One of my all time faves!!!!!! I wish I could re-read for the first time again

Back in the day when I was into historical fiction, this one was way over the top. In our catholic high school, this book was being passed around off the school grounds because it would have been confiscated - along with our jeans. Imagine, jeans being "sinful"! Well, thank goodness times have changed! This must not have been so very scandalous, because I can't remember a word of the plot!

Тази книга си запазва една частица от сърцето ми ,защото си заслужава всеки ред на тази дълбока и пластова история.
Това е книга ,която показва частици от женската природа с нейните добри и лоши страни.
Това е като наръчник на жените за оцеляване в свят за мъже.
В град, като Лондон през 17век нещата не са били никак леки-безскрупулно ,егоистично и опасно място за хора без пари и близки.
Главната героиня измина стръмен път към върха,но далеч нейната личност не беше покорна и морална (до някъде).Амбър е изпълнена с хъс за бляскав живот и страст за любов. Моментите на живот и смърт тя вършеше неща ,които не харесваше,а когато имаше избор правеше правилните до един момент!Симпатизирам й и събитията около нея ме напрягаха,вълнуваха, радваха ,ядосваха и дори разплакваха.На финала на книгата направи неща,които не одобрих и приех нейната съдба ,като справедлива.
До края тя не съумя да събере своята енергия и буйни емоции, не се постара да се помири със себе си,притежаваше обноски ,но не и възпитание. Любовта и към Брус я изкарваше още повече извън релси.Вярвам ,че това клише "иска го защото не може да го има" не важеше напълно в тази история.Смятам,че тя наистина го обичаше и в средата на своето изкачване , той ако желаеше можеше да я шлифова.Но той е умен мъж и избра по-правилното решение за себе си .Смятам,че има много да се разсъждава по тази история.
Хареса ми,че авторката така дълбоко ме вкара в Лондон и бита повече от всяка друга книга.Все едно е живяла в това време и го пресъздава с всичките му привички.
Сега трудно ще изляза от книгата и дълго ще я помня определено.

A little known trivia about this book. Artie Shaw wanted his beautiful young wife Ava Gardner to be well read, and so he encouraged her to read many intellectual books. He was very annoyed when he found her reading Forever Amber. He called it a 'trashy romance novel.' Years later Artie Shaw would wed the author, Kathleen Winsor.

I finished this book ten minutes ago. It took me nearly two months to read, and here's why:

1. The protagonist was a whiny, self-absorbed, annoying twit who was afraid of growing old.

2. This book combined my two least favorite genres: romance and historical fiction.

3. The ending, if you can call it that, was horrible!

4. Some authors can pull off writing very long books (J.K. Rowling, anybody?). Some can't (Kathleen Winsor, I am talking to you). This was an eight hundred and twenty page story that should have been three hundred pages, tops. I might have even rounded my rating up to 2 (my official rating of this book is 1.5 stars) if this book wasn't so long.

I started Gone with the Wind when I was about halfway through this book, and so far, it's a thousand times better. Amber St. Clare cannot stand up to Scarlett O'Hara!

I first read this book when I was 11 and pretty sheltered in terms of sex and greed. I was floored at how Windsor made every character in this book come alive; living, breathing, fornicating, swearing---ALIVE. I certainly agree that Amber is one of the least likeable characters I've ever come across-she's bitchy, narrowminded, selfish and I believe that the term "stalker" would describe her osbession with Bruce--but can anyone say that they've never held on too long to someone they knew in their heart they'd never end up with? It is certainly an interesting journey for Amber, a sexually vibrant but unexperienced, illiterate country girl who believes that sex and love are one and the same, and watch her become the vicious, backstabbing, adulterous titled skank she became. I disagree that Amber did not change--she most certainly did. Almsbury himself said as much, "I wonder what happened to her--the innocent pretty countrymaid?" indicating that Amber was no longer the girl he once knew and loved. Windsor also points this out on no less than two separate occassions, having Amber muse what Uncle John would say if he could see her in her new role, with as much money, titles and lovers as she could stomach.
I absolutely adore this book, and not merely because it was banned by the Catholic Church in the 40's for its "shocking" depiction of sex. It's positively G rated by today's standards! The most risque' word Windsor uses is "breasts".
While Amber St Claire is most certainly the bitchiest, skankiest woman I've ever read about, I love Windsor's depiction of her struggle to make something of herself--to not fall victim to being married to a country bumpkin, or stay in jail because her husband skipped out on 500 pounds of debt. I love how she weaves real and fictional characters together so you don't know who's who--and you definitely feel like if you were to step in King Charles' court, you might get swept up into a devious scheme, take a lover, start a new fashion, make an enemy, or take London by storm.

March 15, 2012 is when I put this on my Goodreads list. (been on Goodreads since 2010) and it has taken me this long to get the book only to not finish 6 hours into the 42 hour book. This book was written in 1944 and was quickly banned. That is laughable now because this is a very clean book in "2021" standards, but I bet it was "scandalous" in 1944. (I.e. undressing in front of a man - the shame!)

The main character is whiny and basically even 6 hours in - I can see where this book is headed. Glad to at least get this off my dusty shelf.

Amber St. Clare uses womanly trickery, intelligence and allure to climb her way out of the slums of 17th century London to the superior place as King Charles II preferred mistress. Amber’s individual drama takes place in the middle of the political stratagem of Restoration England. Detail is not spared in this 976 page novel. Kathleen Winsor’s panicked depiction of the Great Fire of London creates such a realistic representation the reader can swear they smell smoke. In contrast, the fashion and customs of 17th century London are dramatic and prolific. Character development is not lost in all the period detail. Winsor’s main character, Amber St. Clare, has been described as a latter-day Scarlett O’Hara from Gone with the Wind and Amber’s desire and drive to improve their station in life is definitely similar.

Forever Amber was written in 1944 and its publication caused much controversy. Fourteen states and the Catholic Church actually banned the book. Nonetheless, it sold over 100,000 copies in its first week of release and became the best selling U.S. novel of the 1940’s. By today’s standards, Forever Amber could be described as romantically sensual but certainly not sexually explicit.

5 Stars.

I'm not sure how to digest this one, particularly with how cruelly rapid and heartbreaking and loose ended the finale was. I, for one, truly rooted for the heroine.

I'm going to avoid talking about particulars in the story and focus more on Amber's character, for it is she who makes the plot work over so many adventures and shift changes; she is the constant. Amber St. Clare is painfully human and her most painfully human trait is selfishness. She wants a lot of things in life but once she obtains them they, eventually, lose their sparkle and their importance to her particularly when her main desire is first threatened and, by the end of novel, destroyed. But Amber isn't evil. I think this could be quite a misconception. She's not diabolical at all. If anything she's rather simple. She wants greatness simply to fill the void in her heart, which isn't unlike so many other women (or men) particularly of the Restoration Era. Because she grew up without, Amber wants it all. She believes, on some level, that money will buy her contentedness but every year or so she is reminded that there's one thing she cannot purchase and there is one thing she wants more than money, vanity, and titles. As a result of her upbringing, as a result of her decision to go to London, Amber learned to be selfish as a means to survive. It can, in some lights, seem harsh and cruel, but in reality it simply makes Amber extraordinarily human.

Forever Amber is just that. Amber, no matter who she is married to, what level her wealth is at, what she is called whether it be a wench, an actress, a merchant's wife, a whore, a countess or a duchess, she is always, and sometimes painfully, herself, devoted to those she loves and willing to throw everything away for them. She is forever Amber with all her faults as well as her positive traits.

The crux of the book is Amber and her rise compared to her being constant to one person. Beyond that, the book is a snap shot of the first ten years of Restoration England. The king's return, the allowance of women on stage (which Amber takes full advantage of), the Great Plague (brilliantly rendered), the Fire (needs to be in a television show it was so good), the merry-go-round of the King's mistresses, the plots versus the Dutch and the never-ending saga of Anglo-French diplomacy are all captured with these 972 pages. And Amber is our ticket into the world but one that let's us see it as it really is. Grand, yes, but deceiving and ridiculous as well. The writing isn't overwhelming, but it's just enough to keep one in the thick of it through the end where the big question will be asked: where you with Amber or against her?

Amber takes you through one of the most interesting periods in the English history. A feisty, brave and independent heroine who is not afraid to go after what she wants.

10 stars

n  n

Forever Amber, Kathleen Winsor

Forever Amber (1944) is a historical romance novel by Kathleen Winsor set in 17th-century England. It was made into a film in 1947 by 20th Century Fox.

Judith Marsh has been engaged since birth to her neighbor, John Mainwaring, heir to the Earl of Rosswood. In 1644, she has her engagement broken off when her family and the Mainwarings find themselves on opposing sides of the English Civil War. During a break in the fighting, John visits Judith and the two consummate their relationship. Pregnant, Judith abandons her family and goes to Parliamentarian territory on John's instructions, introducing herself as Judith St. Clare.

