Zelda's Cut

by Philippa Gregory

Book Overview

Delicious combination of confused identities, personal dramas and moral dilemmas in a contemporary chiller from one of our most outstanding novelists.

For years, Isobel Latimer has composed serious novels for serious people, but to dwindling acclaim and ever-more dwindling gain. Now her husband is ill and she must carry their financial burden alone, and in secret.

But if the public don't want careful moral fables any longer, why not...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0006511775
• ISBN13: 9780006511779
• Release Date: February 2001
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.4" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

Wow one of the best I have ever listened to

Can't believe this book. A story that grabs you and you can't stop thinking about it until you put the next CD in to listen to. A 51yr old lady with a disabled husband who cannot work and they just plod on but she finacially supports them both. What an adventure. Anyone who is in a slightly stale marriage LADIES listen to this. I don't suggest that you do what she did. BUT wow.. the mind boggles I laughed out loud so many times then said OH NO OH NO so often. Brilliant Brilliant Brilliant Must read for any Married lady over 30 read. You will never forget this book. Mind blowing

Fantastic read

I don't usually read her books because I'm not a fan of historical "fiction". However, this book was fantastic! It draws you in, and you can't wait to see what happens next.

bizarre but so intising

The novel written by Philippa Gregory has you wanting to know more and having you try to guess what is going to happen next. She constantly surprises you. While reading I kept thinking, "I can't believe what I just read!". Her complex plots make this 400+ page novel a quick easy read. I highly recommend anyone who has an open mind to read this book.

A novel with an intriguing plot and a spilt personality

The author of a large body of truly outstanding historical fiction, Philippa Gregory has also written several novels which are set in the modern day. The tone of these books vary a great deal. On one end of the spectrum, there are her cheery feminist fairy tales, Mrs. Hartley and the Growth Centre and Perfectly Correct - on the other, the dark domestic realism of her novel The Little House. Sitting rather uneasily between these two extremes sits Gregory's new novel, Zelda's Cut. Zelda's Cut starts promisingly, with an examination of the strains and stresses put on a loving marriage by the ravages of illness. Isobel Latimer deeply loves her ailing husband, Philip. But the pain he suffers daily has changed him so completely - from the light-footed, light-hearted man that she knew and loved and married into a man who is bitter, reproachful, and sad - that some days she finds it hard not to give into despair. This section of the novel is truly heart-breaking - a realistic, no-holds-barred look at the toll that chronic illness takes on both the patient, and the loved ones who care for them. And then - the mood changes; turns surreal. Within a few chapters, a slow, sad realistic story about the pressures put on people when one of their loved ones is in pain and facing the possibility of death turns into a tale of risk, deception, cross-dressing, literary impersonation, and sudden switches of identity. Zelda's Cut is, like all of Gregory's books, a real page-turner - filled with interesting characters, intriguing situations, and a (at least for me!) truly surprising ending. But unlike the finest of her previous works - the quiet, philosophical Earthly Joys, and the demented, impassioned Wideacre, Zelda's Cut cannot seem to decide what kind of book it wants to be. Is it a serious examination of what a marriage is like after love and hope are gone, or is it a more light-hearted piece about the redeeming virtues of adultery and a new hairstyle? Even after having read this interesting but uneven book, I'm not entirely sure.

Elegant and wickedly truthful

This is a funny, insightful and ultimately truthful book, that is both a quick read and a provoker of deeper thoughts.At the core of this book is a savage satire of the media and fame game. Against this background is played out a modern love affair that is morally perplexing.Gregory's contemporary fiction is always witty and easily consumed with real moments to savour. The book has pace and panache with topical themes. A really good read.