Rhine Journey

by

English language

Published 1981

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(1 review)

It is the summer of 1851 and Charlotte Morrison is on holiday in Germany with her brother and his wife. On the surface, Charlotte is an unmarried aunt with a sparse, unfulfilled life. But beneath that quiet respectability lie unsuspected depths hidden murmurings.

On a day trip boating down the Rhine, Charlotte sights a fellow traveller, Edward Newman, who releases the hissing floodwaters of her subconscious. Dark and dangerous, they sweep Charlotte towards the watershed of her life, stretching her imagination to its limit; almost to breaking point.

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1981, Ann Schlee’s evocative, heady novel creates an aura of tension that is as compelling as it is mysterious, forcing her characters to confront each other as well as themselves over one hot summer abroad.

1 edition

reviewed Rhine Journey by Ann Schlee

A strange journey

A strange book - especially in the second half I often didn't know what was really going on. It fits with Charlotte's - the main protagonist's - experience in the book. The book's prose was more complex than my usual fare and I found it sometimes a little difficult to follow. Although the author is American (she did study in Oxford) the book sounds remarkably British and she does an excellent job of conveying the emotionally surpressed world of the characters. I liked the end which felt liberating and hopeful.