Marsha Woerner reviewed The Nanny by Gilly Macmillan
Review of 'The Nanny' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Despite the fact that it is overall unsatisfying, it's actually a good book. As the reader, one is privy to all kinds of information unavailable to the actual characters of the book, and thus one knows what else should and could be done without really knowing whether it OUGHT to be done.
I found my heroes and character preferences changing massively throughout the book. The unsatisfying ending was perhaps due to my not knowing what SHOULD have been done and my being dissatisfied with the personalities of the individual characters. Don't get me wrong, they were well represented, but just like in reality, I wasn't sure whom I should like and trust and whether my decisions were justified or acceptable. In the end, I had very strong emotions toward many of the characters, several of whom I really didn't like!
Whereas a subsequent book could, conceivably, conveniently tie up all …
Despite the fact that it is overall unsatisfying, it's actually a good book. As the reader, one is privy to all kinds of information unavailable to the actual characters of the book, and thus one knows what else should and could be done without really knowing whether it OUGHT to be done.
I found my heroes and character preferences changing massively throughout the book. The unsatisfying ending was perhaps due to my not knowing what SHOULD have been done and my being dissatisfied with the personalities of the individual characters. Don't get me wrong, they were well represented, but just like in reality, I wasn't sure whom I should like and trust and whether my decisions were justified or acceptable. In the end, I had very strong emotions toward many of the characters, several of whom I really didn't like!
Whereas a subsequent book could, conceivably, conveniently tie up all loose ends and answer all questions of "ought?" and "should?", Such a book would probably be even more unsatisfying than this.
