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purplelorikeet's review against another edition
4.0
Genevieve is an English born Huguenot who dreams of being a real artist but her attempts to further her education hit a dead end in eighteenth century England. Nobody will tutor her as she is a woman. It's been arranged for her to work at Derby Porcelein as a decorator and painter but this isn't what she wants for her life. By chance she meets Sir Gabriel at an event and he offers to send her to Italy to study if she will go to Derby as planned and find the formula for the color blue that is allegedly being developed there. She accepts the plan and goes there and thus begins a tale of industrial espionage from long ago.
Overall this was a delight to read. The story engaged me almost from the beginning and it was good most of the way through. Relationships were formed between Genevieve and various characters and it was interesting to see how they played out. The end was where it didn't quite work for me. I felt it didn't ring true to the rest of the story and it was a bit of a letdown. Not that it was terrible but it just wasn't as good as the rest of the book.
Overall I give this about 3.5 stars.
Overall this was a delight to read. The story engaged me almost from the beginning and it was good most of the way through. Relationships were formed between Genevieve and various characters and it was interesting to see how they played out. The end was where it didn't quite work for me. I felt it didn't ring true to the rest of the story and it was a bit of a letdown. Not that it was terrible but it just wasn't as good as the rest of the book.
Overall I give this about 3.5 stars.
cornishgirl's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
ducci's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
alicemalaika's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
perhaps the most annoying protagonist of a novel I have ever read
aurorelei's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
fayes64books's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
cavtasticreader's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This is a historical fiction about a secret plot to steal the color blue from England. Set in 1740’s in the middle of a war between France and England. Centered around the porcelain production. The whole story line is very interesting and I learned things about the time I didn’t know. It is a slower paced book but I didn’t feel too slowly paced. Genevieve is the main character and is boy crazy and a bit naive. I found her to be annoying but she did grow up a bit as the book progressed. She just isn’t a confident in herself and gets to be a little taxing.
Over all I thought it was a good book.
Over all I thought it was a good book.
timemm's review against another edition
emotional
informative
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5