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Jul 31, 2018gomiami1972 rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
For a while, this book was nearing the four star category. That all came crashing down with Chapter 13. It retains two and a half stars because there are large parts of it that are very well written. John Fowles, clearly a talented author, needlessly impales himself on his own pike. While I personally believe postmodernism is intellectual silliness, I can accept deliberate obscurity when done in a clever manner. While I personally believe authorial intrusion, especially in works of fiction, backs the reader out of the story and is, thus, harmful to the enjoyment of the narration itself, I can accept being talked to directly when it is done artfully. Fowles, apparently not appreciating the difference between rhetoric and bombast, just blunders away what should have been a fine work through poor technique, or perhaps poor execution, or maybe he just wanted to write a sub-standard novel out of arrogance? Who knows...and who cares. The French Lieutenant's Woman is a mighty swing. He fouled the ball straight back, which means he didn't miss a home run by much, but miss he did.