if i had read tess with no understanding of the literary genius of thomas hardy i probably would have had a similar response to it as many of the other reviews on this site, it was horrible, dont read it etc etc. however after studying a wide range of books this year i realise that it is not until you really appreciate the authors work , that you can truly appreciate the narrative. also to anyone studying Tess i suggest you read the entire book including the notes and introduction before viewing roman polanskis film version. the film leaves out a lot of important and interesting major events , and as a result has not half the meaning as the novel