The Other Boleyn Girl

Elektra · Aug 24, 2006

I finished The Other Boleyn Girl a few days ago, and, though the writing was okay, vowed to never pick it up again because of her incessant use of the word "flatly". 47 times, according to Amazon.

How did an agent or editor not pick up on that?

Cat Scratch · Aug 24, 2006

Interesting--this book was assigned for my book club, but I couldn't find a copy. (Confession: I didn't try very hard. Bad club-member. Bad.) I was thinking I would catch up, but now I'm not sure. Was it just the word "flatly?" that bugged you (and rightly so)? Were there other things you disliked?

Jamesaritchie · Aug 24, 2006

Elektra said:
I finished The Other Boleyn Girl a few days ago, and, though the writing was okay, vowed to never pick it up again because of her incessant use of the word "flatly". 47 times, according to Amazon.

How did an agent or editor not pick up on that?

That hardly sounds like a fatal flaw. Agents and editor don't count word usage. If the story and the characters are good, you can easily get away with 47 uses of a given word in an entire novel. Especially in a novel as long as this one. What is it, more than 222,000 words?

"Flatly" doesn't even make it onto her list of 100 most used words.

Elektra · Aug 24, 2006

Yes, 222,000. But when "flatly" shows up every few pages (especially in clumps) in a dialogue tag, it begins to stick out like a sore thumb.

It's fairly good. The dialogue is frequently anachronistic and it feels repetitive at times--in short, not worth the $16 cover price, but if you can find it on sale then it's a fun read.

OverTheHills&FarAway · Aug 24, 2006

I had a hard time getting into Philippa Gregory's The Constant Princess because of the writing--perhaps the flatness of it. I don't know, it seemed a bit amatuer, melodramatic. The story--or what I got of it before I finally put the book down in frustration--was alright, but the actual words did take away from the experience.

So I would be very reluctant trying Philippa Gregory's other books, like The Other Boleyn Girl. Especially after hearing of repetitive words. Sounds sloppy to me. That bugs the crap out of me.

Irysangel · Aug 25, 2006

Must be a matter of opinion. I *loved* THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL.

Story trumps all, even mediocre writing. I didn't notice the writing myself, but I absolutely adored the story.

PattiTheWicked · Aug 25, 2006

Same here -- I loved it. I did try to read one of Gregory's other books -- something about John Tradescant, the English gardening architect -- but couldn't get into it at all. I really enjoyed The Other Boleyn Girl, though, and couldn't put it down.

Honestly, I never noticed the repetition of "flatly."

Jamesaritchie · Aug 25, 2006

flatly

Elektra said:
Yes, 222,000. But when "flatly" shows up every few pages (especially in clumps) in a dialogue tag, it begins to stick out like a sore thumb.

It's fairly good. The dialogue is frequently anachronistic and it feels repetitive at times--in short, not worth the $16 cover price, but if you can find it on sale then it's a fun read.

Well, with only 47 uses, flatly can't show up on too many pages. I think it's more one of those things that, once you do notice it, becomes a fixation.

This happens to me when a writer overuses the word "got." Even if the usage is reasonable from an objective viewpoint, it jumps out at me, and pretty soon I can't think about anything else.

And sometimes I think it happens because we just don't particularly enjoy a given writer. The story and characters don't really fit our likes, so we aren't drawn deep enough to overlook the flaws, and there are always flaws.

Candyapple · Aug 25, 2006

I really enjoyed The Other Boleyn Girl - I found the story compelling, and probably for that reason, I didn't notice the repetition of 'flatly'. In some of Gregory's other novels, though, I've noticed that she has a tendency to overuse adverbs in dialogue tags. In The Virgin's Lover, which I didn't finish because I found it pretty dull, she writes 'Amy said quietly' three times in about half a page, and I saw 'X said limpidly' twice, as well as 'Elizabeth said flirtatiously' and numerous other examples which I can't remember at the moment!

[This is my first post, so hi, everyone!]

Shiraz · Aug 25, 2006

Ooooh, I've never seen a very FIRST post!!

Welcome, Candyapple!!

The Other Boleyn Girl

Elektra

Don't Call Me Sweetheart

Cat Scratch

The Peacock Next Door

Jamesaritchie

Elektra

Don't Call Me Sweetheart

OverTheHills&FarAway

McNifico

Irysangel

She of Many Names

PattiTheWicked

Unleashing Hell.

Jamesaritchie

Candyapple

Shiraz

New kid, be gentle!