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4.36 AVERAGE
4.36 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-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:
No
A masterpiece. Couldn’t be more grateful to have read this book. Incredible writing and weaving together of generational story lines. Rated slightly below 5 because it was a bit slow in the middle section. That said, the background on each character made the ending more satisfying. Learned so much I never knew
Moving. Breathtaking. Heartbreaking. A literal work of art. One of my favorites and a story I will revisit for the rest of my life.
A beautiful family-saga that spans generations, exploring the struggles and successes of Koreans and their relationship with Japan. The characters are well developed and as a reader I felt like I was along for the ride with all of their up's and down's, as well as life-changing events. The female characters are amazing; resilient, caring, smart and loving, and a major part of the novel is a love story between two unlikely people, a Korean girl and her Japanese lover, full of bittersweet romance. This book is long but it was necessary to really delve into the different eras of Korean/Japanese relations. I think this book is good for a reader who likes historical fiction, romance, and family drama - kind of reminded me of Colleen McCollough's The Thorn Birds. If that's what you like, I highly recommend!
Omg, what HAPPENED with this storyline? The first half of the book was FANTASTIC, a great setup with sympathetic characters in a social setting (Japanese occupation of Korea prior to WWII) that I was unfamiliar with. Then the author seems to need to hurry up and get to the present day, and details and years are glossed over with increasing sloppiness as the book goes on, introducing more minor characters at faster rates until the end of the book, in which the characters that were important to the narrative tension are largely absent. I was tolerant of that for a time, expecting it to become relevant, but by 3/4 of the way through, it was obvious that the author was just trying to force the story into the future and had forgotten where its heart was.
Spoiler: the illegitimate child, whose existence is the nexus of the storyline, commits suicide 3/4 of the way through and the narrative tension just evaporated. What a disappointment!
Spoiler: the illegitimate child, whose existence is the nexus of the storyline, commits suicide 3/4 of the way through and the narrative tension just evaporated. What a disappointment!
4/5 stars
Extremely well written and heartfelt. However, there was almost too much going on at points and that made it difficult to connect with characters.
Extremely well written and heartfelt. However, there was almost too much going on at points and that made it difficult to connect with characters.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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:
Yes
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes