In Chancery [Hardcover]

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: The Literary Press (1930)
• ASIN: B000N7FUFA
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't start in the middle, February 25, 2007

By 

J. Marren "jtm497" (Glen Ridge, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Chancery (Forsyte Saga) (Paperback)

Everyone's heard of "The Forsyte Saga," the BBC family epic of the late Victorian Age. Fewer have read the Galsworthy book, and that's a shame, because it's fascinating on so many levels. "In Chancery" is the story of the divorce of the two main characters, Soames and Irene. But without what came before, you'll lose the significance of what happens.

On the surface it's the story of Soames Forsyte, the quintessential icon of the growth of the upper middle classes and the decline of the nobility during the Victorian era. Descended from a farmer in Dorset in the not-too-distant past, Soames is a lawyer and a man of property. He buys wisely, sells more wisely, and husbands his wealth and that of the family. He is in control of everything that affects him, except one thing--his wife. Desiring to possess the sensitive, beautiful, genteel but poor Irene, and with the help of a callous mother, Soames pressures Irene into becoming his wife. From this single mistake, the one time Soames let passion rule, his life and the lives of his family and their descendants are changed in unpredictable and frightening ways. Galsworthy's theme is the constant tussle in life between property and art, love and possession, freedom and convention. In the fine tradition of family sagas, these themes play themselves out over and over with each generation.

On another level, this is the story of an age, the story of the British Empire at its peak. Galsworthy packs his book with allusions to the great crises of the time, the Boer War and WWI, the rise of Labour, the death of the Queen, the spread of "democracy." The Forsyte homes are meticulously detailed, from the French reproduction furniture to the dusty sofas to the heavy drapes, to the fireplace grate, to the electric lights in the old chandeliers. Soames collects art, and Galsworthy showers us with the opinions of a British gentleman of the great and not so great art of the day.

The saga was written over a period of many years, and on yet another level I found the the changes in Galsworthy's style from the rather clipped, detailed recitations of events and commentary typical of the 19th century to the more expressive style of the 20th. Especially in the first volume of the three, family relationships are painstakingly laid out, the rounds of dinners and family gatherings carefully chronicled. By the third volume, To Let, Galsworthy reveals the love of the countryside and the pain of repressed emotions that the family members a generation ago would have hidden. The writing is very beautiful--as in this sentence: "Fleur raised her eyelids--the restless glint of those clear whites remained on Holly's vision as might the flutter of a caged bird's wings."

It took me a good six weeks to plow through The Forsyte Saga, but it was worth it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More family affairs, July 31, 2005

By 

Alysson Oliveira "Alysson Oliveira" (Sao Paulo-- Brazil) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In chancery (Hardcover)

In the second installment of "The Forsyte Saga", writer John Galsworthy reassumes the life of the Forsyte family. "In Chancery" is situated a few years after the events told in "The Man of Property", in a few pages recaps some of the most important facts of the first book and their aftermath. After that he is able to move on.

And on he moves -- but the narrative still concerns on young Jolyon, Soames and Irene that forms a love triangle. While the remaining Jolyon become a close friend to Irene, her ex-husband --from whom she hasn't divorced in all those years -- fells jealous and considers claiming his wife back.

Needless to say that this is not the only plot in the novel. Galsworthy develops more family plots. It is impossible not to have the feeling that while he is sometimes depicting the shallowness of the elite from his time, at the same time he has an indulgent look upon the rich and wealthy -- which is not a bad thing as a matter of fact.

Those who like "The Man of Property" will certainly find more pleasure in "In Chancery". He finishes the book with the perfect hook what will come next.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Continuing the Saga, March 23, 2004

By 

frumiousb "frumiousb" (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: In Chancery (Collected Works of John Galsworthy) (Library Binding)

_In Chancery_ is the second of the novels in the first Forsyte Saga trilogy. A delightful and pointed look at the rising upper middle class in England, this book picks up where the interlude "Indian Summer of a Forsyte" left off and continues the story of Young Jolyon and the man of property himself, Soames.

This installation continues the theme of musing on the nature of possession and freedom as they relate to love and marriage as Soames wishes to remarry so that he can have a son who can help keep the family property intact. Usually bound together with "Awakening", the interlude that binds this book generationally to _To Let_.

Discovering the world of the Forsytes has been one of my delights of the year. I have no idea why these books have been forgiven, but they're really wonderful. Discover them yourself!