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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
I recently read Paulina Bren's The Barbizon:The Hotel That Set Women Free and was excited to come across The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis. I couldn't put The Dollhouse down and was kind of sad when it ended. Going back and forth between present times and the past to find out what happened between Darby and Esme that ended in the mysterious Eseme's death had me guessing the entire time. The author's descriptions made me picture everything vividly and had me turning each page ready to find out what happened next. I really preferred reading about what Darby and Esme were up to, opposed to Rose but was happy when Rose moved on in the end.
The concept behind this was enjoyable. The author bounces between two timelines and stories - that of the young women in the Barbazon Hotel and trying to make lives and dreams for themselves, and that of a woman decades later trying to piece together what happened on the night one of those women fell to her death.
The story was good, but the writing was "meh." There was a lot of telling rather than showing, making the plot points and context less effective some times. It also took a solid 40-50 pages for Rose to give, what I believe, was a believable reaction to her ex-fiance's betrayal and the horrible position he's put her in. Maybe that can be chalked up to Rose's personality, or her incredulity and where she's found herself. But in general I found Rose's story the characters it includes to be much more wooden and flat until a significant portion of the way into the story.
All in all it's an interesting idea, and it was worth reading to see how the plot unfolded. But the writing kept me from loving it, and felt like perhaps it could have used another editing pass to keep things really engaged. (I feel horrible writing that. The plot really is lovely! And twisty! And engaging!)
The story was good, but the writing was "meh." There was a lot of telling rather than showing, making the plot points and context less effective some times. It also took a solid 40-50 pages for Rose to give, what I believe, was a believable reaction to her ex-fiance's betrayal and the horrible position he's put her in. Maybe that can be chalked up to Rose's personality, or her incredulity and where she's found herself. But in general I found Rose's story the characters it includes to be much more wooden and flat until a significant portion of the way into the story.
All in all it's an interesting idea, and it was worth reading to see how the plot unfolded. But the writing kept me from loving it, and felt like perhaps it could have used another editing pass to keep things really engaged. (I feel horrible writing that. The plot really is lovely! And twisty! And engaging!)
This book was really good! Fiona Davis is a really good author.
It has suspense, love, and history. All my favorite things!
It has suspense, love, and history. All my favorite things!
informative
mysterious
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:
Yes
Entirely predictable and annoyingly twee, with a main character who ought to be behind bars for trespassing and grossly violating an elderly lady's privacy. Chick lit that seems to make the case that in the 50's as well as today, women are vapid creatures looking to catch a man no matter what .
Spoiler
unless they're gay, in which case they'll die a horrible death
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Another fantastic historical novel by Fiona Davis! The past and present storylines were so perfectly woven together, and I just fell in love with the characters.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes