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aleksandra08's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
akublik's review against another edition
4.0
I love Annabel Lyon's writing, but have to confess I liked A Golden Mean a bit better - the tension between Aristotle and Alexander gave that narrative an edge that was missing in Sweet Girl.
guylou's review against another edition
2.0
I won this book through the first-read contest. I would have given three stars if the book ended on page 117, but since it did not and I have to rate the entire book... I will give it two stars only. I hate writing a negative review for a book that is not even on the market yet, but a review must be truthful. So here it goes...
To start, the title is wrong for this book. There was nothing sweet about this story; even the main character would rather have salt over sweets. The first half was interesting. I enjoyed reading about Pythias' relationship with her father and how he taught her so many wonderful things. The second half felt like I was being rushed through a series of events. It felt like the author had done a lot of research and was trying to cram all that information in part II and III. It was too superficial. I would have like to get more details in order to really understand Pythias' decisions. She was being swayed by the tides of her "not so sweet" life and appeared to have no say in the matter. The end was without consequence and left me wondering if there was really anything worth remembering about this book.
To start, the title is wrong for this book. There was nothing sweet about this story; even the main character would rather have salt over sweets. The first half was interesting. I enjoyed reading about Pythias' relationship with her father and how he taught her so many wonderful things. The second half felt like I was being rushed through a series of events. It felt like the author had done a lot of research and was trying to cram all that information in part II and III. It was too superficial. I would have like to get more details in order to really understand Pythias' decisions. She was being swayed by the tides of her "not so sweet" life and appeared to have no say in the matter. The end was without consequence and left me wondering if there was really anything worth remembering about this book.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
4.0
Pythias, has been fortunate enough to grow up under the tutelage of one of the greatest minds of her time, her father, Aristotle. Encouraged by her father to learn, read, and explore, Pythias does not have the average life of a young woman growing up in 4th Century BC Athens. Her favorite activity is collecting wildlife specimens and placing their skeletons back together. When Aristotle's once student, now King, Alexander the Great dies, resentment against Macedonians, including Aristotle and his family, grows. Aristotle moves the family to Chalcis and a new chapter begins for Pythias.
This is a coming of age story for Pythias. Seeing that this took place in ancient Greece, the story and characters could have been very difficult to relate to. Luckily, Pythias was a wonderful character, she was very easy to relate to for me; it's great to have a female character who was encouraged to learn her entire life, even in this time period. Annabel Lyon's writing style transformed life in ancient Greece seamlessly, I enjoyed reading about daily life, rituals and customs of families at the time. As Pythias' character grows, she has different issues to face, and while there may be no grand adventure, Pythias must overcome several trials for a younger women in Greece and who is alone; she uses her strengths wisely and carves out a life for herself. Parts of Pythias' journey surprised me a bit, as well as the ending, but it is true to history.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
This is a coming of age story for Pythias. Seeing that this took place in ancient Greece, the story and characters could have been very difficult to relate to. Luckily, Pythias was a wonderful character, she was very easy to relate to for me; it's great to have a female character who was encouraged to learn her entire life, even in this time period. Annabel Lyon's writing style transformed life in ancient Greece seamlessly, I enjoyed reading about daily life, rituals and customs of families at the time. As Pythias' character grows, she has different issues to face, and while there may be no grand adventure, Pythias must overcome several trials for a younger women in Greece and who is alone; she uses her strengths wisely and carves out a life for herself. Parts of Pythias' journey surprised me a bit, as well as the ending, but it is true to history.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
sci_mom's review against another edition
3.0
I vacillated between 3 and 4 stars. There were definitely parts of this book that I loved. All of Part I was wonderful, Part II was mostly very good, and Part III was way too short. Overall, the book needed to be longer. The writing is terrific and I would have liked to see the author go into more detail. It is not often that I finish a book thinking that it would have benefited from another 100+ pages, but I do believe this one would have been better with more.
imogeneugenie's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
heathssm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.0
ljjohnson8's review against another edition
3.0
There were problems with this book, especially how anachronistically modern the dialogue and tone were, but I liked it nonetheless. It came close to being a hot mess with its turns from interesting, straight historical novel to some fairly hysteric left turns and meanderings, but I liked it. It's the story of Aristotle's only daughter and her struggles and travails, particularly after her famous father's fall from grace and subsequent death. I ended the book scratching my head a bit, but I have affection for the story and characters.
twitchyredpen's review against another edition
1.0
Nothing happens in this book.
Actually a lot happens -- potentially interesting things that could have been worth whole books on their own happen! -- but the narration is so detached and distant that everything is forgettable, easily dismissed as filler while the plot builds up, but then the book is over and was that really it?
It was a fast read; I was halfway through when I realized I'd definitely read enough that I could DNF, but I figured that oh her father was about to die and maybe that would get things going?
No, not really. All money stolen, slave mutiny, working for temple, working for midwife, favorite slave has some kind of psychotic break, working for courtesans, wooed and coerced by a god, sudden marriage to arranged fiance who has come home with PTSD, the end. I don't know if she had strong feelings about any of this, other than the insistence that she wasn't going to ask for help from a person who would make her be "ladylike."
Actually a lot happens -- potentially interesting things that could have been worth whole books on their own happen! -- but the narration is so detached and distant that everything is forgettable, easily dismissed as filler while the plot builds up, but then the book is over and was that really it?
It was a fast read; I was halfway through when I realized I'd definitely read enough that I could DNF, but I figured that oh her father was about to die and maybe that would get things going?
No, not really. All money stolen, slave mutiny, working for temple, working for midwife, favorite slave has some kind of psychotic break, working for courtesans, wooed and coerced by a god, sudden marriage to arranged fiance who has come home with PTSD, the end. I don't know if she had strong feelings about any of this, other than the insistence that she wasn't going to ask for help from a person who would make her be "ladylike."
lightfoxing's review against another edition
3.0
The Sweet Girl started off strong, and caught my attention quickly. And then it just sort of...lost it. The thread of the narrative in the second half is weak and though a lot is going on we don't receive a lot of insight on why, or the feelings of the narrator to it all, or why Pythias is doing what she is doing (especially glaring considering it is a first person narrative).