There, she ends up staying with farmer Matthew Goodegroome and his wife Sarah. Judith dies in childbirth after naming her daughter Amber. In 1660, Amber, now a flirtatious teenager, is being raised by the Goodegroomes in ignorance of her origins. She meets a band of Royalists who inform her that Charles II of England is returning. Amber is particularly attracted to Lord Bruce Carlton.

During a fair, she lures him into the woods and loses her virginity to him. After she persuades him, Carlton reluctantly takes her to London, but tells Amber he will not marry her and she will come to regret her choice.

In London, Carlton makes Amber his mistress. She quickly grows accustomed to their luxurious lifestyle. She longs to marry Carlton and believes becoming pregnant will make him marry her. However, when she does become pregnant, Carlton announces plans to become a privateer.

He leaves Amber a significant amount of money and tells her if she is clever she can legitimize herself and her child by marrying well.

Left alone, Amber is befriended by a woman named Sally Goodman and passes herself off as a rich country heiress. Sally introduces Amber to her nephew Luke Channell, who Amber quickly marries out of fear that her pregnancy will soon be visible.

She soon discovers Sally and Luke are not who they appear. When they realize she is not as wealthy as she claimed they abandon her, leaving her penniless.

Amber is pursued by creditors and taken to a debtors' prison. Salvation comes when she catches the eye of Black Jack Mallard, a highwayman who takes Amber with him when he escapes.

Black Jack takes Amber to Whitefriars, where she is introduced to the ways of criminals and gives birth to a son who she gives to a countrywoman to raise properly.

Black Jack hires a student of noble birth, Michael Godfrey, to educate Amber, and begins to use her as bait in schemes where she lures handsome, rich men to quiet corners before Black Jack robs them. ...

‏‫‬‭Forever Amber‏‫‬‭ by Kathleen Winsor. ‏‫‬‭‬‭New York‏‫‬‭: The Macmillan Company‏‫‬‭, 1945‏‫‬‭ = 1324. 652 Pages.

تاریخ نخستین خوانش: سال 1969 میلادی

عنوان: امبر برای همیشه (عنبر، شاهکار کاتلین وینسور)؛ نویسنده: کاتلین وینسور؛ مترجم: مجید مسعودی؛ تهران، کانون معرفت؛ چاپ اول 1333؛ چاپ دوم 1335؛ در 432ص؛ فروست: (صد کتاب از از صد نویسنده بزرگ دنیا)؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان آمریکایی سده 20م

آمبر (عنبر) برای همیشه؛ رمان عاشقانه ای است، که توسط خانم «کاتلین وینسور»، نویسندهٔ اهل «ایالات متحده آمریکا» نگاشته شده ‌است؛ این کتاب با عنوان «عنبر» توسط روانشاد جناب «مجید مسعودی» در سالهای دهه ی سی سده چهاردهم خورشیدی به فارسی برگردان شده است؛

دختری شانزده ساله به نام «آمبر سنت کلار»، خویشتن خویش را در خیابانهای «لندن» بیخانمان و بیپول مییابد، و بدتر از همه اینکه ایشان، باردار نیز هستند؛ با اینحال، او دختری جوان، و فریبنده، هم از نظر زیبایی ظاهری، و هم از نظر شخصیت، و تیزهوشی، نیز هست؛ «آمبر» به ویژه در استفاده از حیله های زنانه مهارت دارد، و در پایان کار خویش معشوقه ی «چارلز دوم» میشود؛ داستان فرعی رمان، در باره ی «چارلز دوم» است، ایشان پس از درگذشت «کرامول»؛ از تبعیدگاه خود، یعنی از کشور «فرانسه»، برای بدست آوردن اداره امور، به «انگلستان» برمیگردند، مردمان «انگلیس»، که تازه از زیر یوغ حکومت «کرامول»، آزاد شده بودند، درگیر هرج و مرجی پر دامنه بودند، البته که پس از برچیده شدن هر دیکتاتوری، هرج و مرج، در همه ی شئون زندگی مردمان هر دیاری، حکمفرما میگردد؛ و سیاست، و طاعون، و آتش سوزی بزرگ لندن، و ماجراهای خواندنی دیگر ...؛

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 01/02/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی

My feelings are so conflicted on this one.