Customer Reviews

A Factory of Cunning

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
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1 star:		(3)

 

 

First, one of the reviewers says that this novel is set during the era of Charles III. It's actually set during the Georgian era (1784 making it during the time of George III), one of the most interesting periods of history for historical writing, I think.

This epistolary novel is a continuation of Dangerous Liaisons. It's a good attempt, but I wasn't thrilled with it. Basically, it centers around the plot of what might have happened if the Marquise had escaped France and made it to England to wreak whatever havoc she might wreak there, while also helping a friend destroy a villainous earl.

The characters in the novel are very well-written: Mrs. Fox is very sharp-witted and clever, Lord Danceacre and his friends are funny and entertaining, and Violet is by turns hilarious and ridiculously stupid. Stockley also manages to give her writing that witty spark that is so necessary in novels centering around a clever, selfish woman. The plot itself is also tightly woven, bringing seemingly random occurrences and people together in the end, as all novels of this type should do.

Something, though, just never seemed to click for me. Maybe it was because there was not even one character with whom a reader could really sympathize. Or, more likely, perhaps it was that the supposed villain of the plot was hardly ever in the novel, except to be described by other people. Set up as someone who would finally match wits with the marquise, I was disappointed by the lack of interaction and repartee between the two. Considering all the dire warnings about the earl's vengeful and almost satanic nature, he was a bit of an anticlimax to me.

However, the book was an enjoyable read, and definitely conveyed the mood of the times. Stockley clearly has a sharp wit, and it comes out in her portrayal of several characters. For that, it's worth reading, though perhaps it's better to get it from the library or borrow from a friend than to purchase it yourself.

An epistolary novel that offers a "sequel" to Les liaisons dangereuses.

I found Factory clever, often devastatingly funny, wonderfully differentiated in its voices and considerable in its tension -- the latter two qualities being difficult to achieve in epistolary novels. Some of the plot elements -- Violet's experiences and the long-lost sister -- are well-worn, but the manner of telling is so fresh that it doesn't really matter. "Mrs. Fox", unrepentantly awful and cheerfully unsinkable, is a gem.

I think some readers will have trouble following the plotline, especially in the beginning, and the quick-spoken, intricate period diction, particularly in Mrs. Fox's voice, may lose some, but the book rewards close attention. It would appeal to readers who enjoyed books like SLAMMERKIN and THE DRESS LODGER, but its tone is far more arch.

Recommended.

In 1784, a French noblewoman hunted and on the run, arrives in London in order to start afresh. With practically no connections and just one loyal and good friend, Mrs. Fox (an assumed name), hopes to carry on as she had in Holland, running con games. This time however, Mrs. Fox has another mission aside from the one of stark survival, for she has agreed to help her good friend, Dr. Hubert van Essel, bring his enemy, the rich and debauched Earl of March, low. Corrupt and lecherous, the Earl of March has been responsible for a lot of misery and pain, most especially to a lady that Dr. van Essel had esteemed greatly. Mrs. Fox is nothing loath to help. But has she met her match in the Earl of March? Always barely one step ahead of those who wish her harm, Mrs. Fox will have to work very fast to accomplish her mission -- provided, of course, that she doesn't get side tracked with schemes of her own...

I suppose that because "A Factory of Cunning" does have at its heart one character from "Dangerous Liaisons," and the period and setting is similar to "Tom Jones," comparisons are inevitable. However, "A Factory of Cunning" lacks the sophisticated wit of "Dangerous Liaisons" and the sardonic, rollicking style of "Tom Jones." On the other hand, "A Factory of Cunning" is a highly polished and entirely engrossing novel. The author does a fantastic job of rendering scenes and of conveying a sense of the period. And even though she uses letters and journals (mostly Mrs. Fox's) to tell the tale, the author does a first rate job of giving each onr of her characters a distinctive voice and feel, thus making them real, multi-faceted and complex. So that even though "A Factory of Cunning" may never be up there with "Dangerous Liaisons" and "Tom Jones," it still makes for a highly entertaining and compelling read.

