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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
What a beautiful, wonderful, story! The writing style is just gorgeous. The word choice feels intentional and fitting. And thank god this is book one and not the end! There is so much more I want to know and so many questions left unanswered.
Tuga is a very, very remote island.
A ship comes in every six months and that is it. If you need to come to the island, or leave the island, you will do it on that ship. If there’s something you need, you better hope it got on that ship in time.
On this ship’s voyage several big things are happening:
Charlotte is coming to Tuga for the first time ever. She’s coming to study tortoises but is very quickly thrown into the role of vet.
Dan is returning after nearly twenty years away. He left to get his education and now he is coming back to take over his uncle’s medical practice. When his uncle retires, Dan will be the only doctor on the island.
Eleven year old Annie Goss is supposed to be leaving on the ship to go get her education but she hides until the ship leaves.
This tiny community is very set in their ways. They are rather charming though. We meet a ton of islanders and animals. This definitely reminds me a bit of All Creatures Great and Small but modern day on a remote island.
I loved getting to know this cast of characters and I am thrilled that there will be two more books because I need more time on Tuga with them!
Tuga is a very, very remote island.
A ship comes in every six months and that is it. If you need to come to the island, or leave the island, you will do it on that ship. If there’s something you need, you better hope it got on that ship in time.
On this ship’s voyage several big things are happening:
Charlotte is coming to Tuga for the first time ever. She’s coming to study tortoises but is very quickly thrown into the role of vet.
Dan is returning after nearly twenty years away. He left to get his education and now he is coming back to take over his uncle’s medical practice. When his uncle retires, Dan will be the only doctor on the island.
Eleven year old Annie Goss is supposed to be leaving on the ship to go get her education but she hides until the ship leaves.
This tiny community is very set in their ways. They are rather charming though. We meet a ton of islanders and animals. This definitely reminds me a bit of All Creatures Great and Small but modern day on a remote island.
I loved getting to know this cast of characters and I am thrilled that there will be two more books because I need more time on Tuga with them!
I was drawn to this book by the beautiful cover, the intriguing title and the blurb, and I wasn't disappointed. Charlotte is a naturalist who comes to this remote island, closed off from the rest of the world for six months a year, to research turtles-- and perhaps learn something about herself in the process. Part love story, part coming of age story, and wholly original, this book is a charm.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I felt some things were left unresolved or with puzzling, hastily concluded resolution.
For instance:
1) Did Joan know who Charlotte was? Did she purposely select her for the Gold Coin conservator position bc of her paternity? Was her maternal attitude toward her at the end on purpose? Is that why she left her the ring? Is that why Joan felt such guilt about “not giving” her husband children and going to such lengths to cater to him bc she knew it was her “fault”? Or was it all coincidence?
2) After setting the whole relationship up with the two children and how they refused to be separated, why, then, send the boy off at the end with all melancholic nostalgia about the great and changed life he would lead? When Annie had that chance and denied it so the children could stay together, only then for him to leave and her be stuck there.
3) Also, just a personal preference, but my very literal brain dislikes not having a definitive answer as to how things turn out between Charlotte and the person she chose, as well as if she would stay on the island. What about a resolution regarding her mother?
4) Wait, also, who really gave her the walnut when she was a kid? Did I totally miss some subtext that flew right over my head? Cuz Garrick said he actually never went back and he had no idea what she was talking about.
All told, I really enjoyed this and keep thinking about it. It was an excellent audiobook with a highly skilled narrator. Despite my lingering questions, I like a book you have to think about…even if I rarely have the answers.
For instance:
1) Did Joan know who Charlotte was? Did she purposely select her for the Gold Coin conservator position bc of her paternity? Was her maternal attitude toward her at the end on purpose? Is that why she left her the ring? Is that why Joan felt such guilt about “not giving” her husband children and going to such lengths to cater to him bc she knew it was her “fault”? Or was it all coincidence?
2) After setting the whole relationship up with the two children and how they refused to be separated, why, then, send the boy off at the end with all melancholic nostalgia about the great and changed life he would lead? When Annie had that chance and denied it so the children could stay together, only then for him to leave and her be stuck there.
3) Also, just a personal preference, but my very literal brain dislikes not having a definitive answer as to how things turn out between Charlotte and the person she chose, as well as if she would stay on the island. What about a resolution regarding her mother?
4) Wait, also, who really gave her the walnut when she was a kid? Did I totally miss some subtext that flew right over my head? Cuz Garrick said he actually never went back and he had no idea what she was talking about.
All told, I really enjoyed this and keep thinking about it. It was an excellent audiobook with a highly skilled narrator. Despite my lingering questions, I like a book you have to think about…even if I rarely have the answers.