Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys Bowen

2 reviews

rainynook's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I listened to the Audible version, very well read by Barrie Kreinik.  I loved the dual story-line.  I've very much enjoyed all of the "Lady Georgie" (Her Royal Spyness) mystery series from the same author. This one is a stand-alone novel, and very different from the more lighthearted "Spyness" mysteries, but very engaging. I especially liked all the details about the city of Venice, Italy - its history, traditions, festivities, rituals & landmarks.  
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hellodarlinggirl's review

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dark emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

"'My mother wants me home... And frankly I don’t want to leave. I love it here—everything about it: the colours, the sounds, the people, the food. Everything is so alive. Everybody knows they are alive. If I go home, it will be to silent evenings, sitting in the parlour and listening to the ticking of the clock until my mother turns on the nine o’clock news and we go to bed.'

'Then you are right to stay,' she said. 'You cannot live someone else’s life. Your life is what you make of it. You have to decide what you want.'

“'What I want is what I can’t have,' I wanted to say but didn’t," (pg. 223-224).

I went into this with no expectations, just picked it in my library after adding awhiling ago and I stayed for the romance but this was not met with high reward. I am just not a lover of sad books and this book really weighed on me. I was heartbroken
to not only not have a happy ending, but it breaks my heart to think of Juliet and her long, lonely life. I wanted so much more for her and she deserved more... there is so much tragedy in this book. Wasted time, lives and love
There is a sliver of hope at the end of the book for the second storyline but it was rushed into. Not the most well written plot and not my genre, so unfortunately the rating from me will be a 3.25. It's that high because of the nice descriptions and I was hooked enough to finish the book and stayed hooked throughout it.

Edit: After reflecting on it, I realized this was written so much better then other books I would give 3.25 stars. My heart aches, this book destroyed me but 4.25.
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