The epistolary novel is always a risky endeavor, the brisk pacing, the intimacy of character, and the complexity of plot must always be exactly right. In A Factory of Cunning, Philippa Stockley's, sensational new novel, she achieves all this and much, much more. This is a marvelously intriguing, deliciously wicked, and titillatingly voyeuristic outing that transports the reader to a vividly drawn London of 1784. It's a tumultuous time where the war of the sexes is in full force, where mischievousness and deceit reign, and where houses of ill repute are springing up all over the City.

Mrs. Fox, who has just arrived in England after having fled France is the chief protagonist in this bawdy and deceptive tale. She has recently been forced into exile after notoriously becoming a fallen woman in her home country. Armed with her trusted servant Victoire, and a series of introductory letters from Dr. Hubert van Essel, physician benefactor in Holland, this enigmatic and crafty woman changes her identity and masterfully sets about establishing herself in London society. There are disastrous consequences for all as this machiavellian-like noblewoman, prostitute, and brothel keeper, sets up a business in London's bawdier section in order to steadfastly peruse her life of scandal and vice.

As the reader is gradually drawn into Mrs. Fox's journal, it soon becomes clear that she's willfully on the run from the dark secrets of her past. A lively correspondence begins to develop between her and van Essel, their relationship revealed to be far more intimate than at first thought. Exchanging witty banter and confiding their darkest secrets to each other, Fox and van Essel conspire to destroy the degenerate nobleman Urban Fine, who is responsible for the downfall of Essel's first true love. Urban Fine fears nothing; "he has given his life to taking men's souls - a libertine of the most dangerous sort." Mrs. Fox sets a trap for Urban Fine in the form of Amaranth, an alluring young heiress in need of a husband. Amaranth is actually Martha, a dressmaker and a mere common strumpet, but Mrs. fox intends to use her youthful beauty and allure to irrevocably disgrace Fine once and for all.

Along the way we meet a variety of characters who weave in and out of the story: There's the passionate American painter Nathan Black, who falls in love with the innocent parson's daughter Violet Denyss. Black wants to save Violet who is unknowingly thrust into the exhibition chamber of a "Grecian Evening" in the brothel now owned by Mrs. Fox and managed be the "fallen" Poppy Salmon. There's also the dapper and wealthy Lord Danceacre, who takes Mrs. Fox under his wing, little knowing that she merely views him as a well-dressed half-wit, whose only use is his money and position in society.

Mrs. Fox is indeed a conniver and schemer; she influences all her correspondents in many different ways: she's a mistress to one, an innocent to another, and when forced to, she piles on the melodrama like her life depends on it. Yet her real motivations are always clear - "a life of immortality dedicated to financial gain, where we take things as they come." Eluding reprisal and preying on men are her way of life. She amuses herself by manipulating the honest and sincere Violet, while imprisoning Martha to make sure the young girl will carry out her exact wishes. For Mrs. Fox, women are mere "spray-legged little cons and strumpets" and men are just "fops and dandies" to be played with and manipulated for her own ends.

Stockley deliciously portrays a society roiling with pimps, tarts, and harlots, and where "young men find conduits to the expression of their manhood that their mothers could not supply." There's evenings of flagrant debauch, where the primary protagonists are deceitful and amoral, taking pleasure at the prospect of parsons' daughters humiliated, or lovers' passions uncaringly thwarted. Other cast members prove surprisingly resourceful, although frequently compromised.

If you commanded and understood the power of the written word in London of the late 18th century you could have power over people's lives - disgrace could come immediately in the form of a salaciously worded letter. Stockley obviously understands this, which makes her decision to structure the novel with letters, forgeries, footnotes, and newspaper cuttings even more powerful.

A Factory of Cunning is a work of stunning complexity; it's a gripping and intricate narrative, which accelerates towards a dramatic and horrific conclusion. The author effortlessly spins a heady romantic tale covering four countries, involving murder, intrigue, and depravity. Her rapacious and avaricious heroine, so ferociously dedicated to life and survival, is too awful to love, but also too fascinating to hate. Mike Leonard April 05.

