Ross Poldark (Poldark, #1)

by Winston Graham

[pamela]

I have very fond memories of the Poldark series. When I was a teenager I discovered the entire series in battered paperback on my parents' bookshelves. I was desperate for something to read, so decided to pick up 'Ross Poldark', and emerged a month later having read the whole series from cover to cover! Picking up these books started a life long love affair with historical fiction, and Winston Graham's 'Poldark' series stands as a shining example of the genre.

'Ross Poldark' is a genre mix of Daphne Du Maurier's novels and Margaret Mitchell's 'Gone With the Wind'. It begins a sweeping saga of life in Cornwall in the years after the Revolutionary War. Ross Poldark returns to his home only to discover his life has changed dramatically, and not always for the better. He must forge a new life for himself in the home that he loves, transporting the readership to Poldark's Cornwall in the process.

The characters of Graham's novels are compelling. Demelza is one of the most memorable heroine's of historical literature, and Ross himself is damaged, charming and likeable. The foul-mouthed caretakers of Ross' home provide comic relief, and the relationships between the Poldark family, their tenants and neighbours is so wonderfully realised that the reader feels personally invested in the lives of the novel's characters.

If you like historical fiction, 'Ross Poldark' is a must. If you don't like historical fiction, 'Ross Poldark' is a great place to start!