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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
“If we do not change our direct, we may end up where we are going”.
After starting the Seven Sisters’ journey over 12 months ago, I feel I have traversed the world, travelling to incredible places, discovering intriguing true histories, and meeting a plethora of colourful characters along the way. (Ever the Armchair Travel will be). This last book, Atlas: the Story of Pa Salt, is the penultimate finale, bringing the lives of D’Apliese family full circle.
What an amazing life Atlas, Pa Salt lived. His loves and joys, heartaches and loses, travels and adventures, as well as the people that came into, and out, of his life, were all assiduously places - “. . . for my whole life I seem to have been governed by a power that I myself do not understand.(p598)” - leading him to his ultimate destiny. As the seven sisters said their final goodbye to Pa Salt, I also said goodbye to a dear friend. (Yes, I may have shed a tear or two).
And as for the Seven Sister - Maia, Ally, Star, CeCe, Tiggy, Electra and Merry - you are more than just characters in a book. I feel I have found myself dear friends that will last a lifetime. Like Atlas and Elle, whose legacy will continue in the lives of their descendants, so too will Lucinda Riley’s. Thanks to her loving son, Harry Whittaker, for graciously fulfilled his mother’s wishes after her death and completing Atlas’s story - Lucinda and the D’Apliese family will live on in our hearts forever.
‘She is up amongst the stars, Atlas.’
‘Why?’ he asked.
‘Because that’s where people go when they leave their bodies. They become …. Stardust.’ (p.691)
After starting the Seven Sisters’ journey over 12 months ago, I feel I have traversed the world, travelling to incredible places, discovering intriguing true histories, and meeting a plethora of colourful characters along the way. (Ever the Armchair Travel will be). This last book, Atlas: the Story of Pa Salt, is the penultimate finale, bringing the lives of D’Apliese family full circle.
What an amazing life Atlas, Pa Salt lived. His loves and joys, heartaches and loses, travels and adventures, as well as the people that came into, and out, of his life, were all assiduously places - “. . . for my whole life I seem to have been governed by a power that I myself do not understand.(p598)” - leading him to his ultimate destiny. As the seven sisters said their final goodbye to Pa Salt, I also said goodbye to a dear friend. (Yes, I may have shed a tear or two).
And as for the Seven Sister - Maia, Ally, Star, CeCe, Tiggy, Electra and Merry - you are more than just characters in a book. I feel I have found myself dear friends that will last a lifetime. Like Atlas and Elle, whose legacy will continue in the lives of their descendants, so too will Lucinda Riley’s. Thanks to her loving son, Harry Whittaker, for graciously fulfilled his mother’s wishes after her death and completing Atlas’s story - Lucinda and the D’Apliese family will live on in our hearts forever.
‘She is up amongst the stars, Atlas.’
‘Why?’ he asked.
‘Because that’s where people go when they leave their bodies. They become …. Stardust.’ (p.691)
A stunning ending to a wonderful series. Thoroughly enjoyed.
emotional
lighthearted
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:
Complicated
Do our choices determine our fates or are they written in the stars? Perhaps, it's as Lucinda Riley tells us and it's some kind of amalgamation of the two.
As I write this, I'm aware that I may be a little biased in this review. Like her other readers, I have dedicated many hours to reading the 6,000 pages that document the lives of the enigmatic Pa Salt and his seven daughters - surely these hours cannot been spent in vain. But going into the books, I found myself consistently surprised at how much I liked each one. I am an avid reader of historical fiction, however, which I believe allowed me to suspend my disbelief enough to enjoy what are in fact highly unrealistic books.
Like their authors, the books themselves are highly ambitious, and transported me through space and time to discover
Given this backdrop, the countless loose ends that needed to be tied up, and the unfortunate premature death of its author, I was skeptical that Lucinda's son, Harry, would be able to do the final novel justice. But using her notes, he wrote a beautiful, satisfying ending that would have made his mom proud.
As I write this, I'm aware that I may be a little biased in this review. Like her other readers, I have dedicated many hours to reading the 6,000 pages that document the lives of the enigmatic Pa Salt and his seven daughters - surely these hours cannot been spent in vain. But going into the books, I found myself consistently surprised at how much I liked each one. I am an avid reader of historical fiction, however, which I believe allowed me to suspend my disbelief enough to enjoy what are in fact highly unrealistic books.
Like their authors, the books themselves are highly ambitious, and transported me through space and time to discover
Spoiler
Brazil during the creation of the Cristo, Norway at the time of WWII, Britain amid its royal scandals (not that this description narrows the field much), Australia at the height of its thriving pearling industry, Spain and its flamenco roots, Africa with its Happy Valley crew, Ireland during the troubles, and last but not least, Russia following the October Revolution.Given this backdrop, the countless loose ends that needed to be tied up, and the unfortunate premature death of its author, I was skeptical that Lucinda's son, Harry, would be able to do the final novel justice. But using her notes, he wrote a beautiful, satisfying ending that would have made his mom proud.
I’m so happy with the finale of this incredible series! To my fiction loving friends looking for a series, these 8 books are some of my favorite and I truly cannot recommend them enough. The final book did an amazing job wrapping up an amazing narrative.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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:
Complicated
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Well, I must admit, I haven't read the whole series, as they are long books and I didn't like the bad language in them, but I wanted to read this last one, to finally read Pa Salt's story.
As the story went on, I was totally captivated and wanted to keep reading. There were lots of twists and turns that I didn't see coming, right until the end. I'm so glad I was able to borrow this from the library. Be warned though, it is a v large book. I may have been tempted to give it 5 stars, if it wasn't for the bad language to be honest.
As the story went on, I was totally captivated and wanted to keep reading. There were lots of twists and turns that I didn't see coming, right until the end. I'm so glad I was able to borrow this from the library. Be warned though, it is a v large book. I may have been tempted to give it 5 stars, if it wasn't for the bad language to be honest.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No