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    The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories
    The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories
    The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories
    Audiobook7 hours

    The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories

    Written by Susanna Clarke

    Narrated by Davina Porter and Simon Prebble

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Following the enormous success of 2004 bestseller and critics' favorite Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke delivers a delicious collection of ten stories set in the same fairy-crossed world of 19th-century England. With Clarke's characteristic historical detail and diction, these dark, enchanting tales unfold in a slightly distorted version of our own world, where people are bedeviled by mischievous interventions from the fairies. With appearances from beloved characters from her novel, including Jonathan Strange and Childermass, and an entirely new spin on certain historical figures, including Mary, Queen of Scots, this is a must-have for fans of Susanna Clarke and an enticing introduction to her work for new listeners.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateOct 17, 2006
    ISBN9781427200792
    Author

    Susanna Clarke

    Susanna Clarke's debut novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was first published in more than 34 countries and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Guardian First Book Award. It won British Book Awards Newcomer of the Year, the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award in 2005. The Ladies of Grace Adieu, a collection of short stories, some set in the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, was published by Bloomsbury in 2006. Piranesi was a New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller, and shortlisted for the Costa Novel of the Year Award, the RSL Encore Award and the Women's Prize for Fiction. Susanna Clarke lives in Derbyshire.

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    Reviews for The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Stories

    4/5

    1,121 ratings60 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Awesome stories crafted by a great writer. I thought about these stories for days.
    • 5/5
      Excellent set of fairy tales, whimsical and grounded in classic tropes while subverting them
    • 4/5
      This is a book of 8 short stories over Magic revolving around different characters including Johnathan Strange and The Raven King.These stories revolve around such a variety of characters ranging from Queen Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, a Jewish doctor and a Clergyman related to a Fairy.There were some of the stories that were written for this book but some could be expanded into Novels. I hope that is a possibility as I would love to read more about Tom Brightwind thats for sure!If you liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell you will not be dissapointed. Read and enjoy!
    • 5/5
      Really enjoyed reading this collection of short stories. I really love the way that Susanna Clarke thinks about magic and the social conventions of the time. I can see why the reviewers feel the need to compare her to Jane Austen.
    • 5/5
      Really enjoyed reading this collection of short stories. I really love the way that Susanna Clarke thinks about magic and the social conventions of the time. I can see why the reviewers feel the need to compare her to Jane Austen.
    • 4/5
      As much as I liked Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, I was wary of picking up the short story collection that Clarke released as a follow-up. These things often don't turn out all that well, particularly when the book was so well-crafted and took so long to put together.All things considered, this wasn't that bad, although much of what I liked about the book isn't present here. The scope of the stories are naturally less than the novel, but the feel of the writing is varied over the stories. Perhaps this isn't a surprise, since the stories were written over the course of several years, but it does feel somewhat uneven. There weren't any stories that I outright disliked, but there were only a couple that I really enjoyed. Probably my favorite was Tom Brightwind, and the Fairy Widower was quite good as well. Most, though, I finished and felt sorta meh. I'm not a huge short story fan, so maybe others will like it better, but I'm more looking forward to her next novel, personally.
    • 3/5
      Short stories continuing the Jonathange Strange story.
    • 4/5
      A wonderful collection of short stories, each more charming than the last. Told in the old-fashioned styles of gone-by ages, with lots of dry humor and wit. Clarke can tell more story and characterization in a few of the details she lets casually drop than most authors can in an entire novel. And her magic! Fantastic but also so creepy, and it seems that it always lies just beyond one's understanding. I adored these.
    • 4/5
      If Jane Austen had written fantasy it would probably be like this. Set in the same alternative England of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, but 600 pages thinner. I like it.
    • 5/5
      The Ladies of Grace Adieu is a short story collection by Susanna Clarke, set in the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.The Ladies of Grace Adieu is a really fantastic short story collection. Each of the stories is very different in form and style, and yet they all cover the fairy world to some extent and are unified by a common theme of humans getting the better of the sidhe. It nicely expands the world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell and is both an excellent addition and a welcome introduction to it. I enjoyed my return to this world – and maybe I need to re-read the novel now?Read more on my blog: https://kalafudra.com/2022/11/30/the-ladies-of-grace-adieu-susanna-clarke/
    • 4/5
      This is a tough one for me. My rating through this collection of stories pinged from exuberant fives to dismal ones.

      Make no mistake, Susanna Clarke can write, and her first novel, [book:Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell|14201] was a damn tour de force.

      Which is why this one's tough. Each story is very much a massively condensed version of that novel, many of them taking place in the same world. And while each is meticulously written, often laugh out loud funny, and occasionally poignant, still there were sections that were dreadfully dull that were a slog to get through.

      Overall, I'd say the effort's worth it, as I believe each story, while never delivering a big ending, did offer closure.

      Susanna Clarke writes like the great great great grandmother of the lovechild of [author:Neil Gaiman|1221698] and [author:J.K. Rowling|1077326], and that's not a bad thing, because she does a great job of capturing the wonder the both those authors deliver on. I guess what I'm saying is, there are times I wish she'd move the time and place of her stories forward a couple hundred years. I'd love to see what she could do with the 21st century, instead of sticking firmly in the 19th.
    • 4/5
      (Note: This review originally appeared as part of a series of capsule reviews of illustrated novels, hence the focus on the art)

      Clarke’s second book was better served in the illustration and design departments
      than Jonathan Strange. The Ladies of Grace Adieu is bound with embossed,
      printed cloth boards, and is delicately illustrated by Charles Vess, a veteran artist
      who specializes in a sort of wistful, arcane drawing in the vein of Arthur
      Rackham and others from the “Golden Age of Illustration” at the turn of the last
      century. His dark, fantastical images are an excellent complement to Clarke’s
      prose. While I do like to see more tension between the style of the prose and the
      illustrations, sometimes it is the right choice to create a seamless collaboration
      such as this one.
    • 4/5
      A collection of short stories, largely set in the same world as [Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell] (Jonathan Strange even makes an appearance in the title story).I somehow was unaware of the existence of this collection until recently and am delighted to discover it. If you enjoy JSaMN, then these tales will be highly appreciated. The tales all have the same flavour of menace from a Faerie that humans never quite respect enough, with occasional glimpses of fantastic magic, all with a cloak of Regency respectability. Also, for Neil Gaiman fans, one of Clarke's tales involves the Duke of Wellington accidentally crossing over into Wall from [Stardust], which is a wonderful short story. Recommended for fans of Clarke's writing.
    • 3/5
      Set in the same world of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, this is a collection of short stories. The introduction to the volume by the character Professor James Sutherland considers who wrote them and of the current state of magic within Great Britain, and just how much the faerie world can influence the regular world.

      There are a number of different stories in here, from the tale called On Lickerish Hill, where a lady resorts to magic to spin enough flax to satisfy her husbands demands. There is a cameo appearance of the village from Stardust in the story where The Duke of Wellington crosses the wall to find his horse. There are stories of how a faerie bridge was made, and of love lost and gained.

      I wasn’t keen on every story, but there were some good ones. Particularly liked On Lickerish Hill, the Stardust one, and the one with John Usglass or the Raven King. Worth reading for those that enjoyed Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.
    • 4/5
      Short stories by the author of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. The first story, The Ladies of Grace Adieu references those gentlemen and Mr Strange makes an appearance. The story is strongly feminine and Mr Strange does not have a favorable appearance. The stories feature magic and faeries as well as alternate history. My favorite in the collection are Tom Brightwind or How the Fairy Bridge Was Built at Thoresby and John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner. I also liked Mrs Mabb.
    • 4/5
      Susannah Clarke's epic Johnathan Strange & Mr. Norrell was a favorite in 2004, when I eagerly awaited more. Finally, I have my wish with this charming collection . Not all of the stories are set in the same universe as Jonathan Strange, but the authorial tone I enjoyed so much is back, as are a sprinkling of those delicious footnotes. Clarke has the amazing ability to make a story that you're reading for the first time seem like something you've always known, as if you had it told to you when you were very small and forgot all about it until now.
    • 4/5
      READ IN ENGLISH

      I really enjoyed reading Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell as it was once of the books that surprised me in 2012. So, it was clear I wanted to read this book as well. I had actually been hoping on a full length sequel that could bring back the fantastic atmosphere from the book, but as that is not possible for now, I'm at least very happy with this set of lovely short stories, some of which are set in the same time as JS&MrN, but all are written is that same style that is so wonderful and impressive.
    • 3/5
      Despite the fact that the novel Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, published in 2005, had more than 1,000 pages, it was and enchanting and compelling read, from which I derived a great deal of pleasure. Unfortunately, the stories in The Ladies of Grace Adieu, and other stories are not of the same quality.Some of the stories in The Ladies of Grace Adieu, and other stories have the same characters as in the novel, while all stories are set in the magical wonderland of elves and magicians. The stories are either thematically linked to the novel or were written in the same style, either predating, written concurrently or shortly after the novel Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell was published. Some stories consist of fragments which were lifted out of the novel.Perhaps what makes the novel so great is the huge scope and scale of the story, while the short stories as simply too short to develop a real sense.Quite disappointing.
    • 4/5
      For those who loved Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell and want to spend more time in the 19th century Britain of magic and fairies, this collection of stories is a must read. Mixing historic detail with myth and magic, these stories expand upon the world she's created in wonderful witty ways. One of the things I love is how the many of the stories center around women, such as in the title story "The Ladies of Grace Adieu" which reveals another side to magic not seen in the novel. In another story in which Mary, Queen of Scots, attempts to get revenge through magical embroidery.Even if you haven't read the novel, this small collection of bite-sized stories would make a great introduction, in order to see whether the style suits you and whetting your appetite for the main course.
    • 5/5
      Firstly, The Ladies of Grace Adieu and Other Short Stories was written while Susanna Clarke was still working on Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell which I just found out took her 10 years to complete...so I guess I won't hold my breath on her next novel. Secondly, this was a great short story compilation, ya'll. This was especially great if you are thinking of reading Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell but you're not sure if you want to commit yourself to such an epic length book. This will definitely give you a taste of her narrative style as well as the world that she has created (Faerie! Also other places!). Honestly, I can't say enough good things about this author. I am super excited to see what else she comes up with but as I said a few sentences ago she does like to take her time (and she's also been ill so don't be too hard on her). Go check this book out!
    • 4/5
      A collection of short stories set in the same universe as Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. Like that novel, the stories are presented as history rather than fiction, including notes by the professor who edited the collection, which adds to the realism. I don't think you need to have read the novel to enjoy this - in fact, it had been so many years since I read it that I'd basically forgotten it anyway. It's hard to pick a favorite, but I quite enjoyed Mrs. Mabb, the tale of a woman whose fiancee is kidnapped by a faerie. A nice little bit of lore.
    • 4/5
      Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was one of the most roundly acclaimed fantasy novels written in the past few decades, winning the Hugo Award and shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and deservedly so. It’s particularly amazing given that it was Clarke’s debut, and twelve years later it remains her only novel. I’ve often thought it must be intimidating to try something once and have it meet with overwhelming success, which is perhaps why her second book, The Ladies of Grace Adieu, is a collection of short stories which run more or less along the same lines as Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell.It’s solid and enjoyable in the same way that the great novel is, although, as with any collection of short stories, they’re never quite as good as a novel. This is further emphasised because half the fun of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was the sheer vastness of it, the voluminous prose, the epic sense; the style doesn’t work quite so well in the format of a short story. It’s telling that my two favourite stories in this collection (“Mr Simonelli or the Fairy Widower” and “Tom Brightwind or How the Bridge was Built at Thoresby”) are also the longest.But in any case, I enjoyed the book and can easily recommend it to anybody who liked Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. On the other hand, though, I can also see how somebody apprehensive about Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell’s size might try this as a sample for Clarke’s writing style and her magical, alternate history England. That would be a mistake – it’s just not quite the same.
    • 4/5
      Like all short story collections, The Ladies of Grace Adieu is a mixed bag. While it does not have any truly horrible stories, there are some that are mediocre (along with some rather wonderful ones.)These stories are set in the same world of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, but they are independent stories and can be read as such. If you’re wary of picking up the 1,000 pages of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, you might want to try out these stories first to get an idea of how she writes.Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell showed how wonderfully Susanna Clarke craft her writing style, but The Ladies of Grace Adieu showed her impressive ability to craft unique voices for her narrators. This quality is what made “On Lickerish Hill” my favorite story of the bunch. While it’s basically the Rumpelstiltskin story, I really came to enjoy the young woman who narrated it. She was wonderfully entertaining and clever, even if I did have some trouble with the 17th century spelling.“The Ladies of Grace Adieu” was an excerpt from Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell that did not make it into the novel but that is referenced in a footnote. The story concerns three lady magicians in a Regency era England that did not view magic as an appropriate pastime for women.“Mrs Mabb” follows the exploits of Venetia Moore as she goes head to head with the mysterious Mrs. Mabb.“The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse” actually uses a setting from Neil Gaiman’s Stardust. In it, the Duke of Wellington ventures into fairy land to recover his horse. It’s probably the shortest story in the collection, and I found it to be amusing.The narrator of “Mr Simonelli, or the Fairy Widower” is not a very pleasant person, but once again, Susanna Clarke does a wonderful job of crafting his voice through his diary entries.I felt the last three stories to be the weakest. “Tom Brightwind, or How the Fairy Bridge was Built at Thoresby” was probably my least favorite. It didn’t go anywhere unexpected and didn’t have the same feel of the others. The characters themselves also didn’t come alive; Tom Brightwind in particular felt like the standard Susanna Clarke fairy. “Antickes and Frets” and “John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner” were both a bit better, but I still found them weaker than the beginning stories.Interestingly, the many stories with female protagonists provide a different viewpoint than her novel, which focuses on the male magicians.Also, The Ladies of Grace Adieu is illustrated by Charles Vess! I adore these illustrations. They’re these beautiful pen and ink drawings that go so well with the stories.Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
    • 4/5
      I finally sat down with Clarke's second, the Ladies of Grace Adieu. I'm fairly certain I waited as long as I did because I was afraid I'd be disappointed. Because Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is one of my favorites.And I kind of was and kind of was not. The short story collection definitely did not blow me away. But it was also really well done, really well written, well imagined. Each of the stories advances the world Clarke's created, or a version of the world. It feels almost like anecdotes that you might have heard told by characters from Jonathan Strange's world... fables, tales, stories.The writing is, of course, immaculate. The story-telling is good.. great, even. The collection read quickly, and each story felt complete in its own right. I'm not sure what more I wanted, but it seems that I did want something more. When I was done, I felt it was sort of anti-climactic.So, I would definitely recommend to Clarke fans and people who would be Clarke fans (but who just haven't had the good sense to read her yet ;)), but with the note that it is good, really good, great, but not as satisfying and fulfilling as Strange & Norrell...Overall, FOUR of five stars.
    • 4/5
      Listened to this as an audio book--most enjoyable. I talked earlier on on LJ about three of the stories (discussion here). Of the remaining stories, I especially liked "Mr. Simonellie or The Fairy Widower," in which a man is most perspicacious in foiling a fairy (and, meantime, discovers he himself is half-fairy) and "Tom Brightwind or How the Fairy Bridge Was Built at Thoresby." The latter was interesting to me especially in how that bridge was actually built: the fairy Tom Brightwind undertakes to build it, but accomplishes the task by summoning all sorts of human laborers: an engineer, an architect, and workers--and having them actually create it. This as opposed to swirling the bridge together out of thin air. I found that very satisfying.

