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BRIDESHEAD REGAINED
continuing the Memoirs of Charles Ryder
Michael Johnston
'A compelling narrative, beautifully written' Hon Simon Howard of Castle Howard
Listen to Michael Johnston talking about this book on a recent One Word Radio broadcast
(MP3 player required)
Reviews
Author comment on reviews;
On the whole, the reviews received have been very fair. A number of readers dislike what seems to them an abrupt and harsh ending for which the explanation is simple. I had hoped to write two more volumes taking Ryder and Brideshead on for another ten or more years. After a spell in New York, he would return to Brideshead to help Julia run the estate and she would allow ‘Bridey’ and his family to come back and live there. Alas, the building would be badly damaged in a fire for which the reader may think Caroline was responsible but, helped by his son John, Ryder would restore the fortunes of the estate and the house through film companies and television programmes using them as locations. Whether Charles and Julia eventually reunite ….. Alas, my row with the Evelyn Waugh Estate means you will never know and my own book can only be bought on-line or by mail order.
A full review is at http://www.abbotshill.freeserve.co.uk/Delights.htm
Lifted from Amazon
Hon. Simon Howard, Castle Howard, letter of January 12, 2003
A compelling narrative, beautifully written, bringing out how important
"Brideshead" is to everyone. Would make wonderful television!
letter to the author
'A fine sequel to one of the greatest stories ever told.' Sheridan
Morley, Author and Critic.
letter to the author
'Sequels are always dangerous [..] almost certainly a literary suicide.'
Lord (Roy) Hatterlsey
Sequels can succeed, 24 September, 2003
Reviewer: Chris Ryan from Harrogate, N Yorks United Kingdom
I approached Brideshead Regained with some trepidation but within a few
pages my fears were soon unfounded. This is a wonderful read. Michael
Johnson has achieved the impossible in successfully writting a sequel
to Brideshead Revisited. In Johnston's book we experience the ups and
downs of life during the Second World War through the eyes of Charles
Ryder as he works as a war artist. We meet prominent leaders and a few
old friends along the way. All together an excelent book, only one problem,
I want to know what happens to Charles next, how about it Mr Johnson?
Riveting Read, 21 September, 2003
Reviewer: Ruth Elwin Harris from England
This is a terrific read, brilliantly written. I was fascinated to learn
what happened to Charles Ryder; the WW2 background was utterly convincing
and made the story even more gripping.
The story is complete in itself but after I'd finished it I did go out
and buy Brideshead Revisited to remind me of what had gone before - another
riveting read.
Insidiously enjoyable, 17 September, 2003
Reviewer: David Cliffe from Kent, United Kingdom
When I first looked at 'Brideshead Regained' I did not think that I would
enjoy the book or appreciate an attempt to emulate Evelyn Waugh. It is
true that Waugh's style (both precise and nostalgic) and the Catholic
ethos of the original are largely absent, but the story started to grip
me from early on.
The adventures of Charles Ryder in the later years of the war are fascinating in themselves. He paints with Churchill and actually paints a portrait of De Gaulle; and he finds himself in Belsen as the war comes to an end. This section is extremely powerful. I am impressed by Michael Johnston's descriptive power both here and in the monastery where he meets Sebastian for the last time.
The story rises to a climax when Ryder returns to Brideshead itself. It is clear that Mr Johnston wants to continue with a second sequel, though it now seems we may be denied that pleasure in the near future, at least - his story of Charles Ryder and Brideshead is certainly not complete as the book ends. I certainly found myself wanting more!
Regaining a Lost World, September 12, 2003
Reviewer: Tony Hammond from London, Great Britain
There are rumours that the jealous guardians of Evelyn Waugh's literary
estate are trying to limit the circulation of this sequel by Michael Johnston.
If true this is a great pity because he really has effortlessly recreated
the world of Charles Ryder and his beloved Flyte family in a way that
fans of Waugh's novel and the critically-acclaimed Channel 4 series could
only approve of. We follow Ryder through the Second World war as his appointment
as a war artist takes first him to Africa (where he again meets Sebastian)and
then later through war-torn Europe where he discovers the barely-alive
Anthony Blanche. But it is Nanny Hawkins' funeral at Brideshead at the
end of the war that brings Ryder face-to-face with other members of the
Flyte family as well as his ex-wife and two (virtually estranged) children.
The novel ends on an emotional roller coaster. Do read it if you can.
It really is very good!