I received this from Netgalley.com.

An okay read. An imagination of Estella's life if Dickens' Great Expectations had an addendum.

2.75☆

I was given an ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Estella’s Revenge by Barbara Havelocke is a Gothic retelling of Great Expectations from Estella’s point of view. We have two timelines, one is happening after Estella marries Bentley Drummle and the ramifications of that choice and the other details her childhood being raised by Miss Havisham in a house that refuses to recognize the passage of time.

It’s been awhile since I read Great Expectations, but I think someone who has not read the original could reasonably keep up with the story in Estella’s Revenge. The novel discusses several social issues of the day, mostly the sexism that was common in the early 1800s and poverty, while keeping inline with Estella’s colder nature and frustration with her place in society as a puppet or object of desire.

What I really liked was the prose conveying a Gothic, creepy atmosphere and the attention to detail regarding the Santis House, the home of the Havisham family. The rotten feast, the insects moving around as a result of the lack of care, the wedding dress Miss Havisham wears, all feel like characters on their own.

Content warning for depictions of abuse, still birth, and sexual assault.

I would recommend this to fans of Estella from Great Expectations, readers of Gothic historical novels, and lovers of retellings of classic literature from different view points.

I’m a firm fan of this writer. What’s not to like in the retelling of the Miss Havisham story, but this time through the eyes of her daughter. The writer has obviously gone to a great deal of research, the result being something to be proud of. Unusual. Impeccable. Riveting.

Thank you Canela / Hera for my digital copy to read and review.

I found Estella's story to be fascinating and intriguing. The story is told over several timelines. Barbara wrote brilliant descriptions of Satis House, Miss Haversham and Estella that I was able to see them in my mind. It was well written. The premise of Miss Haversham bringing up Estella to not have a care in the world of what people think of her. The story was dark, gothic and suspenseful. I will be recommending this book.

I was very excited to review this book, as it looked and sounded really intriguing, and I'd heard a lot of things about it.

I thought this book was wonderful. From the beginning, I loved the dark narrative, and there was something about it that played with my emotions a little bit. I felt very connected to Estella, and found myself reading with a sort of fascination, as though I wanted to understand her. While in some ways she came across as selfish, cold, maybe even vindictive, there was something about her strength of character that I admired. I think it was very interesting to tell this story from Estella's point of view, and will look forward to reading more books with her as a character.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy to review.

This book has blown me away. I was unsure what to expect when I started this book especially knowing it was based on the Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations. The Classics are Classics for a reason and its a big thing for an author to write their own version from a different perspective of such an iconic story. This book however blends so effortlessly with the original story that this version is truly meant to be and will sit comfortable on a shelf alongside its companion of Great Expectations for many years to come. Charles Dickens would certainly be very proud of this story and knowing his original has inspired another true masterpiece. Estella's revenge brings back to life this true classic story and it appears to be written so effortlessly that you just float though the book getting lost among the pages for hours on end. I truly did not want this story to end and cannot wait for the next novel by this amazing author Barbara Havelocke.

A really good imagining of what Estella from Dickens novel Great Expectations got up to after the novel finished.
This is dripping in atmosphere and Estella jumps from the page as a fully formed and very interesting character.
If you have read Dickens or not, it's fine - Barbara Havelocke writes so well you don't need to have read the original. I have and it did add a special shiver to my reading.

Wonderful and highly recommended!

A marvellous re-telling of a classic from a fresh perspective. I adored the characters in this book, and Estella as a teenager was bursting with hormonal rage. The writing was so atmospheric, I've walked the dark corridors of Estella's home, hidden in the crumbling walls, made friends with the spiders and mice. I could smell the rotting wedding feast. I also enjoyed the way the story flipped and the ending was just as it should be. Such an engrossing and satidfying read. Darkly gothic with a strong feminist lead who was out of step with society, I was incensed at the injustices. It's a long time since I've read a book that made me experience such a range of emotions. Just wonderful!

Superbly and skilfully written.

I was not sure what to expect from this having not read Great Expectations but this did not matter in the slightest.

Great characters, twists and turns and a terrific gothic eeriness.

Very highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Although I was initially intrigued at the idea of a retelling of “Great Expectations” from Estella’s point of view, this book just did not work for me.

The book started really strong in the first half and I loved getting to see Estella’s perspective on her childhood in Satis House with Miss Havisham and Pip. However, the book started to go off track once we hit Estella’s adulthood and the ending felt really out of character. I can see why Estella felt compelled to a life of vengeance by the end, but her actions towards the end of the book felt more like fan fiction than reality and just made a really unsatisfying ending.

Estellas Revenge by Barbara Havelocke, due to be published 9th May 2024.
A delight for fans of Dickens and Great Expectations, this book is Estellas story told when she was a child at Satis House and as an adult married to Cruel Bentley Drummle. It fills in lots of gaps and gives a real sense of what Estella experienced brought up by Miss Haversham. I really enjoyed it. Slightly overlong for me but a good 4/5 ⭐️.

I was drawn to this by the amazing premise and the beautiful cover. Great Expectations is a favourite book of mine and I found the idea of reading Estella's story intriguing. Barbara has made an excellent job of this, the characters are skilfully portrayed, the writing easy to read but authentic and the dual storyline kept me gripped. A masterpiece. I shall buy the print book to put on the shelf by Great Expectations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo/Hera for an eARC of "Estella's Revenge" in exchange for my review.

The writing style is easy to digest and even though I had never read Great Expectations, the world was introduced and presented to the reader thoughtfully. Which did hold onto it's promise through the novel. It starts off with the hook of suspense, mystery and murder. This story envelopes gothic fiction to it's core. The dual time line shows past and present actions with how they affect our main character, Estella. Estella is a unique and refreshing character to journey with. Along with the other female characters in this book, she has a bold, cunning and witty personality. I enjoyed this book and I can't wait to read more by this lovely author

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo/Hera for an eARC of "Estella's Revenge" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Great Expectations is one of my favourite Dickens stories. Atmospheric, gothic with incredibly memorable and iconic characters, so when I saw that Barbara Havelocke was giving us a chance to dig deeper into Estella's story I knew that I needed to read it and I wasn't disappointed.

In this dual timeline novel we split our time between Estella's youth and her present as she starts out married life to the despicable Drummle. She has been bred to hate men and to keep her heart cold by jilted bride and mother Miss Havisham and as she realises that her deal with Drummle won't quite follow her plan she moves towards vengeance whilst battling to decide if she should fully embrace the darkness within.

The setting and atmosphere of this novel is spot on. It's gothic, dark and moody, perfectly suiting our characters, the story and the classic Satis House. The writing is beautiful, tragic and full of intrigue which keeps you turning the page wanting to see how this tale unfolds.

This is not simply a re-telling of Great Expectations. As with many of the feminist re-tellings of Greek myths we've been seeing, this is a woman finding her voice, her identity and her power.

Fans of Fyneshade will identify a lot of Marta in Estella and will enjoy the same complex and immersive type of tale and fans of bad men getting what's due to them will also enjoy this gothic, historical fiction.

Thank you NetGalley, Hera, and Ms. Havelocke for the opportunity to read this book in exchange of an honest review.
As someone who has read Great Expectations and fell in love with the characters, this was a beautiful homecoming to me. I cannot put into words how much this means. I too fell in love with Estella and Miss Havisham as characters and often wondered what their individual stories were, as they would never tell Pip the whole story. We women must hold some secrets in case we need them, mustn't we?
With this book, I firmly believe that this is an accurate representation that Dickens himself would be proud of. I'm grateful I got the chance to read this and say hello to these characters again. Ms. Havelocke, I thank you.

I'll admit, Great Expectations isn't my favourite Dicken novel, but reading Barbara Havelocke's novel has me wanting to re-read it with a different perspective. The enigmatic Miss Havisham becomes the cruel dictator over Estella's childhood shaping her into the woman who fears feeling love.

