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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
I stumbled over this book and it sounded interesting. I must say I really enjoyed. I read it in 24 hours time. The characters were well thought out and I really enjoyed the descriptive setting. Great book!
the hype for castle of water made me incredibly nervous, as I can often fall into an aesthetic trap, and be disappointed. however, this book was fantastic. I thought, probably mid way through, that I knew where it was going, and then WHAM! smacked back into reality with a swift palm of emotion filled shock & surprise.
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**mild spoiler**
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"It started like this: Sophie was resting her head on Barry's panting chest, stroking his arm, when she mentioned, all rather casually, that she wished they could have met each other like normal people. Somewhere else, someplace far away."
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5/5 ⭐️, no questions asked. A huge thanks to @huckelbridge for sharing this copy with me. était absolument fantastique! 👏🏻
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**mild spoiler**
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"It started like this: Sophie was resting her head on Barry's panting chest, stroking his arm, when she mentioned, all rather casually, that she wished they could have met each other like normal people. Somewhere else, someplace far away."
•
5/5 ⭐️, no questions asked. A huge thanks to @huckelbridge for sharing this copy with me. était absolument fantastique! 👏🏻
I’m a sucker for a good love story and I can’t rave enough about the beauty of, Castle of Water. I know that this will be on the top ten list of 2017 and I have a feeling, if you read it, it will be on yours too.
A small plane crashes in the middle of the South Pacific leaving two of the passengers stranded as they both washed ashore on a small island. If you think this sounds a bit predictable, I did too, but Huckelbridge writes a story that is anything BUT predictable as the two castaways work together to try to remain alive in the face of numerous hurdles.
The writing is surprisingly witting and laugh-out-loud funny, while still giving you that ache in your heart at all they have lost. Being stranded on an island requires a writer to really drive this story with strong characters. This character development is the heart of the story as these two seem to lift off the pages.
While the ending didn’t bring all that I had hoped, it felt truthful to the storytelling and didn’t overshadow this beautiful story! Run, run, run and get this one!
A small plane crashes in the middle of the South Pacific leaving two of the passengers stranded as they both washed ashore on a small island. If you think this sounds a bit predictable, I did too, but Huckelbridge writes a story that is anything BUT predictable as the two castaways work together to try to remain alive in the face of numerous hurdles.
The writing is surprisingly witting and laugh-out-loud funny, while still giving you that ache in your heart at all they have lost. Being stranded on an island requires a writer to really drive this story with strong characters. This character development is the heart of the story as these two seem to lift off the pages.
While the ending didn’t bring all that I had hoped, it felt truthful to the storytelling and didn’t overshadow this beautiful story! Run, run, run and get this one!
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
sad
fast-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
I adored most of this book. The writing pulled me in immediately and I was totally captivated by this story, although it often reminded me of that movie “Eight Days, Seven Nights” with Anne Heche and Harrison Ford (not great). I fell in love with both Barry and Sophie, and while I cried at the end and felt all the emotions in my bones... I still wanted to know more! I tore through this book because I just had to know how they got off the island, but I feel a bit let down. Still a 4 star read for me, and I would definitely read anything by Dane Huckelbridge in the future!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Yeahhh I don't know. It was okay. I think I have realized books told in 3rd person make me feel really disconnected and kind of bored. Which is basically how I felt wit this.
"And so on and so on goes the cardiac beat in this polka called life."
This is by far my favorite book I have read thus far this year! It is so beautifully written and I found myself wanting to highlight so many wonderful sections. It is strange then that I am having trouble putting into words my thoughts on this book and this review will probably be short and sweet.
I felt the ups and the downs that Sophie and Barry go through. And while there were times when they seemed too lucky, I loved that the author gave us a back story for the island they now inhabited and explained why they were able to survive for so long. I never found myself questioning how realistic the whole situation was.
The ending was utterly heartbreaking and I found myself with tears running down my face while reading it. I was rooting for the two of them but knew that it wouldn't have a fairytale ending and I'm okay with that. This book will forever have a spot on my bookshelf and in my heart.
This is by far my favorite book I have read thus far this year! It is so beautifully written and I found myself wanting to highlight so many wonderful sections. It is strange then that I am having trouble putting into words my thoughts on this book and this review will probably be short and sweet.
I felt the ups and the downs that Sophie and Barry go through. And while there were times when they seemed too lucky, I loved that the author gave us a back story for the island they now inhabited and explained why they were able to survive for so long. I never found myself questioning how realistic the whole situation was.
The ending was utterly heartbreaking and I found myself with tears running down my face while reading it. I was rooting for the two of them but knew that it wouldn't have a fairytale ending and I'm okay with that. This book will forever have a spot on my bookshelf and in my heart.
I know this is an unpopular opinion, considering the amount of 5 star reviews of this book, but I just didn't love this book. It was hard for me to get into the plot, and I didn't connect with the characters until about halfway through the book. It was a well-written book, but just not my cup of tea.
4.5 stars because the ending kind of made me mad (even though it was fairly clear what was going to happen, i'm still bitter). excellent and engaging writing style that draws you in using equal parts tragedy and comedy.
this book has a bittersweet finish, and although it was definitely a little more bitter than sweet, it was fitting and pulls the book together in a beautiful way. the interplay of tone throughout the book - from comedy to romance to tragedy to adventure - is really well done and makes it more interesting.
the ending, although a good way to tie it all together, is frustrating because it definitely echoes a lot of classics and contemporarieswhere the main female character is "fridged" (i.e. killed off) in order to further develop the male character. nevertheless, i think it was handled with grace and managed to avoid the typical results of that trope because barry at least is dedicated to their child and honors sophie. still a little disappointed that sophie died because i think if she had survived the book still would have been excellent and there neednt have been an extra air of tragedy to finish off what was otherwise a reasonably light-hearted work.
i loved the rest of the book though, even the romance, and i'm extremely picky when it comes to straight romance because too often it ends up being tacky and unnecessary, so 4.5 stars it is.
this book has a bittersweet finish, and although it was definitely a little more bitter than sweet, it was fitting and pulls the book together in a beautiful way. the interplay of tone throughout the book - from comedy to romance to tragedy to adventure - is really well done and makes it more interesting.
the ending, although a good way to tie it all together, is frustrating because it definitely echoes a lot of classics and contemporaries
i loved the rest of the book though, even the romance, and i'm extremely picky when it comes to straight romance because too often it ends up being tacky and unnecessary, so 4.5 stars it is.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No