Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Gentlemen of the Road: A Tale of Adventure by Michael Chabon

1 review

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adventurous reflective fast-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? Yes

2.0

I really wanted to love this book, and I spent the first two thirds doing just that. The characters are wonderfully written, the setting (both immediate ad wider) is so well written out, the writing is beautiful, the pace and tone is wonderfully crafted. 

But then we get to the
Filaq is a girl
plot twist in front of everyone, and that's when things started to go downhill. I don't think this plot element inherently couldn't work. 
I think the groundwork laid by having Amram compare Filaq to his daughter does a lot of work there, and her preparation to pose as a boy the rest of her life is an interesting element.
But ultimately, there's not enough. We don't get enough about Filaq's thoughts and perspective on matters. We don't really know Filaq outside motivation. And the part where
Filaq is raped by the baddie was bad enough, but having Zelikman and Filaq have sex for basically no reason after that just felt awful and put such a bad taste in my mouth, especially with Amram having called Filaq a child through so much of it. And the specific note about Filaq "carrying the seed of a king" just felt even more unnecessary and gross.
I can't bring myself to give this book only one star, but those elements really ruined what is otherwise a wonderful story for me. 
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