Taking place over two timelines, the story seamlessly moves between Estella's younger years and her marriage to the insufferable and violent Bentley Drummle. Estella's Revenge explores the toxicity of relationships that destroy Estella's perspective on the world around her, turning men into the ruin of the world (which, in this novel, you can understand with so many horrible men in it).

Havelocke's letter at the end of her novel changed how I saw Estella's Revenge; 'Listen to two people describe an event and they are never identical. [...] This book is no different. It is not a retelling of Great Expectations'. With this change of perspective, I re-read with new eyes and I found myself loving Estella's Revenge more. Seeing this as more than a retelling shows Havelocke's novel in a new light and makes it clear that this is a must-read for those who want a different perspective on a tale that has more to it than what meets the eye.

Estella's Revenge is a beautiful reimagining of Dicken's classic novel and is a must-read for those who want to see it from Estella's perspective.

Thank you, NetGalley and Canelo for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I have a confession to make - I've never read any Dickens. I've tried but just couldn't get on with it. However, I have watched TV and film adaptions although not 'Great Expectations'. I've heard of Miss Havisham and Pip though but not Estella. So, I had 'no expectations' (sorry) when I started to read 'Estella's Revenge'.

I quickly discovered that it didn't matter if I hadn't read Dickens before. Barbara Havelocke's writing swept me up and plunged me into the dark world of Satis House. Moving back and forth in time, Havelocke skillfully takes us through Estella's life, showing how she's been formed and hardened by her adoptive mother. I kept reading at night until my eyes drooped - I was so invested in Estella's story. Compelling and authentic, Estella is a force to be reckoned with and I hope Barbara Havelocke will write more about her. I'm also hoping for a TV adaption too.

Thank you to Hera for letting me have an early read.

This is stunning!!

First of all, as soon as I read the premise, it intrigued me. I really love the idea how Barbara Havelocke made a story of Estella.

The writing style is easy to read, I had a fun time with it. The story has two timeline. It set in time when Estella was younger and current state of Estella after she married to a bad man. The timelines sure made me easy to analize Estella's personality. The story explore more into toxic relationships, either between Estella and her mother, Estella with men, or Estella with her cousins. It's somehow painful to see their relationship and what happened to them. But it's the environtment around them that made them did what they did.

I really like the atmosphere of the story, especially the Satis House. It's dark, gothic, a lil bit eerie. And lastly, I'm in love with the characters, especially Pip.

I can't wait to read another book by Barbara Havelocke since I really love this book!

Thank you NetGalley, Hera Books, and Barbara Havelocke for the ARC in exchange of my honest review!

Okay okay okay, where to start with this one? Let’s start from the fact that i absolutely loved this. A retelling of charles dickens’ great expectations? Please yes give it to me. This absolutely DELIVERED. I wasn’t really sure how this was going to go, but im so happy i got to read an ARC of this! Being inside of estella’s head was very intriguing, and i found myself unable to put this book down at times. The writing style is very enjoyable as well! Overall, really liked it.

#EstellasRevenge revisits some of the well-known characters and situations from Charles Dickens's Great Expectations - but you don't have to have read this to enjoy Estella's story.

#Revenge is the purpose that Estella was raised for.

I loved this book. Satis House, London and Paris are brought to life in vivid detail and I was quickly entranced by Estella's world.

Spanning two timelines from Estella's point of view - as her younger self and from the time of her marriage and ensuing events - this book sheds light on her unusual upbringing by the grieving Miss Haversham, the plots and schemes she endured at the hands of Miss Haversham's relatives, her experiences at finishing school in Paris and as a young heiress in London, her insecurity at her position as an adopted orphan in Miss Haversham's household and her desire to be in charge of her own destiny.

The female characters in this book shine, showing loyalty, courage, determination, wit and cunning - even whilst plotting against each other - and not all of the male characters are found wanting .... but revenge on men is Estella's purpose in life.

With thanks to #netgalley for early access to #EstellasRevenge