This is a good standalone option if you don’t want to make a commitment to the whole Palliser series. Also attractive because of the extra frisson that the story of the diamonds adds to Trollope’s familiar rich and vivid environment and brilliant characterisations. Not a new observation but I am struck at how the length and depth of the book makes one feel one has lived in it, knows the characters personally, inhabits a house just a little up the street from Lizzie Eustace. Anyone working in Westminster and Whitehall today might reflect that not as many things have changed as you might expect for a book written over 150 years ago. Anyway, glorious.
Two technical notes. I do find with nineteenth century novels in particular than combining book and audiobook is really fruitful. The main choices here are either Timothy West for Audible or David Shaw-Parker for Naxos. Both have their strong supporters. I went for West for this book, not least because all of the Audible Trollope collection read by him is included in an Audible Plus subscription. He is fantastic.
Secondly, and less than fantastic, is the Penguin Classics Kindle edition. I bought this for the editorial material (which is very good) but yet again the OCR which appears to have been done is less than cutting edge and does not appear to have been proof read. For example there is no new character brought in about halfway through the book with the name of ‘Luanda’ (it should of course be the already introduced Lucinda Roanoke). I find this sort of sloppiness really disappointing but it gets even worse when one considers almost any random page. Just glancing would reveal that there is something seriously wrong with the treatment of apostrophes, most of which are detached from the words they should belong to. I could write a Trollopian treatise on publishers approaches as regular readers of these reviews know, but what good would it do? ( )

I found this 3rd novel of the Palliser series the most enjoyable book so far. It reminded me of Vanity Fair in some ways, such as not really having a heroine. Lizzie Eustace is not as fun as Becky Sharp, because she isn't as clever - in fact, quite stupid in many ways. Lucy Morris is almost as annoying as Amelia & only saved by being such a minor character. ( )

The third novel in Trollope’s Palliser series, this book is mostly a novel of manners and has very little to do with politics. It concerns the rather tawdry social career of Lizziw Freyatock, the beautifulm but extremely selfish daughter of an admiral who manages to induce the wealthy Sir Florian Eustace to marry her. Lord Eustace is a bore, so it is very convenient when he dies within a few months of his marriage. Lizzie is left with a baby son, the heir to the title, a life interest in the Scotch property, Portray Castle, and an income of £4,000 per year.. There is also a diamond necklace, valued at £10,000 which she claims was given to her by Sir Florian. The Eustace family lawyer, Mr. Camperdown, however claims that the necklace is a family heirloom and thus, not her personal property. Lizzie refuses to give up the necklace and the claims and counterclaims over the necklace drives the plot of this novel.
Lizzie is a Kardashian before that regrettable family existed Besides being pursued by the redoubtable Mr. Camperdown for the necklace, Lizzie is in pursuit of husband #2 who she thinks will protect her interests from these bothersome lawyers. She has two initial candidates: her cousin Frank Greenstock who is an MP and is also unfortunately engages to a poor governess, Lucy Morris; and Lord Fawn, an under secretary in the India office. Both these men appear to ne ninnies where Lizzie isa concerned, but finally, they see through her lies and deceits and back away from entanglements with her. Lizzie then falls in with a disreputable set of characters, tries to orchestrate the theft of her own necklace and ends up back at Portray Castle married to Mr. Emilius, a reformed Jew who has become a popular preacher in London.
Trollope’s richly drawn characters give readers of this novel a detailed picture of life in Victorian England from the top of society to the bottom where con artists and charlatans desperately hang on to their aura of respectability. ( )

Loved. I marvel at the author creating a compelling story out of a palpably uninteresting story of who owns some diamonds / how some diamonds weren't really stolen and then were stolen. But that anti-heroine.... so real so false so true. The pleasures of the twists and resolutions were many. So glad that it all worked out for the policeman and Patience Crabstick.

And to imagine I considered skipping this one and moving on to the looked forward to Phineas Redux... ( )

I love Trollope's writing style and characterization, however I never enjoy anti-hero/heroine stories. ( )

Here's what I wrote after reading in 1984: "In my opinion, not the best Trollope I've read. One of his "political novels". Did Lizzie Greystock have the right to the Eustace family diamonds? Were they worth the price?" Relatively low opinion seems borne out by modern treatment in popular online sources. ( )

Not as riveting as some of Trollope's others. I grew tired of Lizzie's petulant air. There was also a lack of politics which, dry as they may sound, are actually quite riveting for me. ( )

Oh, what a maddening book!

