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Lorna Doone
First published in 1869, Lorna Doone is the story of John Ridd, a farmer who finds love amid the religious and social turmoil of seventeenth-century England. He is just a boy when his father is slain by the Doones, a lawless clan inhabiting wild Exmoor on the border of Somerset and Devon. Seized by curiosity and a sense of adventure, he makes his way to the valley of the Doones, where he is discovered by the beautiful Lorna. In time their childish fantasies blossom into mature love—a bond that will inspire John to rescue his beloved from the ravages of a stormy winter, rekindling a conflict with his archrival, Carver Doone, that climaxes in heartrending violence.
Beloved for its portrait of star-crossed lovers and its surpassing descriptions of the English countryside, Lorna Doone is R. D. Blackmore’s enduring masterpiece.
Beloved for its portrait of star-crossed lovers and its surpassing descriptions of the English countryside, Lorna Doone is R. D. Blackmore’s enduring masterpiece.
800 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1869
1,147 people are currently reading
17.4k people want to read
About the author
R.D. Blackmore
147books87followersRichard Doddridge Blackmore, referred to most commonly as R.D. Blackmore, was one of the most famous English novelists of his generation. Over the course of his career, Blackmore achieved a close following around the world. He won literary merit and acclaim for his vivid descriptions and personification of the countryside, sharing with Thomas Hardy a Western England background and a strong sense of regional setting in his works.[1] Noted for his eye for and sympathy with nature, critics of the time described this as one of the most striking features of his writings.
Blackmore, a popular novelist of the second half of the nineteenth century, often referred to as the "Last Victorian", acted as pioneer of the new romantic movement in fiction that continued with Robert Louis Stevenson and others. He may be said to have done for Devon what Sir Walter Scott did for the Highlands and Hardy for Wessex. Blackmore has been described as "proud, shy, reticent, strong-willed, sweet-tempered, and self-centred."
Though very popular in his time, Blackmore's work has since been altogether ignored, and his entire body of work, save for his magnum opus Lorna Doone, which has enjoyed considerable popularity since its being published, has gone out of publication. Thus his reputation rests chiefly upon this romantic work, in spite of the fact that it was not his favourite.
Blackmore, a popular novelist of the second half of the nineteenth century, often referred to as the "Last Victorian", acted as pioneer of the new romantic movement in fiction that continued with Robert Louis Stevenson and others. He may be said to have done for Devon what Sir Walter Scott did for the Highlands and Hardy for Wessex. Blackmore has been described as "proud, shy, reticent, strong-willed, sweet-tempered, and self-centred."
Though very popular in his time, Blackmore's work has since been altogether ignored, and his entire body of work, save for his magnum opus Lorna Doone, which has enjoyed considerable popularity since its being published, has gone out of publication. Thus his reputation rests chiefly upon this romantic work, in spite of the fact that it was not his favourite.
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April 12, 2024
Lorna Doone, a Romance in Exmoor is a beautiful romance and adventure story set in the South West of England during the Monmouth Rebellion. Set against this historical background, this beautiful novel tells the story of young John Ridd who as he grows into manhood and rights the wrong done to his family and parish by a group of “noble� outlaws and at the same time winning the hand and heart of the beautiful and noble Lorna Doone.
The story is narrated by the protagonist, John Ridd. And Blackmore has taken great pains to make him a reliable narrator. He had approached the narrative in such a way that no partiality could be attached to it. Every important event in the story whether it placed the protagonist at an advantageous position or at his detriment, has been honestly and truthfully portrayed. For my part, I enjoyed this fair and balanced account of the story.
The story, as I mentioned before, is both a romance and adventure. The romance is a sweet love story between the young John Ridd and beautiful Lorna Doone which grows little by little from their childhood. Blackmore has taken it to his heart how this romance should be. It is a little sentimental perhaps. Nevertheless, the charming and passionate writing draws the reader into their life and love. The adventure part of the story is a mixture of true historical events of the Monmouth rebellion and young John Ridd's battle with the group of outlaws to protect his home, his farm and his neighbourhood from their brutality. This, however, is not a heart-racing and action-packed adventure, but a slow and steady one. It was a little surprising for I consider an adventure to be a bit fast-paced. But equally surprising is seeing me enjoying the slow-paced adventure nevertheless. This is nothing short of a miracle for I cannot recall having enjoyed a slow-paced adventure this much before. And all the credit for my forbearance lies in Blackmore's captivating writing.
Since I mentioned Blackmore's writing quite often I have to say that I have not read such mesmerizing writing for quite some time. The poetic beauty and sing-song quality in his writing touched me profoundly. I can honestly say that I have only seen equal skill in the usage of language and writing in one other writer, and he is Thomas Hardy. Both being so sensitive towards nature and surroundings, their writing and their stories are so alluring.
The set up being the countryside of South West England, Blackmore brings to light the charming lives of farmers and the undisturbed natural habitat of Exmoor thorough his beautiful and captivating descriptions. In this backdrop, Blackmore brings out a simple protagonist in John Ridd. He is the hero, but an unusual one. Without making a perfect hero, Blackmore brings in a slow-witted yet physically strong hero, who is a farmer and a professional wrestler - an uncommon combination. However, this imperfect character brings realism to the story and enables the reader to connect with him instantly. His charming love interest Lorna is a character that balances between reality and imaginary thus giving a fairy tale quality to the story. The placement of these characters and all the other contributing characters are so well done that the overall effect is quite charming.
I can go on and on about this beautiful and mesmerizing piece of literature for I think I'm quite bewitched. I have read a young adult version of this long ago and remember enjoying it. But the complete novel is nothing short of perfection. I was quite taken in with the lives, love, and adventure of the Exmoor and was loathed to leave it and the Plovers Barrow, the cozy little home of John Ridd. It was one of the most melancholic literary partings that I have ever undergone.
There is nothing more left to say. That I loved this beautiful novel is proved beyond a doubt. To all who could endure a slow-paced adventure combined with a sweet romance set up against a beautiful backdrop of 17th century Exmoor, Lorna Doone is just for you.
The story is narrated by the protagonist, John Ridd. And Blackmore has taken great pains to make him a reliable narrator. He had approached the narrative in such a way that no partiality could be attached to it. Every important event in the story whether it placed the protagonist at an advantageous position or at his detriment, has been honestly and truthfully portrayed. For my part, I enjoyed this fair and balanced account of the story.
The story, as I mentioned before, is both a romance and adventure. The romance is a sweet love story between the young John Ridd and beautiful Lorna Doone which grows little by little from their childhood. Blackmore has taken it to his heart how this romance should be. It is a little sentimental perhaps. Nevertheless, the charming and passionate writing draws the reader into their life and love. The adventure part of the story is a mixture of true historical events of the Monmouth rebellion and young John Ridd's battle with the group of outlaws to protect his home, his farm and his neighbourhood from their brutality. This, however, is not a heart-racing and action-packed adventure, but a slow and steady one. It was a little surprising for I consider an adventure to be a bit fast-paced. But equally surprising is seeing me enjoying the slow-paced adventure nevertheless. This is nothing short of a miracle for I cannot recall having enjoyed a slow-paced adventure this much before. And all the credit for my forbearance lies in Blackmore's captivating writing.
Since I mentioned Blackmore's writing quite often I have to say that I have not read such mesmerizing writing for quite some time. The poetic beauty and sing-song quality in his writing touched me profoundly. I can honestly say that I have only seen equal skill in the usage of language and writing in one other writer, and he is Thomas Hardy. Both being so sensitive towards nature and surroundings, their writing and their stories are so alluring.
The set up being the countryside of South West England, Blackmore brings to light the charming lives of farmers and the undisturbed natural habitat of Exmoor thorough his beautiful and captivating descriptions. In this backdrop, Blackmore brings out a simple protagonist in John Ridd. He is the hero, but an unusual one. Without making a perfect hero, Blackmore brings in a slow-witted yet physically strong hero, who is a farmer and a professional wrestler - an uncommon combination. However, this imperfect character brings realism to the story and enables the reader to connect with him instantly. His charming love interest Lorna is a character that balances between reality and imaginary thus giving a fairy tale quality to the story. The placement of these characters and all the other contributing characters are so well done that the overall effect is quite charming.
I can go on and on about this beautiful and mesmerizing piece of literature for I think I'm quite bewitched. I have read a young adult version of this long ago and remember enjoying it. But the complete novel is nothing short of perfection. I was quite taken in with the lives, love, and adventure of the Exmoor and was loathed to leave it and the Plovers Barrow, the cozy little home of John Ridd. It was one of the most melancholic literary partings that I have ever undergone.
There is nothing more left to say. That I loved this beautiful novel is proved beyond a doubt. To all who could endure a slow-paced adventure combined with a sweet romance set up against a beautiful backdrop of 17th century Exmoor, Lorna Doone is just for you.
October 11, 2014
This enduring 19th century classic (never out of print since it was first published) has been on my radar ever since I saw an old black-and-white film version of it as a kid; but my interest was really piqued by the 2000 BBC/A&E miniseries adaptation. (As it turns out, I would rate the fidelity of the latter to the book at only about 65%; but that's another discussion!) Recently, I nominated it as a common read in the classics group I belong to here on ŷ, and it won the poll.
Author Blackmore was a native of the Exmoor region where this novel is set, and well versed in its history and lore. Interestingly, his plot here isn't wholly invented; the exiled nobles-turned-outlaws, the Doones, were remembered in the area as having really lived, back in the days of Monmouth's rebellion (1685), as were Lorna Doone and John Ridd. With some liberties, the locations and buildings described in the book are real as well. The edition I read, the 1944 one from Dodd Mead's Great Illustrated Classics series, actually has black-and-white photographs of several of these, as well as of a contemporary portrait of Lorna herself (which shows her to be a genuinely beautiful young woman). Of course, by 1869, oral tradition recorded only the barest outlines of the events of those days; it provided the germ of the idea here, but all of the substance of the story is Blackmore's own.
In style and substance, this tale is very much in the Romantic manner, with an appeal to the emotions, a setting that includes a lot of pure wild nature (with both its beauty and its danger --the bogs can be lethal), adventure, and passionate but pure love at its heart. Modern readers might question whether John and Lorna fall for each other too readily and quickly, since they haven't actually had much interaction by the time they fall in love (that's not a spoiler, since we know from the ŷ description that they do!). In the historical context, however, I would say that this isn't unrealistic. Young people in that era didn't date (and didn't expect to); they took for granted that they had to size each other up seriously in what limited interaction they had, and didn't require as much time to make up their minds. (They also were socialized to be psychologically open to the idea of marriage and commitment as a natural and positive thing, not a horrible fate to be evaded and staved off as long as possible.) John's first-person narration has, at times, a strain of dry, often unconscious humor; and John is himself an interesting character: honest to the core, a cross between naivete and peasant shrewdness, slow to anger but really formidable when he's roused (he's well over six feet tall, and strong in proportion), magnanimous to a fault, much smarter than he lets people think, with plenty of virtues to admire and a few foibles that make you occasionally want to swat him. The other characters are wonderfully drawn and brought to vivid life, too, and the family relationships and other personal interactions are as real as life (and, like life, sometimes entail some painful lessons). Blackmore's well aware that even good people aren't perfect. He manages to give the reader a feel for the rhythms and routines of 17th-century farm and community life, for the role of simple Christian faith in the character's lives, and the folkways of a vanished rural culture. And he's to be commended, IMO, for daring to depict a love that crosses two of the most yawning chasms that divided 17th --and 19th-- century English society (poor commoner vs. wealthy nobility, and Protestant vs. Catholic --though he doesn't develop the latter theme as much as the former).
As a rule, 19th-century diction in a novel doesn't bother me. Here, though, the author's style is SO digressive and orotund that it can at times be irritating. He's also consciously writing (because of the first-person narration) in a style that's meant to seem Jacobean, and so archaic even in Victorian times; and he reproduces West Country dialect, especially in the speech of the less-educated characters, very meticulously, and that style of speech can be quite difficult to understand in places. His narrative pace is also somewhat slow, in a plot that spans the years from November 1673 to 1685 and after (the opening chapters are, or seem, particularly slow-paced, since the reader isn't, at that point, already drawn in and used to the style); given that this is a 646-page novel, that makes it a slow read. There are places where the plotting, IMO, could benefit from being tauter. Given these considerations, a judicious editor could probably have cut the length by 100 pages, and improved the book. Concealed identity is a common plot trope in Romantic fiction from this era, but Blackmore doesn't handle it very well here. . John's narration is interlarded with irksome sexist comments; and while Lorna's no milksop, RDB does portray her very much in passive, damsel-in-distress mode, and he has a penchant for making her and other females faint or be prostrated by emotional stress, since their "weak" feminine nervous system can't handle such things and needs to be more sheltered. Aaaargh! (The miniseries was much more enlightened in its handling of female characters than the actual book is.) Altogether, these flaws cost the book a fifth star; but I still really enjoyed it overall, and felt that it earned its four!
Author Blackmore was a native of the Exmoor region where this novel is set, and well versed in its history and lore. Interestingly, his plot here isn't wholly invented; the exiled nobles-turned-outlaws, the Doones, were remembered in the area as having really lived, back in the days of Monmouth's rebellion (1685), as were Lorna Doone and John Ridd. With some liberties, the locations and buildings described in the book are real as well. The edition I read, the 1944 one from Dodd Mead's Great Illustrated Classics series, actually has black-and-white photographs of several of these, as well as of a contemporary portrait of Lorna herself (which shows her to be a genuinely beautiful young woman). Of course, by 1869, oral tradition recorded only the barest outlines of the events of those days; it provided the germ of the idea here, but all of the substance of the story is Blackmore's own.
In style and substance, this tale is very much in the Romantic manner, with an appeal to the emotions, a setting that includes a lot of pure wild nature (with both its beauty and its danger --the bogs can be lethal), adventure, and passionate but pure love at its heart. Modern readers might question whether John and Lorna fall for each other too readily and quickly, since they haven't actually had much interaction by the time they fall in love (that's not a spoiler, since we know from the ŷ description that they do!). In the historical context, however, I would say that this isn't unrealistic. Young people in that era didn't date (and didn't expect to); they took for granted that they had to size each other up seriously in what limited interaction they had, and didn't require as much time to make up their minds. (They also were socialized to be psychologically open to the idea of marriage and commitment as a natural and positive thing, not a horrible fate to be evaded and staved off as long as possible.) John's first-person narration has, at times, a strain of dry, often unconscious humor; and John is himself an interesting character: honest to the core, a cross between naivete and peasant shrewdness, slow to anger but really formidable when he's roused (he's well over six feet tall, and strong in proportion), magnanimous to a fault, much smarter than he lets people think, with plenty of virtues to admire and a few foibles that make you occasionally want to swat him. The other characters are wonderfully drawn and brought to vivid life, too, and the family relationships and other personal interactions are as real as life (and, like life, sometimes entail some painful lessons). Blackmore's well aware that even good people aren't perfect. He manages to give the reader a feel for the rhythms and routines of 17th-century farm and community life, for the role of simple Christian faith in the character's lives, and the folkways of a vanished rural culture. And he's to be commended, IMO, for daring to depict a love that crosses two of the most yawning chasms that divided 17th --and 19th-- century English society (poor commoner vs. wealthy nobility, and Protestant vs. Catholic --though he doesn't develop the latter theme as much as the former).
As a rule, 19th-century diction in a novel doesn't bother me. Here, though, the author's style is SO digressive and orotund that it can at times be irritating. He's also consciously writing (because of the first-person narration) in a style that's meant to seem Jacobean, and so archaic even in Victorian times; and he reproduces West Country dialect, especially in the speech of the less-educated characters, very meticulously, and that style of speech can be quite difficult to understand in places. His narrative pace is also somewhat slow, in a plot that spans the years from November 1673 to 1685 and after (the opening chapters are, or seem, particularly slow-paced, since the reader isn't, at that point, already drawn in and used to the style); given that this is a 646-page novel, that makes it a slow read. There are places where the plotting, IMO, could benefit from being tauter. Given these considerations, a judicious editor could probably have cut the length by 100 pages, and improved the book. Concealed identity is a common plot trope in Romantic fiction from this era, but Blackmore doesn't handle it very well here. . John's narration is interlarded with irksome sexist comments; and while Lorna's no milksop, RDB does portray her very much in passive, damsel-in-distress mode, and he has a penchant for making her and other females faint or be prostrated by emotional stress, since their "weak" feminine nervous system can't handle such things and needs to be more sheltered. Aaaargh! (The miniseries was much more enlightened in its handling of female characters than the actual book is.) Altogether, these flaws cost the book a fifth star; but I still really enjoyed it overall, and felt that it earned its four!
September 6, 2016
What an awesome tale. Written in the 19th century, but telling a tale about the late 1600s during the times of Charles II and James II. Our hero, John Ridd is a simple, albeit wise and honorable farmer who as a young lad meets Lorna Doone of the dreaded, evil outlaw family of higher born Doones, and it's love at first sight.
There are lots of ups and downs and surprises, along with the author's gorgeous prose describing the english countryside and farmlife. You have to pay attention though, as none of the characters are wasted. What might seem as inconsequential events and characters earlier in the story are brought back in full circle to the tale, along with a great mystery about Lorna's past as the author slowly peels out the many layers of his story.
Highly highly recommended. If you enjoy Thomas Hardy, Charlotte Bronte or Dickens this will probably be right up your alley.
There are lots of ups and downs and surprises, along with the author's gorgeous prose describing the english countryside and farmlife. You have to pay attention though, as none of the characters are wasted. What might seem as inconsequential events and characters earlier in the story are brought back in full circle to the tale, along with a great mystery about Lorna's past as the author slowly peels out the many layers of his story.
Highly highly recommended. If you enjoy Thomas Hardy, Charlotte Bronte or Dickens this will probably be right up your alley.
March 27, 2013
Divan klasik, a po njemu je snimljen i dobar film... kako to samo Britanci umeju :)
June 1, 2012
I was surprised at how much I struggled with this book. I love my nineteenth century literature, and I absolutely love the last TV adaptation (although it seems they took the best parts of the book and eradicated all the filler) but there were times I was almost ready to give up on this. It just so happened that then a scene would come along to distract me and hold my attention and then be followed by fifty pages of sheer boredom.
Not to mention that the characters are all unlikable. John Ridd is a bully who thinks too much of himself, whips the man who works for him with the slightest whim, hates the sister who challenges his manly authority and stalks pretty Lorna Doone until she can do nothing but accept his strange version of love. Lorna herself is insipid and can hardly even manage the simple act of walking while talking without needing to rest because it makes her feel faint. The gender roles are appalling. The mother and the 'good' sister fawn all over John and cater to his every wish and command, while the 'bad' sister is disliked because she has a brain and wants to use it.
I'm telling you, when you actually feel more for the characters who are rapists, murderers and thieves, you're in a lot of trouble.
I'm going to stick to the TV version, thanks. And I think this is the only time a movie has been superior to its source material.
Not to mention that the characters are all unlikable. John Ridd is a bully who thinks too much of himself, whips the man who works for him with the slightest whim, hates the sister who challenges his manly authority and stalks pretty Lorna Doone until she can do nothing but accept his strange version of love. Lorna herself is insipid and can hardly even manage the simple act of walking while talking without needing to rest because it makes her feel faint. The gender roles are appalling. The mother and the 'good' sister fawn all over John and cater to his every wish and command, while the 'bad' sister is disliked because she has a brain and wants to use it.
I'm telling you, when you actually feel more for the characters who are rapists, murderers and thieves, you're in a lot of trouble.
I'm going to stick to the TV version, thanks. And I think this is the only time a movie has been superior to its source material.
May 14, 2023
With his 1869 historical fiction romance Lorna Doone (taking place mostly in 17th century Southwestern England, in Exmoor, and also with a short stint in London), R.D. Blackmore has us as readers textually be presented with an erstwhile noble (but now out of royal favour) clan of murderous robber baron like outlaws, with dashing highwaymen, stolen jewels, family feuds, political intrigue and also an obligatory love story, telling in first person narration the story of yeoman farmer John Ridd's life and of his love for the beautiful Lorna Doone of the book title (whom John first encounters when he is twelve and Lorna but eight years of age).
But while both John and Lorna end up falling in love with each other (and in a very all encompassing, overly exaggerated and sappily passionate manner), there are many obstacles which must be overcome within the pages of Lorna Doone before Lorna and John (as the proverbial star crossed lovers) can have any chance of real and lasting happiness (and yes, I am definitely pleased that Lorna Doone does not end up having an ending like William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, although that said type of ending might be considered as being a bit more realistic). For John Ridd must deal with own negative and majorly ambivalent feelings towards the Doones (and that his own father was in fact murdered by the Doones) and also that as the granddaughter of Sir Ensor Doone, Lorna’s own social status is and always will be much higher than that of a humble farmer like John (and his family) and not to mention that the brutal, and violent Carver Doone intends to marry Lorna himself and will let nothing stand in his way, and certainly not some farmer (and that Lorna's family will likely always consider Carver Doone a better and more appropriate "match" no matter what Lorna's own feelings regarding this are).
Now I do have to admit (and I think I have already briefly alluded to this above) that John and Lorna's romance as it is shown and as it progresses in Lorna Doone has not really been all that much of a reading pleasure. For yes and indeed, I am simply not and never have been all that much a fan of Romance as a literary genre and have therefore found John and Lorna's story rather overly saccharine and not all that interesting for and to me personally, and not to mention that both John Ridd and Lorna Doone also and more often than not seem to come across as too one-sidedly good and noble and furthermore that many of the negative characters shown and depicted by R.D. Blackmore in Lorna Doone are basically quite as ridiculously stereotypical negative (and this is especially true regarding Carver Doone) as John Ridd and Lorna Doone are often without major faults and rather paragons of virtue, not horrible and terrible of course, but it sure makes for a plot, a main storyline in Lorna Doone that is rather on the surface, not all that nuanced and can get more than a bit tedious and annoying (and in particular for and in a novel with a page count as high as Lorna Doone).
And to be perfectly and totally honest here, if I were just to rate Lorna Doone with regard to how R.D. Blackmore presents his contents, themes and his characters, I would certainly only be willing to consider a two star rating (as the plot is rather undeveloped, Blackmore's characters are pretty wooden, one actually often only hears about how dastardly the Doones are second hand and that John Ridd and Lorna Doone's romance is just not really my thing and kind of annoying and frustrating to have to read about for hundreds of pages, and that yes, I also am a bit frustrated by the dated gender roles in Lorna Doone, but considering that the story takes place in the 17th century and was written in the 19th century, I guess I can mostly ignore this and to at least consider this as being mostly a sign of the times, but indeed, it still makes for a bit of textual annoyance and frustration regarding Lorna Doone).
However and even though R.D. Blackmore's plot, characterisation etc. for Lorna Doone are not all that much to my personal reading tastes, I absolutely do adore how Blackmore sets his scenes, his wonderful sense of time and place, his meticulous and delightful descriptions of landscape, of farming, of 17th century life in Sussex, in the Exmoor area of England (and if I ignore how tedious the part of Lorna Doone that takes place in London is), yes, I can and will consider a three star rating for Lorna Doone (but to definitely point out that it is basically ONLY Blackmore's descriptive writing, his flowing language and his knack for providing detailed depictions of farming life etc. so wonderfully and engagingly that have made me consider said three stars, as the story itself, as John and Lorna's love story in Lorna Doone just does not textually enchant and delight me all that much and all that lastingly).
But while both John and Lorna end up falling in love with each other (and in a very all encompassing, overly exaggerated and sappily passionate manner), there are many obstacles which must be overcome within the pages of Lorna Doone before Lorna and John (as the proverbial star crossed lovers) can have any chance of real and lasting happiness (and yes, I am definitely pleased that Lorna Doone does not end up having an ending like William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, although that said type of ending might be considered as being a bit more realistic). For John Ridd must deal with own negative and majorly ambivalent feelings towards the Doones (and that his own father was in fact murdered by the Doones) and also that as the granddaughter of Sir Ensor Doone, Lorna’s own social status is and always will be much higher than that of a humble farmer like John (and his family) and not to mention that the brutal, and violent Carver Doone intends to marry Lorna himself and will let nothing stand in his way, and certainly not some farmer (and that Lorna's family will likely always consider Carver Doone a better and more appropriate "match" no matter what Lorna's own feelings regarding this are).
Now I do have to admit (and I think I have already briefly alluded to this above) that John and Lorna's romance as it is shown and as it progresses in Lorna Doone has not really been all that much of a reading pleasure. For yes and indeed, I am simply not and never have been all that much a fan of Romance as a literary genre and have therefore found John and Lorna's story rather overly saccharine and not all that interesting for and to me personally, and not to mention that both John Ridd and Lorna Doone also and more often than not seem to come across as too one-sidedly good and noble and furthermore that many of the negative characters shown and depicted by R.D. Blackmore in Lorna Doone are basically quite as ridiculously stereotypical negative (and this is especially true regarding Carver Doone) as John Ridd and Lorna Doone are often without major faults and rather paragons of virtue, not horrible and terrible of course, but it sure makes for a plot, a main storyline in Lorna Doone that is rather on the surface, not all that nuanced and can get more than a bit tedious and annoying (and in particular for and in a novel with a page count as high as Lorna Doone).
And to be perfectly and totally honest here, if I were just to rate Lorna Doone with regard to how R.D. Blackmore presents his contents, themes and his characters, I would certainly only be willing to consider a two star rating (as the plot is rather undeveloped, Blackmore's characters are pretty wooden, one actually often only hears about how dastardly the Doones are second hand and that John Ridd and Lorna Doone's romance is just not really my thing and kind of annoying and frustrating to have to read about for hundreds of pages, and that yes, I also am a bit frustrated by the dated gender roles in Lorna Doone, but considering that the story takes place in the 17th century and was written in the 19th century, I guess I can mostly ignore this and to at least consider this as being mostly a sign of the times, but indeed, it still makes for a bit of textual annoyance and frustration regarding Lorna Doone).
However and even though R.D. Blackmore's plot, characterisation etc. for Lorna Doone are not all that much to my personal reading tastes, I absolutely do adore how Blackmore sets his scenes, his wonderful sense of time and place, his meticulous and delightful descriptions of landscape, of farming, of 17th century life in Sussex, in the Exmoor area of England (and if I ignore how tedious the part of Lorna Doone that takes place in London is), yes, I can and will consider a three star rating for Lorna Doone (but to definitely point out that it is basically ONLY Blackmore's descriptive writing, his flowing language and his knack for providing detailed depictions of farming life etc. so wonderfully and engagingly that have made me consider said three stars, as the story itself, as John and Lorna's love story in Lorna Doone just does not textually enchant and delight me all that much and all that lastingly).
January 12, 2024
Lorna Doone is a historical romance set in the 17th century, and is centred mainly in Exmoor. Exmoor is a very scenic area of England, and much of it is unspoilt, so I entirely understand R.D. Blackmore's preference of Lorna Doone taking place in that particular setting.
The story is told by a farmer called John Ridd, who is in love with Lorna Doone, and as this romance progresses other problems arise which prevent John and Lorna having their happy ever after. I'm not normally one for twee romances, and this book was no exception. To be entirely honest, I felt like much of the romance was excessively sentimental, and a little heavy on the sweet marzipan for my tastes. I think if the book consisted entirely of that, I would have rated it lower.
The characters themselves were interesting enough, but I constantly felt like there was something preventing me from investing in them fully. It's difficult to say exactly why that was the case, but I do know something was missing.
Despite my issues with the over-exaggerated romance, I did enjoy the descriptive language that Blackmore used to show the reader how beautiful the countryside is and insights to what farming would have been like during that time. It really was wonderful to read about, and I think overall, this book has been worth my time.
The story is told by a farmer called John Ridd, who is in love with Lorna Doone, and as this romance progresses other problems arise which prevent John and Lorna having their happy ever after. I'm not normally one for twee romances, and this book was no exception. To be entirely honest, I felt like much of the romance was excessively sentimental, and a little heavy on the sweet marzipan for my tastes. I think if the book consisted entirely of that, I would have rated it lower.
The characters themselves were interesting enough, but I constantly felt like there was something preventing me from investing in them fully. It's difficult to say exactly why that was the case, but I do know something was missing.
Despite my issues with the over-exaggerated romance, I did enjoy the descriptive language that Blackmore used to show the reader how beautiful the countryside is and insights to what farming would have been like during that time. It really was wonderful to read about, and I think overall, this book has been worth my time.
May 20, 2023
Read and discussed with Manybooks/Gundula here: /review/show...
If you’re curious, please see our comments below Gundula's review. You will observe how our views altered as we read.
A classic of both swashbuckling adventure and love. The prose is said to excel in its depiction of the English countryside. It is this that drew me to the book, but it proved to be the only thing about the book I liked. Unfortunately, having completed the book, I cannot recommend it. I will explain why.
The book was first published in 1869, but it tells a tale set in the 1600s during the times of Charles II and James II. The hero, John Ridd, is a simple, albeit wise and honorable farmer who as a young lad meets Lorna Doone of a dreaded outlaw but highborn family, and it's love at first sight. It’s a tale of star-crossed lovers. The setting is the Somerset and Devon countryside with brief excursions into London. There’s a quick synopsis.
Now my complaints!
The history woven into the tale is hard to make sense of. To straighten out the connection between political factions, the Papists, the Protestants and the English kings, I found it necessary to fill out the facts with information on the net. Adequate information should be provided within the text!
The prose describing nature, animals and atmospheric scenes is excellent, but at the same time it fails in giving a clear explanation of historical events. The lyrical descriptions of nature are more frequent at the book’s start than later where plot, adventure and action take precedence. The prose becomes longwinded and the sentences wordy. I was more and more frequently thinking, “Get to the point!� The book drags on too long.
John Ridd, the central protagonist, is telling the tale. He began to drive me batty. Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes –that’s what I ended up calling him! Although he praises honesty and the simple life, a person can carry anything too far. He’s TOO noble and upright. It becomes harder and harder to relate to this “oh-so-wonderful-and-perfect� guy.
The love attraction goes overboard too. Soppy is how I would describe it. Love affects a person physically. There is no hint of that here. One might expect this given that the book was written in another time and age, but I’m of the 21st century and I’m rating it. Given that the author is good at drawing the ambiance of places, I’m surprised at his total inability to realistically capture the physical sensations tied to love. The love in the story falls flat.
An overall negative attitude toward women is evident throughout the telling. The further I read the more this irritated me. Why? Because the prose reeks of discriminatory, outdated views, and this comes up every other sentence! The constant repetition of such views becomes hard to swallow!
The plot, what about that? Yeah well, we have here an adventure tale if you like that sort of thing. It’s melodramatic and cinematic in style. Action rather than thought characterizes the telling. Some people do like this, but I do not!
The book has loose ends. Repeatedly a negative attitude toward doctors is expressed. Why this is so is never made clear. Religious views are left hazy.
Tim Gerard Reynolds narrates the audiobook. The first three chapters had some production error. The volume fluctuated making sentences alternately loud to be followed by sentences extremely low in volume. I was walking and listening, so I stuck it out. I had no other choice! Beginning with chapter four the problem disappears! The narrator uses a thick brogue that makes it difficult to hear what some of the characters say, but on the whole, the narration is not hard to follow. I would have preferred less dramatization. I have given the narration three stars.
I can’t pretend to like something I don’t. Friends whose opinions I respect have liked this book, but it ended up rubbing me in all the wrong ways. I do not recommend it! I’m giving myself a star for finishing it. Having done so, I know exactly where I stand! I do not like this book!
If you’re curious, please see our comments below Gundula's review. You will observe how our views altered as we read.
A classic of both swashbuckling adventure and love. The prose is said to excel in its depiction of the English countryside. It is this that drew me to the book, but it proved to be the only thing about the book I liked. Unfortunately, having completed the book, I cannot recommend it. I will explain why.
The book was first published in 1869, but it tells a tale set in the 1600s during the times of Charles II and James II. The hero, John Ridd, is a simple, albeit wise and honorable farmer who as a young lad meets Lorna Doone of a dreaded outlaw but highborn family, and it's love at first sight. It’s a tale of star-crossed lovers. The setting is the Somerset and Devon countryside with brief excursions into London. There’s a quick synopsis.
Now my complaints!
The history woven into the tale is hard to make sense of. To straighten out the connection between political factions, the Papists, the Protestants and the English kings, I found it necessary to fill out the facts with information on the net. Adequate information should be provided within the text!
The prose describing nature, animals and atmospheric scenes is excellent, but at the same time it fails in giving a clear explanation of historical events. The lyrical descriptions of nature are more frequent at the book’s start than later where plot, adventure and action take precedence. The prose becomes longwinded and the sentences wordy. I was more and more frequently thinking, “Get to the point!� The book drags on too long.
John Ridd, the central protagonist, is telling the tale. He began to drive me batty. Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes –that’s what I ended up calling him! Although he praises honesty and the simple life, a person can carry anything too far. He’s TOO noble and upright. It becomes harder and harder to relate to this “oh-so-wonderful-and-perfect� guy.
The love attraction goes overboard too. Soppy is how I would describe it. Love affects a person physically. There is no hint of that here. One might expect this given that the book was written in another time and age, but I’m of the 21st century and I’m rating it. Given that the author is good at drawing the ambiance of places, I’m surprised at his total inability to realistically capture the physical sensations tied to love. The love in the story falls flat.
An overall negative attitude toward women is evident throughout the telling. The further I read the more this irritated me. Why? Because the prose reeks of discriminatory, outdated views, and this comes up every other sentence! The constant repetition of such views becomes hard to swallow!
The plot, what about that? Yeah well, we have here an adventure tale if you like that sort of thing. It’s melodramatic and cinematic in style. Action rather than thought characterizes the telling. Some people do like this, but I do not!
The book has loose ends. Repeatedly a negative attitude toward doctors is expressed. Why this is so is never made clear. Religious views are left hazy.
Tim Gerard Reynolds narrates the audiobook. The first three chapters had some production error. The volume fluctuated making sentences alternately loud to be followed by sentences extremely low in volume. I was walking and listening, so I stuck it out. I had no other choice! Beginning with chapter four the problem disappears! The narrator uses a thick brogue that makes it difficult to hear what some of the characters say, but on the whole, the narration is not hard to follow. I would have preferred less dramatization. I have given the narration three stars.
I can’t pretend to like something I don’t. Friends whose opinions I respect have liked this book, but it ended up rubbing me in all the wrong ways. I do not recommend it! I’m giving myself a star for finishing it. Having done so, I know exactly where I stand! I do not like this book!
March 24, 2015
Just as good the third time round as the first!
I can't say anything that hasn't already been said so I'll just say what I liked and why.
R. D. Blackmore's descriptions of the countryside and the Doone's valley are some of my favorite parts. One of my favorite chapters is chapter 8, where we first see inside Doone Valley.
Next we have Tom the highwayman with his strawberry horse Jenny. What a pair. Tom manages to be endearing even when he's a thief with an eye for finery.
Lorna Doone has a sweetness that over rides even sweet Annie, John's sister. And Ruth Huckaback my favorite character. Such a lovable little redhead!
Now since I don't know what to say I'll add a picture from my other favorite chapter, chapter 16
February 24, 2018
3rd Review
February 2018
Read again to beguile the winter days. So beguiled. Enchanted.
If you are the type of reader who might find great joy in listening to an old man telling his long and rambling love story of a life (imagine a comfortable fireside setting, cushy chairs, popcorn and cocoa) then you will adore this book. If you're the type of reader who would be impatient, bored or even annoyed in such a setting, you will not enjoy this book so leave it alone rather than revile it.
Reader, you must be prepared to wander. You must be inclined to be patient in the telling. You must be willing to delight in bygone days imagined. You must be eager for a jaunt back in time, reveling in the difference from the slowness of then to the hurry of now. You must be content with deciphering dialect (or skipping the undecipherable). You must be disposed to worship the adorable Lorna with her devoted John, or at least try to understand why he does...think of your own love story. Does anyone love your love as you do?
This is one long, long ramble of the love of a man for a woman. It is the sweetest of love stories. It will sweep you up and carry you away. You can thank me later.
My other two reviews don't do it justice. Nor will this one. I don't have the proper words or the time. But really, if you haven't yet...give it a try. I challenge you not to fall in love with the bumbling, sweet, yet strong John Ridd. I love all the cast of characters, but his I love the most.
--
2nd Review
Nov 09, read with bookgroup
I hate it when this book ends! Really it couldn't keep going, but I so want it too. I just want to live on that farm in that beautiful country.
Learning that Blackmore was devoted to gardening and farming made this book and the narrator's love for the land even more beautiful.
I wrote a little note to my bookgroup apologizing to them if anyone was annoyed by the many many asides, colloquialisms, archaic words and descriptions (which I love) they would appreciate a quote from the book after one of the side-stories:
"Now this has led me out of my way; as things are always doing, partly through their own perverseness, partly through my kind desire to give fair turn to all of them, and to all the people who do them. If anyone expects of me a strict and well-drilled story, standing "at attention" all the time, with hands at the side...., and eyes going neither right nor left; I trow that man has been disappointed many a page ago, and has left me to my evil ways; and if not, I love his charity."
I love every single word of this book. To me the cadence is like poetry or a beautiful song. I would love to meet Mr. Blackmore someday, I would just love to hear him speak. I think he poured his whole soul into this book. I have to think the way John Ridd loves Lorna is the way Blackmore loved his wife. It's beautiful. His humans are so real and his wit so perfect.
Those of you wishing to know what Lorna Doone is about, will have to go elsewhere, I don't have time to do a summary. Suffice it for me to say it's wonderful. I will stick in a couple of my most favorite lines.
"And I for my part can never conceinve how people who live in towns and cities, where neither lambs nor birds are (except in some shop windows), nor growing corn, nor meadow-grass, nor even so much as a sick to cut, or a stile to climb and sit down upon --how these poor folk get through their lives, without being utterly weary of them, and dying from pure indolence, is a thing God only knows, if His mercy allows Him to think of it."
--
"She looked as if she had been visited by many troubles, and had felt them one by one; yet held enough of kindly nature still to grieve for others."
--
"...It strikes me that of all human dealings, satire is the very lowest, and most mean and common. It is the equivalent in words, for what bullying is in deeds; and no more bespeaks a clever man, than the other does a brave one. These two wretched tricks exalt a fool in his own low esteem, but never in his neighbor's; for the deep common sense of our nature tells that no man of a genial heart, or of any special mind can take pride in either."
--
"...goodness of heart is more important than to show good reason for having it."
--
This is a passage between the wily Counsellor (Lorna's "uncle") and John's mother:
'Good, madam! I may look upon that as your sanction and approval: and the College of Heralds shall hear of it. And in return, as Lorna's guardian, I give my full and ready consent to her marriage with your son, madam.'
'Oh, how good of you, sir, how kind! Well, I always did say, that the learnedest people were, almost always, the best and kindest, and the most simple-hearted.'
'Madam, that is a great sentiment. What a goodly couple they will be! and if we can add him to our strength�'
'Oh no, sir, oh no!' cried mother: 'you really must not think of it. He has always been brought up so honest�'
'Hem! that makes a difference. A decided disqualification for domestic life among the Doones. But, surely, he might get over those prejudices, madam?'
'Oh no, sir! he never can: he never can indeed. When he was only that high, sir, he could not steal even an apple, when some wicked boys tried to mislead him.'
'Ah,' replied the Counsellor, shaking his white head gravely; 'then I greatly fear that his case is quite incurable. I have known such cases; violent prejudice, bred entirely of education, and anti-economical to the last degree. And when it is so, it is desperate: no man, after imbibing ideas of that sort, can in any way be useful.'
--
"Pure pleasure it is to any man, to reflect upon all these things. How truly we discern clear justice, and how well we deal it. If any poor man steals a sheep, having ten children starving, and regarding it as mountain game (as a rich man does a hare), to the gallows with him. If a man of rank beats down a door, smites the owner upon the head, and honours the wife with attention, it is a thing to be grateful for, and to slouch smitten head the lower." (wasn't that a bit of satire?:)
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS BOOK!
----------------------------
1st Review
The movies hardly ever do books justice. This is no exception. However, it's a fairly large book, so it's no wonder.
Loved every minute of it. I loved rolling the language around in my mouth. I think some would be annoyed at the chattiness of the author, if the "asides" were removed you might get rid of 300-400 pages of the 700+ book. I loved them though.
In the movie I saw (A&E version) they portrayed John Ridd (narrator, hero) as a vengeful young man eager to wreak havoc on the dirty Doone's for their dastardly actions against Ridd's father and his love, Lorna. He's not like that at all in the book. In fact, his peaceful, self-effacing and honest nature is the great highlight of the book.
This would be a fabulous book to put in the category "Blood and Morality Tales for Young Boys" because it's got plenty of action, blood, and adventure--with only a tinge of romance (the guy has to get the girl)and the hero is really heroic not only in action but in character. I wonder about getting a youngster through the "asides" but I think a good reader would be caught up enough in the story to go through with it.
Blackmore did a super job of creating suspense and action clear until the very end.
-----------
February 2018
Read again to beguile the winter days. So beguiled. Enchanted.
If you are the type of reader who might find great joy in listening to an old man telling his long and rambling love story of a life (imagine a comfortable fireside setting, cushy chairs, popcorn and cocoa) then you will adore this book. If you're the type of reader who would be impatient, bored or even annoyed in such a setting, you will not enjoy this book so leave it alone rather than revile it.
Reader, you must be prepared to wander. You must be inclined to be patient in the telling. You must be willing to delight in bygone days imagined. You must be eager for a jaunt back in time, reveling in the difference from the slowness of then to the hurry of now. You must be content with deciphering dialect (or skipping the undecipherable). You must be disposed to worship the adorable Lorna with her devoted John, or at least try to understand why he does...think of your own love story. Does anyone love your love as you do?
This is one long, long ramble of the love of a man for a woman. It is the sweetest of love stories. It will sweep you up and carry you away. You can thank me later.
My other two reviews don't do it justice. Nor will this one. I don't have the proper words or the time. But really, if you haven't yet...give it a try. I challenge you not to fall in love with the bumbling, sweet, yet strong John Ridd. I love all the cast of characters, but his I love the most.
--
2nd Review
Nov 09, read with bookgroup
I hate it when this book ends! Really it couldn't keep going, but I so want it too. I just want to live on that farm in that beautiful country.
Learning that Blackmore was devoted to gardening and farming made this book and the narrator's love for the land even more beautiful.
I wrote a little note to my bookgroup apologizing to them if anyone was annoyed by the many many asides, colloquialisms, archaic words and descriptions (which I love) they would appreciate a quote from the book after one of the side-stories:
"Now this has led me out of my way; as things are always doing, partly through their own perverseness, partly through my kind desire to give fair turn to all of them, and to all the people who do them. If anyone expects of me a strict and well-drilled story, standing "at attention" all the time, with hands at the side...., and eyes going neither right nor left; I trow that man has been disappointed many a page ago, and has left me to my evil ways; and if not, I love his charity."
I love every single word of this book. To me the cadence is like poetry or a beautiful song. I would love to meet Mr. Blackmore someday, I would just love to hear him speak. I think he poured his whole soul into this book. I have to think the way John Ridd loves Lorna is the way Blackmore loved his wife. It's beautiful. His humans are so real and his wit so perfect.
Those of you wishing to know what Lorna Doone is about, will have to go elsewhere, I don't have time to do a summary. Suffice it for me to say it's wonderful. I will stick in a couple of my most favorite lines.
"And I for my part can never conceinve how people who live in towns and cities, where neither lambs nor birds are (except in some shop windows), nor growing corn, nor meadow-grass, nor even so much as a sick to cut, or a stile to climb and sit down upon --how these poor folk get through their lives, without being utterly weary of them, and dying from pure indolence, is a thing God only knows, if His mercy allows Him to think of it."
--
"She looked as if she had been visited by many troubles, and had felt them one by one; yet held enough of kindly nature still to grieve for others."
