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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
Great read!
I received this book from the Goodreads Giveaways program and I'm really glad I did. It was easy to get into and stay absorbed. The characters were interesting and I liked that the book spanned over more than just the one generation. I recommend it if you are looking to be swept to a new destination without having to doing any work.
I received this book from the Goodreads Giveaways program and I'm really glad I did. It was easy to get into and stay absorbed. The characters were interesting and I liked that the book spanned over more than just the one generation. I recommend it if you are looking to be swept to a new destination without having to doing any work.
Pretty good with the slight mystery storyline thrown in. The unrequited love through the decades was not nearly as interesting as the storyline of a woman in the shopping business and an English woman in Mogadar no less.
An Amazon Prime monthly freebie.
Book Riot Read Harder Challenge 2017: A central immigration narrative.
Rather enjoyed this book. Brought back a lot of memories of my time in Egypt with the smattering of Arabic and some of the cultures.
It's an interesting read set over many years in Morocco with the Hopkins family. Even though the twist and ending was predictable it was lovely to read.
Book Riot Read Harder Challenge 2017: A central immigration narrative.
Rather enjoyed this book. Brought back a lot of memories of my time in Egypt with the smattering of Arabic and some of the cultures.
It's an interesting read set over many years in Morocco with the Hopkins family. Even though the twist and ending was predictable it was lovely to read.
DNF - the writing was very awkward (possibly in part due to translation) but it just didn't flow as a story to me. There are very few conversations, just a lot of explaining with random tidbits dropped in to add flavor that are irrelevant to the plot.
Overall, I liked the story. It was interesting to read about some of Morocco's history and culture.
The ending was a little predictable, but we all like a happy ending, right? For a first-time author, I would read another of their books.
I also found it interesting that Julia Drosten is actually a "couple". Would be interested to team-write.
The ending was a little predictable, but we all like a happy ending, right? For a first-time author, I would read another of their books.
I also found it interesting that Julia Drosten is actually a "couple". Would be interested to team-write.
I had to wait forever to read this book because I couldn't find it, but it was worth the wait! Great story!
Loved the setting, but did not like the writing style. It felt stilted and simplistic which could be the result of a poor translation. The characters were not well developed either and the plot was very predictable.
I think this book could have been written in half the amount of pages. I'd previously read a book by this husband and wife team and was looking forward to this one. Ultimately I feel lukewarm about it. I feel like the plot meandered slowly and needlessly, the protagonist showed little development in the latter half of the book, and the big reveal at the end was obvious. I gave it three stars because the historical aspect of the book was interesting, as was the peek into the lives of the women in Morocco and their culture.
I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
4.5 Stars
The Lioness of Morocco Provides an interesting story and a welcome appreciation of Arabic and Berber culture. This is a well-researched book, with evocative descriptions of Mogador (modern day Essaouira). There was much that I appreciated about the book and its lovely descriptions of Moroccan culture especially from the perspective of lives of women in harems to the unique lives of Berber women. I definitely felt as if the Drostens both understood, and loved, Morocco. I felt they see the beautiful county I've been lucky to see several times. I also enjoyed Sibylla's openness to Arabic culture and language, a characteristic certainly bound to be rare in a Victorian lady. Her embrace of the world she built for her family was what kept my enjoyment of the book strong.
My greatest problem with the book lies at the heart of whether some of the relationships described, particularly one at the end of the book, could truly have occurred with so few familial and social repercussions in that era and in an Arabic culture. By the end, one has to suspend belief and just go with this being a historical romance with a splash of mystery. I was also frustrated by what I can only assume were inconsistencies in the editing of either the initial German text or in the translation, such as "He paid little heed to her (Aynur's) tears and laments" and two paragraphs later "She (Aynur) made sure he never saw how she cried with exhaustion or loneliness." Sorry, but this stuff just irks me and there were other similar instances in the book. That's bad editing, and the husband and wife team comprising Julia Drosten deserve better.
4.5 Stars
The Lioness of Morocco Provides an interesting story and a welcome appreciation of Arabic and Berber culture. This is a well-researched book, with evocative descriptions of Mogador (modern day Essaouira). There was much that I appreciated about the book and its lovely descriptions of Moroccan culture especially from the perspective of lives of women in harems to the unique lives of Berber women. I definitely felt as if the Drostens both understood, and loved, Morocco. I felt they see the beautiful county I've been lucky to see several times. I also enjoyed Sibylla's openness to Arabic culture and language, a characteristic certainly bound to be rare in a Victorian lady. Her embrace of the world she built for her family was what kept my enjoyment of the book strong.
My greatest problem with the book lies at the heart of whether some of the relationships described, particularly one at the end of the book, could truly have occurred with so few familial and social repercussions in that era and in an Arabic culture. By the end, one has to suspend belief and just go with this being a historical romance with a splash of mystery. I was also frustrated by what I can only assume were inconsistencies in the editing of either the initial German text or in the translation, such as "He paid little heed to her (Aynur's) tears and laments" and two paragraphs later "She (Aynur) made sure he never saw how she cried with exhaustion or loneliness." Sorry, but this stuff just irks me and there were other similar instances in the book. That's bad editing, and the husband and wife team comprising Julia Drosten deserve better.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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:
No