Firstly, it appears that most readers are familiar with Les Liaison Dangereux and have indicated that this book "echoes" the aforementioned. However, what it seems Phillippa Stockley has actually done is taken the story of "Dangerous Liaisons" where it left off and proceeded forward with all previous characters referenced. This would make for a seemingly excellent opportunity for a good story. Though rather well written linguistically and in an interesting attempt at unravelling the story via letters from one character to another, the reader can't help but fall into several pitfalls.

To Begin, there really are too many characters in this story who, with some, remain very undeveloped leaving the reader wondering why. Additionally, it almost seems that Stockley's Mrs. Fox forgets her original focus to destroy the Earl Much in a sudden new direction of interest via the character Violet's story of seduced debauchery. As for the Earl, he's supposedly a violent and malevolent person who we could compare to the Viscount in "Dangerous Liaisons". However, his character's supposed evil never truly comes across because his only letters are those which show a "gentleman". It would've been far more impressive and convincing to have the Earl writing letters involving his own twisted plots. Regarding all letters concerned, too often Stockley attempts to paint the story in a communication format between parties that would not make sense in true letter writing. Finally, the ending of the book is a disappointment. It's almost like a Hollywood story of the supernatural stepping far outside the bounds of the original setting.

If a reader is interested in a book that's interesting and fun, then this book will work. If you're looking for something that would be regarded at literature, this book does not fall in that category.

Yes, there's a surfeit of fancy words. Yes, there are some detestable characters. But it's also a ripping good read once the author gets going. My copy was a gift, and at first I was turned off, but soon I couldn't put it down. I cooked dinner with my nose in it, I stayed up late, I used every excuse to do errands where I'd have to stand in line, just so that I could have more time with this page-turner. The unhappy result is that I finished in two days and now I need another book to read....

Ms. Stockley has mastered the art of writing letters & journal entries like a saucy tart or a dandified fop in the 1780s, and has produced a book sure to please those readers who find themselves thinking that Jane Austen would be a wee bit more interesting if she'd rebelled just a tad against her role as a clergyman's daughter...

This is a witty (and in truth, a rather nasty) little book, told via letters between the story's stars and completely in character. Careful reading will leave you laughing at the dripping sarcasm, innuendo and political jibes peppered through the correspondence which tell this story. The reader is lured into the sticky middle of a web spun from intrigue, lies, corruption, pimping, pandering, love, vengeance, incest, spoiled innocence, and a smattering of other distasteful topics. Attention to the author's footnotes (which are written as if the novel were an edited collection of letters) and end notes will provide additional entertaining detail and sarcasm for your reading enjoyment.

Mrs. Fox, our main villainess, has escaped murder by mob in France after ruining the lives of several innocent people for sport, feining small pox, duping the masses and escaping to Amsterdam. There she sets up shop in a brothel - high end, as if it matters - and begins a friendship with a man which grows, reluctantly, into love. Fox flees to England in effort to escape the clutches of an enemy bent on revenge and lands in London. She soon finds herself bored and for pleasure begins to tinker with the lives of others, until her paramour in Amsterdam discovers her past, reveals his, and inadvertantly sets in motion a string of devastating and coincidental events. Realizing too late that Mrs. Fox is more than up for the deprived challenge he posed, he writes desperately to save her from herself only to realize that she has drawn in a number of other unsuspecting people to do her dirty work and provide her with amusement. As the post is slow and Mrs. Fox is stubborn, things get a bit out of hand...

If you are looking for a temporary escape into the seedier side of London during one of it's more colorful periods, open the pages & enjoy A Factory of Cunning.

The sharp, and sharp-tongued, Mrs. Fox is a charming anti-heroine. She lies, she steals, she cheats...but you can't help admire her wittiness and bravery as she picks her way through English society (most of whom are also lying, cheating, and stealing from each other with impunity). As each of the characters she encounters connects to others in turn, and the intricacies of their relationships become apparent, Mrs. Fox's final encounter with her pursuers draws closer and closer. Stockley's arch language is wonderful, and not to be missed if you enjoyed reading the original Liasons Dangereuses.