As I read there were moments when I thought this might be my favourite Trollope (to date) and there were moments when I thought it would be at the bottom of the list.

In the end I did like it. But ….

The story spins around Lizzie Greystock, who will quickly rise to become Lady Eustace.

Lizzie was the only child of the disreputable Admiral Greystock, who died leaving her nothing but debts. Fortunately his daughter had learned to live by her wits, and she realised that to marry money to make her way in the world. And so she chose to live with a rather difficult elderly relation, because that put her in the right location and the right strata of society to catch a wealthy husband.

She caught Sir Florian Eustace. He was exceedingly rich, but he was in poor health, and Lizzie was a widow before her first wedding anniversary. She was wealthy, she would soon be the other of the Eustace heir, and she was in possession of the Eustace Diamonds; a fabulous diamond necklace, valued at ten thousand pounds then, which equates to around half a million now

Lizzie said that they were hers; the Eustace family insisted that they were part of the estate and must be returned to the trustees. Though Lizzie knew her claim was shaky she held her ground, she spun a very good story, and she began to look for a husband who she hoped would protect her and look after her interests.
Lord Fawn proposed, but he tried to back out when he realised that dispute over the diamonds might have consequences for his own reputation for her. Lizzie didn’t want to marry a an like that, but she wasn’t going to let herself be jilted. She had to be the victor, she had to have the final word. Always.

She was fond of her cousin Frank, the only one of her relations who had stood by her, and Lizzie knew that, as a barrister and a member of parliament with very limited resources, he needed a wealthy bride. She didn’t understand why he didn’t propose. She didn’t know – he didn’t tell her – that he was engaged already.

Lucy Morris had been left alone in the world, just like Lizzie, but she had dealt with the situation rather differently. She accepted that she had to earn her own living, she became a governess, and she had the qualities she needed to make her a very good governess. She loved Frank, she knew that he loved her, but because she worked for the Fawn family she found herself in a rather awkward position.
One night, when she was travelling between her Scottish home and her London home Lizzie’s room was broken into, and the metal chest that kept her diamonds secure was stolen.

Who was responsible? Who had the diamonds?

The answer was surprising, and it seemed inevitable that Lizzie’s lies would be revealed and that she, and anyone close to her, would be ruined.

How ever could Lizzie rise above that.

The way the story played out was wonderful.

But I couldn’t help thinking that it didn’t suit its author, that there were other authors who might have handled this particular story rather better.

most of all, I was disappointed that Trollope, who usually had understanding for all of his characters, had none for Lizzie. He said at the start that he didn’t like her and he took every chance he could to point out that she was manipulative, dishonest, a compulsive liar, a thief …..

Yes, she was all of those things, but I understood why. I couldn’t warm to her, but I appreciated that she was taking charge of her own life, that she strove to be successful and to find her ‘corsair’ – the dashing romantic hero who would sweep her off her feet.

She was all those things, but she was so much more than that.

Others are judged less harshly.

Consider Frank, who proposes when he knows his financial situation makes marriage impossible, and who neglects his fiancée because he must look after his cousin’s interests.

Consider Lizzie’s friend Mrs Carbuncle who is determined that her niece Lucy must marry, who pushed her towards an engagement with a horrible man, and who fails to understand that her niece feels only revulsion, so that in the end her mind snaps.

Both of those stories were neglected; they felt secondary, and they are fatally compromised; Lucy would have been much more at home in a Dickens novel; I’d love to see what Wilkie Collins could do with Lucinda’s story.

A lot of this book just didn’t feel like Trollope; it feels like an attempt to do something a little different. There’s an early reference to ‘Vanity Fair’ and though this is a very different story I think that’s telling.

I still have to say that there was much that I loved.

I loved Lady Fawn, who was both warm and gracious, and who did her very best for Lucy.

I loved watching first Lizzie and then Lucy deal with the rather difficult Lady Linlithgow, in very different ways and with very different consequences.

I loved the sojourns – and the incidents – in the Scottish countryside.

I loved watching Lizzie outmanoeuvre Lord Fawn, who was ever bit as wishy-washy and self-serving as I remembered from ‘Phinneas Finn’

Most of all I loved watching Lizzie and following her progress.

