Scan barcode
astoriareader's review
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
SYNOPSIS
- Alma is a successful writer, but she has some unfinished stories.
- She decides to stop writing. She recently inherited some land in the Dominican Republic, where she grew up, so she decides to move back there.
- On the land, Alma buries her unfinished stories in a cemetery of untold stories. She hires Filomena to care for the cemetery, and Alma also builds a casita on the land where the cemetery is.
- As Filomena cares for the cemetery, two of the characters from the untold stories tell her their stories. We also learn Filomena’s story.
MY THOUGHTS
- Magical realism with some historical fiction.
- Really enjoyed this one. Strong writing & super unique idea that was seamlessly executed. Alvarez is a rich storyteller, and I was so invested in what happened.
- Loved getting a glimpse of some of Dominican Republic’s history and culture as well.
- I enjoyed Alvarez’s mix of Spanish words throughout the book as well. It made all the stories feel more authentic.
- The only reason I am going 4 stars instead of 5 stars is the ending was just okay to me. With such an amazing book, I would have loved a stronger finish.
TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️magical realism with some historical fiction. amazing character development, strong writing. unique premise and beautifully executed.
Thanks to Algonquin Press and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book is out now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Infidelity, Child death, Gun violence, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Dementia, and Death of parent
Minor: Body shaming, Genocide, and Homophobia
jennshelfishlife's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Classism, Pregnancy, Domestic abuse, and Murder
taural41's review
emotional
reflective
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
I can see how this book is not for everyone, but it was very much for me. Reflecting on my reading experience, the word that keeps coming back to me is “lovely” - it was a lovely, surprising, and quiet reading experience. Lovely because the writing and cadence, even the frequent peppering of Spanish, flowed so beautifully for me. Even as terrible, brutal things were being told, something about the rhythm and the prose made me experience the beauty of the worlds and stories being laid out for me rather than feeling gutted by the brutalities taking place. I know the lyrical words won’t be enough far every reader, but for me, they made the whole experience truly lovely - there is no other word. Surprising because I was not expecting to love this book, I picked it up as a curiosity, trying to explore my reading tastes. Surprising too because I had thought I valued a fast-moving plot and likable characters, but here there was very little plot to be found, and I found myself caring not at all. At one point, about 2/3rd’s of the way through I realized that I didn’t care what the ending was at all - no matter how it ended it couldn’t ruin in for me because I was so enjoying the ride. As for likable characters, so many characters are so deeply flawed, broken, hurting, or hurting one another. They are not what I would call “likable”, but I loved their stories all the same. Finally, quiet because this wasn’t a loud or busy novel, even as it has so many characters, so many voices, even stories within stories - a kind of atmosphere of quiet and stillness somehow still prevailed for me. Quiet too because something about reading this story helped me to connect with who I am as a reader and the kind of stories that I love, and that experience left my soul feeling deeply satisfied and quieted. A lovely, surprising, and quiet reading experience. My deep gratitude to the author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Infidelity, and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent, Deportation, Misogyny, Rape, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, Confinement, Dementia, and Racism
Minor: Animal death, Pregnancy, Homophobia, and Miscarriage
More...