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davepatt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
gorecki's review against another edition
5.0
I received a copy of Star of the Sea as a Christmas present from a good friend from Ireland and I was really excited to start the book – I am always happy to read books I receive from friends, as for me, they are the most special kind of recommendation. I was really looking forward to reading this book and my excitement was completely justified because I loved every page of this novel.
Star of the Sea gives us a glimpse into one of the darkest and most horrible periods in Irish history – the Great Famine of the 1840-1850s. Through the connected stories of a few characters, Joseph O’Connor does a masterful work in showing us the political and economical background of the time, the way people have suffered and survived this horrible period, and, as a main motif and very important element in both history and the plot – the coffin ships. Reading about all this suffering and about the thousands of lives left to the mercy of the elements and to starvation made my hear break again and again. While reading these pages I could not believe there has been a period of our civilized world’s history when things like this have been allowed to happen.
This is a book I would recommend to anyone ever asking for an unputdownable and emotional read. It is a book I will remember for a long time and an author I will surely read more from! In my opinion, the strongest characters in this book were those of women, as it actually often happens in real life in times of disaster. Mary Duane, who survived so many losses over the years, but kept her sanity, dignity and strength no matter what. Her mother, who went through similar circumstances, but still served as a strong pillar in Mary Duane’s and other characters’ lives. And we shouldn’t forget Verity Merridith either, who with her charity work, her big heart and her neverending will supported a big number of poor and hungry people on their land. Compared to this, the male characters seemd weak, always seeking something and uncertain of what that something might be. They often seemed out-of-place, not belonging neither here, nor there, and once the strong women behind them were gone – things started going downhill very fast.
Joseph O’Connor weaves the stories of his characters and the events of this novel masterfully and with incredible talent. The book is built in a way that reminds the reader of a case study or the work of a investigating journalist using different documents and recollections of events. The end result is a collection of letters, documents, novel chapters, interviews, that put together a complicated jigsaw and give us a perspective of the whole picture, the whole story. All this, while still managing to give us an unexpected ending that comes as a slap.
Joseph O’Connor has a reserved place in my TBR from now on and I really look forward to reading something else by him.
Star of the Sea gives us a glimpse into one of the darkest and most horrible periods in Irish history – the Great Famine of the 1840-1850s. Through the connected stories of a few characters, Joseph O’Connor does a masterful work in showing us the political and economical background of the time, the way people have suffered and survived this horrible period, and, as a main motif and very important element in both history and the plot – the coffin ships. Reading about all this suffering and about the thousands of lives left to the mercy of the elements and to starvation made my hear break again and again. While reading these pages I could not believe there has been a period of our civilized world’s history when things like this have been allowed to happen.
This is a book I would recommend to anyone ever asking for an unputdownable and emotional read. It is a book I will remember for a long time and an author I will surely read more from! In my opinion, the strongest characters in this book were those of women, as it actually often happens in real life in times of disaster. Mary Duane, who survived so many losses over the years, but kept her sanity, dignity and strength no matter what. Her mother, who went through similar circumstances, but still served as a strong pillar in Mary Duane’s and other characters’ lives. And we shouldn’t forget Verity Merridith either, who with her charity work, her big heart and her neverending will supported a big number of poor and hungry people on their land. Compared to this, the male characters seemd weak, always seeking something and uncertain of what that something might be. They often seemed out-of-place, not belonging neither here, nor there, and once the strong women behind them were gone – things started going downhill very fast.
Joseph O’Connor weaves the stories of his characters and the events of this novel masterfully and with incredible talent. The book is built in a way that reminds the reader of a case study or the work of a investigating journalist using different documents and recollections of events. The end result is a collection of letters, documents, novel chapters, interviews, that put together a complicated jigsaw and give us a perspective of the whole picture, the whole story. All this, while still managing to give us an unexpected ending that comes as a slap.
Joseph O’Connor has a reserved place in my TBR from now on and I really look forward to reading something else by him.
juliana_aldous's review against another edition
3.0
A very clever historical novel set in 1847 aboard a ship of Irish immigrants bound for America. The book moves between the characters on the ship and what happened to bring them there. At the center of the story is a mystery and a murder, actually more than one.
I would have given it more stars, but although all the characters were interesting, I felt emotionally distant from them.
You'll like this book if you like:
*19th century historical fiction
*mystery with a touch of horror
*tales from the sea
*immigrant's stories
I would have given it more stars, but although all the characters were interesting, I felt emotionally distant from them.
You'll like this book if you like:
*19th century historical fiction
*mystery with a touch of horror
*tales from the sea
*immigrant's stories
andrew_russell's review against another edition
3.0
Set against the background of the Irish famine in the year 1847, with writing that is at times beautifully evocative of the time, this novel is worth the read;if you persevere with it. The reason I've added the caveat at the end of that sentence is simple. The book doesn't really get going until a third of the way through. The pace suffers due to constant switching between perspectives. For example, for five or ten pages we hear the story of Pius Mulvey, followed by a letter written by Lord Kingscourt. This switching back and forth between various characters continues for far too long. It is only when we are told of Pius Mulveys descent into crime and degeneration that the book really came alive, with an almost Dickensian feel to the words on the pages. Fantastic characterisation, story which held onto me and seemed unwilling to let go and language which quite brilliantly brought to life the smells, visions and sounds surrounding the main characters, all helped to speed the story along and make it a damned good read. Another achievement of O'Connor was conveying the plight of both those who were affected by famine and those who were travelling in steerage on the Star of the Sea; the listing of passengers who had perished in steerage was a clever means of aiding the latter.
The style of writing reminded me in some ways of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. Writings from a variety of sources and in a number of different styles looked to me like self indulgence - 'look at what I can do as an author, aren't I fantastic?!' Where Cloud Atlas succeeded and this book did not was that the former left a cliffhanger at the end of each chapter. This not only ensured that the reader remembered the events of that chapter, but made it a more addictive read. Conversely, Star of the Sea wove the various sources of material and the different characters tales more tightly into a single, cohesive story.
This is a book that has a place on anyones shelf, with flashes of brilliance that would be hard to find elsewhere. I loved both the character of Pius Mulvey and the telling of his story. The barrier between this being a very good book and being a great book, or even a masterpiece, was the writers leap from character viewpoint to character viewpoint, often at intervals which were far too short for the reader to become engrossed. This was a deep shame, as the language and characterisation was unusually good;its just that the writers self indulgence got in the way of a good story and the pace at which it reads.
The style of writing reminded me in some ways of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. Writings from a variety of sources and in a number of different styles looked to me like self indulgence - 'look at what I can do as an author, aren't I fantastic?!' Where Cloud Atlas succeeded and this book did not was that the former left a cliffhanger at the end of each chapter. This not only ensured that the reader remembered the events of that chapter, but made it a more addictive read. Conversely, Star of the Sea wove the various sources of material and the different characters tales more tightly into a single, cohesive story.
This is a book that has a place on anyones shelf, with flashes of brilliance that would be hard to find elsewhere. I loved both the character of Pius Mulvey and the telling of his story. The barrier between this being a very good book and being a great book, or even a masterpiece, was the writers leap from character viewpoint to character viewpoint, often at intervals which were far too short for the reader to become engrossed. This was a deep shame, as the language and characterisation was unusually good;its just that the writers self indulgence got in the way of a good story and the pace at which it reads.
newyorkstranger's review against another edition
dark
reflective
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ianmcnamara's review against another edition
5.0
This was a really good book, had a bit of everything in it. The characters are really well developed.
meredithbrown's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
spadeano's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0