Yes, I found much to enjoy, but I’m afraid that the book as a whole didn’t work as well as Trollope's usually does. ( )

A very enjoyable novel well-read by Simon Vance. ( )

This book had an entertaining plot, but it seemed to bog down in so many side plots that it nearly lost my interest at several points. Clearly, the side plots are meant to enrich and emphasize the main themes of the book, but I like a plot that moves a little more quickly. And some of the characters, particularly the "good" girl, Lucy Morris, seemed flat. ( )

In The Eustace Diamonds, Anthony Trollope explores the dark side of marriage in the Victorian era. Our heroine, Lizzie Eustace, is a very unlikeable young widow who, thanks to her husband's fortune, has a roof over her head and a steady income until her son comes of age and inherits everything. She is also in possession of a diamond necklace, which she insists was a gift from her husband but by law is not rightfully hers. A lawsuit is brought against her concerning the necklace, and Lizzie pouts and stamps her feet and refuses to deal with it. Her fiance, Lord Fawn, begins to regret his proposal. Meanwhile, Lizzie's cousin Frank Greystock has fallen in love with Lucy Morris, who works as a governess in the Fawn family and is Lizzie's complete opposite: kind, honest, and poor. Frank is a lawyer and Member of Parliament, but in the eyes of his family "needs" to marry money. In that respect, Lizzie would be a much better match and while Frank finds her attractive, he knows Lucy is the better person. When Lizzie's necklace is stolen, the pace picks up and Lizzie becomes further entrenched in selfish deceit.

I liked this book less than the earlier Palliser and Barchester novels. It was darker and lacked the satire Trollope is known for. The characters were unlikeable or boring, and familiar faces from previous books were not sufficiently present to compensate. There was also a strong anti-semitic thread involving jewelers, money-lenders, and a clergyman and while I understand the views expressed were typical of that time period, it made for unpleasant reading. But at least now I can say I'm halfway through the Palliser novels, and look forward to the next one. ( )

Rather a darker installation of the Palliser books than the previous two, with nobody very pleasant except some of our friends from earlier volumes making cameo appearances. This book is pretty much a catalog of horribles, but with one of the most interesting horribles ever written populating its pages. Lizzie Eustace, to put it bluntly, is a real piece of work, a born schemer who can't seem to stop even when she knows she's just hurting herself and those around her. No matter how much you might want to, you can't look away, either. The subplots in this one aren't quite as well-developed (or as interesting) in other Trollope novels, but both, like the main storyline, are quite discomforting.

Now, back to the adventures of our old buddy Phineas Finn, if the title of the next book is in any way descriptive. ( )

I continued to enjoy Trollope's Palliser novels in August with the delightfully devious Lizzie Eustace, who insists that her late husband gave her as her own property the Eustace family diamonds, so that they are not a part of his estate. Her assertion creates all sorts of problems, including the fact that her fiancé finds her assertions distasteful and dishonorable enough that he no longer feels able to honor his pledge. I mostly enjoyed this, although I found it went on rather a bit long about some things. I did specifically enjoy learning the arcane bits of English common law about what does and what does not constitute an "heirloom" (the Crown jewels--possibly yes; the Eustace diamonds--definitely no), and what a widow can claim as her "paraphernalia" after the death of her husband. On to Phineas Redux

4 stars ( )

This is the third book in Trollope's Palliser series. It follows the drama surrounding Lady Lizzie Eustace. Lizzie Eustace married a rich Lord who gave her (so she says) a diamond necklace worth 10,000 pounds. After he dies, she insists she will not give it up as it was a gift to her, but the Eustace family insists that the diamonds belong to the estate and she can't keep them. After arguing about this for about half the book the diamonds are stolen and there is lots of drama surrounding the truth of the matter for the rest of the book.

It was interesting to me that Trollope shakes things up a bit with this book in a couple of ways. First, it is a fairly dark book. Few of the characters are particularly appealing or redeemable. In other Trollope books, even when characters are behaving badly, I've viewed them more as having human faults than being bad people, but in The Eustace Diamonds I didn't have that sort of sympathy for the characters. Second, he flips the general order of things by focusing on a woman who has plenty of money and is looking for a husband more as a support, protector, and mate. This was kind of nice to see rather than the more familiar story of a penniless woman needing a rich man to secure her livelihood. Unfortunately, Lizzie is so irredeemable that I couldn't give Trollope much credit for this shift.

This book also suffered a bit from not having enough side stories despite its length. I'm used to 2 or 3 stories going on in Trollope's books in addition to the main story. This book certainly had side stories, but I didn't find them all the interesting or enough of a diversion to give me a break from Lizzie Eustace.

