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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
Eerrrm what have I just read???
I really enjoyed the concept of this book, it kept me wanting to know more about The Centre and how it worked but I was still not ready when I eventually found out!!!
In parts it was slow and I felt like it was being padded out with unnecessary side stories just for the sake of it. I also wasn’t a fan of the long chapters.
I found Anisas character really unlikeable, I thought she was spoilt and annoying however I really liked Shibas strong character and how she was always one step ahead.
Give it a go if you don’t have a towering TBR but otherwise you’re not missing much - and just remember if anyone comes bragging that they learnt a full language in 10 days, just walk away
I really enjoyed the concept of this book, it kept me wanting to know more about The Centre and how it worked but I was still not ready when I eventually found out!!!
In parts it was slow and I felt like it was being padded out with unnecessary side stories just for the sake of it. I also wasn’t a fan of the long chapters.
I found Anisas character really unlikeable, I thought she was spoilt and annoying however I really liked Shibas strong character and how she was always one step ahead.
Give it a go if you don’t have a towering TBR but otherwise you’re not missing much - and just remember if anyone comes bragging that they learnt a full language in 10 days, just walk away
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
slow-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Interesting cover to cover. A few questions remain unanswered. Enjoyed it
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Cannibalism
Moderate: Sexism, Classism
The story in this novel had some promise, but unfortunately the author didn't know what to do with it.
Our protagonist - a Pakistani woman who faces daily discrimination for her ethnicity in London - learns about a miraculous place where you can learn to be fluent in any language in ten days. She attends and becomes fluent in German after ten intensive days of listening to recordings from a man named Peter, who recounts his life in every dull insignificant detail, in German.
But then she starts to wonder how the process works, and finds an "in" with a woman who works there. They become friends and it turns out - quelle chance! - that this woman is the daughter of the founder of the Centre, and is willing to spill all the secrets about how it works.
I think for me this fell flat after our hero's visit to the kitchens. She can't remember what she saw there, if anything. Did she even go in? And then her friend tells her that they're eating the people who recorded the stories, and that's how they become fluent. But the "big reveal" (after we know they're eating people) is that in the kitchens, the main character saw a leg in the fridge. Which, I mean, obviously. If they're eating people, there will be people in the fridge. How is that a big reveal? It was set up like this would be shocking to us. And the main character vomits after she remembers what she saw, in shock. But - SHR ALREADY KNOWS THEY ARE EATING PEOPLE. Why is this shocking?
Also, her close friend is this really cool, intuitive person throughout the story, but then she meets a guy and starts hiding her light. And she starts to realize it, yet she still marries the guy, and that's how the book ends.
I didn't get it. This wasn't for me. I won't read anything else by this author.
Our protagonist - a Pakistani woman who faces daily discrimination for her ethnicity in London - learns about a miraculous place where you can learn to be fluent in any language in ten days. She attends and becomes fluent in German after ten intensive days of listening to recordings from a man named Peter, who recounts his life in every dull insignificant detail, in German.
But then she starts to wonder how the process works, and finds an "in" with a woman who works there. They become friends and it turns out - quelle chance! - that this woman is the daughter of the founder of the Centre, and is willing to spill all the secrets about how it works.
I think for me this fell flat after our hero's visit to the kitchens. She can't remember what she saw there, if anything. Did she even go in? And then her friend tells her that they're eating the people who recorded the stories, and that's how they become fluent. But the "big reveal" (after we know they're eating people) is that in the kitchens, the main character saw a leg in the fridge. Which, I mean, obviously. If they're eating people, there will be people in the fridge. How is that a big reveal? It was set up like this would be shocking to us. And the main character vomits after she remembers what she saw, in shock. But - SHR ALREADY KNOWS THEY ARE EATING PEOPLE. Why is this shocking?
Also, her close friend is this really cool, intuitive person throughout the story, but then she meets a guy and starts hiding her light. And she starts to realize it, yet she still marries the guy, and that's how the book ends.
I didn't get it. This wasn't for me. I won't read anything else by this author.