Reviews

A Spanish Lover by Joanna Trollope

bluestarfish's review against another edition

3.0

Lizzie and Frances are twins and are navigating events and changes in circumstances and feelings as they find new paths (or have them thrust upon them). Mostly interesting but not really my sort of thing on the whole.

cecipeas's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

frances__reads's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

snowmaiden's review

4.0

I understand that this author has been writing lighter women's fiction in recent years, but this 1993 novel is dense and literary. This is the story of two years in the life of 40-year-old fraternal twins Lizzie and Frances. Lizzie has a very busy life: mother to four children, partner with her husband in a successful home furnishings boutique, and in charge of a sprawling house with a large garden. Lizzie likes to complain about how chaotic her life is, but she feels superior to Frances, who has never married or even had a serious boyfriend and operates a travel agency that Lizzie views as nothing more than a hobby. All that changes when Frances travels to Spain in search of new business prospects and ends up with, as the title promises, a Spanish lover. The repercussions of this spiral out and affect every member of the family, and it is safe to say that each family member's life is entirely different by the end of the book.

This plot synopsis sounds like it could be light women's fiction, but Trollope elevates the material by giving us glimpses into the inner lives of every character, even the smallest of the children. There is a lot here about recognizing happiness when we have it and not letting jealousy or smugness ruin things for us. Now I'm interested to read other novels by Trollope, both before and after this one, to see if her style has really changed as much as the marketers would like us to believe.

merrifield82's review

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0