Now, all that sounded pretty negative, but I still did enjoy the book. It just wasn't up to the high standards I set for Trollope. Taking the book on its own, I'd give it 4 stars, but in comparison to the other Trollope books I've read, it only gets 3 stars from me. ( )

[Preface to Books and You, Doubleday, Doran & Company, 1940:]

I suggested that you should read The Eustace Diamonds rather than Barchester Towers, which is Trollope’s best-known novel, because it is complete in itself. It seemed to me that really to appreciate Barchester Towers you would have to read the series of which it is part. Neither the motives of the characters nor the results of their activities are quite clear unless you read the novels that come before and after, and I did not think that Trollope was important enough, keeping in view my object of asking you to read books which would be pleasant and profitable, to justify me in asking you to read half a dozen closely printed volumes. And I remembered that there was in Barchester Towers a good deal of that caricature which to us now seems a tiresome feature of Victorian fiction. But now that I have read The Eustace Diamonds once more, I should recommend you even with these slight drawbacks to read the more celebrated book.

The Eustace Diamonds is by way of being a detective story and it has two very ingenious surprises, but it is told at inordinate length. We have learnt a good deal about the manner of writing fiction of this kind since then, and a modern writer could have made a much better story of it by compressing it into three hundred pages. The characters are soundly observed, but not very interesting, and most of them are the stock figures of Victorian fiction. You have the impression that Trollope was trying to write the sort of novel that was bringing Dickens so much success, and not making a very good job of it. The most human character is Lizzie Eustace, but Trollope had apparently, or at least wished his readers to have, so great an antipathy for her that he treats her unfairly, and just as when a lawyer browbeats a prisoner in court your sympathies regardless of his crime go out to him, so you feel that Lizzie wasn’t really so much worse than anybody else and therefore scarcely deserved the hard knocks the author has given her. The novel can, however, be read without difficulty, and for anyone interested in Victorian England there is a good deal of entertainment to be got by observing the manners and customs of that long-past day. This is cold commendation. But though I advise you in place of The Eustace Diamonds to read Barchester Towers, I am constrained to add that you would be unwise to expect too much from it.

The merit of Trollope has of late years been somewhat exaggerated. For a generation he was almost forgotten, and when he was rediscovered, having in the interval acquired the charm of a period piece, greater praise was awarded him than he deserves. He was an honest and industrious craftsman with a considerable power of observation. He had some gift of pathos and he could tell a straightforward story in a straightforward, though terribly diffuse, way; but he had neither passion, wit nor subtlety. He had no talent for revealing a character or resuming the significance of an episode in a single pregnant phrase. His interest now lies in his unaffected, accurate and sincere portrayal of a state of society which has perished.

Lizzie Eustace marries a dying man for his money and then schemes to keep control of a diamond necklace which is rightfully a family piece, rather than her personal property. The necklace is stolen and Lizzie lies and schemes away. The third in the Palliser/political series, there is very little politics (although what little there is includes attempts to introduce decimal currency) and not much of the Pallisers either. Lizzie is a wonderful baddie and I am giving this five stars despite a) the obligatory hunting chapters, b) plenty of anti-semitism and c) the fact that I think Lucy should have told Frank where to go. ( )

In this novel, the third in Trollope's Palliser series, the Pallisers (and politics, for that matter) barely make an appearance, but when Lady Glencora and her crowd enter they bring a breath of fresh air to a book largely filled with grasping, greedy, scheming, and unpleasant characters.

As the novel opens, Lizzie Greystock, a "clever" girl who loves jewelry, marries Sir Florian Eustace, who soon dies, leaving her, for her lifetime, a castle in Scotland and the income from his land. But did he, or indeed could he, leave her the Eustace diamonds, a spectacular necklace which Lizzie has some unscrupulous jewelers value at 10,000 pounds, or are they an heirloom or the property of his estate, either of which means they would belong to Sir Florian's posthumous son? On this question, the first part of the novel turns, as Lizzie stoutly claims Florian gave them to her (indeed, put them around her neck!), but Mr. Camperdown, the lawyer for the Eustaces, and others, believe them to be an heirloom. After a decent interval, Lizzie becomes engaged to Lord Fawn (who readers of Phineas Finn will remember), who instructs her to return the diamonds to Mr. Camperdown for safe-keeping while the matter is resolved. Needless to say, Lizzie refuses, and begins to set her sights on other possible husbands. As Trollope tells us, and as we see for ourselves, Lizzie is a liar, not very good much of the time, but a liar through and through.

