The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott

Title: The Dressmaker
Author: Kate Alcott
Genre: Historical fiction
Publisher: Doubleday, 2012
Source: NetGalley
Read for: Review

Tess has spent most of her life working as a housemaid, but her true passion lies in fashion -- designing and sewing beautiful creations. When chance lands her as a lady's maid on the ship Titanic for Lady Lucile Duff Gordon, a world-famous designer who also built herself up from low circumstances, Tess feels as if she has finally been given a chance. However, when Titanic sinks, rumors begin to leak out about the Duff Gordons and their behavior on the so-called Millionaire's boat, a lifeboat not even at half capacity. Tess is leery of their behavior and not sure she wants to be connected with it. In addition, her heart is conflicted as her attention is sought by a wealthy, charming millionaire and a sailor. Should Tess follow her heart or her only opportunity to achieve her dream?

With the anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic last month, my interest was definitely piqued with The Dressmaker. While I don't consider myself to be any kind of Titanic buff, I love the movie with Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio (haven't watched the Julian Fellowes miniseries, though. Worth the time?) and was looking forward to this one, especially with its portrayal of some of the aftermath of the sinking of the unsinkable ship. The Dressmaker proved to be an interesting adventure into the Titanic, albeit not one to join the ranks of my favorite books.

I enjoyed the vivid descriptions of the scenery of the Titanic and later, the fabulous gowns in Lucile's salon. While at times the writing seemed to meander, I was definitely visually immersed in the world Kate Alcott created. The scenes were vivid in my mind. The unfortunate flip side of this is that occasionally I would feel impatient, as if the plot was not moving forward quickly enough.

I also enjoyed the portrayal of the characters, particularly in their interactions with one another. I felt that the conversations were realistic, the at times heated interchanges between characters believable. At times the characters themselves seemed flat, although their dialogue was dynamic. The most multi-faceted character was probably Lucile, with her selfishness and ambition tied to a sense of sentimentality for her past and real love for her work; however, when the different sides of her personality were presented, I felt as if a card was being flipped over. The transitions were not natural, and so the two sides of her personality never really came together or felt realistic to me. While Tess also undergoes some changes in her life and point of view, while she sacrifices some of her ambitions to follow her heart, she also seemed somehow flat to me. I liked her, but felt as if she was someone I would only be able to make small talk with.

The Dressmaker was an interesting read, but lacked the momentum and character development to make it a truly memorable read for me. However, lovers of Titanic stories will definitely find a story of value here.

3 stars

Warnings: Slight innuendo, but nothing much.

The Dressmaker by Posie Graeme-Evans

Title: The Dressmaker
Author: Posie Graeme-Evans
Genre: Historical fiction, romance, chick lit
Publisher: Atria Paperback, 2010
Source: Borrowed from my mom, who borrowed it from my aunt

The Dressmaker by Posie Graeme-Evans tells the tale of Ellen, the daughter of a poor but loving pastor. Her life forever changes when her father unexpectedly dies, and Ellen and her mother, Connie, must forge their way ahead without money or status. Ellen discovers a talent for drawing and dress design and even falls in love - but will someone take it all away?

Sound melodramatic? That's because it is. Ellen's life is full of tragedy, and every time you think something bad is going to happen - it does! However, you won't be fully surprised by it, because every time something bad is about to happen, the author lets you know with a few heavy, portentous words: "Ellen could not know that these would be her father's last loving gift." People die left and right, usually at the most inconvenient time and in the most dramatic way. Ellen's life is a struggle, and she barely keeps her head above water for most of the book. However, despite the drama and the blatant foreshadowing, I did enjoy reading her story. It was inspiring that she managed to keep herself and her daughter alive with her dressmaking business. And I was constantly wondering what would happen next - would she lose everything? Would she be even more successful? There were several fake moments of tension in the story when someone would knock at the door of the shop and Ellen's best friend, Polly, would rush in "with a white face" - but often those moments would be happy surprises instead of (yet another) tragedy.

I didn't feel any great connection with the characters. Ellen was a bit distant - her life was so sorrowful that she was serious all the time. Many of the other characters were unlikeable because they were the cause of Ellen's tragedies, such as the selfish dandy Raoul de Valentin, who lied to and took advantage of Ellen only to blackmail her years later. The only character I really loved was Polly, Ellen's sassy maid growing up who later becomes her best friend and business partner. Despite Polly's attitude and at times rebellious nature, she has a heart of gold and does everything she can to protect Ellen and help her with her dressmaking business. I would have loved to read a story just about Polly!

The writing was a little irksome at times for me, just because it was so dramatic. If it were being read aloud, I think it would be in breathy tones, stammering because of fear or breathlessness from telling the horrors so quickly. (That last sentence needs to be in a sarcastic tone when you read it in your mind). "Connie left the room without one backward glance. Ellen heard her mother's footfall as she climbed the stair to their room - it was slow and heavy and the old treads groaned. A noise so familiar and yet, today, so poignant." My mental fragment alarms were a little upset by that sentence. However, at the same time, many of the descriptions were vivid and well phrased. I loved reading about the dresses, and wished that somehow I could have pictures of all of them. Here is one lovely description -

She did not like heavy fabrics, least of all in summer, but on any scale this gown was daringly light. Pale Indian muslin was printed with a repeating pattern of black roses and soft gray leaves. It caught up in billows over an underskirt of chalk white silk, and the black velvet bodice was quite severe, though it dropped prettily off her shoulders. Tonight she would wear short black gloves, and her only jewelry would be the cameo that Oriana had given her.

Overall, this book was fun and frivolous - a soap opera of a novel, but an entertaining one. If you are a fan of historical fiction and light romance, this book will probably appeal to you. However, if you are looking for something serious with deeper themes, you'll find yourself wanting more. This book may especially appeal to women who are interested in fashion, as there are several gorgeous descriptions of gowns in the book.

Accessibility: Easy read.
Plot: 3
Characters: 2.5
Writing: 2.5
Personal response: 3
Overall: 2.75