Never has the war between the sexes been so cleverly writ, the debauchery and cunning of vice pitted against 18th century London's propriety, the vile odors of betrayal disguised by the pungent eau de toilette sprinkled on a lace-trimmed handkerchief . Which is London, the well-appointed and pampered halls of aristocracy or the bawdy houses and crime-riddled back alleys where theft and deceit thrive? The pages are cluttered with fops and cutpurses, carters and shopkeepers, all with an eye to survival, the language as ribald and colorful as the times, witty and detailed, a feast of linguistic legerdemain. In other words, it is all fabulously decadent, the reader immersed in the underbelly of London's scoundrels and purveyors of artifice in every form.

Having fled France of necessity, then residing in Holland for two years, the dissolute and clever Mrs. Fox arrives on the slimy English shores with her servant in tow, determined to rebuild her fortune. Changing name and identity, the former Madame Combien (Mrs. How-Much) has every intention of setting up her business in London's bawdy section, having devised a successful formula for a house of ill repute in an elegant and exotic setting. To that end, she contacts persons recommended by her physician benefactor in Holland, Dr. Hubert van Essel, establishing her credentials in society.

This is the era of Charles III, the demimonde and a culture of excess, the language itself almost written in anecdotal code. Mrs. Fox's endeavors generate immediate interest, her very nature to cajole and find favor, but she makes one advance that may be her undoing, when she associates herself with the Earl of Much, a man reputedly unmatched in getting his way, fabulously rich and dangerously powerful. Mrs. Fox, however, perversely credits female ingenuity and natural instinct: "that twilit crossing between demi-monde and mondaine, where mysteries turn marvels and duchesses rise from doxies."

The plot plays out in a series of letters: Dr. Hubert von Essel, Mrs. Fox's protector and friend in Amsterdam; Mrs. Fox to her various pawns; Victoire the maid to her employer; the dandy Lord Danceacre; and, of course, the ultimate villain, the elusive Earl Much. The battle for submission is brilliantly engaged by Mrs. Fox and the Earl, a tour de force of machinations and cynical ripostes. Dr. van Essel has a personal stake in the encounter as well, albeit a matter he prefers kept private. The two foes engage in a duel of wits, the he and the she, each determined to best the other in a contest of manners and assignations, twisted deceits and double entendres.

Stockley writes with fine craftsmanship and an impressive command of idiom, capturing the obsequious nature of the era in all its self-congratulatory grandeur. The letters of those concerned grow more agitated as the plot thickens, each determined to achieve satisfaction. Mrs. Fox's carefully laid plans backfire in the melee as the Earl does his evil best to outmaneuver her. Compared to Dangerous Liaisons, this novel does have much of the scandalous flavor of that story, but with an added twist or two and a more menacing villain, the narrative pitch-perfect, an enthralling account of perversity and self-indulgence, with a rare wit and elegant phrasing. All in pursuit of the intangible in the ultimate battle of the sexes, where Eve is determined to wrest her soul from Adam or die trying. If A Factory of Cunning isn't optioned for a movie, I'll eat my senior citizens discount card. Luan Gaines/2005.

"Mrs. Fox" arrives in late eighteenth-century London on the run from a scandalous French past. She has taken on a new identity and wishes to rehabilitate herself to her former class level. At the same time a dear friend from the Netherlands has asked her to destroy Earl Much. Earl Much is a British aristocrat who collects priceless objets d'art and ruins young maidens.

The reader is transported to a world of bawdy houses, debauchery, ruination of willful maidens and intrigue. The earl proves to be a equal match to the cunning sinfulness of Mrs. Fox.

This is written in an epistolary mode, that of letters and diary entries. It was very difficult to get into the story to start with but finally near the middle of the story I started to 'get' it.