      Very bemused by the lack of self-propelled and interesting fairy women. The human women--at least in The Ladies of Grace Adieu are quite lively, and both the human and fairy men are as active as you could wish, but the fairy women mainly just embroider.

      Still and all, I did enjoy the collection very much.
    • 4/5
      A collection of short stories/fairy tales set in the world Clarke created for Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. They’re an interesting take on the world, with my favourite being ‘Tom Brightwind, or How the Fairy Bridge was Built at Thoresby’. Probably not a collection for everyone but if you loved Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and are interested in folklore and fairy tales do read this.
    • 4/5
      A collection of short stories - some set in the period of Strange and Norell, one set in the world of Stardust - but all set in and around Fairie. Wonderful stories = I think she wrote them alonside her novel as they seem like additional thoughts rather than a place she revisited after finishing the novel. I wonder how she is going to write her next novel. She has sort of exhausted the whole Fantasy novel as Jane Austen thing. Very well done.
    • 2/5
      Just couldn't get into these. They seemed like stuff she had to take out of Dr. Strange and Mr. Norrell.
    • 4/5
      3.5 stars

      I have to admit that I found the first four stories in this collection only fair-to-middling, though the title tale had some nice moments of understated menace. From the point of "Mr. Simonelli, or the Fairy Widower" on, however, I was fully on-board and greatly enjoyed the rest of the collection.

      Simonelli is a great character, equal parts self-aggrandizing rogue (for, we learn, obvious cultural reasons) and concerned pastor of his flock. I'd love to see more of his reminiscences in a longer format from Clarke. He's quite a resourceful and entertaining character.

      Tom Brightwind shows us that while fairys are generally unpleasant in their interactions with others (both of the human and fae persuasion), they are somehow capable at times of maintaining the friendship of those that are their betters (morally, if not socially). I'm surprised that David Montefiore hasn't met a sad fate due to his constant remonstrances to his self-satisfied Fairy Friend, but I imagine his equanimous and generally pleasant character helps to protect him. This tale was, in some ways, most like _Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell_, at least in the inclusion of copious notes giving amusing and enlightening details on the fairy culture which the tale displays.

      "John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner" was great for several reasons: first it is the first tale in which we get a first-hand look, however erroneous, at the mythical Raven King; second it had some of the best, laugh-out-loud moments in the whole collection.

      Overall an entertaining set of stories, though I wish Clarke would get around to writing another, more substantial tome in the vein of Strange & Norrell. (Perhaps Mr. Simonelli is available?)
    • 4/5
      So, yay more of the Jonathan Strange universe! I like how this collection is presented as a study of magical history in the British Isles; it makes it feel like there’s more to that wonderful universe Susanna Clarke created, and not just a group of stories that just happen to take place in this universe.

      It’s a strong collection that ends up being more humorous than its predecessor. I love that the opening/titular story sets the tone for the rest of the book. Also, it has female magicians and their response to the events in Jonathan Strange, which sadly, never got touched on in that book proper. I also like how there’s a further explanation into the worlds of Faerie, both seen in “Mr. Simonelli” and “Tom Brightwind.” “Mr. Simonelli” is properly creepy, I was trying to figure out what exactly was going on in All-Hope House. On the other hand, “Tom Brightwind” shows a faerie who’s not entirely cruel and actually goes out of his way to try to help mortals out (even if the effects aren’t immediate). I love the conclusion of “John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal Burner,” which I think is the funniest story in the collection, if only for Uskglass’s “WTF” at the Charcoal Burner’s revenge. And I loved “Antickes and Frets,” for its glimpse into the mindset of Mary, Queen of Scots during her imprisonment (also, embroidery magic used for revenge).

      The two weakest stories, I felt, were “Mrs. Mabb” and “The Duke of Wellington Misplaces His Horse.” I just couldn’t get into “Mrs. Mabb,” and wished that there was more explanation to it. As for “The Duke of Wellington…” it was funny, but I didn’t really get that much from the story as a whole. (Actually, I picked up the book for the latter story, because, hey, Stardust fanfiction.) It’s an okay story.

      Overall, I enjoyed the collection, but I really wouldn’t recommend it unless if you (like me) loved Jonathan Strange and wanted to read more into that universe. Also, if you just like fairy tales and fantasy stories in general. It’s a really good collection, but if fantasy’s not your thing, I can understand wanting to skip this one.