At the same time, Trollope tells us the story of Lucy Morris, who is everything that Lizzie is not: honest, hard-working, plain, without a suspicious bone in her body. (Lucy is, in fact, a boring character, not one of Trollope's excellent female creations.) She works as a governess for the Fawn family (Lord Fawn's mother and bevy of sisters, all of whom love Lucy) and is in love with Frank Greystock, a cousin of Lizzie's. She and Lizzie had formerly been friends, but Lucy and she grow distant because of Lizzie's grasping ways. Eventually, Frank proposes to Lucy, and she of course is ecstatic. However, Lizzie and Frank are very close; she turns to Frank for advice, and more, as she begins to think of him as a future husband. Frank needs money, and Lucy can offer him none, while Lizzie has her 4000 pound annual income.

Once the stage is set, a lot of action ensues, including two attempts, one successful, to steal the diamonds. There are a lot of complications, because everyone at first believes the first, dramatic, attempt was itself successful, and Lizzie does nothing to deny this, even though she had taken the necklace out of the iron box in which she kept it. Ultimately, she tells the truth to another potential suitor, Lord George, who she thinks of as her "corsair" (Lizzie longs for poetry and romance in her life, but has only the slimmest acquaintance with the poetry she reads and keeps with her).

This being Trollope, there are lots of secondary characters and subplots, including the vile Mrs. Carbuncle who is first a guest at Lizzie's Scottish castle and then allows Lizzie to live with her in London (for a price). Mrs. Carbuncle is trying to marry off her niece, Lucinda, who is my favorite new character in the book, for she is lively and has a mind of her own; this attempt, which Lucinda rejects strenuously, ends tragically. Then there is Mr. Emilius, a most prominent preacher who, rumor has it, started life in eastern Europe as a Jew, and not only converted but became an Anglican minister; he, like many of the other characters, schemes after his own advancement. The various policemen investigating the burglaries, and the burglars themselves, provide an enjoyable subplot as well, but there are way too many characters for me to discuss them all here.

In this novel, Trollope explores truth and deception, as well as the need to marry for money (even the few likable characters take this for granted), the power that men hold over women since women basically have no rights (in this sense, Lizzie has few options, although she certainly tricks and schemes her way in the world), and the way society accommodates to this. In fact, the men in this novel all have serious flaws, perhaps even more than the women, but society accepts this and castigates the women.

I cannot avoid noting the antisemitism in this novel, obviously a reflection of the times, but more apparent in this book than in others by Trollope I've read. Mr. Emilius, an obviously seedy character, was born Jewish, and the dishonest jewelers are referred to as Jews, among other antisemitic references. It is unpleasant, but of course antisemitism itself is more unpleasant, and dangerous too.

All in all, I didn't like this book as much as others by Trollope that I've read, but it certainly raised some interesting issues.

Like most of Trollope's work, this is a long book. I think reading it pays off, though, if one has any interest in Victorian life in the 1860's era. Most of the characters are less than admirable and keep their eyes directly on the main chance (in this case, money; social and political position runs second to financial concerns).

Lizzie, our main character, is a selfish and quite stupid woman who will lie, and lie badly, when the truth would serve her better. The plot revolves around some diamonds that Lizzie insists are hers, although others think they belong to the estate of her late husband. It's a bit complicated to explain, but the situation is quite clear within the novel.

Lizzie is advised by her cousin Frank and several others, but she makes her own decisions, all of them bad. Sounds dreadful, doesn't it?

And yet I found the book to have an undercurrent of almost bitter irony, inviting the reader to laugh at the machinations of the characters, most of which come to naught.

This novel is quite a change from the Barsetshire stories, but is refreshing in its complete lack of sentimentality. ( )

Young Lizzie Greystock has a taste for diamonds and other precious stones. Her brief marriage to Sir Florian Eustace leaves her with a title, an infant heir, and a diamond necklace valued at 10,000 pounds. The Eustace family lawyer, Mr. Camperdown, insists that the diamonds are part of the Eustace estate and must be returned. Lizzie claims that her husband gave the diamonds to her with no strings attached. She enlists her young lawyer cousin, Frank Greystock, to help her fend off Mr. Camperdown. The pretty young widow has a lifetime settlement from her late husband's estate. It's not an enormous amount of money, but it's enough to attract suitors like Lord Fawn and the somewhat disreputable Lord George de Bruce Carruthers. It may even be enough to tempt cousin Frank away from his beloved but penniless Lucy Morris. Trollope lets readers in on a secret that Lizzie's suitors only suspect. Lizzie is a shameless liar.

