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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
1866 - A young pregnant Irish nun is abandoned in San Francisco following a relationship with a Chilean aristocrat and gives birth to a daughter she names Emilia del Valle. Encouraged by her stepfather, Emilia grows up to be an intelligent young woman with an adventurous spirit who publishes dime store novels under a male pen name as a teenager before landing a job as a journalist with The San Francisco Examiner.
1891 - When Civil War breaks out in Chile, Emilia travels there along with her colleague, Eric Whelan, to cover the conflict and to learn more about her Chilean roots. As the war escalates, the headstrong young woman finds herself in increasingly dangerous situations but also finds love with Eric.
This historical fiction novel is written in first person with Emilia telling her story as if recording it in a journal. Allende, as always, does an excellent job of capturing time and place and covering the social and political issues of the time period. The historical narrative is interesting as well with respect to the history of 19th century Chile but it does lean heavily into the war in all its brutality and violence so it's a tough read for anyone who's squeamish at all.
Emilia is a strong female protagonist but, unfortunately, I didn't feel any emotional connection to her - probably due to the narrative style which felt distant. This was an okay read but not as compelling as the previous books that I have read by the author and the love story didn't seem necessary.
1891 - When Civil War breaks out in Chile, Emilia travels there along with her colleague, Eric Whelan, to cover the conflict and to learn more about her Chilean roots. As the war escalates, the headstrong young woman finds herself in increasingly dangerous situations but also finds love with Eric.
This historical fiction novel is written in first person with Emilia telling her story as if recording it in a journal. Allende, as always, does an excellent job of capturing time and place and covering the social and political issues of the time period. The historical narrative is interesting as well with respect to the history of 19th century Chile but it does lean heavily into the war in all its brutality and violence so it's a tough read for anyone who's squeamish at all.
Emilia is a strong female protagonist but, unfortunately, I didn't feel any emotional connection to her - probably due to the narrative style which felt distant. This was an okay read but not as compelling as the previous books that I have read by the author and the love story didn't seem necessary.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
She’s still got it! I hadn’t read Allende in a bit, because I got a little fatigued reading her books back to back to back. A pattern arises, not that they are formulaic, but you can start to guess what will happen. This new book was wonderful, and made me remember why I love her so much. Page turning tragedy and love!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
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
adventurous
funny
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
adventurous
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
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
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
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated