I already have a copy of this book but have not read it. I'm offering this up as an int'l bookray.

From Amazon:
When Isabel Archer, a beautiful, spirited American, is brought to Europe by her wealthy Aunt Touchett, it is expected that she will soon marry. But Isabel, resolved to determine her own fate, does not hesitate to turn down two eligible suitors. She then finds herself irresistibly drawn to Gilbert Osmond, who, beneath his veneer of charm and cultivation, is cruelty itself. A story of intense poignancy, Isabel's tale of love and betrayal still resonates with modern audiences.

I'm offering this book as an int'l bookray. Please read and pass it to the next person within a month.

Participants (Subject to change w/o notice):

1. jellyfish67 - UK (UK/Int'l)
2. Ythan - UK (Int'l)
3. stubee - UK (Int'l)
4. KT-J - UK (Int'l)<-- Book is here!

RELEASE NOTES:

Happy Reading!!

Arrived safely yesterday

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Sorry for the delay with this book. I did eventually finish it! It was enjoyable in parts, and, was a dip into the past.

On its way to next reader today.

This book arrived safely yesterday. I have two bookrings/rays in front of this one. Things are a bit hectic at the moment and with festive season approaching it won't get quieter anytime soon. I estimate to have this read by the first week in February. Will try to be quicker but at the moment that is my best prediction.

Thank you for letting me take part :)

Have just started reading this, i'm way behind with all my bookring/rays. Am going to try and speed up the process by reading two at once. Should be finished by the end of March.

Update 1st April:

Unfortunately I haven't finished reading this yet, reading two books at once (976 pages) in one month was just too ambitious for me. I am currently 60% of the way through this book, my next aim is to finish this on 10th April. I'll do my best. Thanks for being patient.

Next Update 11th April:

I've read 82%, should have posted by the end of next week, at last!!

I do enjoy reading the era that this book was set in. However, it just lacked excitement and anticipation for me. The author tended to analyse the thoughts and feelings of the characters too much which made to story drag on a bit. Would have preferred to follow the adventures of the main character and not just follow her life through the various men she met.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Put this in the post today, now going off to stubee.

Sorry for keeping it so long.

It's arrived; thanks Ythan for sending and to angela861 for sharing.

EDIT: 21st May - I've started.

EDIT: 8th June - I’m just over half way through this novel; I’m finding parts of it hard to read: I like how James describes the scenes but for some reason the dialogue between characters always comes across [in my head at least] as argument and debate. I find the whole society that Isabel has become part of a bit strange although most probably I’m just finding that I’m unable to relate to the time! Everyone in the novel appears to want to manipulate “poor” Isabel for their own pleasure and I find that very sad. I’m not sure I’d say I’m enjoying the novel however I’m going to keep reading because I need to find out what happens.

EDIT: 19th June - It's over and I must say I’m a bit relieved. It was a well written novel but as I’ve mentioned above I found the language a bit hard going.

Although I’m sure the story of Isabel could go on for quite a while longer I think the last few chapters brought this to a fitting conclusion and Henry James picked a good time to end the novel.

I’m not sure that I’ll be looking forward to reading James’ other novels on 1001 list although I’m told this is one of James' longer fictions.

Next Up: Jeanette Winterson - Written on the Body

P.S. I'm always interested in finding out about historical figures in novels that previously I have no idea about; in that regard the book has been quite educational as I've had a need to look up the following figures/references: Charles Gounod, Vittoria Colonna, Metastasio, Terpsichore, Gian Lorenzo Bernini

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Given to KT-J....

Received from Stubee, thanks. I'll be starting this soon.

Edit: I finally got round to reading this on holiday last week and it took me a while to get through. I actually found the book interesting and I quite enjoyed reading it to trace the characters and follow what happened to them. I thought the book was overlong though, nothing particularly happened in the first half and the story seemed to drag. It got better in the second half but I was disappointed with the ending as the story just seemed to finish without you finding out what happened to Isabel and Pansy.

Overall a book I'm glad I've read but not one I'd rush to read again!

Received in the post today, thank you Stubee.

This is one of those books that everyone seems to have read (but me) and so many references are made to (including 'Letting go' by Philip Roth, which I just finished reading). I need to read this to see what all the fuss is about.

Thank you again for sharing this book with me.