Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The story was compelling and engaging. The main character felt fully fleshed out in the sense that she was at times unlikeable but that made her more real.
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was an excellent book. The world building is absorbing without needing any knowledge of the time period. The balance of Lucrezia’s character is well struck— she is defiant and passionate, but her behavior is not completely unrealistic for a time period in which women had no power and were at the mercy of their fathers and husbands. Her connection to animals, the experience of her taking her deceased sister’s place, and her relationship with Emilia were all thoughtfully portrayed. The tone was enchanting; it felt like a fairytale and surreal but also arrestingly dire. I thought I knew the ending so I was pleasantly surprised by the twist.
My only criticism was that at points it dragged a bit, but mostly because I was so enthralled and eager to find out what happens.
Renesanssiajan Italiaan sijoittuva kirja kertoo ruhtinaan tyttären, Lucrezian, lapsuudesta ja aikaisesta avioliitosta. Ylhäisnaisen elinpiiri on hyvin rajoittunut, sallittuja ajanvietteitä on vähän ja jopa monimutkaiset raskaat puvut rajoittavat liikkumista.
Lucrezia on perheen outolintu, kiinnostunut enemmän eläimistä ja maalaamisesta kuin avioliittoon pääsemisestä. Hänet kuitenkin naitetaan kauas kotoa, toisen mahtisuvun perilliselle. Aluksi Alfonso hurmaa Lucrezian ja elämä ruhtinattarena uudessa palatsissa tuntuu ylelliseltä ja vapaalta. Pian Lucrezia kuitenkin alkaa ymmärtämään hovin valtapeliä, ja kuinka rautaisella otteella Alfonso sitä hallitsee.
Kirjassa kulkee kaksi aikatasoa ja kirjailija käyttää taidokkaasti vanhaa tehokeinoa aloittaa tarina keskeltä tapahtumia. Tapahtumat etenevät hitaasti ja yksityiskohtiin keskittyen, mutta koko ajan lukijan kiinnostus pidetään tiiviisti yllä. Historiallinen kuvaus on tarkkaa ja kirjassa luodaan elävä ja todentuntuinen kuva siitä, millaista ylhäisnaisen elämä on voinut 1500-luvun Italiassa olla.
Kirjan tärkeimpiä teemoja ovat valta ja sen väärinkäyttö, naisten asema renesanssiaikana, ja millaisia psykologisia keinoja heillä on voinut olla äärimmäisen patriarkaattisessa ympäristössä selviytymiseen.
Mukaansatempaava ja koskettava tarina, upean yksityiskohtainen ja elävä kerronta. Iso suositus!
Lucrezia on perheen outolintu, kiinnostunut enemmän eläimistä ja maalaamisesta kuin avioliittoon pääsemisestä. Hänet kuitenkin naitetaan kauas kotoa, toisen mahtisuvun perilliselle. Aluksi Alfonso hurmaa Lucrezian ja elämä ruhtinattarena uudessa palatsissa tuntuu ylelliseltä ja vapaalta. Pian Lucrezia kuitenkin alkaa ymmärtämään hovin valtapeliä, ja kuinka rautaisella otteella Alfonso sitä hallitsee.
Kirjassa kulkee kaksi aikatasoa ja kirjailija käyttää taidokkaasti vanhaa tehokeinoa aloittaa tarina keskeltä tapahtumia. Tapahtumat etenevät hitaasti ja yksityiskohtiin keskittyen, mutta koko ajan lukijan kiinnostus pidetään tiiviisti yllä. Historiallinen kuvaus on tarkkaa ja kirjassa luodaan elävä ja todentuntuinen kuva siitä, millaista ylhäisnaisen elämä on voinut 1500-luvun Italiassa olla.
Kirjan tärkeimpiä teemoja ovat valta ja sen väärinkäyttö, naisten asema renesanssiaikana, ja millaisia psykologisia keinoja heillä on voinut olla äärimmäisen patriarkaattisessa ympäristössä selviytymiseen.
Mukaansatempaava ja koskettava tarina, upean yksityiskohtainen ja elävä kerronta. Iso suositus!
It took me a while to really enjoy the story, but eventually i was completely engulfed in it.
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
“If she doesn’t do it, someone else will, and she will not let anyone cut the hair from her head. If it must happen, she will take charge of it herself. It is her hair. It is her head. They can take away her pictures and her paints; they can fill her body with medicines and cold foods and other things besides; they can poke and palpate her stomach and peer down her throat; they can lock her up in her rooms, but she will cut the hair from her own head before she lets anyone else near her with shears.”
“Look. Here is Lucrezia, a small figure in the corner of a landscape with a river, a forest, an imposing stone building. She is moving across open ground, through the dark winter night, running, running, with all her strength, towards the merciful canopy of trees.”
Dear God. I sobbed like a little baby during the last 2 chapters.
“Look. Here is Lucrezia, a small figure in the corner of a landscape with a river, a forest, an imposing stone building. She is moving across open ground, through the dark winter night, running, running, with all her strength, towards the merciful canopy of trees.”
Dear God. I sobbed like a little baby during the last 2 chapters.
With a slow start of days trying to get into it, I finished the other half of the book in one sitting on a nice morning off work. It was really hard for me to engage at the beginning; I had a hard time focusing because this book is rich in description, but after I was able to pass the pain threshold, I became intrigued and fascinating.
I knew very little about the main character, but the plot of the book is laid out clearly from the beginning.
I liked how atmospheric and visual this book is. There's no sparing of details; it comes with a great deal of information that, once it grabs you, drags you down as part of it all, even the onomatopoeias—at first they took me by surprise, but later I found myself reading them aloud, making my own special effects while powering through the plot nearing the end.
It is somewhat predictable; at some point, I started to plot what could happen and guess many things to come. However, I enjoyed getting all the way to the end just to prove to myself that that initial hurdle had not been in vain.
At some point, the main character feels nauseous, and it's the kind of reading —as a woman— that got a hard grip on my guts, making me feel just the same way. It made me wonder how books in the far future would write about today's potential historical figures. There's a moment where Lucrezia thinks certain practices are barbaric in her century, yet it brings to mind today's thinking about the many things we still do and allow as a society.
This is definitely not a book I'd have chosen to read; it was part of my book club. But now I feel like keeping Maggie O'Farrel on my bookshelves. I'll be reading Hamnet later on this year for sure, and I would look forward to any future work she shares.
Last but not least, I appreciated the books she acknowledged as instrumental in conceiving this fiction; a real treat.
I knew very little about the main character, but the plot of the book is laid out clearly from the beginning.
I liked how atmospheric and visual this book is. There's no sparing of details; it comes with a great deal of information that, once it grabs you, drags you down as part of it all, even the onomatopoeias—at first they took me by surprise, but later I found myself reading them aloud, making my own special effects while powering through the plot nearing the end.
It is somewhat predictable; at some point, I started to plot what could happen and guess many things to come. However, I enjoyed getting all the way to the end just to prove to myself that that initial hurdle had not been in vain.
At some point, the main character feels nauseous, and it's the kind of reading —as a woman— that got a hard grip on my guts, making me feel just the same way. It made me wonder how books in the far future would write about today's potential historical figures. There's a moment where Lucrezia thinks certain practices are barbaric in her century, yet it brings to mind today's thinking about the many things we still do and allow as a society.
This is definitely not a book I'd have chosen to read; it was part of my book club. But now I feel like keeping Maggie O'Farrel on my bookshelves. I'll be reading Hamnet later on this year for sure, and I would look forward to any future work she shares.
Last but not least, I appreciated the books she acknowledged as instrumental in conceiving this fiction; a real treat.