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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
This was a 'read in the bath' book, so took me an age to complete. It suited the pace of the narrative as, like a bath, it took a while to run, got cold, and emptied quickly! I liked the 'stuck' feel of the winter world and the depiction of daily life as simple, then, in winter, simply arduous, was evocative. The grind of the mundane offered up so few moments of warmth between characters that it was difficult to engage with any, let alone come to like them. Like the season, reading became an endurance test as the narrative dragged out to a denouement that seemed paradoxically swift, unexpected in the sense of not being built towards and therefore unsatisfying, and ultimately as monotone as the snowbound landscape.
Los puntos más fuertes de este libro son la ambientación y el terror creciente a medida que la trama va a avanzando. Realmente me mantuvo intrigada y llegue a disfrutar la lectura por momentos.
Sin embargo, no me termino de convencer. La historia va demasiado lenta, hay capítulos enteros que no avanzan y por momentos, dudaba cuál era el verdadero tema del libro. No es malo que haya muchas subtramas y flashbacks, pero los tiempos se mezclaban con demasiada frecuencia. La autora saltaba del pasado a el presente con tanta frecuencia que me mareaba.
Los personajes eran (o me pareció a mí), demasiados liberales para la época. Si colocamos a estas mismas personas en una novela contemporánea, no habría gran diferencia.
Y por último, esta mi gran y eterno problema con el realismo mágico. Soy escéptica, me pase rodando los ojos la mitad de la novela, no podía creerme las cosas que sucedían en ese pueblo de montaña. Me gusta la fantasía y me gusta el realismo, pero la mezcla entre ambos me hace ruido, no puedo digerirla.
Sin embargo, no me termino de convencer. La historia va demasiado lenta, hay capítulos enteros que no avanzan y por momentos, dudaba cuál era el verdadero tema del libro. No es malo que haya muchas subtramas y flashbacks, pero los tiempos se mezclaban con demasiada frecuencia. La autora saltaba del pasado a el presente con tanta frecuencia que me mareaba.
Los personajes eran (o me pareció a mí), demasiados liberales para la época. Si colocamos a estas mismas personas en una novela contemporánea, no habría gran diferencia.
Y por último, esta mi gran y eterno problema con el realismo mágico. Soy escéptica, me pase rodando los ojos la mitad de la novela, no podía creerme las cosas que sucedían en ese pueblo de montaña. Me gusta la fantasía y me gusta el realismo, pero la mezcla entre ambos me hace ruido, no puedo digerirla.
Dark, intense and gripping on every page. I could literally feel the sense of bitter cold and helpless isolation of a frozen winter in the arctic circle. A mesmerising read.
Atmospheric and suspenseful, I liked the writing very much and wanted the characters and story to continue. I did not care for the story elements around the schoolteacher and nobleman, and wish the author had found a different distressing situation to have placed at the root of the crime, but my enjoyment of the writing outweighed that consideration and I would readily read this author's subsequent work.
4 ½ stars
This is the second book this year where I only half read one review before hand, where the average rating is not fantastic, where I suspected this would be a slow read BUT where I end up LOVING the experience.
So yes the story started off slower than what I normally prefer but by the 15% mark the story had me in its icy claws.
The story starts with the arrival of a new family in Blackasen Mountain, a desolate place with only 6 homesteads. As a family brought up in a fishing village, there is a lot of difficult adapting to be done. It’s clear from the start that the dynamics between husband and wife is strained. Paavo is a weak man and Maija resents him for this as much as he resents her for her outspokenness.
Then the eldest daughter finds a man in a field nearby. Slashed across his abdomen, dead.
Locals believe this is a wolf or bear attack but those that have seen the body knows differently.
The constant feeling of impending doom (both by the weather and the people) influenced my view of some of the characters, going back and forth about whether they are just hard to read or guilty of something more.
This is a bitter harsh environment where survival consumes your every thought but this small community is also full of hidden agendas, superstitions and rumours of witchcraft. I found the inclusion of the local natives, the Lapp People fascinating and will most definitely read more by this author.
Loved the setting, loved the atmosphere and loved the ending.
If you enjoyed [b:Burial Rites|17333319|Burial Rites|Hannah Kent|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1384207446s/17333319.jpg|21943144] then you will most probably enjoy this too
This is the second book this year where I only half read one review before hand, where the average rating is not fantastic, where I suspected this would be a slow read BUT where I end up LOVING the experience.
So yes the story started off slower than what I normally prefer but by the 15% mark the story had me in its icy claws.
The story starts with the arrival of a new family in Blackasen Mountain, a desolate place with only 6 homesteads. As a family brought up in a fishing village, there is a lot of difficult adapting to be done. It’s clear from the start that the dynamics between husband and wife is strained. Paavo is a weak man and Maija resents him for this as much as he resents her for her outspokenness.
Then the eldest daughter finds a man in a field nearby. Slashed across his abdomen, dead.
Locals believe this is a wolf or bear attack but those that have seen the body knows differently.
The constant feeling of impending doom (both by the weather and the people) influenced my view of some of the characters, going back and forth about whether they are just hard to read or guilty of something more.
This is a bitter harsh environment where survival consumes your every thought but this small community is also full of hidden agendas, superstitions and rumours of witchcraft. I found the inclusion of the local natives, the Lapp People fascinating and will most definitely read more by this author.
Loved the setting, loved the atmosphere and loved the ending.
If you enjoyed [b:Burial Rites|17333319|Burial Rites|Hannah Kent|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1384207446s/17333319.jpg|21943144] then you will most probably enjoy this too
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Just fantastic. If you liked The Witch of Blackbird Pond, you will probably like this book. Murder plus secrets plus magic plus history. Love love love.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was one of those, found-on-the-library-shelf, give-it-a-try books. But it turned out to be a very engaging read. Wolf Winter was eerie and suspenseful, but also rich in storytelling and character development. The writing is also somehow lush and stark at the same time, sparkling with detail of a time and place I know next to nothing about. Anything with a little bit of magic, whatever the shape or form may be, is also always appealing to me. An unanticipated, but very enjoyable read!