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juanlli's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-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? No
4.0
jess_mango's review against another edition
5.0
A stunningly beautiful novel with one of my favorite first sentences ever. At its core, "Love in the Time of Cholera" is about one thing: love.
I've been warned away from the recently released film version though. Its a shame when they go and ruin wonderful books when they translate them to film. tsk tsk.
I've been warned away from the recently released film version though. Its a shame when they go and ruin wonderful books when they translate them to film. tsk tsk.
leastrawberryfields's review against another edition
2.0
I'm going to do my best to make this a coherent review rather than a rant. This review contains very minor spoilers.
1.5/5 stars, but that is being generous.
***TW / CW (all of these occur in the book, and so are addressed in my review): mentions of sexual assault, misogyny, racism, grooming, and emotional abuse***
I'll start with the positive: in general, the prose was good. I read the English translation, as my A1/A2 Spanish level definitely wasn't going to cut it for this. While I can't compare it to the original, from what I could tell it was a very good translation, because most of the prose still read quite beautifully. I was impressed especially with the vivid descriptions of the setting. The main reason why I read this book is because I adore Colombia; it is one of the greatest places I have ever visited, and I learned a bit about the life and work of Garcia Marquez when I visited, so I wanted to read his best-known work. While many of the exact locations in the book are fictional, they are clearly inspired by the Colombian coast and that was cool to read about.
As for everything else... well, I very strongly disliked the characters and the story. All of the main characters are terrible people, especially Florentino Ariza; that in and of itself isn't the issue — the issue is that it feels like the reader is supposed to sympathize with and root for these characters. While I understand that the theme of the book could arguably be that Florentino Ariza's feelings were not love, but unhealthy obsession, I don't feel that his actions were portrayed in a sufficiently negative light and he was not properly called out by the narrative... and he did some pretty awful things, including but not limited to sexual assault (of a minor!! who he was the legal guardian of!!), stalking, grooming, extreme possessiveness, and emotional abuse. Despite his being horrible, creepy, abusive, and all the bad things... somehow the narrative still rewards Florentino Ariza by giving him what he wants. I cannot get behind that.
There is also a LOT of racism and misogyny throughout the book, and that obviously made it less enjoyable to read. Most of the women in the story are treated like objects by the men. Additionally, the way women are described throughout the story (especially from Florentino Ariza's perspective) just makes it so painfully obvious that this book was written by a man, and it is disgusting. Iykyk. This was the main way in which the prose faltered. Sexual assault in general is also very normalized in this book; I can think of at least three separate instances where that happens but the narrative doesn't seem to find fault with it. In some cases, it is even glorified.
Overall, I just couldn't get behind this story and its incredibly creepy protagonist, and the racism and sexism was really rampant. This book was not for me. I rounded it up to 2 stars because the prose itself was good overall, but I still question this choice because the story itself was so bad.
1.5/5 stars, but that is being generous.
***TW / CW (all of these occur in the book, and so are addressed in my review): mentions of sexual assault, misogyny, racism, grooming, and emotional abuse***
I'll start with the positive: in general, the prose was good. I read the English translation, as my A1/A2 Spanish level definitely wasn't going to cut it for this. While I can't compare it to the original, from what I could tell it was a very good translation, because most of the prose still read quite beautifully. I was impressed especially with the vivid descriptions of the setting. The main reason why I read this book is because I adore Colombia; it is one of the greatest places I have ever visited, and I learned a bit about the life and work of Garcia Marquez when I visited, so I wanted to read his best-known work. While many of the exact locations in the book are fictional, they are clearly inspired by the Colombian coast and that was cool to read about.
As for everything else... well, I very strongly disliked the characters and the story. All of the main characters are terrible people, especially Florentino Ariza; that in and of itself isn't the issue — the issue is that it feels like the reader is supposed to sympathize with and root for these characters. While I understand that the theme of the book could arguably be that Florentino Ariza's feelings were not love, but unhealthy obsession, I don't feel that his actions were portrayed in a sufficiently negative light and he was not properly called out by the narrative... and he did some pretty awful things, including but not limited to sexual assault (of a minor!! who he was the legal guardian of!!), stalking, grooming, extreme possessiveness, and emotional abuse. Despite his being horrible, creepy, abusive, and all the bad things... somehow the narrative still rewards Florentino Ariza by giving him what he wants. I cannot get behind that.
There is also a LOT of racism and misogyny throughout the book, and that obviously made it less enjoyable to read. Most of the women in the story are treated like objects by the men. Additionally, the way women are described throughout the story (especially from Florentino Ariza's perspective) just makes it so painfully obvious that this book was written by a man, and it is disgusting. Iykyk. This was the main way in which the prose faltered. Sexual assault in general is also very normalized in this book; I can think of at least three separate instances where that happens but the narrative doesn't seem to find fault with it. In some cases, it is even glorified.
Overall, I just couldn't get behind this story and its incredibly creepy protagonist, and the racism and sexism was really rampant. This book was not for me. I rounded it up to 2 stars because the prose itself was good overall, but I still question this choice because the story itself was so bad.
naay's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
konkybong's review against another edition
emotional
fast-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
melissa_canela's review against another edition
emotional
4.75
Gabriel Garcia Marquez is amazing! His ability to create worlds and characters is so superior. It still puts me off a bit how he sometimes handles relationships and women's characters, like when one of the protagonists basically groomed and raped a 14-year-old.
Apart from that, the main love story is captivating, the ending felt earned and emotive, and I can't wait to read more of Garcia Marquez again.
Apart from that, the main love story is captivating, the ending felt earned and emotive, and I can't wait to read more of Garcia Marquez again.
julietfirth's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Racism
greciapabon's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
midwifereading's review against another edition
Technically, I didn't finish, but made it about 75% of the way through the audio book. This was a book club read, and I really wanted to finish, for the sake of the group, but I cannot. I skipped several scenes (which already goes against my personal boundaries and sensibilities), which I don't normally do, and I regret every page.
This is the story of a glorified rapist pedophile, with a cast of women (and children) harboring rape fantasies.
The only positive thing I can say about this book is that Márquez's writing style is gorgeous. It's so disappointing that he chose to write a story in which the word love is used interchangeably with rape, voyeurism, sex trafficking, pedophilia, sex, and infidelity.
The final straw was his grooming and r*pe of his 14yo ward, who is also related to him genetically.
This is the story of a glorified rapist pedophile, with a cast of women (and children) harboring rape fantasies.
The only positive thing I can say about this book is that Márquez's writing style is gorgeous. It's so disappointing that he chose to write a story in which the word love is used interchangeably with rape, voyeurism, sex trafficking, pedophilia, sex, and infidelity.
The final straw was his grooming and r*pe of his 14yo ward, who is also related to him genetically.