--
"...It strikes me that of all human dealings, satire is the very lowest, and most mean and common. It is the equivalent in words, for what bullying is in deeds; and no more bespeaks a clever man, than the other does a brave one. These two wretched tricks exalt a fool in his own low esteem, but never in his neighbor's; for the deep common sense of our nature tells that no man of a genial heart, or of any special mind can take pride in either."
--
"...goodness of heart is more important than to show good reason for having it."
--
This is a passage between the wily Counsellor (Lorna's "uncle") and John's mother:
'Good, madam! I may look upon that as your sanction and approval: and the College of Heralds shall hear of it. And in return, as Lorna's guardian, I give my full and ready consent to her marriage with your son, madam.'
'Oh, how good of you, sir, how kind! Well, I always did say, that the learnedest people were, almost always, the best and kindest, and the most simple-hearted.'
'Madam, that is a great sentiment. What a goodly couple they will be! and if we can add him to our strength�'
'Oh no, sir, oh no!' cried mother: 'you really must not think of it. He has always been brought up so honest�'
'Hem! that makes a difference. A decided disqualification for domestic life among the Doones. But, surely, he might get over those prejudices, madam?'
'Oh no, sir! he never can: he never can indeed. When he was only that high, sir, he could not steal even an apple, when some wicked boys tried to mislead him.'
'Ah,' replied the Counsellor, shaking his white head gravely; 'then I greatly fear that his case is quite incurable. I have known such cases; violent prejudice, bred entirely of education, and anti-economical to the last degree. And when it is so, it is desperate: no man, after imbibing ideas of that sort, can in any way be useful.'
--
"Pure pleasure it is to any man, to reflect upon all these things. How truly we discern clear justice, and how well we deal it. If any poor man steals a sheep, having ten children starving, and regarding it as mountain game (as a rich man does a hare), to the gallows with him. If a man of rank beats down a door, smites the owner upon the head, and honours the wife with attention, it is a thing to be grateful for, and to slouch smitten head the lower." (wasn't that a bit of satire?:)
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS BOOK!
----------------------------
1st Review
The movies hardly ever do books justice. This is no exception. However, it's a fairly large book, so it's no wonder.
Loved every minute of it. I loved rolling the language around in my mouth. I think some would be annoyed at the chattiness of the author, if the "asides" were removed you might get rid of 300-400 pages of the 700+ book. I loved them though.
In the movie I saw (A&E version) they portrayed John Ridd (narrator, hero) as a vengeful young man eager to wreak havoc on the dirty Doone's for their dastardly actions against Ridd's father and his love, Lorna. He's not like that at all in the book. In fact, his peaceful, self-effacing and honest nature is the great highlight of the book.
This would be a fabulous book to put in the category "Blood and Morality Tales for Young Boys" because it's got plenty of action, blood, and adventure--with only a tinge of romance (the guy has to get the girl)and the hero is really heroic not only in action but in character. I wonder about getting a youngster through the "asides" but I think a good reader would be caught up enough in the story to go through with it.
Blackmore did a super job of creating suspense and action clear until the very end.
-----------
November 7, 2022
It is must read for every fan of historical fiction (especially of seventeenth-century England). I think, not all fans will love the style of writing but still, they should try to read it at least.
It was really good historical fiction. It portrayed superbly everyday life and the impact of big events on common people.
There were also fascinating descriptions of important events and historical issues.
There was the wisdom too, so precious, especially in historical fiction, that teaches us or at least is trying to teach us.
But, as I wrote, the style of writing was a bit specific. There were moments I felt tired of reading. There was something in too long sentences and the order in them, that made reading a bit wearisome.
Also, some parts of love story (the talks between lovers) were a tiny bit too... sweet and fairy-tale as to me (I mean, I like it in other books, but in here it didn't feel perfect).
Nonetheless, these flaws were nothing comparing to the other aspects and advantages of the novel.
It was really good historical fiction. It portrayed superbly everyday life and the impact of big events on common people.
we of the moderate party, hearing all this and ten times as much and having no love for this sour James, such as we had for the lively Charles, were ready to wait for what might happen, rather than care about stopping it
the price of horses' shoes was gone up again, though already twopence-farthing each; and that Betty had broken her lover's head with the stocking full of money
There were also fascinating descriptions of important events and historical issues.
Flying men, flung back from dreams of victory and honour, only glad to have the luck of life and limbs to fly with, mud-bedraggled, foul with slime, reeking both with sweat and blood, which they could not stop to wipe, cursing, with their pumped-out lungs, every stick that hindered them, or gory puddle that slipped the step, scarcely able to leap over the corses that had dragged to die
There was the wisdom too, so precious, especially in historical fiction, that teaches us or at least is trying to teach us.
Too late we know the good from bad; the knowledge is no pleasure then; being memory's medicine rather than the wine of hope
Hope, of course, is nothing more than desire with a telescope, magnifying distant matters, overlooking near ones; opening one eye on the objects, closing the other to all objections. And if hope be the future tense of desire, the future of fear is religion—at least with too many of us.
Now this may seem very strange to us who live in a better and purer age—or say at least that we do so—and yet who are we to condemn our fathers for teaching us better manners, and at their own expense?
But, as I wrote, the style of writing was a bit specific. There were moments I felt tired of reading. There was something in too long sentences and the order in them, that made reading a bit wearisome.
Also, some parts of love story (the talks between lovers) were a tiny bit too... sweet and fairy-tale as to me (I mean, I like it in other books, but in here it didn't feel perfect).
"You sweet love," I said at this, being slave to her soft obedience; "do you suppose I should be content to leave you until Elysium?" "How on earth can I tell, dear John, what you will be content with?" "You, and only you," said I; "the whole of it lies in a syllable. Now you know my entire want; and want must be my comfortetc. etc.
Nonetheless, these flaws were nothing comparing to the other aspects and advantages of the novel.
May 3, 2015
The plethora of interesting aspects to this book makes it difficult to decide about which ones to write. John Ridd is a young boy living in the wilds of western England in the 17th century, when his father is murdered by a band of outlaws who torment, bully and rob the farmers and good people of Exmoor. The Doones occupy their own outlaw village and not only survive by robbing those around them but also prey on the their neighbors for sport. When John Ridd’s father stands up to these bullies, he is murdered and leaves behind his widow, Sarah Ridd, his prosperous farm, and his three children.
Although John grows up without the guidance of his father, he develops into an upstanding, strong and honest man. Never for a minute does John harbor resentment or a grudge against the Doones. If he had let hate and vengeance consume him, his heart would never have been open to receive the love of Lorna Doone and he would have missed out on the greatest love of his life. What impressed me most about these star-crossed lovers is that they refuse to let the sins of their families ruin their happiness. R.D. Blackmore has created a character in John Ridd that is an enduring moral example for all ages.
Find this review and others at:
Despite unfortunate circumstances and countless obstacles, the zeal of John and Lorna’s love never wanes. John’s thoughts and actions are always carried out with his love in mind, no matter how long it has been since he has beheld her face. This romance is an interesting lesson for those of us in the 21st century who are accustomed to social media, Skype, text messaging, and any number of gadgets that keep us constantly in connection with one another. We do not have to wait days and weeks for a letter from a loved one or travel on an extended and tedious journey to reach our beloved. In this age of “out of site, out of mind,� would a man and woman be so patient, faithful and enduring in their love as John and Lorna?
The plot is also one of the factors that made me devour this book. The reader is kept in constant suspense wondering whether or not the evil villians, in the form of the Doones, and especially their leader Carver Doone, will get their just deserts. Will anyone come to the aid of the innocent people of Exmoor to stomp out these bullies, or will John Ridd and his neighbors take matters into their own hands? John’s cousin, Tom Faggus, who is also a highway robber, has many interesting parts in the storyline. Although, as a counterexample to the Doones, he robs the rich and gives the spoils to the poor. R.D. Blackmore kept me guessing the various fates and outcomes of his characters until the very end.
R.D. Blackmore’s tale has the perfect formula for a great novel: romance, adventure, a bucolic setting, and indelible characters. The tale of John Ridd has truly captured my heart and like all my favorite classic books, it will be one of those that I will reread again and again.
Although John grows up without the guidance of his father, he develops into an upstanding, strong and honest man. Never for a minute does John harbor resentment or a grudge against the Doones. If he had let hate and vengeance consume him, his heart would never have been open to receive the love of Lorna Doone and he would have missed out on the greatest love of his life. What impressed me most about these star-crossed lovers is that they refuse to let the sins of their families ruin their happiness. R.D. Blackmore has created a character in John Ridd that is an enduring moral example for all ages.
Find this review and others at:
Despite unfortunate circumstances and countless obstacles, the zeal of John and Lorna’s love never wanes. John’s thoughts and actions are always carried out with his love in mind, no matter how long it has been since he has beheld her face. This romance is an interesting lesson for those of us in the 21st century who are accustomed to social media, Skype, text messaging, and any number of gadgets that keep us constantly in connection with one another. We do not have to wait days and weeks for a letter from a loved one or travel on an extended and tedious journey to reach our beloved. In this age of “out of site, out of mind,� would a man and woman be so patient, faithful and enduring in their love as John and Lorna?
The plot is also one of the factors that made me devour this book. The reader is kept in constant suspense wondering whether or not the evil villians, in the form of the Doones, and especially their leader Carver Doone, will get their just deserts. Will anyone come to the aid of the innocent people of Exmoor to stomp out these bullies, or will John Ridd and his neighbors take matters into their own hands? John’s cousin, Tom Faggus, who is also a highway robber, has many interesting parts in the storyline. Although, as a counterexample to the Doones, he robs the rich and gives the spoils to the poor. R.D. Blackmore kept me guessing the various fates and outcomes of his characters until the very end.
R.D. Blackmore’s tale has the perfect formula for a great novel: romance, adventure, a bucolic setting, and indelible characters. The tale of John Ridd has truly captured my heart and like all my favorite classic books, it will be one of those that I will reread again and again.
July 24, 2010
A pleasant surprise, I admit.
I first saw a copy of this book on my library's (used) bookshelves for 25 cents but even that ridiculously low price didn't tempt me enough to purchase it. I didn't want to get stuck with one of those heavy, portentous, late Victorian tomes that would render me comatose.
Then, however, I watched version of the book. The plot looked interesting so the next time I was browsing the library's shelves I took the 2-bit plunge and bought the book.
And I'm glad I did. From its first pages, where a young John Ridd unknowingly meets the young girl who would become Lorna Doone, to John's final fight with the savage Carver Doone, murderer of his father and attempted ravisher of Lorna, Lorna Doone is a fast-moving, improbable but delightful adventure. John Ridd, our narrator, is a stolid, peace-loving yeoman farmer who desires above all to live quietly on his farm with the woman (and the family) he loves. But circumstances conspire to place "obstacles" in his path. The coincidences that bring John and Lorna together, split them, and then join them once again are outlandish but you don't care since, first, you really like both characters and are rooting for them the entire time, and, second, Blackmore's writes sprightly and assuredly; its a pleasure to read. And peppered with acerbic comments about women, law, religion, village life, and other aspects of English society (some examples of which can be found in my update feeds).
Recommended for those who like the novels of Rafael Sabatini and others like him.
I first saw a copy of this book on my library's (used) bookshelves for 25 cents but even that ridiculously low price didn't tempt me enough to purchase it. I didn't want to get stuck with one of those heavy, portentous, late Victorian tomes that would render me comatose.
Then, however, I watched version of the book. The plot looked interesting so the next time I was browsing the library's shelves I took the 2-bit plunge and bought the book.
And I'm glad I did. From its first pages, where a young John Ridd unknowingly meets the young girl who would become Lorna Doone, to John's final fight with the savage Carver Doone, murderer of his father and attempted ravisher of Lorna, Lorna Doone is a fast-moving, improbable but delightful adventure. John Ridd, our narrator, is a stolid, peace-loving yeoman farmer who desires above all to live quietly on his farm with the woman (and the family) he loves. But circumstances conspire to place "obstacles" in his path. The coincidences that bring John and Lorna together, split them, and then join them once again are outlandish but you don't care since, first, you really like both characters and are rooting for them the entire time, and, second, Blackmore's writes sprightly and assuredly; its a pleasure to read. And peppered with acerbic comments about women, law, religion, village life, and other aspects of English society (some examples of which can be found in my update feeds).
Recommended for those who like the novels of Rafael Sabatini and others like him.
June 23, 2022
141219: i read this because it is a formative romance of my father’s youth. so i read it in two ways, as text, as his interpretation. this is a long book. seems longer because of extensive descriptions, details, action not the least propulsive but qualified with outcome and, usually, protests against doing of or later talking of necessary violence. after the love-at-first-youthful-sight, there must be a hundred pages or more describing political/criminal domination of the those blackguard doones... interspersed with details of john ridd’s farm and family life...
this is a long book. i think of my father reading it, rural and right-thinking (but not slow-seeming) as john ridd, and how this could be an alternative image of women rather than his (confusingly artistic) sisters or (tragically ill) mother... and how, as he grew up, as he became scientist, this probably remained just his ideal. he met my mom. he once told me that he could see killing a man if he hurt my mom, and i think that is the sentiment here as well... for this may be long but is not complicated or empathetic to the antagonists: bad is bad, evil is evil, punishment is just, forgiveness is... up to the Big Guy...
so how is this ‘feministlit: well, this is kind of the Victorian idealized woman, that is, beautiful, warm, kind, gentle, giving, caring, loyal, beautiful... um, beautiful? (she knows how to be passive)
so how is this ‘masculinistlit: this is the Victorian idealized man, that is, big and strong, loyal to his betters, no intellect, natural honesty, generous, forgiving, loyal in love, big and strong... (he knows his place)
and religion?: i do not know enough about the religious conflicts of the time, as in historicity or wars...
and romantic?: well actually this kind of fades into the background, no matter how the narrator john says he will focus on it. does not really seem john and carver are ever in conflict, as lorna decides quite early, and the only act is rescuing her from captivity/threatened marriage...
why i like this more than most say dickens? not sure, but possibly because it is not urban. it is rural. it is few characters and simple motivations and plot, more like fable than tale. there are not so many characters that need be defined by quirks in act or speech (though the dialects are tiresome). very dry humor but not satire. and then, compared to modern work: i do not think i have tendency to reading about ‘bad� people... but the ‘good� herein are spotless ‘good� (modest about it too) and i guess if you want to read 800 pages you want to read about good people...? and i did read it in five long sittings...
this is a long book. i think of my father reading it, rural and right-thinking (but not slow-seeming) as john ridd, and how this could be an alternative image of women rather than his (confusingly artistic) sisters or (tragically ill) mother... and how, as he grew up, as he became scientist, this probably remained just his ideal. he met my mom. he once told me that he could see killing a man if he hurt my mom, and i think that is the sentiment here as well... for this may be long but is not complicated or empathetic to the antagonists: bad is bad, evil is evil, punishment is just, forgiveness is... up to the Big Guy...
so how is this ‘feministlit: well, this is kind of the Victorian idealized woman, that is, beautiful, warm, kind, gentle, giving, caring, loyal, beautiful... um, beautiful? (she knows how to be passive)
so how is this ‘masculinistlit: this is the Victorian idealized man, that is, big and strong, loyal to his betters, no intellect, natural honesty, generous, forgiving, loyal in love, big and strong... (he knows his place)
and religion?: i do not know enough about the religious conflicts of the time, as in historicity or wars...
and romantic?: well actually this kind of fades into the background, no matter how the narrator john says he will focus on it. does not really seem john and carver are ever in conflict, as lorna decides quite early, and the only act is rescuing her from captivity/threatened marriage...
why i like this more than most say dickens? not sure, but possibly because it is not urban. it is rural. it is few characters and simple motivations and plot, more like fable than tale. there are not so many characters that need be defined by quirks in act or speech (though the dialects are tiresome). very dry humor but not satire. and then, compared to modern work: i do not think i have tendency to reading about ‘bad� people... but the ‘good� herein are spotless ‘good� (modest about it too) and i guess if you want to read 800 pages you want to read about good people...? and i did read it in five long sittings...
June 28, 2020
It has been a while since I launched myself into a long Victorian novel. Now that I have finished it, I want more. I had never read by before: It was not in the "main line" of the Victorian novel, but it deserves to be.
Thye story of John Ridd, the honest farmer, and his love for Lorna, who was kidnapped by the outlawed Doones, is a well-told tale, with numerous details of life along the Somerset/Devon border in England's west country. The Doones are real baddies, causing untold tragedy and damage to the law-abiding citizens of the region.
I remember seeing a silent film version of the novel (1922) directed by Maurice Tourneur, father of horror film director Jacques Tourneur. I had always wanted to read the book and am happy the infamous coonavirus quarantine gave me the opportunity.
Thye story of John Ridd, the honest farmer, and his love for Lorna, who was kidnapped by the outlawed Doones, is a well-told tale, with numerous details of life along the Somerset/Devon border in England's west country. The Doones are real baddies, causing untold tragedy and damage to the law-abiding citizens of the region.
I remember seeing a silent film version of the novel (1922) directed by Maurice Tourneur, father of horror film director Jacques Tourneur. I had always wanted to read the book and am happy the infamous coonavirus quarantine gave me the opportunity.
January 20, 2018
Being terrible for buying tons of books at a time, which then sit untouched on my physical and virtual shelves for years whilst I get distracted by newer, shinier books, I thought I’d start this year by trying to get through some of my backlog. I picked Lorna Doone - this was a HUGE mistake, nearly robbing me of my reading mojo just two books into the new year.
John Ridd is a farmer in the village of Oare and leads a simple enough life. Bringing in the harvest, going fishing, and hoping to avoid the local colour - the Doone’s, a family of apparently noble birth who spend their time robbing and killing as many of the locals and visitors to Exmoor as they can. John falls in love with one of their number, Lorna, through a chance encounter at a young age, and from there on starts planning on how to release her from the Doone’s clutches.
A classic that has apparently never been out of print since its publication, I can only imagine that every other reader is far more patient and clever than I am. Moving slower than a comatose sloth, and filled with incredibly dense language that was agony to wade through, if I was any other person I would have abandoned this book fairly quickly. Unfortunately, my approach is a little more Magnus Magnusson (“I’ve started so I’ll finish�), leaving me to read of John walking backwards and forwards across Exmoor, describing every sodding single blade of grass in minute detail each time, and having virtually incomprehensible conversations with the locals:
Nope, me neither.
If you like your reading matter to be incredibly hard work, with a meandering plot and using 100 words where it could have used one, Lorna Doone will be well up your street. Otherwise, avoid at all costs.
John Ridd is a farmer in the village of Oare and leads a simple enough life. Bringing in the harvest, going fishing, and hoping to avoid the local colour - the Doone’s, a family of apparently noble birth who spend their time robbing and killing as many of the locals and visitors to Exmoor as they can. John falls in love with one of their number, Lorna, through a chance encounter at a young age, and from there on starts planning on how to release her from the Doone’s clutches.
A classic that has apparently never been out of print since its publication, I can only imagine that every other reader is far more patient and clever than I am. Moving slower than a comatose sloth, and filled with incredibly dense language that was agony to wade through, if I was any other person I would have abandoned this book fairly quickly. Unfortunately, my approach is a little more Magnus Magnusson (“I’ve started so I’ll finish�), leaving me to read of John walking backwards and forwards across Exmoor, describing every sodding single blade of grass in minute detail each time, and having virtually incomprehensible conversations with the locals:
Zailor, ees fai! ay and zarve un raight. Her can't kape out o' the watter here, whur a' must, goo vor to vaind un, zame as a gurt to-ad squalloping, and mux up till I be wore out, I be, wi' the very saight of 's braiches. How wil un ever baide aboard zhip, wi' the watter zinging out under un, and comin' up splash when the wind blow. Latt un goo, missus, latt un goo, zay I for wan, and old Davy wash his clouts for un.�
Nope, me neither.
If you like your reading matter to be incredibly hard work, with a meandering plot and using 100 words where it could have used one, Lorna Doone will be well up your street. Otherwise, avoid at all costs.
May 11, 2020
Well, it’s at least my third reading of this classic set in 17th century England (another childhood favourite) and I’d give it more stars each time. It’s one of those books that grows with you, and you get more out of it with every reading. For one thing, it’s the most romantic book I’ve ever read, and I just fall to my knees (metaphorically!) when I look at this picture -many, many thanks to Ilse for teaching me how to insert an image!
The novel is a romance in the old sense, in that the love story is set in a context of high adventure, as the hero, John Ridd (or ‘Jan� in the dialect of Exmoor) has to win his love against the odds (to begin with, the Doones, a band of robbers and murderers, followed by more complicated obstacles to be surmounted later). Lorna is no cardboard heroine, either � there’s a lovely development, nothing 'méchant', between the Lorna of John’s vision and the real one, who, as the story progresses, is shown as making her own decisions.
The style is delicious. It’s satirical, but never overwhelmingly so, and observations are made by Jan Ridd with a disarming self-deprecation and a dry wit. I should say that the language is old-fashioned, and the odd dialectal paragraph will challenge anyone for whom English is not their first language. There was one part where I found myself surprised by the assertion by Jan’s labourer, John Fry, that a small band of farmers and labourers, gathered together in order to set upon someone, had “warships enow� at their disposal! What was meant was ‘enough worships� (important people)!
Another thing I loved were the descriptions of farming life and of nature. Somehow it didn’t feel like anthropomorphism when the horses they depend on, and all the creatures of Jan Ridd’s farm, were known intimately and their characteristics gently humanised � quite different from being randomly endowed with a superficial coating of borrowed human emotions. Jan has been two months away from the farm, and finally approaches home:
“But how shall I tell you the things I felt, and the swelling of my heart within me, as I drew nearer, and more near, to the place of all I loved and owned, to the haunt of every warm remembrance, the nest of all the fledgling hopes � in a word, to home? The first sheep I beheld on the moor with a great red J.R. on his side (for mother would have them marked with my name, instead of her own, as they should have been) I do asure you my spirit leaped, and all my sight came to my eyes. I shouted out, ‘Jem boy!� � for that was his name, and a rare hand he was at fighting � and he knew me in spite of the stranger horse; and I leaned over and stroked his head, and swore he should never be mutton. And when I was passed he set off at full gallop, to call the rest of the J.R.’s together, and tell them young master was come home at last.�
It made me look differently at the sheep which are always gathered outside my house, sizing up the possibilities of my (closed) garden gate!