This will never be among my favorite Trollope novels. Unlike in some of his earlier novels, there is little humor to lighten the tone. Lizzie brings out the worst in her companions. In contrast, Lucy Morris brings out the best in others. There just isn't enough of Lucy in the novel. The first half of the novel hinges primarily on inheritance law that can no longer be assumed to be common knowledge. Things become much more interesting in the second half of the novel after a theft occurs.

I've always maintained that there are worse things than being single. The subplot of Lucinda Roanoke and her engagement to Sir Griffin Tewett could be Exhibit A for this argument. With money running out, Lucinda is forced to accept the first man who asks her to marry him, even though she finds him repulsive.

Even the friendships in the book are based on money. Although the Fawns and Lucy genuinely like each other, Lucy is still an employee in their household. Lizzie's friendship with Mrs. Carbuncle is measured out in pounds and shillings. I'm reminded of the old saying “money can't buy happiness”. If that's the point Trollope intended to make with this novel, he succeeded. ( )

I reread The Eustace Diamonds for the first time in about a dozen years last week. I can't give it five stars because of the casual anti-Semitism in it, which is just plain disgusting to the modern reader. That said, otherwise it is a really fun read.

While the book is part of Trollope's Palliser series of novels, the central characters in the series play only minor roles in this book, so it can easily be read as a standalone novel.

The main character is Lizzie Greylock Eustace, and what a character she is! Lizzie is fair of face and black of heart. Lizzie is a liar--and she's one of those liars who tells her lies so well that she begins to believe them herself. She's beautiful and she uses her beauty to manipulate other people--usually successfully. Even people who know that Lizzie's stories can't be true fall under her spell.

Lizzie marries a very wealthy man. He dies shortly after they wed. After his death, Lizzie has in her possession a beautiful diamond necklace, which she claims her deceased husband gave her. The Eustace family lawyer is convinced that the necklace is an heirloom, i.e., family property which must be handed down from generation to generation and which therefore can never become Lizzie's personal property. He therefore attempts to regain custody of the diamonds. Lizzie refuses to surrender them and insists that her husband gave them to her as a gift

Afraid that the lawyer will have the necklace seized if she leaves it at home, Lizzie carries it with her in a special strong box. The box is stolen. Was it really stolen? Or did Lizzie arrange the theft so she can keep the necklace? ( )

Anthony Trollope’s books are usually pretty light hearted marriage plots where situations like class or annual income interfere with true love. But The Eustace Diamonds was different in a refreshing way. In addition to the typical conundrum of two people without any income falling in love, there is the added intrigue of politics and … gasp, a stolen diamond necklace. And not just any necklace, but a family heirloom valued at 10,000 pounds. The mystery of the stolen necklace definitely added a bit of spice to the story, making it much more of page turner than the typical Victorian novel. As part of Trollope’s Palliser series, there are some familiar characters from earlier books, such as Lady Glencora and Madame Max Goesler, but they are very minor characters in this story. Although it was more of a side plot to the overall novel, I really enjoyed the conflict in Parliament over the change from the old Shilling money system to the current use of decimal system. So interesting to see the similarities of getting a bill passed in England and the United States – lots of back room deals as well as the necessity of a small fortune to win an election. Enjoyable book – definitely one of my favorite Trollope’s! Extra bonus – beautifully narrated by the ever wonderful Simon Vance. ( )

I first listened to Anthony West's sublime narration while climbing the Alps on a StarTech elliptical, then return home suffused to read what I just heard -- though Lizzy Eustace is but second-hand Becky Sharp, my weakness for liars has no parameters... ( )

My favorite from the Palliser series so far. Lots of similarity with Vanity Fair but not quite as good - mostly due to Lizzy not being as clever as Becky. ( )

This novel is notable for one unsympathetic female protagonist, Lizzie Greystock Eustace; one somewhat insipid protagonist, Lucy Morris; and a moving portrait of a woman driven into a nervous breakdown by pressure to marry a man she physically loathes, Lucinda Roanoke. Trollope may often adhere to the letter of Victorian morality in contemning some of his heroines that the modern reader finds unexceptional, but he also excels in understanding the pressures affecting his characters in the artificial structures of upper middle class life.

The characters in this book are not nearly as much pleasure to read about as those in Phineas Finn. And it isn't because Trollope is misogynist. He gives the main character her due as a complicated, worthy anti-hero. But this book really frustrated me because it felt like something that was written in order to be paid by the word. There were many many redundancies and repetitions. The plot moved forward by tiny fractions of the inch. Finally at the end, when the pacing picked up, it was quite marvelous. But getting there was a plod. ( )