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kelseywelsey's review against another edition
2.0
Özlem: "...but I don't think anything will happen, do you know? It is rare when things actually happen"
"I guess that's true," Yvonne said, trying to decide if it was. (pg. 37)
Vida seems like she's written this book trying to decide if the above quote is true. Something both does and does not happen so I'm not sure where her stance lands. The love story in this is kind of whimsical which I liked. It would be a good quick read for a day at the beach as I flew through it and it also happens to be beach related! As a woman who does often travel alone I liked hearing about Yvonne's experience. Some lovely descriptions of Turkey, a pretty solid voice for the main character but the other characters fall flat and the story has a bit of a lull in the middle.
"I guess that's true," Yvonne said, trying to decide if it was. (pg. 37)
Vida seems like she's written this book trying to decide if the above quote is true. Something both does and does not happen so I'm not sure where her stance lands. The love story in this is kind of whimsical which I liked. It would be a good quick read for a day at the beach as I flew through it and it also happens to be beach related! As a woman who does often travel alone I liked hearing about Yvonne's experience. Some lovely descriptions of Turkey, a pretty solid voice for the main character but the other characters fall flat and the story has a bit of a lull in the middle.
heatheradoresbooks's review against another edition
My first time with this author and I really enjoyed it. Alot of jumping around in time, but it works.
nssutton's review against another edition
3.0
The Imprint column in the New York Times sold me on this book before I even cracked the spine. The description of the land is lush and each detail of Yvonne's life like a tiny pearl. Thankfully, as the pacing of the story was a little wane. I felt as if I was re-reading Kate Chopin's The Awakening, one of my favorite books in high school, again for the first time -- but it's hard to tell if I really made that connection, or was just reading more into the fact that Vida is a Kate Chopin Literary Award winner.
This was a good book for a sad day, one in a string of gray days that seemed almost never ending.
This was a good book for a sad day, one in a string of gray days that seemed almost never ending.
wisbeth's review against another edition
4.0
The title of this book rather frightened me. I thought maybe this could end up being a raunchy book about two lovers. Not so at all and I was so thankful for that!
The story revolves around Yvonne who has recently lost her husband and is trying to come to terms with her grief. She goes to Turkey where they honeymooned only to find that Turkey has changed and so has Yvonne. Yvonne has no problems making new friends in Turkey and befriends a young boy who does not speak English and the estranged wife of the man who owns the home she is renting. I thought Yvonne was more at ease with these new friends than with her own children. There were times in this book that I was very afraid for Yvonne and the danger of traveling alone in a country and not being able to communicate with everyone. Vendela Vida did an excellent job making me feel Yvonne's pain and confusion. She portrayed Yvonne as the typical American who needs to fix everything and in many cases makes it much worse. I could so relate in that aspect! I loved the setting of Turkey. It is a setting I am not very familiar with and one I have not read much about. I'm interested in more stories set in the area. I do feel the abrupt ending works well for this short book. At first I wanted more but then decided I was very satisfied with the ending. I would recommend this book. Don't let the title frighten you off!
I would give this book 4 1/2 stars! I'll also be looking for more titles from Vendela Vida as she is a new to me author.
Thank you to Greg at Ecco for providing this ARC for review.
The story revolves around Yvonne who has recently lost her husband and is trying to come to terms with her grief. She goes to Turkey where they honeymooned only to find that Turkey has changed and so has Yvonne. Yvonne has no problems making new friends in Turkey and befriends a young boy who does not speak English and the estranged wife of the man who owns the home she is renting. I thought Yvonne was more at ease with these new friends than with her own children. There were times in this book that I was very afraid for Yvonne and the danger of traveling alone in a country and not being able to communicate with everyone. Vendela Vida did an excellent job making me feel Yvonne's pain and confusion. She portrayed Yvonne as the typical American who needs to fix everything and in many cases makes it much worse. I could so relate in that aspect! I loved the setting of Turkey. It is a setting I am not very familiar with and one I have not read much about. I'm interested in more stories set in the area. I do feel the abrupt ending works well for this short book. At first I wanted more but then decided I was very satisfied with the ending. I would recommend this book. Don't let the title frighten you off!
I would give this book 4 1/2 stars! I'll also be looking for more titles from Vendela Vida as she is a new to me author.
Thank you to Greg at Ecco for providing this ARC for review.
danchrist's review against another edition
3.0
Vendela Vida's story of a widow traveling to Turkey to rediscover herself is well told and interesting enough to carry the reader along pleasantly from scene to scene. Details, though, are sparse, and Via's prose lays on the page like a soggy grape leaf soaked in olive oil.
I kept waiting for revelatory insight or crackling descriptions, but neither were unearthed as our heroine hurtled headlong through one desultory encounter after another. And while I understand the main character's phlehmatic interaction with her surroundings may have been a clear plot device, I honestly expected much more from a book which had been so highly touted.
A decent read, but not a great one.
I kept waiting for revelatory insight or crackling descriptions, but neither were unearthed as our heroine hurtled headlong through one desultory encounter after another. And while I understand the main character's phlehmatic interaction with her surroundings may have been a clear plot device, I honestly expected much more from a book which had been so highly touted.
A decent read, but not a great one.
kerickertful's review against another edition
2.0
This was frustrating. I’ve really enjoyed other books Vida has written and was expecting the same from this. But the main character’s inability to be truthful to herself or truthful about her situation was really irritating to me. And maybe that was the point? Getting a big ol “okay, boomer” from me.
librarian_lisa_22's review against another edition
5.0
Another extraordinary book by Vida. This is my second exploration into the mind of an author so like my own, so honest that it’s devastating. I feel like my deepest thoughts are naked on the page, twisting in the unfamiliar glare of her words and pages. No chapters, because there are only chapters in life after the fact. When you’re in the thick of it, you can barely come up for air. Brilliant.
kasiabrenna's review against another edition
2.0
This started out pretty absorbing, but then didn't really go anywhere. Also (this is the spoilery part), I really hate that the trivial character of Ahmet had to die so our main character could have some sort of epiphany. Is this a common trope, wherein an American character in a foreign land reaches an epiphany after the death of an expendable local? If so, it is not one I enjoy. Like that Wes Anderson movie Darjeeling Limited, where the Indian kid has to drown so our American main characters can come together. Yuck.
ms_matou's review against another edition
3.0
meh.. disappointing. I still want to go to Turkey though.
maryparapluie's review against another edition
4.0
Very similar to her other books-- woman faces life-altering event, must find herself again, does so with the help of a trip to some slightly unusual place. This time it's a recent widow vacationing alone in a small Turkish village.
While I'm aware that this similarity is probably really annoying to many, many people, I still find the way that Vendela Vida writes and how she paces her stories tremendously pleasurable.
While I'm aware that this similarity is probably really annoying to many, many people, I still find the way that Vendela Vida writes and how she paces her stories tremendously pleasurable.