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Having read 'On Chesil Beach' & really enjoyed it I thought I would post a review. Before doing so I read the reviews here already & I am fascinated by the expectations & opinions of some reviewers.

I believe this is not a book about an era but about the emotional baggage that two people can bring to a situation where that baggage is no longer avoidable. Something has to give & it will either be a happy or sad ending.

In addition, as always, we reviewers seem to want to compare the authors new book to their previous ones which is unfair. Do we really want our favourite authors to stick with a formula that works or experiment with new ideas?

If this book was written by a new author I think the comparison reviewers would be saying something else.

The book is very good - end of!

Set in the 1960s, McEwan has delved into the emotions of a newly married couple as they embark upon their wedding night. Inexperienced and nervous, they both have their own expectations and fears of what is to come. McEwan plunges the reader deep into the consciousness of two very different individuals. Their dilemma is expressed in such an astonishing, yet delicate, detail that you can literally feel the awkward embarrassment of the `young innocents'. Climaxing to a disturbing end, stubbiness and misunderstanding are proven to be the solitary factor that changes the fate of the couple. Although the book was creatively impressive, it left me frustrated that the consequences of the climax weren't explored in more depth.

Dont know if I missed something here, but found it very hard going, not at all what I expected. Basically the story of Florence and Edwards wedding night, with lots of flashbacks. Not for me, I was really disappointed.Very slow. Caz

This was, thankfully, a short concise little book, though it does manage to meander in parts. It is because it had the sense to be short and sweet that I gave it 4 rather than 3 stars. (7 out of 10).

Edward and Florence are newly weds at the beginning of the 60's. Sex was still a taboo subject and sex before marriage was not yet the norm. The fears and preconceptions of the wedding night had built up to a pitch. Both parties had concerns but particularly Florence who had little more than a basic 'guide book' on the subject.
How they dealt with the situation is interspersed with gradual details of their restricted pasts to explain how such a relationship had evolved. As we get to know the characters we also progress through the evening and its denouement.

This is the era just prior to the contraceptive pill and 'free love'. I wonder if many of the book's critics were perhaps too young to grasp how huge the changes were that came about at the end of this decade.
We discussed this book at a (mixed) book group, many of whom vouched for the reality of the situation.
Living in Dubai, I would also comment that many other cultures would still be experiencing such First Nights and perhaps the book is not as dated as it might at first seem.

So many novels, so many authors. Isn't it true that there are more writers than readers these days? It's hard to select what not and what to read. But I had no hesitation in picking up this one. I loved the nostalgic feel, the cynicism, and the scary fact that the average person today wasn't even born during the time this novel was set. I guess I was also attracted to the fact that it was set in the area where I grew up and was educated. Can't say I blame the author for only giving the old grammar school a brief mention. As they say, less is more.