Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

On a Night of a Thousand Stars by Andrea Yaryura Clark

7 reviews

____emily____'s review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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just_one_more_paige's review

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dark emotional informative tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

 
Thanks to a random confluence of events, I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and then was actually able to pick up a physical ARC from the library (we randomly get sent ARCs that are then set out for employees to grab, which is a deeply wonderful job perk). While my Kindle is great for travel reading, I do love a physical book, so I appreciated the chance to read it that way. 
 
It's 1998 and Paloma's father, Santiago, announces that he has been named the next UN ambassador from Argentina. At a celebration party in their home in New York, a guest has a cryptic conversation with Paloma that sparks her interest in her father's past. When he won't answer her question, Paloma decides to use their trip back to Buenos Aires for her father's official appointment ceremony to dig into it on her own. She meets a local university student named Franco, who is a member of an activist group called H.I.J.O.S., whose members are all children of the 1970s dictatorship's desaparecidos. With Franco's help and connections, Paloma starts to unravel her family's history, and as she discovers that there is a *lot* more to it than she'd ever known (and as readers, we watch that story unfold in 1976, in parallel with Paloma's sleuthing), things in the "present day" take a turn for the dangerous. 
 
This was a fairly typical set-up, as far as the parallel past and present unfolding of stories that is fairly common with historical fiction these days. As we get the current day story of Paloma learning more about her father and his past in Argentina, we are able to get glimpses at what that actually looked like at the time, in addition to Paloma's wonderings about it. It's a nice way to fully flesh out the stories and characters without having to rely too heavily on assumption or interpretation, if also a bit predictable as far as "twists" and "discoveries" go. I mean, you know the "plucky present-day MC" is going to "uncover truths from the past that change everything she thinks she knows." However, it was really well paced. I enjoyed the short chapters back and forth; it made it easy to fly through the story. And the "aha" moments were timed well and with solid frequency.  I do wish the writing itself was a slightly higher quality - and really that was my biggest gripe with the novel. I actually didn't mind the stereotypical plot devices, as once I realized that's what it was setting up to be, I settled into that. But the writing felt a bit jumpy and kind of juvenile as far as style and language choice/sentence structure. And the dialogue was uneven - sometimes it was really good and other times it felt stilted and forced. Like the right emotions there were right, but the words being used were just...unrealistic…and made the relationship development feel less genuine. There was just so much, topically and thematically, about this book that was so important and I hate that it got lost at times, for me, in the "meh" writing. 
 
Let me take the rest of this review to talk about those topics and themes that were so important. Because Clark has shone a literary fiction spotlight on a period of history that is recent enough to know be actually in history classes, and so purposefully downplayed to make an attempt to forget it, that it needs this kind of light to bring it to/keep it on humanity's radar. I know a bit about the "Dirty War" in Argentina (and the general slew of similar dictatorship-disappearances in South America during this same time period), but mostly from my own studies and a few other novels (a phenomenal one, about 1977 Uruguay, is Cantoras - not just amazing on this time period/topic, but also just overall one of my favorite books - gorgeously written, heartbreaking and hopeful). But everything has always been from the perspective of those that lived through it. I was so intrigued by this novel that is telling the story, at least in part, from the narrative perspective of the children of the desaparecidos. Those youth suffered trauma in so many different ways and, in many cases, still have no closure about what happened to their parents/family members, but with the general lack of effort on the part of...the world, really...to persecute the supporters of the dictatorships, the people that tortured and killed their families, and the overall trend towards trying to bury memories of these dark parts of a country's history, have to pretend to live their regular lives like everything is fine. And I cannot imagine that kind of heartbreak and strain. Especially now that those children are full-on adult ages, this felt like such a new and unique perspective and one that I appreciated getting insight into. 
 
In addition, learning about the illegal adoption situations that happened for children born to people while they were detained, and thinking about how many of them will never even know their true origin stories (a similar concept was explored in The Tenth Muse to great emotional effect as well)...it's a lot to sit with and process. And I love the focus Clark puts on wanting justice and knowledge and for the world to remember what they grew up unable to talk about. It's intense and heartbreaking, but also strong and inspiring. With all that in mind, and in considering that the final chapters do talk, with detail, about the kidnapping and torture and childbirth trauma of a female character, I feel that it is important to give content warnings to potential readers.  
 
I also want to mention that, while there could definitely have been a bit more nuance to the discussion, Clark does a passable job acknowledging how class/money/prestige/priorities/access can protect and insulate one against injustice, showing how people experience the same historical events in dramatically different ways depending on their individual reality. And also how, sometimes, even wealth and status is not enough to protect you; a great message about trying to take a stand and do more while you have the chance to, honestly. There was also an interesting look at how sometimes secrets stay buried and memories are purposefully suppressed, even though perhaps the truth/honesty would be more beneficial than anything else, because some people would rather forget than experience the pain of remembering. Decisions like that affect so many more people/relationships than just an individual, and it's always important to remember that (before it's too late - as we saw a bit of here). 
 
A fascinating read about both the recent history of Argentina itself and the ways it impacts the people of Argentina (and beyond) in the present. The characters' stories were intense and affecting, their development compelling. Though the emotional responses I had were watered down by writing itself, which was disappointing, I really appreciated the perspectives that were given voice throughout this novel, and was kept invested in the story with the plot-pacing and unfolding storylines. 
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jgwags's review

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dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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carmenvillaman's review

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emotional informative reflective relaxing sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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serendipitysbooks's review

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dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

 On a Night of a Thousand Stars is the story of Paloma, daughter of an Argentinian diplomat. Comments from an unexpected party guest pique her curiosity about her father’s background and a trip back to Argentina gives her the opportunity to investigate further. Along the way she learns a lot about Argentina’s “Dirty War”, the period of military dictatorship between 1976 and 1983, when up to 30,000 people were forcibly disappeared, her father’s role in helping some people flee the country, plus a really big family secret. The story unfolded via dual timelines and the family storyline was well integrated with the historical facts. The story also highlighted the way the events of the Dirty War continued to impact the country and its citizens nearly twenty years later. A solid read for those who enjoy historical fiction. 
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bekkasbookclub's review

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informative reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

 This historical fiction set during the 1970s & 1990s in Argentina 🇦🇷. It tells of the political uprisings during the 70s and a young women is trying to figure out the role her father played during that time.
This book was so informative of what happened during the “Dirty War” of Argentina. I loved how dual timelines flowed and complemented each other. The past was able to build the present while also building suspense. The beginning does a great job at building up the story and then it begins to unfold in an unexpected way. I really felt the tension and uneasiness of that time. I really feel like I learned a lot about Argentina and really want to learn more. This was an amazing debut by the author and I look forward to her next book. 
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ashleysbookthoughts's review

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emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.25

I don’t read enough books set in South America, and aside from having seen Evita, I know embarrassingly little about Argentina. Obviously I need to remedy that, so I was delighted when Grand Central sent me this gorgeous historical fiction set during Argentina’s Dirty War. 

On a Night of a Thousand Stars is my favorite type of historical fiction. It has a dual timeline, lots of characters, and a bit of a mystery that unravels slowly. While the mystery piece was fairly predictable, it was compelling to see how that inevitable conclusion would be reached. 

I really enjoyed this book. My only complaint is that many of the characters (particularly Valentina) are almost too perfect. I would have appreciated more complexity. Stantiago is really the only “gray” character in the book, with everyone else seeming to be saint or villain. Still, a compelling read about an underrepresented historical era. It’s a fantastic debut and I’ll be sure to check out whatever Andrea Clark does next. 

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