Adequately written and captivating throughout, Ethan Frome is a nice, short, and interesting read. Illustrating the turbulence of an unattainable love, this story is about the tragic life of Ethan Frome, a man torn between his duty and his desire. Mirrored after the tragedy in her own personal life with ex-husband Edward Wharton and secret lover Morton Fullerton, Edith Wharton successfully paints the misery of her protagonist and his star-crossed lover Mattie Silver in this perfect "snuggle by the fire" read.
I found the beginning of the book to be an interesting lead in, an unknown narrator visiting a cold and wintry Starkfield, Massachusetts where he meets Frome and two peculiar old women that are living with him. The drab setting that Edith Wharton cascades the small town with sets the gloomy atmosphere that pervades its characters and community throughout the story. Wharton utilizes the presence of this harsh winter weather as a symbol of the characters' battle with interior and exterior forces; they have to physically battle the icy, heavy snow while psychologically fighting the lust of human nature.
Vividly captured are the emotional pain and sufferings each character in the story goes through, from Ethan's insatiable hunger for Mattie to a poor town simpleton's piteous gaze upon the troubles dealt to the Fromes. Wharton is able to fully connect with her audience as her empathetic emotions bring vehemence and truth to every word. She explores the candid thoughts of her characters, engrossing the reader with an up close and personal look into the tormented mind of Ethan Frome that consequently creats a fascinating masterpiece of romantic catastrophe. Though the story's ending did not turn out how I would have liked it to, it greatly underlines the messages that Wharton tries to convey to her audience. The theme of not being able to escape the past, the bitter results of duty vs. lust, and the everlasting marks a person carries after relationships encompass themselves within this novel and all come together at the end.
This short yet satisfying read is a book fit to read by the fire on a cold wintry day, its harrowing tale of a secret lust and the human being's innermost desires are revealed and brought to life by this heartfelt creation of Edith Wharton's talent.
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Ethan Frome (Signet Classics) Books In Print, Audio Books.