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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Just a big, juicy, lovely historical novel that caused me to sob through the last two chapters. Loved it.
Such a wonderful book. Like Downton & Great Gatsby mixed into one. Very easy to read and a great cast of characters!
This was my first book to read of the year and was also a 5 star read, and a SOLID 5 start read at that!
I loved this book, and I can't really gush enough. Iona Grey has done an amazing job, and we are blessed for that. We have made sure to stock this book in our family's bookstore, Books 'n' Bears and I have been recommending it left and right. My customers that have read it have only had positive things to say about it.
After reading this book, I had to give myself some time before I wrote this review. I laughed, I cried, I laughed some more and cried even more, so much that I could not see the words on the page. Recovery time was a must.
With all my gushing aside, I don't want to repeat the synopses of the book which the publisher has already done a very good job doing. So, I will instead talk about what I loved about the style of the book.
Young Alice is dropped off at her Grandmother's house who she does not know very well. Her grandmother is distant, and the author begins to unfold clues of why this is by way of a scavenger hunt from letters from Alice's mother while she is away.
The entire story is told in a dual narrative, it flows seamlessly between 1925 and 1936, with Selina's letters added in giving it an epistolary flair. The author jumps back and forth across the decade from young Salina to 10 years later when she is traveling with her rich husband abroad on a business trip.
The writing is beautiful, and the books is a gorgeous work of art. I found myself stopping here and there and rereading a sentence or a paragraph that was so well done. Iona Grey is a very talented author and I look forward to reading anything that she comes out with in the future.
I want to thank Edelweiss, Macmillian and Ms. Grey for an outstanding read, and for the advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
I loved this book, and I can't really gush enough. Iona Grey has done an amazing job, and we are blessed for that. We have made sure to stock this book in our family's bookstore, Books 'n' Bears and I have been recommending it left and right. My customers that have read it have only had positive things to say about it.
After reading this book, I had to give myself some time before I wrote this review. I laughed, I cried, I laughed some more and cried even more, so much that I could not see the words on the page. Recovery time was a must.
With all my gushing aside, I don't want to repeat the synopses of the book which the publisher has already done a very good job doing. So, I will instead talk about what I loved about the style of the book.
Young Alice is dropped off at her Grandmother's house who she does not know very well. Her grandmother is distant, and the author begins to unfold clues of why this is by way of a scavenger hunt from letters from Alice's mother while she is away.
The entire story is told in a dual narrative, it flows seamlessly between 1925 and 1936, with Selina's letters added in giving it an epistolary flair. The author jumps back and forth across the decade from young Salina to 10 years later when she is traveling with her rich husband abroad on a business trip.
The writing is beautiful, and the books is a gorgeous work of art. I found myself stopping here and there and rereading a sentence or a paragraph that was so well done. Iona Grey is a very talented author and I look forward to reading anything that she comes out with in the future.
I want to thank Edelweiss, Macmillian and Ms. Grey for an outstanding read, and for the advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
If period pieces and romance is your thing, definitely give this one a try. You'll need tissues! If doing the audio version, I recommend using a system that allows for increased playback speed.
I enjoyed this book until the little plot twist that reveals where Selina is. I won’t give any outright spoilers, but I will say that I rolled my eyes once it was revealed, and I’m tempted to give this two stars instead of three.
I also did not believe the love between Selina and Lawrence. It was not convincing. An author can’t rest solely on the tension between classes when developing a love story! I also couldn’t quite figure out how much importance was to be placed on Alice’s character. It felt like she was supposed to be a major figure, yet she read like a mere placeholder.
I read this because I liked “Letters to the Lost”—it was enjoyable. I’m still glad I read this, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected.
I also did not believe the love between Selina and Lawrence. It was not convincing. An author can’t rest solely on the tension between classes when developing a love story! I also couldn’t quite figure out how much importance was to be placed on Alice’s character. It felt like she was supposed to be a major figure, yet she read like a mere placeholder.
I read this because I liked “Letters to the Lost”—it was enjoyable. I’m still glad I read this, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected.
Oh my goodness. I cannot stop crying. What a beautiful story of love and loss. I fell in love with these characters and couldn't put the book down. There are such gorgeous descriptions of light (a theme of gold, shimmer, iridescence) that weave itself into each memory. Puffy eyes from crying aside, I loved everything about this book.
I really liked it, but I feel like it took me longer to get through just because it felt like a lot of fat could be trimmed. The plot itself was *chefs kiss*, just a bit long winded IMO.
I really wanted to like this one. I've read other books set in the 1920's and really enjoyed the setting. This one just could not hold my attention. It took me sooooo long to finish. I just kept putting it down and coming back to try again.
The story alternated between two timelines, one is narrated by Selina Lenox during her party days and the other is a few years later, after she's married and this part of the story is narrated by her daughter Alice, a precocious little girl with adventure in her veins - just as rebellious as her mother. The idea of this story sounded interesting. The delivery just didn't fit my taste.
I alternated between print and Audible, but nothing I did made it better. It was a secondary book that I worked on around other books so I decided I would try to finish it before 2024 was up - and I barely made it!
The story alternated between two timelines, one is narrated by Selina Lenox during her party days and the other is a few years later, after she's married and this part of the story is narrated by her daughter Alice, a precocious little girl with adventure in her veins - just as rebellious as her mother. The idea of this story sounded interesting. The delivery just didn't fit my taste.
I alternated between print and Audible, but nothing I did made it better. It was a secondary book that I worked on around other books so I decided I would try to finish it before 2024 was up - and I barely made it!