Scan barcode
ameliatmoss's review against another edition
3.0
The characters were great and the story was interesting, but I felt like the men were just way more flushed out than the women. The main character is supposed to be this woman and I feel like the only characters who reach any sort of resolution are the men. Maybe that's just how it goes in the shtetl and I'm overthinking it.
ur_mother_779's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
oonawoodbury's review
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
RTC
girlglitch's review against another edition
5.0
The Slaughterman's Daughter is one of the only books I've ever read which truly merits comparison to War and Peace in its scope and masterful characterisation. This epic historical adventure is told with expertly curated chaos and plenty of dark humour.
I always find longer reads require commitment, and The Slaughterman's Daughter is no exception. However, the story never dragged – instead, the pages flew by. The patchwork storytelling crackles with life, the voices of each character bringing their world to life with nuance and vivacity. Every time I felt the narrative was going off on a tangent, it turned out to be perfectly weighted – a necessary detour. The meandering structure reminded me of literary greats such as Les Miserables, chaotic but always accessible. It's an incredibly difficult style to pull off, but Iczkovits has managed it.
The Slaughterman's Daughter is a wild ride from start to finish, a thoroughly enjoyable epic adventure.
Five stars to the cover too – that's a real work of art.
*Thank you to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review*
I always find longer reads require commitment, and The Slaughterman's Daughter is no exception. However, the story never dragged – instead, the pages flew by. The patchwork storytelling crackles with life, the voices of each character bringing their world to life with nuance and vivacity. Every time I felt the narrative was going off on a tangent, it turned out to be perfectly weighted – a necessary detour. The meandering structure reminded me of literary greats such as Les Miserables, chaotic but always accessible. It's an incredibly difficult style to pull off, but Iczkovits has managed it.
The Slaughterman's Daughter is a wild ride from start to finish, a thoroughly enjoyable epic adventure.
Five stars to the cover too – that's a real work of art.
*Thank you to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review*
joannakatarina's review
DNF after 350 pages (I tired really hard as I never DNF books, but this was a toxic relationship)
It was supposed to be a story about a woman, but actually, it's mostly about war and a love story between two guys (me thinking it was low key gay was the best thing about this book)
It was supposed to be a story about a woman, but actually, it's mostly about war and a love story between two guys (me thinking it was low key gay was the best thing about this book)
susanbonnieo's review
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
rose900's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC!
4 stars for this novel, it would be 5 except it's so densely packed.
I started this at the beginning of March and only finished it yesterday.
This book is beautifully written, and the characters compelling.
The story is fairly absurdist, to go with the times - in the late 19th century in Tsarist Russia, a woman has been abandoned by her husband yet refuses to do what most abandoned women do and take out an ad in the paper asking for his return. Instead she struggles on with life and raising her two children, a slight smugness at her own self-sufficiency filling the void left by Zvi-Meir until she has a breakdown and buys a fancy cut of beef and a new dress.
The novel turns to an adventure when her sister, the eponymous slaughterman's daughter, abandons her own family in the night to track down the renegade husband, along with the help of a man who hasn't said a word in decades, all while chased by the Russian secret police, and armed with only a small knife strapped to her thigh.
Again, the book is fairly dense since the author provides almost every side character with a full backstory.
It's a book that requires concentration, but it's worth it!
4 stars for this novel, it would be 5 except it's so densely packed.
I started this at the beginning of March and only finished it yesterday.
This book is beautifully written, and the characters compelling.
The story is fairly absurdist, to go with the times - in the late 19th century in Tsarist Russia, a woman has been abandoned by her husband yet refuses to do what most abandoned women do and take out an ad in the paper asking for his return. Instead she struggles on with life and raising her two children, a slight smugness at her own self-sufficiency filling the void left by Zvi-Meir until she has a breakdown and buys a fancy cut of beef and a new dress.
The novel turns to an adventure when her sister, the eponymous slaughterman's daughter, abandons her own family in the night to track down the renegade husband, along with the help of a man who hasn't said a word in decades, all while chased by the Russian secret police, and armed with only a small knife strapped to her thigh.
Again, the book is fairly dense since the author provides almost every side character with a full backstory.
It's a book that requires concentration, but it's worth it!
charlottethebookharlot's review against another edition
4.0
During the final years of the Russian Empire the townspeople of Motal live ordinary lives but when Fanny's sister's husband disappears from the village it sets about a chain of events that have not been seen before.
Fanny was such a strong character that I couldn't put the book down until I knew where her story would end. A unique and truly epic and gripping tale that I loved.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review
Fanny was such a strong character that I couldn't put the book down until I knew where her story would end. A unique and truly epic and gripping tale that I loved.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review
kybrz's review
5.0
Wowser, what a tremendous book. The Coen Brothers blurb is spot-on. Really enjoyable to read this a couple months after finishing War & Peace. Take a classic Russian historical epic, spruce it up with the darkest of humor and let simmer.