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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Wow, I absolutely hated this book.
This convoluted mess of a novel has so many characters and pretty much no character development. To make matters worse it’s a colonialist love letter to Ernest Hemingway. It feels like it’s trying its best to check diversity boxes without the details having place in the rest of the narrative or teaching us anything about the characters that advances their stories individually or advances the plot (ex the one chapter where we learn that a character is queer and then it’s never mentioned again for any reason. It feels like it’s just there for diversity points).
Getting through to the end of this was about as fun as having teeth pulled.
This convoluted mess of a novel has so many characters and pretty much no character development. To make matters worse it’s a colonialist love letter to Ernest Hemingway. It feels like it’s trying its best to check diversity boxes without the details having place in the rest of the narrative or teaching us anything about the characters that advances their stories individually or advances the plot (ex the one chapter where we learn that a character is queer and then it’s never mentioned again for any reason. It feels like it’s just there for diversity points).
Getting through to the end of this was about as fun as having teeth pulled.
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
How was a book about a safari-gone-wrong hostage situation so boorrrring?! It couldn't even make up for it by being profound (which is was decidedly not.) A straight-up snooze-fest with characters you don't care about. I think I need to accept that I'm not a Bohjalian fan.
The first chapter lays out the book and the rest of the book is told in flashbacks - one timeline following the safari and a variety of other timelines to flesh out our characters.
I felt like the actual “ahh” part of the story was glossed over too quickly and not quite enough space was given to the surprises. Similarly, to me too much space was given to backgrounds. I think I would have preferred this more if the timelines were laid out slightly differently and there was an extra 25 to 50 pages in the last part of the book.
I felt like the actual “ahh” part of the story was glossed over too quickly and not quite enough space was given to the surprises. Similarly, to me too much space was given to backgrounds. I think I would have preferred this more if the timelines were laid out slightly differently and there was an extra 25 to 50 pages in the last part of the book.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3.5 stars
This was definitely a propulsive read with plenty of action, but I guess I would have liked to see it drill a little deeper on some issues. It touches on some really big topics, grounding it in its setting, but I would have liked more to have been done with this aspect.
This was definitely a propulsive read with plenty of action, but I guess I would have liked to see it drill a little deeper on some issues. It touches on some really big topics, grounding it in its setting, but I would have liked more to have been done with this aspect.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A historical adventure that keeps you on your toes. I enjoyed the unique safari setting, but it took me about 30% to get into it because there are LOTS of character POVs to follow and the past/present timing slowed down the pacing.
I recommend for anyone looking for a cinematic, transportive read - I could see this being made into a movie. Beware of lots of shocking violence/death.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Miscarriage, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No