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laurenw's review against another edition
3.75
A multi-generational story about an intriguing family who appears to have drawn in every kind of trauma possible, the book is not bad, but it is chaotic. For all the claims of this focusing on a matriarchal line, and we do follow 4/5 generations of daughters, all the events in the book are framed through the perspective of 1 man, who is not a pleasant character. Obviously books can be enjoyable and still center a problematic character, but the role of Esteban (plural) throughout the story detracts from the spirit of the women this story should have been about.
Ultimately, fell flat for me, but the political background and its rich cultural depictions were its shining grace.
Graphic: Blood, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Outing, Toxic relationship, Sexism, War, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Vomit, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual content, Torture, Classism, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Abortion, Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Rape
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Animal death, and Miscarriage
doradalberto's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Torture, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, and Rape
bigolscrewup's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
And that fox escaped with his tail between his legs, with all the hens chasing him
4/5⭐
This is my second Isabel Allende book, after "Violeta" and I've always wanted to read this book before reading any of her other books, but I'm glad to have found some time to read this book finally. I love reading stories that details a family's history through multiple generations, highlighting each family member's eccentricities in a country that's on a path towards a military coup.
I didn't enjoy the the frequent shifts in perspective throughout the book and sometimes within a chapter, which made it difficult for me to follow the story at times. Even though Clara's idea of arranging the story based on events instead of chronological order sounded good as an idea, it was frustrating at times to read some chapters without having any clear idea on when a particular event happened, especially in this story, where there are so many interesting characters, who are all related to each other. Also, I felt the story lost some of its charm once Clara was out of the picture.
The magical realism in the book added a layer of wonder, which blended with Allende's elegant prose drew me and made reading this book an absolute joy.
Graphic: Confinement, Rape, Torture, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Grief, Domestic abuse, Car accident, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Animal death, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Misogyny, and Abortion
coleanne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Classism, Death, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Rape, Confinement, Excrement, Kidnapping, Cursing, Pregnancy, Sexism, Misogyny, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual violence, War, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content
lief_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Classism, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Murder, War, Torture, Sexual content, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Death, Blood, Rape, Animal death, Pedophilia, Death of parent, Abortion, Violence, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Gun violence, and Homophobia
Moderate: Miscarriage, Mass/school shootings, and Medical content
Minor: Incest and Addiction
rhi_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Racism, Torture, Blood, Child abuse, Excrement, Animal death, Classism, Abortion, Infidelity, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Rape, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexism, Medical content, Death of parent, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Murder, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, and Incest
Moderate: Self harm, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
marigoldgem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Homophobia, Torture, Violence, Sexual violence, Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, War, Racism, Medical content, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Car accident, Classism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gun violence, Rape, Sexism, Confinement, Grief, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
mightyoscura's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Suicide, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Death of parent, Death, Car accident, Slavery, Sexual violence, Rape, Police brutality, Lesbophobia, Infidelity, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Body horror, Self harm, Violence, Torture, Misogyny, Medical content, Gaslighting, Deportation, Classism, Child death, Blood, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, War, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Grief, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Colonisation, Abortion, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Sexism, Racism, Physical abuse, and Mental illness
lorenag5's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Classism, Sexual violence, Abortion, Blood, Car accident, Slavery, Torture, Rape, Sexism, Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, War, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Child abuse, Violence, Animal death, Colonisation, Medical content, Physical abuse, and Police brutality
cocheesereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Rape, Domestic abuse, and Death
Minor: Violence, Sexism, and Torture