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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Not Waters' best. The plot was rather dull (especially compared to Fingersmith) and the backwards time travel didn't really do it for me (how can you cultivate tension when you've already told the reader what's about to happen?). However, the characters and scenery were great and it does carry you off to another time.
I was disappointed with this. maybe I just don't like historical fiction. I found the story unappealing an had to force my way through the second half.
I listened to this book, which was maybe a mistake because it is so dang long, but I enjoyed it. Historical fiction set in England during the war, following a slew of intertwined characters, with a queer element to it: basically what Sarah Waters does best.
Recommend if you like historical fiction from this time period, or if you want more authentically queer characters in your books.
Recommend if you like historical fiction from this time period, or if you want more authentically queer characters in your books.
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Sarah Waters' books - usually. I struggled to get through a third of this book. I found the characters impossible to relate to, just a parade of unhappy people doing things that make them unhappy over and over again.
The reversed chronological order of the books was frustrating. I kept wishing for happy endings, knowing they wouldn't be. I found some of the threads interesting (the boy, and his time in prison, though the odd tense relationship he struck with others afterwards made me wish for more of the future instead of the past) while I disliked other characters (Kay and Helen) from the start, soing watching their relationship disintegrate *then* develop made me cross. The writing, the period detail, is still wonderful, but the story made me wish for more, and for different choices.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A very strong 4 stars, and I honestly think it would have been 5 had I read it at a different time. As it is, this just happened to be what I was reading as life stuff got in the way, which made for a strange mix of this book being so good and readable that I could still use it to distract myself (when I usually can't read during times of acute mental turmoil) but also not connecting fully because I was still somewhat distracted/dissociated. So maybe I will revisit this one day, but regardless I still really loved it. Sarah Waters is just so good at characters and pulling you into a specific setting. I am a bit sad I couldn't appreciate this fully but I am also glad I had it to keep me company the last few days. C'est la vie.
This is a story told in reverse. We begin in post-war London in 1947 where we are introduced to four characters, some of whom's lives are intertwined. With no background given, it feels like we are literally thrown into a story with lots of questions unanswered as to how the characters have arrived at where they are. The story ends and then in Part 2 we are taken three years back to 1944 where we discover a bit more and then in Part 3 it is 1941 and we learn even more.
I thought it was a really interesting structure and I enjoyed the individual stories and how they converge. Another great read by a favourite author.
I thought it was a really interesting structure and I enjoyed the individual stories and how they converge. Another great read by a favourite author.
Sarah Waters is slowly but surely becoming one of my favourite authors. Her writing just feels so compelling and even though all of her books are long, they never feel slow to me. The device of telling the story backwards worked really well for me, although the conclusion (beginning?) of Duncan’s story was a bit unsatisfying for me. Arguably, the 1941 section wasn’t exactly necessary, but I was still glad to spend some time with certain characters. I was expecting a sort of resolution chapter, but I actually quite liked being left in ambiguity. I also normal avoid war books, but I think this worked well because it focused on the everyday lives of people and how significantly it shook up everything. In particular, I feel Waters made the role of women in the workforce something that was matter of fact, instead of an insincere girlboss moment.
Reggie can die in a hole.
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes