Mr. Tulkinghorn has Mr. Snagsby come to his turret and is acting all shifty, as he is best at. There's some guy lurking in the shadows that Tulkinghorn introduces as Mr. Bucket. Poor Snagsby has gotten into something and it doesn't seem like he really understands what. They drag Jo into this mystery, and poor Jo. Can't you just leave him alone? He's so nice, getting medicine for the two women Esther and Ada saw in the first section. Anyway, they show him some lady and ask if this is the person who asked Jo all about the dead guy and he says the person is dressed the same but the hand and voice aren't the same so they figure out it was Lady D asking Jo all these questions about Nemo while dressed as Hortense. DUN DUN DUUUUUN
Richard has negative money because of his awesome financial skills. He could learn something from Confessions of a Shopaholic. Just saying. Maybe the Army will be a better career for him.
Caddy and Prince (hehe) asks Esther to come with them while they tell their parents about their engagement because EVERYONE LOVES ESTHER. Except I'm starting to get suspicious about how much everyone loves and respects and needs her, if only because this is being told from Esther's point of view. Maybe she is this nice and sweet, but given she thinks she is so not you'd think if she's repeating people talking about how awesome she is all the time she'd caveat it. But she does not. So Esther, I'm watching you...
Mr. Jarndyce gets Charley as a maid for Esther which yay for Charley getting a better life, although now she doesn't get to see her siblings anymore, so that's sad. Also Hortense really wanted to be Esther's maid, so now that Charley is I fear for her life as well as Rosa's.
Richard and Ada decide to dissolve their engagement because...reasons. Well I guess the reasons are Jarndyce tells them to cos Richard is getting involved in the J&J case and also will be living in Ireland. But I dunno.
Mrs. Rachel, the person who was so cruel to Esther as a kid (in the "not really caring about her and not having a hard time saying good-bye" and not "beating and feeding gruel" cruelness) is now Mrs. Chadband. Somehow she knows the Snagsby's. Speaking of them, Mrs. Snabsby thinks Jo is Mr. Snagsby's son since they've been acting suspicious. I hope things go all Maury in this story.
Captain Hawdon, who I believe was one of Mrs. Badger's ex-husbands is apparently NOT dead. At least that's the assumption of Grandpa Smallweed. Tulkinghorn wants a sample of Hawdon's handwriting, which he thinks George has. But George won't give it to him, because Tulkinghorn is shady as hell.
Lady Dedlock's housekeeper's son comes to talk to Sir & Lady D about the fact that his son is in love with Rosa and wants to marry her. He will give consent ONLY if Rosa stops work at Chesney Wold (which I keep reading as "Chesney World" so I picture the place as sort of a crappy amusement park) cos he wants her to be better educated. Sir D is all insulted cos she went to one of his (crappy) schools. Looks like another engagement is going to be broken up.
GUPPY IS BLACKMAILING LADY D to prove that Esther is related to Lady D. Ugh, this guy. But we do learn that apparently Esther's original last name was Hawdon like that dead-not-dead guy. Except then back to dead since that was apparently Nemo's last name AND that Esther is Lady D's daughter, who she thought was dead.
JO IS SICK. Esther brings Jo back to Bleak House and Mr. Skimpole tried to get her to throw him out because he's a terrible person. But Esther and Jarndyce do not listen to Skimpole because they are not terrible people. But they do put him in the stable cos they're only so nice. Then he runs away in the night.
Charley gets sick and almost dies. Then Esther gets super sick and GOES BLIND. And is mostly upset because she's been quarantined from everyone, but mostly Ada who she lovingly watches from the window. And Ada keeps trying to get into the sick room but Esther won't let her. BECAUSE OF LOVE
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| Esther's other condition |
Title quote from location 6760
You'd think Dickens would be done giving us characters. But he is not. New characters, or at least ones briefly introduced in the previous chapters that get some more description.
Smallweed family: Grandpa is crazy. Hilariously crazy. Probably because all of the kids are miserable and sad and DON'T KNOW HOW TO LAUGH. I'm sure they grew up in a similar way and it's not too surprising that makes you crazy. Crazy or a serial killer. Poor little Charley worked for these people before becoming Esther's maid.
George: Owns shooting gallery. Owes money/visits with the Smallweeds a lot.
Phil: Guy at George's Shooting Gallery
Mr. Bucket: Detective. Friend of Mr. Tulkinghorn so I'm pretty sure it should be "detective." NATURALLY not to be trusted
Gridley: Had violent outburst in the Army and ran away and is now in hiding at the shooting gallery. Dies while talking to Flite.
Bagnet family: They don't seem to have much to do with the story at the moment, but their kids have hilarious names so I needed to record: Quebec, Malta, Woolwich.
Volumnia Dedlock: HOW GREAT IS THIS NAME? She's Sir D's cousin and I don't remember much more about her than that. I got distracted by the name.
Mr. Rouncewell: Mrs. Rouncewell's son. Doesn't want Rosa to work for Lady D if Rosa and his son get married. Insults Sir D, so that's fun.
Mrs. Woodcourt: Comes to stay at Bleak House and annoy Esther. Maybe Esther's future mom-in-law (if she ends up with Mr. Woodcourt instead of Ada).
Miss Whisk: Mr. Quayle's fiancee and talks about how insisting women stay in the domestic sphere is TERRIBLE and I like her a lot. Even if I think we're supposed to find her ridiculous.
Dickens, Charles. Bleak House. Amazon Digital Services. Originally published 1853. Kindle edition.
