Beautifully written, compelling story. The movie's plot ended before the book's end and there is one other subplot in the movie. Neither detracts from the other. Frequently seeing a movie after reading the book can be disappointing. That isn't the case here. Both are beautiful.

A breathtaking story from beginning to end. The author, W. Somerset Maugham is a wonderful storyteller and does not disappoint the reader once during the novel. This is not a love story but a tale of one woman's journey on the road to redemption. The protagonist, Kitty Fane reminds me of a British version of Scarlett O'Hara. Kitty's journey is not a light hearted one. The reader's heart is constantly in a state of flux as the indecisive Kitty always leans towards the wrong choice. This is a timeless work that I believe will be in my top ten of beloved novels for the rest of my life. I highly suggest picking up a copy and enjoying the vivid world left behind by Maugham.

Maugham's writing is pure 19th century but this in no way detracts from his plots, which are very 20/21st century, as evidenced by the recent movie. There's some very good food for thought here with regard to personal relationships.

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Book was ok. The ending was a little disappointing, I was expecting something more than what ended up happening. I found the main character a little annoying at times. It seemed like she never really knew what she wanted. And her pregnancy was never really a big deal to her (it seemed). All the characters seemed cold and standoffish. Nobody was really that interesting or even humanlike at times.

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