Series
Publication
Sceptre (1995), 256 pages
Original publication date
1983
Collections
Genres
Awards
Description
Ruth Pratchett discovers her husband is having a passionate affair with romantic novelist, Mary Fisher, and is so seized by envy that she embarks on a course of destruction which brings her an amazing reward and those around her their just deserts.
User reviews
LibraryThing member stixnstones004
I read this book as an assignment for a literature class on constructed bodies. It's definitely very interesting and I immensely enjoyed the way in which it was written. The heroine is more accurately an anti-heroine, spending an unknown amount of time formulating an intricate but brilliant form of
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revenge against her disloyal husband and his pretty mistress. The way in which the book is written makes it seem as though the book itself is being created, piece by piece, simultaneously with the myriad creation of Ruth. It is a novel about the other half of the world; those that are not glamorous, charming, and graceful. It is about a longing to blend in, rather than to stick out, and a scathing discourse on society's obsession with looks, and abhorrence and fear of ugliness. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookheaven
Good, fast read. I didn't agree with the character but it was still interesting.
LibraryThing member MorgannaKerrie
This was one of my favorite books from an English class. I think Fay Weldon captures the female mind better than any other modern writer. This story is a witty tale of a woman's transformation.
LibraryThing member shireling
Ye gods, I love how Mrs. Weldon creates an ugly woman, who, thanks to cunning is finally able to get the life she wants!!
*happy smile*
*happy smile*
LibraryThing member kaaalton
Boring at the beginning, but well written gripping story
LibraryThing member whitewavedarling
This was entertaining enough, but I'm afraid I was just never taken in by either the plot or any of the characters. The ideas were interesting, but the execution and lack of suspense just left me feeling unengaged. I could read the book, or not, and I mostly read it as a time-killer. I might try
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Weldon again if a blurb really sounded up my alley, but I'm afraid this wasn't anything in particular that I'd recommend on to other readers. Show Less
LibraryThing member Canadian_Down_Under
I can understand why some people would hate this book. At first I thought I might. I believe the problem I had was in bringing my memory of the movie (starring Roseanne and Meryl Streep) into my reading experience. I had expectations of how this book would play out and it did not follow that path.
If you read the book with no expectations, you will find yourself drawn into the dark, bizarre world of Ruth. Ruth is intent on revenge and will do anything to see that happen. Faye Weldon has drawn an amazing character in Ruth and it was fascinating seeing how far she would go to enact her revenge.
This was a very strange book but it is one of the most interesting books I have read this year and it will go on my favourite reads of the year list. Highly recommended.
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I expected a humourous book. It is, in fact, very dark. I had exceptions of plot lines that did not occur. I had expectations of characters that were drawn very differently than they are in the movie.If you read the book with no expectations, you will find yourself drawn into the dark, bizarre world of Ruth. Ruth is intent on revenge and will do anything to see that happen. Faye Weldon has drawn an amazing character in Ruth and it was fascinating seeing how far she would go to enact her revenge.
This was a very strange book but it is one of the most interesting books I have read this year and it will go on my favourite reads of the year list. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member bookwormteri
The movie She Devil starring Roseanne Barr (or whatever last name she uses now) and Meryl Streep is based on this book. The book is much much darker than the movie. I am not sure I was a fan of the style of the book, but still an enjoyable read.
LibraryThing member bostonterrio
Oddly interesting
The story is both fascinating and appalling. None of the characters are very likeable. Basically a story about a woman whose husband wrongs her. She sets a diabolical plan in motion to not only destroy him but to completely reinvent herself.
The story is both fascinating and appalling. None of the characters are very likeable. Basically a story about a woman whose husband wrongs her. She sets a diabolical plan in motion to not only destroy him but to completely reinvent herself.
LibraryThing member Auntie-Nanuuq
This book was written in a very interesting manner......
The protagonist, Ruth writes about her rival Mary Fisher: "Mary Fisher lives in a high tower...., Mary Fisher is forty-three and accustomed to love....."
Ruth's husband Bobbo has left clumsy, unattractive Ruth & their children for the love of
Ruth seeks revenge on Bobbo & Mary Fisher and in the process becomes a "She-Devil" with glittering eyes.
Although the book begins on a tragic note and stays sad for the first several chapters, once Ruth has made her transformation the book becomes funny.... Ruth's revenge is methodical, well thought out, and perfectly executed.
I Remember this now! It was made into a movie with Rosanne Barr & Meryl Streep......
I have never before read Fay Weldon and I'm thinking that I just might read another of her books.
I want to thank (I can't remember) who it was in the group who read & reviewed this....I wouldn't have read it otherwise, had it not been for you!
The protagonist, Ruth writes about her rival Mary Fisher: "Mary Fisher lives in a high tower...., Mary Fisher is forty-three and accustomed to love....."
Ruth's husband Bobbo has left clumsy, unattractive Ruth & their children for the love of
Show More
his life, Mary Fisher. Mary Fisher is a self-centered romance writer of many lovers.Ruth seeks revenge on Bobbo & Mary Fisher and in the process becomes a "She-Devil" with glittering eyes.
Although the book begins on a tragic note and stays sad for the first several chapters, once Ruth has made her transformation the book becomes funny.... Ruth's revenge is methodical, well thought out, and perfectly executed.
I Remember this now! It was made into a movie with Rosanne Barr & Meryl Streep......
I have never before read Fay Weldon and I'm thinking that I just might read another of her books.
I want to thank (I can't remember) who it was in the group who read & reviewed this....I wouldn't have read it otherwise, had it not been for you!
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LibraryThing member nadineeg
If you are going to watch a film/mini series of this book, you MUST watch the BBC version as it is true to the book, which is realistic within the fiction genre. The American version of this book was total crap, with a stupid resolution.
LibraryThing member martensgirl
An incredibly dark book about revenge. After her husband has an affair, a woman sets out to ruin the life of her husband and his mistress.
LibraryThing member Figgles
Re-read - a dark, funny, fable of revenge, and what it means to be a woman, what happens if someone who's always played by the rules (good wife, good mother, good woman) is given permission to break every rule in the book, and what they do with the power this brings! Fay Weldon writes brilliantly
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and whilst the setting may have dated a little the tensions in sex and gender relations remain. Show Less
Media reviews
The Guardian
Life and Loves is a backlash novel: Ruth gets what she wants in the end, but realises that even in death Mary Fisher has won, for she remains “a woman” while Ruth is an unfeminine She Devil. Reactionary politics are nothing new for Weldon.
Language
Original language
English
ISBN
0340589353 / 9780340589359
Physical description
256 p.; 7.72 inches
Pages
256