R D Blackmore’s descriptions of nature are never forced, and appear almost incidental, as when it is Jan’s turn to wait in ambush, and listen for a signal from John Fry:
“We waited a very long time, with the moon marching up heaven steadfastly, and the white fog trembling in chords and columns, like a silver harp of the meadows. And then the moon drew up the fogs, and scarfed herself in white with them; and so being proud, gleamed upon the water, like a bride at her looking-glass; and yet there was no sound of either John Fry, or his blunderbuss.�
In my memory this story is set around the time of the Civil Wars (or “Wars of the Three Kingdoms") but actually it’s a bit later than that. Charles II is on the throne in a restored monarchy, favouring Catholicism in a land determinedly Protestant; and the end of the story is coloured by the dissatisfaction after his death with the ascendancy of his Catholic brother James (James II of England and VII of Scotland). The political context is, however, in the background and is detailed only insofar as it encroaches on the lives of the protagonists.
I really ought not to end this review without giving Lorna some words, bearing in mind that at that time young maidens were not supposed to ‘talk back� to their elders. Lorna receives a visit from her uncle, whose affection is double-edged:
“Dearest Lorna, kiss your uncle; it is quite a privilege.�
“Perhaps it is to you, sir,� said Lorna, who could never quite check her sense of oddity; “but I fear that you have smoked tobacco, which spoils reciprocity.�
Her uncle continues in the vein of doing her a great favour (one which I can’t specify!) and demands thanks:
“Lorna, being challenged thus, came up and looked at her uncle, with her noble eyes full on his, which beneath his white eyebrows glistened, like dormer windows piled with snow.
‘Well, uncle, I should be very grateful, if I thought that you did so for love of me; or if I did not know that you have something yet concealed from me.�"
Her uncle, however, is not the main villain of the piece; that dubious honour belongs to Carver Doone, who is undoubtedly the blackest rogue that ever rode over Exmoor. Suitably terrifying, when one is in the hands of this consummate novelist. An entire array of characters is laid out at our disposal, each lively and headstrong in their own way. Perhaps the most interesting are the other young female characters, Jan’s sisters Annie and Lizzie, and his cousin Ruth, all nicely contrasted with Jan’s mother, who “had seen a great deal of trouble; and grief begins to close on people, as their power of life declines�.
Of the dazzling cast of minor characters, the one whose story stays with me is “poor Kit Badcock� You will weep. And the one I like best, I think is the resourceful but underprized Ruth . . . but you’ll have to read the story to get to know them all! Worth it, and worth it, and worth it again.
The novel is a romance in the old sense, in that the love story is set in a context of high adventure, as the hero, John Ridd (or ‘Jan� in the dialect of Exmoor) has to win his love against the odds (to begin with, the Doones, a band of robbers and murderers, followed by more complicated obstacles to be surmounted later). Lorna is no cardboard heroine, either � there’s a lovely development, nothing 'méchant', between the Lorna of John’s vision and the real one, who, as the story progresses, is shown as making her own decisions.
The style is delicious. It’s satirical, but never overwhelmingly so, and observations are made by Jan Ridd with a disarming self-deprecation and a dry wit. I should say that the language is old-fashioned, and the odd dialectal paragraph will challenge anyone for whom English is not their first language. There was one part where I found myself surprised by the assertion by Jan’s labourer, John Fry, that a small band of farmers and labourers, gathered together in order to set upon someone, had “warships enow� at their disposal! What was meant was ‘enough worships� (important people)!
Another thing I loved were the descriptions of farming life and of nature. Somehow it didn’t feel like anthropomorphism when the horses they depend on, and all the creatures of Jan Ridd’s farm, were known intimately and their characteristics gently humanised � quite different from being randomly endowed with a superficial coating of borrowed human emotions. Jan has been two months away from the farm, and finally approaches home:
“But how shall I tell you the things I felt, and the swelling of my heart within me, as I drew nearer, and more near, to the place of all I loved and owned, to the haunt of every warm remembrance, the nest of all the fledgling hopes � in a word, to home? The first sheep I beheld on the moor with a great red J.R. on his side (for mother would have them marked with my name, instead of her own, as they should have been) I do asure you my spirit leaped, and all my sight came to my eyes. I shouted out, ‘Jem boy!� � for that was his name, and a rare hand he was at fighting � and he knew me in spite of the stranger horse; and I leaned over and stroked his head, and swore he should never be mutton. And when I was passed he set off at full gallop, to call the rest of the J.R.’s together, and tell them young master was come home at last.�
It made me look differently at the sheep which are always gathered outside my house, sizing up the possibilities of my (closed) garden gate!
R D Blackmore’s descriptions of nature are never forced, and appear almost incidental, as when it is Jan’s turn to wait in ambush, and listen for a signal from John Fry:
“We waited a very long time, with the moon marching up heaven steadfastly, and the white fog trembling in chords and columns, like a silver harp of the meadows. And then the moon drew up the fogs, and scarfed herself in white with them; and so being proud, gleamed upon the water, like a bride at her looking-glass; and yet there was no sound of either John Fry, or his blunderbuss.�
In my memory this story is set around the time of the Civil Wars (or “Wars of the Three Kingdoms") but actually it’s a bit later than that. Charles II is on the throne in a restored monarchy, favouring Catholicism in a land determinedly Protestant; and the end of the story is coloured by the dissatisfaction after his death with the ascendancy of his Catholic brother James (James II of England and VII of Scotland). The political context is, however, in the background and is detailed only insofar as it encroaches on the lives of the protagonists.
I really ought not to end this review without giving Lorna some words, bearing in mind that at that time young maidens were not supposed to ‘talk back� to their elders. Lorna receives a visit from her uncle, whose affection is double-edged:
“Dearest Lorna, kiss your uncle; it is quite a privilege.�
“Perhaps it is to you, sir,� said Lorna, who could never quite check her sense of oddity; “but I fear that you have smoked tobacco, which spoils reciprocity.�
Her uncle continues in the vein of doing her a great favour (one which I can’t specify!) and demands thanks:
“Lorna, being challenged thus, came up and looked at her uncle, with her noble eyes full on his, which beneath his white eyebrows glistened, like dormer windows piled with snow.
‘Well, uncle, I should be very grateful, if I thought that you did so for love of me; or if I did not know that you have something yet concealed from me.�"
Her uncle, however, is not the main villain of the piece; that dubious honour belongs to Carver Doone, who is undoubtedly the blackest rogue that ever rode over Exmoor. Suitably terrifying, when one is in the hands of this consummate novelist. An entire array of characters is laid out at our disposal, each lively and headstrong in their own way. Perhaps the most interesting are the other young female characters, Jan’s sisters Annie and Lizzie, and his cousin Ruth, all nicely contrasted with Jan’s mother, who “had seen a great deal of trouble; and grief begins to close on people, as their power of life declines�.
Of the dazzling cast of minor characters, the one whose story stays with me is “poor Kit Badcock� You will weep. And the one I like best, I think is the resourceful but underprized Ruth . . . but you’ll have to read the story to get to know them all! Worth it, and worth it, and worth it again.
June 18, 2017
I was excited to read this *romance not historical* classic, but sadly (very sadly given there were 750 pages of it) it just wasn't really my cup of tea.
Ironically, it was the historical parts of the novel I liked a lot more than the 'romance'. I liked the setting, I liked the way the story was set up with those evil Doones, and I liked all the descriptions of the natural environment and the farmin' life.
What I didn't like, and what made those 750 pages drag, were the characters. We have our protagonist John 'Jan' Ridd. A stolid, good, manly kind of bloke. In short, a bit of a boring dolt. And then there was Lorna. A Victorian model of a good, meek, prone to swoons type of woman. In short, a wimp. It was interesting to read in the editor's notes that Blackmore revised an earlier edition of the book to downplay sexual elements of Lorna. I suspect I may have enjoyed the 'unrevised' edition more.
I never felt any real connection to the characters and their plight, and the flabbiness of the prose turned the possibly exciting bits into not so exciting because I was snoring by the Blackmore finally got to the point.
It was an okay read. Can't say I'll be queueing up any more of Blackmore to read though.
Ironically, it was the historical parts of the novel I liked a lot more than the 'romance'. I liked the setting, I liked the way the story was set up with those evil Doones, and I liked all the descriptions of the natural environment and the farmin' life.
What I didn't like, and what made those 750 pages drag, were the characters. We have our protagonist John 'Jan' Ridd. A stolid, good, manly kind of bloke. In short, a bit of a boring dolt. And then there was Lorna. A Victorian model of a good, meek, prone to swoons type of woman. In short, a wimp. It was interesting to read in the editor's notes that Blackmore revised an earlier edition of the book to downplay sexual elements of Lorna. I suspect I may have enjoyed the 'unrevised' edition more.
I never felt any real connection to the characters and their plight, and the flabbiness of the prose turned the possibly exciting bits into not so exciting because I was snoring by the Blackmore finally got to the point.
It was an okay read. Can't say I'll be queueing up any more of Blackmore to read though.
October 27, 2021
This was unlike any book I’ve read. The ending was so exciting! Have more thoughts, will write more later!
I read this for Victober 2021. As I've been mulling over the book since finishing it, it struck me that one of the main questions of this book is "What is lawful?" That was a very different question in the 1680s, when this book is set, than in a Victorian novel set in its own time or in a modern novel. Before easy modes of transportation and communication (even the Victorians had the telegraph and railways), lawlessness was a serious issue and threat. Enter the Doone clan.
The Doones live in Doone Valley and are a law and a people unto themselves. They mercilessly steal, murder, and carry off women for their own gain. They're basically Public Enemy #1 to the good people living in the Exmoor area. The main conflict of the novel is between John Ridd (who has reason to hate the Doones early on) and the Doones, between lawfulness and lawlessness. John Ridd grows from boy to man in the course of the story and his process of becoming a man is intricately linked to the menace the Doones present on numerous levels. I appreciate that the novel didn't make this conflict between John Ridd and his compatriots and the Doones easy. There were several quite harrowing incidents!
There are several other interesting explorations in the novel between lawfulness and lawlessness. The Ridds' distant cousin Tom Faggus is a highwayman, albeit one with charm, a lengendary horse, and some sense of morality. There is also a period of time in the novel after King Charles II has died when England is on the verge of chaos between the Catholics and Protestants. (I think...my English history is vague here.) Finally, there is a difference in religion between John Ridd and the eponymous Lorna Doone. This was a major thing to overcome back in the day.
I'm so familiar with history from 1800 on that the world of the 1680s feels incredibly strange to me. It is so hard to wrap my mind around the isolation they experienced and the difficulty in communicating and traveling. Twice in the novel, John goes to London and it's a huge undertaking. He spends time just walking the streets because it's so different from the farm he has grown up on at home in Exmoor. I did love the details of farming at this time, including the harvest festival they celebrate. It reminded me a ton of Thomas Hardy's novels, especially Far From the Madding Crowd. There are passages of beautiful nature writing as well. I think my favorite section was an epic Long Winter (i.e. Laura Ingalls Wilder intensity) when John makes his own snowshoes (thanks to his sister Lizzie) and goes on an epic adventure, which I won't spoil.
