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kay_bee_reads's review against another edition
3.0
Oh the history. This book shines with all of the glory of the Italian Renaissance. I've never read another book my L.M. Elliott, but she is a deft master of scene setting and description. And I learned things about history that I hadn't known before, which is part of the reason why I love historical fiction so much.
The book itself is an imagining of the real relationship between a young Leonardo Da Vinci and the teenage poet Ginevra de' Benci, whom I had never heard of before.
I thought it was very well written, very enjoyable, and steeped in 15th century Italian history. I'd love to find some of the author's other books now.
This is somewhere between 3 and 4 stars for me.
The book itself is an imagining of the real relationship between a young Leonardo Da Vinci and the teenage poet Ginevra de' Benci, whom I had never heard of before.
I thought it was very well written, very enjoyable, and steeped in 15th century Italian history. I'd love to find some of the author's other books now.
This is somewhere between 3 and 4 stars for me.
paradeoflaughter's review against another edition
3.0
This took me forever to get into, but then I quite enjoyed it. Although I found it *very* hard to follow the characters names. So many of them sounded alike - Leonardo, Lorenzo, Ginevra, Giuliano, etc. etc. I kept getting confused.
bookfever's review against another edition
4.0
First of all I should say I'm pretty much obsessed with anything involving Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. So I'm really glad I can say that Da Vinci's Tiger was a really good read. I immensely enjoyed it and is now one of my favorite reads of the year.
I actually haven't read any books that feature da Vinci or Renaissance Florence so this book was really one I needed. And can I just mention how much I love the fact that someone decided to write about Ginevra de' Benci. Though at times a bit too naive, I really liked her character. She definitely grew on me through the book and I loved her connection with Leonardo.
Speaking of him, he wasn't a whole lot in the book but he definitely was an important character. I liked how the author corporated things that have actually happened to the historical Leonardo into this story. The same goes for other characters like Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici. My inner history fangirl had a blast with this book.
I really liked the writing style. L.M. Elliott is a totally new author for me but I absolutely want to read her other historical books. Another thing I liked about this book was that it wasn't your typical happily ever after, but in my opinion I think an ending like this was even better. I just wished the book had been longer. I wanted to keep on reading!
All in all, Da Vinci's Tiger was superb. Not quite five stars but definitely a solid four star books that I enjoyed so much. I'd recommend it highly to other people who are interested in reading about Leonardo da Vinci, Renaissance Florence or who just like a really good book.
I actually haven't read any books that feature da Vinci or Renaissance Florence so this book was really one I needed. And can I just mention how much I love the fact that someone decided to write about Ginevra de' Benci. Though at times a bit too naive, I really liked her character. She definitely grew on me through the book and I loved her connection with Leonardo.
Speaking of him, he wasn't a whole lot in the book but he definitely was an important character. I liked how the author corporated things that have actually happened to the historical Leonardo into this story. The same goes for other characters like Lorenzo and Giuliano de' Medici. My inner history fangirl had a blast with this book.
I really liked the writing style. L.M. Elliott is a totally new author for me but I absolutely want to read her other historical books. Another thing I liked about this book was that it wasn't your typical happily ever after, but in my opinion I think an ending like this was even better. I just wished the book had been longer. I wanted to keep on reading!
All in all, Da Vinci's Tiger was superb. Not quite five stars but definitely a solid four star books that I enjoyed so much. I'd recommend it highly to other people who are interested in reading about Leonardo da Vinci, Renaissance Florence or who just like a really good book.
bibliotekat's review against another edition
3.0
This was not for me. It was too uneventful, too descriptive of a life I cared nothing for. It did however pick up in the end hence the 3 stars instead of 2. It was very well written and the language is beautiful. I am just not one for historian novels. If you are I'm sure you will like it much better than I did ;)
lisamparkin's review against another edition
3.0
Hmm this is a tough one. While the history and details are finely tuned, this book had few pay-offs. I appreciated the writing but I'm not sure how much I actually enjoyed the story.
graggirl's review against another edition
3.0
It took a long time for me to keep the characters straight in this book. Then once I did none of them totally grabbed me. I did learn a lot about the time period. But I felt like the whole story was ho-hum.
diadandy's review against another edition
2.0
The history is interesting but the author openly portrays the immorality of the times without negative comments.
theeclecticpageturner's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really great read. I love all of the historical details this book has. They are so expertly woven into the story that it only adds to the telling. It makes me want to go to Italy and see where Leonardo once walked and worked.
sjess94's review against another edition
4.0
4.25 Stars
This semester I took a medieval literature class. I wound up loving the subject, so, once finals were over, I thought I'd attempt to learn more about the period by watching the Tudors and reading this book. I was skeptical going into it because of the reviews, but I'm so so glad I read this. I don't think this book is for everyone, particularly those who are disinterested in art or the Renaissance period. But if you are, you're in for a treat! L.M Elliott's imagery of 15th century Florence beautiful; I haven't been this sucked into a world in such a long time. This book is also jam-packed with information on what life was like in Italy during this exceptional time, and, with the book being so extensively researched, I walked away feeling like I gained something, which is always great. The themes on feminism in this book were touched on so well. A truly rewarding reading experience. Also, the ending was completely unexpected! Holy Cow!
However, the reason I'm giving this book 4-stars was because it felt like the characters and the plot tended to take a backseat to the imagery and the historical facts. I liked the characters, but I didn't love any of them. I also felt like there was a lot of info-dumping in the characters dialogue. The information was never boring, but a lot of the time it didn't feel like a realistic conversation between two characters. Regardless, this is L.M. Elliott's debut YA novel and I will definitely pick up any historical fiction she writes in the future.
This semester I took a medieval literature class. I wound up loving the subject, so, once finals were over, I thought I'd attempt to learn more about the period by watching the Tudors and reading this book. I was skeptical going into it because of the reviews, but I'm so so glad I read this. I don't think this book is for everyone, particularly those who are disinterested in art or the Renaissance period. But if you are, you're in for a treat! L.M Elliott's imagery of 15th century Florence beautiful; I haven't been this sucked into a world in such a long time. This book is also jam-packed with information on what life was like in Italy during this exceptional time, and, with the book being so extensively researched, I walked away feeling like I gained something, which is always great. The themes on feminism in this book were touched on so well. A truly rewarding reading experience. Also, the ending was completely unexpected! Holy Cow!
However, the reason I'm giving this book 4-stars was because it felt like the characters and the plot tended to take a backseat to the imagery and the historical facts. I liked the characters, but I didn't love any of them. I also felt like there was a lot of info-dumping in the characters dialogue. The information was never boring, but a lot of the time it didn't feel like a realistic conversation between two characters. Regardless, this is L.M. Elliott's debut YA novel and I will definitely pick up any historical fiction she writes in the future.
julieabe89's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
This book was so boring. I could not care about anyone. The portrayal of Ginevra De Benci was of a girl who exudes "not like other girls" energy. She spends the book talking about how smart she is while being profoundly stupid. I really hated it.