing on the Lacey family line, tells the story of Beatrice Lacey, the much loved daughter of a wealthy squire. Passionately loving her home and the lands surrounding it, including the village of wideacre itself and the people, her love for the lands is tainted, when she realizes that, true to the customs of the time, the land will pass on her fathers death not to her, with her love for the land, but to her brother, Harry, a bookish (at least at the start of the book) individual who shows none of Beatrice's dedication to the land, and has little knowledge of how to ...  Read the complete review

== Author & Style == Philippa Gregory has written novels set in the Tudor period and the present day that I have enjoyed, so I thought I would try the first book in her trilogy set in 18th century England, called Wideacre. This was her first novel, published in 1987, after getting a PhD in 18th century literature. I would never have guessed from the style of writing that this was written by the same author as the Tudor or modern novels. Although the other Philippa Gregory books that I have read contain serious themes, they have had lighter moments to help balance the atmosphere. Early on in Wideacre the author shows in detail her ...  Read the complete review

Widacre is a book I would describe as a romping good read! At over 600 pages, I was initially daunted by fears I may lose interest. But in Wideacre, Philippa Gregory has created such a convincing, captivating world that I had no trouble sticking with it throughout its lengthy course. Widacre is set in the eighteenth century, but unlike the author's later novels it focuses on a totally fictional character in the shape of Beatrice Lacey. Beatrice first appears in the book as an innocent young child. By the end of the book something of a transformation has taken place! Beatrice's problem is that she loves her family's ancestral home, Wideacre Hall, and all ...  Read the complete review

I have loved reading Philippa Gregory's books especially about the Tudor period and I decided to go for another of her books, but this is not set in the Tudor period. This was Philippa Gregory's first ever book that she wrote although she seems to be more famous for her Tudor Period novels especially for the Other Boleyn Girl which has been made into a Hollywood film. I was quite looking forward to reading this book after reading almost all of the Tudor period books and thought reading about a different periods in time would be quite interesting. Wideacre is the first of a Trilogy following Beatrice Lacey, The Favoured Child is the second involving ...  Read the complete review

I thought that this book was really clever, it held my attention all the way through and was reeally interesting. The way Philippa Gregory writes makes Wideacre (the land that this book is about) come alive for me. The character of Beatrice was easy to empathise with at first (especially for female readers) and you find that as a reader you get close to her and then as she starts to get out of control, as it were, you can still see where she is coming from which I think is due to very clever writing. I found this a very interesting read not just because of the relationships developed with the characters but becasue of the little insight into life at the time; throughout ...  Read the complete review