The Rise and Fall of Becky Sharp: ‘A razor-sharp retelling of Vanity Fair’ Louise O’Neill

People who have read Thackeray's Vanity Fair will be disappointed by this version: it is much shorter and weaker than the original, and the English style was very inferior. On the other hand those who haven't read Thackeray won't appreciate the story either, as it could only really succeed as a parody.I got off to a bad start as I have never seen Big Brother, so didn't understand what was going on at all at the beginning. I did, however, persevere to the end, but didn't enjoy it very much.There are some strange alterations: why couldn't George keep his original surname, Osborne, when all other characters have theirs? Why turn Briggs into a man? And whyever would anyone give their son the girl's name of Thisbe: I just couldn't see the point of that.There were errors too. Presumably it is the author who can't spell Montmorency -- it surely can't be Becky, whose spelling was supposed to be very good. And it's Cambridge that has May Balls, never Oxford.

I'm sorry to say that, although I loved House of Secrets by Sarra Manning, this book is not in the same league. I can only say that it was all right, rather good or better. I liked the concept of this book, having watched the recent Vanity Fair series on ITV, but in reality I found it rather dragged on. I usually read a paperback novel in a few days, but found this one very hard to get in to, and it took me a fortnight to finish. There were some good parts. I liked that the story began with Becky and Amelia finishing 2nd and 1st respectively in Big brother, but for me, it went downhill from there. I also liked that the characters that saw through Becky in the original story, did so again in this one. The end was, as all good books should be, left open ended, leaving the reader wanting more.

I loved this book! The very memorable characters were unashamed (Becky), ruthless ( Gorgeous George), charming and some downright rude.The plot was fast-paced and the setting glamours!What else to wish for in a story?Sarra Manning has done a fabulous job in retelling the Vanity Fair story. It will definitely bring in a new wave of fans that will fall in love with Becky Sharp and her need for “have it all”.

As a fan of this author (have read all of her previous books, including her YA novels) I didn't care for this at all.I have given it 4⭐ because Sarra's writing style is good, and a lot of research must've gone into this work.It was a highly anticipated read for me, as I thought the plot, and heroine, would be in the same vein as Gracie or Neve, from my two favourite Sarra Manning novels.I do hope the author returns to a modern day, single heroine plot for her next publication.

I initially enjoyed the book and thought it quite clever, especially as I'm very familiar with Thackeray's original novel. However, I began to be dissatisfied with it about halfway through and ended up finding myself getting quite critical of it. Had I not known the original story, however, I would have probably enjoyed it to the end. It's a bit like when you see a film after reading the book - sometimes it works for you, sometimes it doesn't. In my case, it didn't - but I'm sure plenty of other people would disagree. That said, it's an easy read and she writes quite well.