The Port-Wine Stain (The American Novels) (2016)

I received my copy of The Port-Wine Stain from the publisher, through Library Thing's Early Reviewer program.

This one disappointed me. I thought it started well, but after a strong beginning, nothing much actually happened until very late in the narrative. I wasn't really expecting a lot of action, but even so, the story seemed to stagnate very early.

I did enjoy the writing style - not a downright copy of E.A. Poe's, but pleasantly similar. For me, though, the problem was too much style and not enough substance, I'm afraid. ( )

I have mixed emotions about "The Port-Wine Stain." I typically love Victorian fiction, stories set in that time frame, etc., so I thought this would be very appealing to me. I found it difficult to get into, and I couldn't seem to bond with the main character, Edward Fenzil. Basically it is a story of him subcoming to sadness after meeting and befriending Edgar Allan Poe.

The prose is excellent. The story just didn't grab me. ( )

I was so torn about this book, but in the end I was disappointed.
I didn't come into the text with any clear agenda - just a fiction read that would take me away from reality.
I couldn't finish it.
It was difficult to get started in the text. I felt I jumped into a conversation already started and had difficulty catching up. At the same time, I was eagerly awaiting the plot to progress forward; however, I just couldn't get into it. Whenever I have that feeling, I endeavor to read to page 100 and give it a true try; however, I couldn't this time. I couldn't get into the thread that continues the book along - page after page. After deciding to stop, I quickly read through the rest of the book to see if it got better and I was disappointed.
Not the book for me. ( )

RATING: ★★★★☆/ 4.5 mesmerizing stars.

REVIEW: This book just reminded me why I love reading. It was a completely unexpected story with language that speaks to the greats and rhythm that speaks to the soul.

The entire book is essentially a monologue. In fact, as I was reading it, I started staging it in my mind. I could see the aged thespian on stage, speaking to the audience as if we were the unheard recipient of Fenzil's tale. It was magnetic. The cadence was perfect. The story builds slowly and you soon lose yourself in the book. I didn't want to put it down and break the spell that the words had woven. Therefore, I let myself be captured and read till the book came to a perfect end.

Now if you're imagining or expecting a new age mimic of Edgar Allan Poe, then you would be disappointed or more accurately, you're wrong to make the comparison in the first place. Because, while The Port-Wine Stain features Poe and has a dark Gothic undertone, it never endeavored to be a Poe-like tale. It is it's own book with it's own writer and deserves to be read without that preconception. That being said, I do think that it would appeal to Poe fans, as well those who love to discover great literature.

I highly recommend. ( )

Thanks to LibraryThing, I won an uncorrected proof copy of this book to read and review. This book was excellent! It was a well researched and written work of literature. In 1876 New Jersey, Edward Fenzil relates the time in 1844 Philadelphia when he maintained a brief friendship with Edgar Allen Poe. Fenzil was still a teen at the time and very impressionable. Poe introduced Fenzil to many dark and disturbing ideas and people, including a dead doppelgänger , which lead him down a frightening path towards insanity. I was also very impressed with author Norman Lock's writing style from that time period which greatly added to the believability. ( )