I also loved the hospitality of the Ridds and how their farm becomes a kind of headquarters through the novel. The relationship between the Ridds and Jeremy Stickles is one of my very favorite parts of the novel. Jeremy is such an interesting "outsider" character and he's instrumental to so many twists and turns of the plot.
The romance in this novel between John Ridd and Lorna Doone is also very different from a modern conception of romance. The subtitle of this book is "A Romance of Exmoor", so I think this book is rooted in the genre (I guess?) of the Medieval Romance, which I know nothing about at all except that I think it has to do with man's chivalry and woman's chastity (purity). I do think that having a more robust understanding of a Medieval Romance would have helped in reading this because I found it hard not to set aside my modern conception of equality between genders (the common humanity we share). John idolizes Lorna and his sister Annie and their beauty and treats his less comely sister Lizzie and cousin Ruth almost with contempt. As a modern person, I can poke a million holes in this, but I have a feeling there is much more going on of a symbolic nature that I'm not catching. However, it did make this book less enjoyable for me because I wanted to roll my eyes at the absurd speeches John makes about Lorna that are just too sickly sweet, lol
I'm glad I read this novel because it is certainly well written, tightly plotted, and a fascinating insight into a specific time period. There were some plot twists that I did NOT see coming and really enjoyed. However, it just wasn't really my cup of tea. I guess I'm not a big fan of lawlessness as a theme in a novel, even though it was a very stark reality for much of history. It seems to expose Hobbes' point a little too bitingly for my taste: "[The] life of man [is] solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." It certainly is if you're a Doone.
I read this for Victober 2021. As I've been mulling over the book since finishing it, it struck me that one of the main questions of this book is "What is lawful?" That was a very different question in the 1680s, when this book is set, than in a Victorian novel set in its own time or in a modern novel. Before easy modes of transportation and communication (even the Victorians had the telegraph and railways), lawlessness was a serious issue and threat. Enter the Doone clan.
The Doones live in Doone Valley and are a law and a people unto themselves. They mercilessly steal, murder, and carry off women for their own gain. They're basically Public Enemy #1 to the good people living in the Exmoor area. The main conflict of the novel is between John Ridd (who has reason to hate the Doones early on) and the Doones, between lawfulness and lawlessness. John Ridd grows from boy to man in the course of the story and his process of becoming a man is intricately linked to the menace the Doones present on numerous levels. I appreciate that the novel didn't make this conflict between John Ridd and his compatriots and the Doones easy. There were several quite harrowing incidents!
There are several other interesting explorations in the novel between lawfulness and lawlessness. The Ridds' distant cousin Tom Faggus is a highwayman, albeit one with charm, a lengendary horse, and some sense of morality. There is also a period of time in the novel after King Charles II has died when England is on the verge of chaos between the Catholics and Protestants. (I think...my English history is vague here.) Finally, there is a difference in religion between John Ridd and the eponymous Lorna Doone. This was a major thing to overcome back in the day.
I'm so familiar with history from 1800 on that the world of the 1680s feels incredibly strange to me. It is so hard to wrap my mind around the isolation they experienced and the difficulty in communicating and traveling. Twice in the novel, John goes to London and it's a huge undertaking. He spends time just walking the streets because it's so different from the farm he has grown up on at home in Exmoor. I did love the details of farming at this time, including the harvest festival they celebrate. It reminded me a ton of Thomas Hardy's novels, especially Far From the Madding Crowd. There are passages of beautiful nature writing as well. I think my favorite section was an epic Long Winter (i.e. Laura Ingalls Wilder intensity) when John makes his own snowshoes (thanks to his sister Lizzie) and goes on an epic adventure, which I won't spoil.
I also loved the hospitality of the Ridds and how their farm becomes a kind of headquarters through the novel. The relationship between the Ridds and Jeremy Stickles is one of my very favorite parts of the novel. Jeremy is such an interesting "outsider" character and he's instrumental to so many twists and turns of the plot.
The romance in this novel between John Ridd and Lorna Doone is also very different from a modern conception of romance. The subtitle of this book is "A Romance of Exmoor", so I think this book is rooted in the genre (I guess?) of the Medieval Romance, which I know nothing about at all except that I think it has to do with man's chivalry and woman's chastity (purity). I do think that having a more robust understanding of a Medieval Romance would have helped in reading this because I found it hard not to set aside my modern conception of equality between genders (the common humanity we share). John idolizes Lorna and his sister Annie and their beauty and treats his less comely sister Lizzie and cousin Ruth almost with contempt. As a modern person, I can poke a million holes in this, but I have a feeling there is much more going on of a symbolic nature that I'm not catching. However, it did make this book less enjoyable for me because I wanted to roll my eyes at the absurd speeches John makes about Lorna that are just too sickly sweet, lol
I'm glad I read this novel because it is certainly well written, tightly plotted, and a fascinating insight into a specific time period. There were some plot twists that I did NOT see coming and really enjoyed. However, it just wasn't really my cup of tea. I guess I'm not a big fan of lawlessness as a theme in a novel, even though it was a very stark reality for much of history. It seems to expose Hobbes' point a little too bitingly for my taste: "[The] life of man [is] solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." It certainly is if you're a Doone.
December 25, 2014
I was assigned a (vastly abridged) version of this when I was in grade school, which kept 90% of the plot but cut out a lot of the description and the on and on. This was in 4th or 5th grade, but it has stayed with me ever since. I read the abridged version so many times it literally fell to pieces, and this was my first time reading the unabridged version.
Blackmore wrote in the dialogue of the time, writing "in accent" so to speak, which was difficult to get through at times. For some of his characters, I literally had to read the dialogue out loud to try to sound out what he was writing. Thankfully, this was only one or two of the characters, the rest were much easier to read through. He does kind of go on at points, and the plot has so many twists and turns that you practically need a diagram to keep up with it--but that was very much the style of the time. It's well worth the effort you put in to get through it; obviously, if 15 years after the first time I read it it's still haunting me.
Blackmore wrote in the dialogue of the time, writing "in accent" so to speak, which was difficult to get through at times. For some of his characters, I literally had to read the dialogue out loud to try to sound out what he was writing. Thankfully, this was only one or two of the characters, the rest were much easier to read through. He does kind of go on at points, and the plot has so many twists and turns that you practically need a diagram to keep up with it--but that was very much the style of the time. It's well worth the effort you put in to get through it; obviously, if 15 years after the first time I read it it's still haunting me.
October 14, 2007
Well---I think Blackmore outdoes the Brontes in romance and stirring action with Lorna Doone. The best romance action packed novel. I was so proud of myself as an eleven-year old when I read the "dumbed down" version of the book. They need to do a Young Adult version of Blackmore's heavy-weight novel so that readers allergic to anything over 250 pages will pick this one up for a good reading experience. OK---forget it you purists out there---I've already argued in favor of Classic Comics, abridged versions, anything that will eventually get someone to finally upgrade to the UNABRIDGED version of a book. Well, I came to loving classics via comic books so I guess I'm "one of those". So---elitists I'm for bringing the PUBLIC into the reading world while you snicker and look down on us!
August 23, 2007
That Carver Doone's a real bastard, if I remember correctly.
April 30, 2011
Available at Gutenberg Project:
Not so good as expected.
Not so good as expected.
May 11, 2009
I loved this book.
May 18, 2017
Even better the second time around!
March 5, 2015
Slow, slow, slow moving. Horribly repetitive. There really isn't that much of a plot. The movie is much much better.
October 27, 2021
Enorme coup de coeur...�
July 17, 2022
ماجرایی رمانتیک،نه چندان بی شباهت به آنچه بار ها خوانده ایم..نسخه "خلاصه کرده شده"ی من چاپ انتشارات توسن در دهه شصت..هر چند عملا داستان را مثله و فلج کرد..اما خوشخوان و روان بود..از آن داستان هایی که می توان چراغ افکار را هنگام خواندن خاموش کرد و در تاریکی و سکوت، در آرامش خواند.
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February 28, 2023I finished! I made it through to the end! I completed the book and I can check it off!
And that is one of the main pros of the book, my friend. It’s probably the most exciting part too.
Other pros�
Hmm..
I’ll start with the cons I guess.
John Ridd, the main character, is a lot like Beth March. Good but simple (and he’d say simple-minded), plain, boring, monotone. Just not much to get into or care about with this guy.
Lorna Doone is flat. Sorry, not her figure of course. She’s gorgeous. Her personality. But beauty is enough to like a character right?
The story could have been 500 less pages. Well, probably 600 less pages. Not much happens. Really.
The narrative is S. L. O. W. Even the “exciting� moments had a way of being told in the most drull ways. Maybe I should put that up with the pros as that seems like a developed skill, making a fight scene drull.
And that’s also about it. No big complaints, but nothing to make me like it either.
Cleanliness: there is killing, pillaging and ravishing women away. Nothing is overt or too detailed though. There is drinking and smoking. Mentions the word “breast�, most often to describe the chest. There is a “witch� that the main character goes to see to learn his fate. Some witchcraft mentioned/discussed (even how it’s not Biblical) but not actually practiced by the “witch.�
*Note: I listened to the audio version of this book so this Cleanliness Report may not be as thoroughly detailed as other reports are. Also, some inappropriate content may have been forgotten/missed and not included in the report.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell !
And that is one of the main pros of the book, my friend. It’s probably the most exciting part too.
Other pros�
Hmm..
I’ll start with the cons I guess.
John Ridd, the main character, is a lot like Beth March. Good but simple (and he’d say simple-minded), plain, boring, monotone. Just not much to get into or care about with this guy.
Lorna Doone is flat. Sorry, not her figure of course. She’s gorgeous. Her personality. But beauty is enough to like a character right?
The story could have been 500 less pages. Well, probably 600 less pages. Not much happens. Really.
The narrative is S. L. O. W. Even the “exciting� moments had a way of being told in the most drull ways. Maybe I should put that up with the pros as that seems like a developed skill, making a fight scene drull.
And that’s also about it. No big complaints, but nothing to make me like it either.
Cleanliness: there is killing, pillaging and ravishing women away. Nothing is overt or too detailed though. There is drinking and smoking. Mentions the word “breast�, most often to describe the chest. There is a “witch� that the main character goes to see to learn his fate. Some witchcraft mentioned/discussed (even how it’s not Biblical) but not actually practiced by the “witch.�
*Note: I listened to the audio version of this book so this Cleanliness Report may not be as thoroughly detailed as other reports are. Also, some inappropriate content may have been forgotten/missed and not included in the report.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell !
June 13, 2008
I read this in high school because I found a copy my mom had when she was in high school. I loved it so much, I started reading more English literature which carried me into college and ultimately my introduction to Jane Austen and the Brontes. Lorna Doone sent me into a world of great literature in which I will always be grateful. The story of Lorna and John is timeless and gets pushed into the shadows by other great works of art like Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde and Elizabeth and Darcy. Give it a chance, you won't be disappointed.
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